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SCHMID Group NV (SHMD)
NASDAQ:SHMD
US Market

SCHMID Group NV (SHMD) Risk Analysis

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Public companies are required to disclose risks that can affect the business and impact the stock. These disclosures are known as “Risk Factors”. Companies disclose these risks in their yearly (Form 10-K), quarterly earnings (Form 10-Q), or “foreign private issuer” reports (Form 20-F). Risk factors show the challenges a company faces. Investors can consider the worst-case scenarios before making an investment. TipRanks’ Risk Analysis categorizes risks based on proprietary classification algorithms and machine learning.

SCHMID Group NV disclosed 94 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. SCHMID Group NV reported the most risks in the “Finance & Corporate” category.

Risk Overview Q4, 2023

Risk Distribution
94Risks
81% Finance & Corporate
11% Legal & Regulatory
5% Production
2% Ability to Sell
1% Tech & Innovation
0% Macro & Political
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
This chart displays the stock's most recent risk distribution according to category. TipRanks has identified 6 major categories: Finance & corporate, legal & regulatory, macro & political, production, tech & innovation, and ability to sell.

Risk Change Over Time

2022
Q4
S&P500 Average
Sector Average
Risks removed
Risks added
Risks changed
SCHMID Group NV Risk Factors
New Risk (0)
Risk Changed (0)
Risk Removed (0)
No changes from previous report
The chart shows the number of risks a company has disclosed. You can compare this to the sector average or S&P 500 average.

The quarters shown in the chart are according to the calendar year (January to December). Businesses set their own financial calendar, known as a fiscal year. For example, Walmart ends their financial year at the end of January to accommodate the holiday season.

Risk Highlights Q4, 2023

Main Risk Category
Finance & Corporate
With 76 Risks
Finance & Corporate
With 76 Risks
Number of Disclosed Risks
94
+4
From last report
S&P 500 Average: 32
94
+4
From last report
S&P 500 Average: 32
Recent Changes
12Risks added
8Risks removed
9Risks changed
Since Dec 2023
12Risks added
8Risks removed
9Risks changed
Since Dec 2023
Number of Risk Changed
9
+9
From last report
S&P 500 Average: 4
9
+9
From last report
S&P 500 Average: 4
See the risk highlights of SCHMID Group NV in the last period.

Risk Word Cloud

The most common phrases about risk factors from the most recent report. Larger texts indicate more widely used phrases.

Risk Factors Full Breakdown - Total Risks 94

Finance & Corporate
Total Risks: 76/94 (81%)Above Sector Average
Share Price & Shareholder Rights52 | 55.3%
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 1
Added
Our officers and directors may not have significant experience or knowledge regarding the jurisdiction or industry of the target business we may seek to acquire.
We may consummate a business combination with a target business in any geographic location or industry we choose. We cannot assure you that our officers and directors will have enough experience or have sufficient knowledge relating to the jurisdiction of the target or its industry to make an informed decision regarding a business combination. 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 could have a negative impact on our ability to consummate a business combination. Our officers and directors will not commit their full time to our affairs. We presently expect each of our officers and directors to devote such amount of time as they reasonably believe is necessary to our business thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the consummation of our initial business combination. The foregoing could have a negative impact on our ability to consummate our initial business combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 2
Added
In connection with any vote to approve a business combination, we will offer each public shareholder the option to vote in favor of a proposed business combination and still seek redemption of his, her or its shares. We may also require shareholders who wish to redeem their shares in connection with a proposed business combination to comply with specific requirements for redemption that may make it more difficult for them to exercise their redemption rights prior to the deadline for exercising their rights.
In connection with any shareholder meeting called to approve a proposed initial business combination, each public shareholder will have the right, regardless of whether it is voting for or against such proposed business combination or does not vote at all, to demand that we redeem his or her shares into a pro rata share of the trust account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination. We may require public shareholders who wish to redeem their shares in connection with a proposed business combination to either (i) tender their certificates to our transfer agent or (ii) deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using the Depository Trust Company's DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holders' option, in each case prior to a date set forth in the proxy materials sent in connection with the proposal to approve the business combination. In order to obtain a physical stock certificate, a shareholder's broker and/or clearing broker, DTC and our transfer agent will need to act to facilitate this request. It is our understanding that shareholders should generally allot at least two weeks to obtain physical certificates from the transfer agent. However, because we do not have any control over this process or over the brokers or DTC, it may take significantly longer than two weeks to obtain a physical stock certificate. While we have been advised that it takes a short time to deliver shares through the DWAC System, we cannot assure you of this fact. Accordingly, if it takes longer than we anticipate for shareholders to deliver their shares, shareholders who wish to redeem may be unable to meet the deadline for exercising their redemption rights and thus may be unable to redeem their shares. If, in connection with any shareholder meeting called to approve a proposed business combination, we require public shareholders who wish to redeem their shares to comply with specific requirements for redemption, such redeeming shareholders may be unable to sell their securities when they wish to in the event that the proposed business combination is not approved. If we require public shareholders who wish to redeem their shares to comply with specific requirements for redemption and such proposed business combination is not consummated, we will promptly return such certificates to the tendering public shareholders. Accordingly, investors who attempted to redeem their shares in such a circumstance will be unable to sell their securities after the failed acquisition until we have returned their securities to them. The market price for our shares may decline during this time and you may not be able to sell your securities when you wish to, even while other shareholders that did not seek redemption may be able to sell their securities.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 3
Added
The exercise by our board of directors of discretion in agreeing to changes or waivers in the terms of the business combination may result in a conflict of interest when determining whether such changes to the terms of the business combination or waivers of conditions are appropriate and in the best interests of our shareholders.
In the period leading up to the closing of the Business Combination, events may occur that, pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement, would require us to agree to amend the Business Combination Agreement, to consent to certain actions taken by Schmid, or to waive rights that we are entitled to under the Business Combination Agreement. Such events could arise because of changes in the course of Schmid's business, a request by Schmid to undertake actions that would otherwise be prohibited by the terms of the Business Combination Agreement, or the occurrence of other events that would have a material adverse effect on Schmid's business and would entitle us to terminate the Business Combination Agreement. In any such circumstances, it would be at our discretion, acting through our board of directors, to grant its consent or waive those rights. The existence of the financial and personal interests of our officers and directors described in the preceding risk factors may result in a conflict of interest on the part of one or more of the directors between what they may believe is best for us and what we may believe is best for ourselves in determining whether or not to take the requested action.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 4
Added
Our current shareholders will experience immediate dilution as a consequence of the issuance of shares in TopCo as consideration in the Business Combination. Having a minority share position may reduce the influence that our public shareholders have on the management of TopCo following the Business Combination.
After the Business Combination, assuming low redemptions of shares in the Company for cash, our current public shareholders will own approximately 17.6% of TopCo, our Sponsor will own approximately 7.0% of TopCo, the shareholder, XJ Harbour JK Limited, will own approximately 3.5% of TopCo and the Schmid Shareholders will own approximately 71.9% of TopCo. The minority position of our former shareholders will give them limited influence over the management and operations of TopCo following the Business Combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 5
Added
We may issue our shares to investors in connection with our initial business combination at a price that is less than the prevailing market price of our shares at that time.
In connection with our initial business combination, we may issue shares to investors in private placement transactions as part of certain non-redemption agreements that we enter. The purpose of such private placement transactions will be to allow new investors to join as shareholders of the Company prior to the Closing.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 6
Changed
Certain provisions of our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association 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 shareholders holding a majority of not less than two-thirds of our issued and outstanding shares which, being so entitled, are voted thereon in person or by proxy at a quorate general meeting of the company, 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 memorandum and articles of association and the trust agreement to facilitate the completion of an initial business combination that some of our shareholders may not support.
Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter that prohibits the amendment of certain of its provisions, including those which relate to a company's pre-business combination activity, without approval by holders of a certain percentage of the company's shares. In those companies, amendment of these provisions typically requires approval by holders holding between 90% and 100% of the company's public shares. Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that any of its provisions, including those related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of private placement warrants into the trust account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances), may be amended if approved by shareholders holding a majority of not less than two-thirds of our issued and outstanding shares which, being so entitled, are voted thereon in person or by proxy at a quorate general meeting of the Company or a unanimous written resolution of all of our shareholders entitled to vote at a general meeting of the Company, and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account may be amended if approved by holders of 65% of our ordinary shares (other than amendments relating to provisions governing the appointment or removal of directors prior to our initial business combination, which require the approval of holders of at least 90% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares attending and voting at a quorate general meeting of the Company or a unanimous written resolution of all of our shareholders entitled to vote at a general meeting of the company). Our initial shareholders and anchor investors, who collectively beneficially owned 20% of our ordinary shares upon the closing of our initial public offering, may participate in any vote to amend our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association 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 third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association which govern our pre-business combination behavior more easily than some other blank check companies, and this may increase our ability to complete our initial business combination with which public shareholders do not agree. In certain circumstances, our shareholders may pursue remedies against us for any breach of our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 7
Changed
Provisions in our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Class A ordinary shares and could entrench management.
Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association contain provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that shareholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions include two-year director terms and the ability of the board of directors to designate the terms of and issue new series of preference shares, 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 8
Changed
In order to effectuate an initial business combination, blank check companies have, in the past, amended various provisions of their charters and modified governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. There can be no assurance that we will not seek to further amend our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association or governing instruments in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination that some of our shareholders may not support.
In order to effectuate an initial business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and modified governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. For example, blank check companies have amended the definition of business combination, increased redemption thresholds and extended the time to consummate an initial business combination 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 third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association requires at least a special resolution of our shareholders as a matter of Cayman Islands law. A resolution is deemed to be a special resolution as a matter of Cayman Islands law where it has been approved by either (1) holders of not less than two-thirds (or any higher threshold specified in a company's articles of association) of the votes which are cast by those of the company's shareholders who, being so entitled, attend and vote in person or by proxy at a quorate general meeting of the relevant company for which notice specifying the intention to propose the resolution as a special resolution has been given or (2) if so authorized by a company's articles of association, by a unanimous written resolution of all of the company's shareholders entitled to vote at a general meeting of the relevant company. Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that special resolutions must be approved either by shareholders holding a majority of not less than two-thirds of our issued and outstanding shares which, being so entitled, are voted thereon in person or by proxy at a quorate general meeting of the company (i.e., the lowest threshold permissible under Cayman Islands law) (other than amendments relating to provisions governing the appointment or removal of directors prior to our initial business combination, which require the approval of holders of at least 90% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares attending and voting at a quorate general meeting of the company), or by a unanimous written resolution of all of our shareholders entitled to vote at a general meeting of the company. The Warrant Agreement provides that (a) the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder for the purpose of (i) curing any ambiguity or correct any mistake, including to conform the provisions of the Warrant Agreement to the description of the terms of the warrants and the Warrant Agreement set forth in in the prospectus for our initial public offering, or defective provision or (ii) adding or changing any provisions with respect to matters or questions arising under the warrant agreement as the parties to the warrant agreement may deem necessary or desirable and that the parties deem to not adversely affect the rights of the registered holders of the warrants under the Warrant Agreement and (b) all other modifications or amendments require the vote or written consent of at least 65% of the then outstanding public warrants; provided that any amendment that solely affects the terms of the private placement warrants or any provision of the Warrant Agreement solely with respect to the private placement warrants will also require at least 65% of the then outstanding private placement warrants. There can be no assurance that we will not seek to further amend our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association or governing instruments, including the Warrant Agreement, or extend the time to consummate an initial business combination in order to effectuate our initial business combination. To the extent any of such amendments would be deemed to fundamentally change the nature of any of the securities offered in our initial public offering, we would register, or seek an exemption from registration for, the affected securities.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 9
Changed
Our initial shareholders, directors and officers have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, and the anchor investors have agreed to vote any founder shares held by them in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public shareholders vote.
Unlike some other blank check companies in which the initial shareholders agree to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by the public shareholders in connection with an initial business combination, our initial shareholders, directors and officers have agreed (and their permitted transferees will agree), pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, to vote their founder shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. Each of our anchor investors have also agreed to vote any founder shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. We expect that our initial shareholders and the anchor investors and their permitted transferees will own at least 20% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares at the time of any such shareholder vote. Accordingly, it is more likely that the necessary shareholder approval will be received than would be the case if such persons agreed to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by our public shareholders.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 10
If we have not completed our initial business combination within the allotted time period, our public shareholders may be forced to wait beyond such allotted time period before redemption from our trust account.
If we have not completed our initial business combination by April 30, 2024 or during any Extension Period, if applicable, we will distribute the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses and which interest shall be net of taxes payable), pro rata to our public shareholders by way of redemption and cease all operations except for the purposes of winding up of our affairs, as further described herein. Any redemption of public shareholders from the trust account shall be effected automatically by function of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association prior to any voluntary winding up. If we are required to windup, liquidate the trust account and distribute such amount therein, pro rata, to our public shareholders, as part of any liquidation process, such winding up, liquidation and distribution must comply with the applicable provisions of the Companies Act. In that case, investors may be forced to wait beyond the allotted time period 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, prior thereto, we consummate our initial business combination or amend certain provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and then only in cases where investors have properly sought to redeem their Class A ordinary shares. Only upon our redemption or any liquidation will public shareholders be entitled to distributions if we have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period and do not amend certain provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association prior thereto.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 11
We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame, 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 shareholders may receive only $10.10 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that we must complete our initial business combination by April 30, 2024 or during any Extension Period. We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period. Our ability to complete our initial business combination may be negatively impacted by general market conditions, inflation, volatility in the capital and debt markets and the other risks described herein, including as a result of terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of infectious diseases. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (1) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (2) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than 10 business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses and which interest shall be net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders' rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (3) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. In such case, our public shareholders may receive only $10.10 per share, or less than $10.10 per share, on the redemption of their shares, and our warrants will expire worthless. 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 shareholders may be less than $10.10 per share" and other risk factors herein. In addition, investors may be forced to wait beyond the allotted time period 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, prior thereto, we consummate our initial business combination or amend certain provisions of our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and then only in cases where investors have properly sought to redeem their Class A ordinary shares. Only upon our redemption or any liquidation will public shareholders be entitled to distributions if we have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period and do not amend certain provisions of our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association prior thereto.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 12
The ability of our public shareholders 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 shareholders 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 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, 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 is 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 third-party financing. Raising additional third-party financing may involve dilutive equity issuances or the incurrence of indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. Furthermore, this dilution would increase to the extent that the anti-dilution provision of the Class B ordinary shares results in the issuance of Class A ordinary shares on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the Class B ordinary shares at the time of our initial business combination. The above considerations may limit our ability to complete the most desirable business combination available to us or optimize our capital structure.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 13
The ability of our public shareholders 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 shareholders 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. The amount of the deferred underwriting commissions payable to the underwriters will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with a business combination and such amount of deferred underwriting discount is not available for us to use as consideration in an initial business combination. If we are able to consummate an initial business combination, the per-share value of shares held by non-redeeming shareholders will reflect our obligation to pay the deferred underwriting commissions. 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 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of deferred underwriting commissions following such redemptions, or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement that 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 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of deferred underwriting commissions 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 14
If we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination, our Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or any of their respective affiliates may elect to purchase shares or warrants from public shareholders, which may influence a vote on a proposed business combination and reduce the public "float" of our securities.
If we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination, our Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or any of 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. Any such price per share may be different than the amount per share a public shareholder would receive if it elected to redeem its shares in connection with our initial business combination. Additionally, at any time at or prior to our initial business combination, subject to applicable securities laws (including with respect to material nonpublic information), our Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or any of their respective affiliates may enter into transactions with investors and others to provide them with incentives to acquire public shares, vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or not redeem their public shares. However, our Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or any of their respective affiliates are under no obligation or duty to do so and 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 public shares or public warrants in such transactions. The purpose of such purchases of public shares could be to vote such shares in favor of our initial business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining shareholder approval of our initial business combination or to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target business 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. This 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. In addition, if such purchases are made, the public "float" of our securities 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 15
If a shareholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.
We will comply with the tender offer rules or proxy rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our initial business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a shareholder fails to receive our tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, such shareholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, proxy materials or tender offer documents, 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 tender or redeem public shares, which may include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself. For example, we may require our public shareholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in "street name," to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the initial vote on the proposal to approve the initial business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically. In the event that a shareholder fails to comply with these or any other procedures, its shares may not be redeemed.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 16
Public shareholders are not entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.
Since the net proceeds of our initial public 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 had net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 upon the successful completion of the initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants and we have filed with the SEC 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 are afforded the benefits or protections of those rules. Among other things, this means our units are tradable and we have a longer period of time to complete our initial business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419. Moreover, if the initial public 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 17
If we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if a public shareholder or a "group" of public shareholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our Class A ordinary shares, a public shareholder will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our Class A ordinary shares.
We intend to seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination with Schmid. If we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that a public shareholder, together with any affiliate of such public shareholder or any other person with whom such public shareholder is acting in concert or as a "group" (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in the initial public offering without our prior consent, which we refer to as the "Excess Shares." However, we would not be restricting our shareholders' ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. A public shareholder's inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce its influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination and such public shareholder could suffer a material loss on its investment in us if such public shareholder sells Excess Shares in open market transactions. Additionally, a public shareholder will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our initial business combination. And as a result, such public shareholders will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell its stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 18
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 shareholders may be less than $10.10 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 auditors), 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 shareholders, 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 enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver only 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 we are 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 our initial business combination within the required time period, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to provide for payment of claims of creditors that were not waived that may be brought against us within the 10 years following redemption. Accordingly, the per-share redemption amount received by public shareholders could be less than the $10.10 per public share initially held in the trust account, due to claims of such creditors. Pursuant to the letter agreement, which is filed as Exhibit 10.2 to this Annual Report, 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 auditors) for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (1) $10.10 per public share or (2) 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 the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public 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. 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. Our Sponsor may not have sufficient funds available to satisfy those obligations. We have not asked our Sponsor to reserve for such obligations, and therefore, no funds are currently set aside to cover any such 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 $10.10 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and a public shareholder would receive such lesser amount per public share in connection with any redemption of its public shares. None of our directors, officers or members of our Sponsor will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 19
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 shareholders.
In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.10 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 $10.10 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 taxes, 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, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. 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 shareholders may be reduced below $10.10 per share.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 20
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public shareholders, we file a winding-up or bankruptcy petition or an involuntary winding-up or bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, a bankruptcy 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 shareholders, we file a winding-up or bankruptcy petition or an involuntary winding-up or bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by shareholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or insolvency laws as a voidable performance or preference. As a result, a liquidator could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our shareholders. 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 by paying public shareholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 21
If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public shareholders, we file a winding-up or bankruptcy petition or an involuntary winding-up or bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the claims of creditors in such proceeding may have priority over the claims of our shareholders and the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our shareholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public shareholders, we file a winding-up or bankruptcy petition or an involuntary winding-up or bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable insolvency law, and may be included in our liquidation estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our shareholders. To the extent any liquidation claims deplete the trust account, the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our shareholders in connection with our liquidation would be reduced.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 22
Our shareholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.
If we are forced to enter into an insolvent liquidation, any distributions received by shareholders could be viewed as an unlawful payment if it was proved that immediately following the date on which the distribution was made, we were unable to pay our debts as they fall due in the ordinary course of business. As a result, a liquidator could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our shareholders. Furthermore, our directors may be viewed as having breached their fiduciary duties to us or our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, and thereby exposing themselves and our company to claims, by paying public shareholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. There can be no assurance that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons. We and our directors and officers who knowingly and willfully authorized or permitted any distribution to be paid out of our share premium account while we were unable to pay our debts as they fall due in the ordinary course of business would be guilty of an offence and may be liable for a fine of up to approximately $18,300 and to imprisonment for up to five years in the Cayman Islands.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 23
If a warrant holder exercises its public warrants on a "cashless basis," such holder will receive fewer Class A ordinary shares from such exercise than if such holder were to exercise such warrants for cash.
The Warrant Agreement provides that in the following circumstances holders of warrants who seek to exercise their warrants will not be permitted to do for cash and will, instead, be required to do so on a cashless basis in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act: (i) if the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act in accordance with the terms of the Warrant Agreement; and (ii) if we have so elected and the Class A ordinary shares is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of "covered securities" under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act. If a warrant holder exercises its public warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances described in clauses (i) and (ii) in the preceding sentence, such holder would pay the warrant exercise price by surrendering the warrants for that number of Class A ordinary shares equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of Class A ordinary shares underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the "fair market value" of our Class A ordinary shares (as defined in the next sentence) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value. The "fair market value" is the average reported closing price of the Class A ordinary shares for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of exercise is received by the warrant agent or on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants, as applicable. As a result, a warrant holder would receive fewer Class A ordinary shares from such exercise than if such holder were to exercise such warrants for cash. For example, if the holder is exercising 875 public warrants at $11.50 per share through a cashless exercise when our Class A ordinary shares 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 Class A ordinary shares. The holder would have received 875 Class A ordinary shares 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 Class A ordinary shares upon a cashless exercise of the warrants they hold.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 24
The grant of registration rights to our initial shareholders and anchor investors and their permitted transferees 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 our Class A ordinary shares.
Pursuant to an agreement entered into in connection with our initial public offering, at or after the time of our initial business combination, our initial shareholders and anchor investors and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the resale of their founder shares after those shares convert to our Class A ordinary shares. In addition, our Sponsor and its permitted transferees can demand that we register the resale of the private placement warrants and the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants, and holders of warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans may demand that we register the resale of such warrants or the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of such warrants. We will bear the cost of registering these securities. 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 ordinary shares. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the shareholders of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity following a business combination or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our Class A ordinary shares that is expected when the ordinary shares owned by our initial shareholders and anchor investors or their permitted transferees, our private placement warrants or warrants issued in connection with working capital loans are registered for resale.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 25
We may issue additional Class A ordinary shares or preference shares 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 ordinary shares upon the conversion of the Class B ordinary 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 memorandum and articles of association. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our shareholders and likely present other risks.
Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association authorize the issuance of up to 200,000,000 Class A ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share, 20,000,000 Class B ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share, and 2,000,000 preference shares, par value $0.0001 per share. As of March 28, 2024, there were 156,500,000 and 14,375,000 authorized but unissued Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares, respectively, available for issuance, which amount takes into account shares reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding warrants but not upon conversion of the Class B ordinary shares. Class B ordinary shares are convertible into Class A ordinary shares, initially at a one-for-one ratio but subject to adjustment as set forth herein. As of the date of this Annual Report, there were no preference shares issued and outstanding. We may issue a substantial number of additional Class A ordinary shares, and may issue preference shares, in order 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 ordinary shares to redeem the warrants as described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report or upon conversion of the Class B ordinary 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 memorandum and articles of association. However, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide, among other things, that prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares that would entitle the holders thereof to (1) receive funds from the trust account or (2) vote as a class with our public shares on any initial business combination. The issuance of additional ordinary shares or preference shares: - may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in our initial public offering, which dilution would increase if the anti-dilution provisions in the Class B ordinary shares resulted in the issuance of Class A ordinary shares on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the Class B ordinary shares;- may subordinate the rights of holders of ordinary shares if preference shares are issued with rights senior to those afforded our ordinary shares;- could cause a change of control if a substantial number of our ordinary shares 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 directors and officers;- 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;- may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, ordinary shares and/or warrants; and - may not result in adjustment to the exercise price of our warrants.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 26
Unlike many other similarly structured blank check companies, our initial shareholders will receive additional Class A ordinary shares if we issue shares to consummate an initial business combination.
The founder shares will automatically convert into Class A ordinary shares at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holders, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as described in Exhibit 4.1 to this Annual Report and provided in our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association. In the case that additional Class A ordinary shares, or equity-linked securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Class A ordinary shares, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts offered in the initial public offering related to the closing of the initial business combination, the ratio at which founder shares shall convert into Class A ordinary shares (subject to adjustment as described in Exhibit 4.1 to this Annual Report and provided in our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association) so that the number of Class A ordinary shares 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 all outstanding ordinary shares upon completion of the initial public offering, plus (ii) all Class A ordinary shares and equity-linked securities issued, or deemed issued in connection with the initial business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the business combination, and any private placement-equivalent warrants issued to the Sponsor or its affiliates upon conversion of loans made to us). This is different from most other similarly structured blank check companies in which the initial shareholder will only be issued an aggregate of 20% of the total number of shares to be outstanding prior to the initial business combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 27
We may engage the underwriters or one of their affiliates to provide additional services to us after our initial public 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 commissions that will be released from the trust account 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 our initial public offering, including, for example, in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.
We may engage the underwriters or one of their affiliates to provide additional services to us after our initial public 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 the underwriters or their affiliates fair and reasonable fees or other compensation that would be determined at that time in an arm's length negotiation. The underwriters are entitled to receive deferred commissions that are conditioned on the completion of an initial 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 28
Since our initial shareholders will lose their entire investment in us if our initial business combination is not completed, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
On April 16, 2021, our Sponsor subscribed for an aggregate of 5,750,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per share. Upon the closing of the initial public offering, the anchor investors purchased 1,375,000 founder shares from our Sponsor at their original purchase price of approximately $0.004 per share. On November 4, 2021, our Sponsor transferred an aggregate of 843,750 founder shares to each of Florian Wolf, Steve Norris, Jeff Foster and John Doherty, our independent directors, and Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Sir Ralf Speth FRS FrEng KBE, F. Jeremey Mistry and Dr. Stefan Berger, our officers. Our initial shareholders collectively owned 20% of our issued and outstanding shares after our initial public offering. The founder shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our Sponsor has purchased an aggregate of 9,750,000 private placement warrants, each exercisable for one Class A ordinary share, for a purchase price of $9,750,000 in the aggregate, or $1.00 per private placement warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination. Each private placement warrant may be exercised for one Class A ordinary share at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein. The founder shares are identical to the Class A ordinary shares included in the units sold in our initial public offering except that: (1) prior to our initial business combination, only holders of the founder shares have the right to vote on the appointment of directors and holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason; (2) the founder shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions; (3) our initial shareholders, directors, officers and advisors have entered into a letter agreement with us pursuant to which they have agreed to waive: (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and public shares held by them, as applicable, in connection with the completion of our initial business combination; (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and public shares held by them in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (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 by April 30, 2024 or during any Extension Period or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to the rights of holders of our Class A ordinary shares; and (iii) their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination by April 30, 2024 or during any Extension Period (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 initial business combination within the prescribed time frame); (4) each of our anchor investors has entered into an investment agreement with us pursuant to which they have agreed that any founder shares held by them are (i) not entitled to redemption rights in connection with the completion of our initial business combination or in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and (ii) not entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares the anchor investor holds in the event we fail to complete our initial business combination by April 30, 2024 or during any Extension Period; (5) the founder shares will automatically convert into our Class A ordinary shares at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described in more detail below; and (6) the founder shares are entitled to registration rights. If we submit our initial business combination to our shareholders for a vote, our initial shareholders have agreed (and their permitted transferees will agree), pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, to vote their founder shares and any public shares held by them purchased during or after our initial public offering in favor of our initial business combination. Each of our anchor investors has agreed to vote any founder shares they hold in favor of our initial business combination. While we do not expect our board of directors to approve any amendment to or waiver of the letter agreement or registration rights agreement prior to our initial business combination, it may be possible that our board of directors, in exercising its business judgment and subject to its fiduciary duties, chooses to approve one or more amendments to or waivers of such agreements in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination. Any such amendments or waivers would not require approval from our shareholders, may result in the completion of our 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. The personal and financial interests of our Sponsor, directors and officers 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 April 30, 2024 nears, which is the deadline for the completion of our initial business combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 29
Since the anchor investors acquired certain of our founder shares from our Sponsor, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular target business is appropriate for our initial business combination.
Pursuant to the investment agreements between us, the Sponsor and each of the anchor investors, the anchor investors purchased from our Sponsor 1,375,000 founder shares at their original purchase price of approximately $0.004 per share. Accordingly, the anchor investors will share in any appreciation in the value of the founder shares above that nominal value, provided that we successfully complete a business combination. The anchor investors paid a significantly lower effective price than the $10.00 per Class A ordinary share other public shareholders paid in the initial public offering due to the anchor investors also purchasing founder shares for $0.004 per share. As a result, the anchor investors may have an incentive to vote any public shares they own in favor of a business combination, and, if a business combination is approved, they may make a substantial profit on such interest, even if the market price of our securities declines in value below the price to the public in our initial public offering and the business combination is not profitable for other public shareholders. In addition, as discussed above, if the anchor investors retain a substantial portion of their interests in our public shares and if the anchor investors vote those public shares in favor of a business combination, we will receive sufficient votes to approve the business combination, regardless of how any other public shareholder votes their shares. Public shareholders should consider the anchor investors' financial incentive to complete an initial business combination when evaluating whether to redeem their shares prior to or in connection with an initial business combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 30
There can be no assurance as to the number of units, Class A ordinary shares or Class B ordinary shares the anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination, and our initial shareholders and anchor investors will control a substantial interest in us and thus may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a shareholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.
There can be no assurance as to the number of units, Class A ordinary shares or Class B ordinary shares the anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination. In the event that the anchor investors purchase and hold all or a significant portion of the units for which they expressed an interest, these shareholders would have substantial control over us and be able to exercise significant influence over all matters requiring shareholder approval (although we have no knowledge of any affiliation or other agreement or arrangement, as to voting of our securities or otherwise, among any such persons). For example, in the event that the anchor investors purchased the full amount of units described in their respective expressions of interest, continue to hold such shares included in the units and vote such shares in favor of our initial business combination (although they are not contractually obligated to, their interest in our founder shares may provide an incentive for them to do so), we would not need any additional public shares included in the units sold in our initial public 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 shareholders with interests different from those of our Sponsor and the anchor investors. In addition, this potential significant concentration of share ownership may adversely affect the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares because investors often perceive disadvantages in owning shares in companies with principal shareholders, which could make it more difficult to complete a business combination with targets that would prefer to enter into a transaction with a special purpose acquisition company with less concentrated ownership.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 31
We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete a business combination with which a substantial majority of our shareholders do not agree.
Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association do 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 following such redemptions, or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement that 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 shareholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or any of their respective affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all public shares that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any public shares, and all public shares submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 32
Our initial shareholders will control the election of our board of directors until consummation of our initial business combination and will hold a substantial interest in us. As a result, they will appoint all of our directors prior to our initial business combination and may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring shareholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.
Upon the closing of our initial public offering, our initial shareholders owned 20% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares. Our Sponsor also has the ability to extend the time we will have to consummate an initial business combination by up to an additional six months. In addition, prior to our initial business combination, holders of the founder shares have the right to appoint all of our directors and may remove members of the board of directors for any reason. Holders of our public shares have no right to vote on the appointment or removal of directors during such time. These provisions of our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association may only be amended by a special resolution passed by holders of at least 90% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares attending and voting at a quorate general meeting of the Company or a unanimous written resolution of all of our shareholders entitled to vote at a general meeting of the Company. As a result, you will not have any influence over the appointment of directors prior to our initial business combination. Neither our initial shareholders nor, to our knowledge, any of our directors or officers, have any current intention to purchase additional securities. Factors that would be considered in making such additional purchases would include consideration of the current trading price of our Class A ordinary shares. In addition, as a result of their substantial ownership in the Company, our initial shareholders may exert a substantial influence on other actions requiring a shareholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support, including amendments to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and approval of major corporate transactions. If our initial shareholders purchase any Class A ordinary shares in the aftermarket or in privately negotiated transactions, this would increase their influence over these actions. Accordingly, our initial shareholders will exert significant influence over actions requiring a shareholder vote at least until the completion of our initial business combination.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 33
Because we must furnish our shareholders 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. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to U.S. GAAP or IFRS depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the 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 financial statements in time for us to disclose such financial statements in accordance with federal proxy or tender offer rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 34
After our initial business combination, it is possible that a majority of our directors and officers will live outside the United States and all or substantially all of our assets will be located outside the United States; therefore investors may not be able to enforce federal securities laws or their other legal rights.
It is possible that after our initial business combination, a majority of our directors and officers will reside outside of the United States and all or substantially all of our assets will be located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult, or in some cases not possible, for investors in the United States to enforce their legal rights, to effect service of process upon all of our directors or officers or to enforce judgments of United States courts predicated upon civil liabilities and criminal penalties on our directors and officers under United States laws.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 35
The exercise price for the public warrants is higher than in many similar blank check company offerings in the past, and, accordingly, the warrants are more likely to expire worthless.
The exercise price of the public warrants is higher than is typical in many similar blank check companies in the past. Historically, the exercise price of a warrant was generally a fraction of the purchase price of the units in the initial public offering. The exercise price for our public warrants is $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein. As a result, the warrants are more likely to expire worthless.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 36
We may redeem unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to holders, thereby making the warrants 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 last reported sale price of our Class A ordinary shares 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 adjustments to the number of shares issuable upon exercise or the exercise price of a warrant as described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report). Please see "Redeemable Warrants-Public Shareholders' Warrants-Redemption of warrants when the price per Class A ordinary share equals or exceeds $18.00." in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report. 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. As a result, we may redeem the warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the warrants. Redemption of the outstanding warrants could force a warrant holder (i) to exercise its warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so, (ii) to sell its warrants at the then-current market price when such warrant holder might otherwise wish to hold its warrants or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding warrants are called for redemption, is likely to be substantially less than the market value of the warrants. None of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us (except as described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report) so long as they are held by our Sponsor or its permitted transferees. 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 adjustments to the number of shares issuable upon exercise or the exercise price of a warrant as described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report). In such a case, the holders will be able to exercise their warrants prior to redemption for a number of Class A ordinary shares determined based on the redemption date and the fair market value of our Class A ordinary shares. Please see the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report. 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 ordinary shares received is capped at 0.361 Class A ordinary shares per warrant (subject to adjustment) irrespective of the remaining life of the warrants.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 37
Holders of warrants will not be permitted to exercise warrants unless we register and qualify the underlying Class A ordinary shares or certain exemptions are available.
If the issuance of the Class A ordinary shares upon exercise of the warrants is not registered, qualified or exempt from registration or qualification under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws, holders of warrants will not be entitled to exercise such warrants and such warrants 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 Class A ordinary shares included in the units. We have registered the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants in the registration statement in connection with our initial public offering because the warrants will become exercisable 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, which may be within one year of our initial public offering. However, because the warrants will be exercisable until their expiration date of up to five years after the completion of our initial business combination, in order to comply with the requirements of Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act following the consummation of our initial business combination, we have agreed that, as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days, after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to file a post-effective amendment to the registration statement or a new registration statement with the SEC covering the registration under the Securities Act of the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants and thereafter will use our commercially reasonable efforts to cause the same to become effective within 60 business days following our initial business combination and to maintain a current prospectus relating to the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. There can be no assurance 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 Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act, under the terms of the warrant agreement, holders of warrants who seek to exercise their warrants will not be permitted to do so for cash and, instead, will be required to do so on a cashless basis in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption. In no event will warrants 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, or an exemption from registration or qualification is available. If our Class A ordinary shares are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of "covered securities" under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, not permit holders of warrants who seek to exercise their warrants to do so for cash and, instead, require them to do so on a cashless basis in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act; in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement or register or qualify the shares underlying the warrants under applicable state securities laws, and in the event we do not so elect, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares underlying the warrants under applicable state securities 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 (other than upon a cashless exercise as described above) 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 38
Our warrants and founder shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A ordinary shares and make it more difficult to effectuate our initial business combination.
We have issued warrants to purchase 11,250,000 Class A ordinary shares, at a price of $11.50 per whole share (subject to adjustment as provided herein), as part of the units offered in our initial public offering and, simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering (including the closing of the partial exercise of the Over-Allotment Option), we have issued in a private placement an aggregate of 9,750,000 private placement warrants, each exercisable to purchase one Class A ordinary share at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein. Our initial shareholders and anchor investors currently hold 5,625,000 Class B ordinary shares. The Class B ordinary shares are convertible into Class A ordinary shares on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as set forth herein. In addition, if our sponsor, an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our directors and officers make 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. To the extent we issue Class A ordinary shares to effectuate a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional Class A ordinary shares upon exercise of these warrants or conversion rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle to a target business. Any such issuance will increase the number of issued and outstanding Class A ordinary shares and reduce the value of the Class A ordinary shares issued to complete the business combination. Therefore, our warrants and founder shares may make it more difficult to effectuate a business combination 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 our initial public offering except that, so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees: (1) they will not be redeemable by us (except as described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report); (2) they (including the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of these warrants) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by our sponsor until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination; (3) they may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis; and (4) they (including the ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of these warrants) are entitled to registration rights.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 39
Because each unit contains one-half of one redeemable 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 redeemable warrant. Pursuant to the Warrant Agreement, no fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units, and only whole warrants will trade. This is different from other offerings similar to ours whose units include one ordinary share and one whole warrant to purchase one 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 half of the number of shares compared to units that each contain a whole warrant to purchase one whole share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive business combination partner for target businesses. Nevertheless, this unit structure may cause our units to be worth less than if they included a warrant to purchase one whole share.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 40
Our Warrant Agreement designates 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 provides 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 do not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum. 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. 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 our company, 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 and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time and resources of our management and board of directors.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 41
Because we are incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands, public shareholders may face difficulties in protecting their interests, and public shareholders ability to protect their rights through the U.S. Federal courts may be limited.
We are an exempted company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands. As a result, it may be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the United States upon our directors or officers, or enforce judgments obtained in the United States courts against our directors or officers. Our corporate affairs will be governed by our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, the Companies Act (as the same may be supplemented or amended from time to time) and the common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders to take action against the directors, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors to us under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law of the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the Cayman Islands as well as from English common law, the decisions of whose courts are of persuasive authority, but are not binding on a court in the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under Cayman Islands law are different from what they would be under statutes or judicial precedent in some jurisdictions in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a different body of securities laws as compared to the United States, and certain states, such as Delaware, may have more fully developed and judicially interpreted bodies of corporate law. In addition, Cayman Islands companies may not have standing to initiate a shareholders derivative action in a Federal court of the United States. We have been advised by Appleby, our Cayman Islands legal counsel, that the courts of the Cayman Islands are unlikely (1) to recognize or enforce against us judgments of courts of the United States predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state; and (2) in original actions brought in the Cayman Islands, to impose liabilities against us predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state, so far as the liabilities imposed by those provisions are penal in nature. Although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, the courts of the Cayman Islands will recognize and enforce a foreign money judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without retrial on the merits based on the principle that a judgment of a competent foreign court imposes upon the judgment debtor an obligation to pay the sum for which judgment has been given provided certain conditions are met. For a foreign judgment to be enforced in the Cayman Islands, such judgment must be final and conclusive and for a liquidated sum, and must not be in respect of taxes or a fine or penalty, inconsistent with a Cayman Islands judgment in respect of the same matter, impeachable on the grounds of fraud or obtained in a manner, or be of a kind the enforcement of which is, contrary to natural justice or the public policy of the Cayman Islands (awards of punitive or multiple damages may well be held to be contrary to public policy). A Cayman Islands court may stay enforcement proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere. As a result of all of the above, public shareholders may have more difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions taken by management, members of the board of directors or controlling shareholders than they would as public shareholders of a United States company.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 42
Certain of our directors and officers are now, and all of them may in the future become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.
Until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses or assets. Our sponsor and directors and officers are, or may in the future become, affiliated with entities that are engaged in a similar business. Our sponsor and directors and officers are also not prohibited from sponsoring, investing or otherwise becoming involved with, any other blank check companies, including in connection with their initial business combinations, prior to us completing our initial business combination. Moreover, certain of our directors and officers have time and attention requirements for investment funds of which affiliates of our sponsor are the investment managers. Our directors and officers also may become aware of business opportunities that may be appropriate for presentation to us and the other entities to which they owe certain fiduciary or contractual 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 other entities prior to its presentation to us, subject to his or her fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law. Our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, no individual serving as a director or an officer shall have any duty, except to the extent expressly assumed by contract, to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as us and 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 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 "Part III Item 10. Directors, Executive Officer and Corporate Governance – Conflicts of Interest."
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 43
Our directors, officers, 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 their respective 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. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours. In particular, affiliates of our sponsor have invested in industries as diverse as healthcare, education, financial services, artificial intelligence and social media. As a result, there may be substantial overlap between companies that would be a suitable business combination for us and companies that would make an attractive target for such other affiliates.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 44
Public shareholders will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. To liquidate an investment, therefore, a public shareholder may be forced to sell its public shares and/or warrants, potentially at a loss.
Our public shareholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earliest to occur of: (1) our completion of an initial business combination, and then only in connection with those Class A ordinary shares that such shareholder properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described herein; (2) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (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 by April 30, 2024 or during any Extension Period, subject to applicable law. In no other circumstances will a shareholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. Holders of warrants will not have any right to the proceeds held in the trust account with respect to the warrants. Accordingly, to liquidate its investment, an investor may be forced to sell its public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 45
The NYSE 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.
Our units, Class A ordinary shares and warrants are listed on the NYSE. There can be no assurance that our securities will continue to be listed on the NYSE in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on the NYSE prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and share price levels. Generally, we must maintain a minimum number of holders of our securities (generally 300 public shareholders). Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with the NYSE's initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than the NYSE's continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on the NYSE. For instance, in order for our Class A ordinary shares to be listed upon the consummation of our initial business combination, at such time, our share price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share, our global market capitalization would be required to be at least $200,000,000, the aggregate market value of publicly-held shares would be required to be at least $100,000,000 and we would be required to have at least 400 round lot holders. There can be no assurance that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time. If the NYSE delists any of our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list our securities on another national securities exchange, we expect such 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 ordinary shares are a "penny stock" which will require brokers trading in our Class A ordinary shares to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities;- 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 our units, Class A ordinary shares and warrants are listed on the NYSE, our units, Class A ordinary shares and warrants qualify as covered securities under such statute. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of covered 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 special purpose acquisition companies, 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 the NYSE, our securities would not qualify as covered securities under such statute and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 46
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 65% of the then outstanding public warrants.
Our warrants were issued in registered form under the Warrant Agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The Warrant Agreement provides that (a) the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder for the purpose of (i) curing any ambiguity or correct any mistake, including to conform the provisions of the Warrant Agreement to the description of the terms of the warrants and the Warrant Agreement set forth in the prospectus for our initial public offering, or defective provision or (ii) adding or changing any provisions with respect to matters or questions arising under the warrant agreement as the parties to the warrant agreement may deem necessary or desirable and that the parties deem to not adversely affect the rights of the registered holders of the warrants and (b) all other modifications or amendments require the vote or written consent of at least 65% of the then outstanding public warrants and, solely with respect to any amendment to the terms of the private placement warrants or any provision of the Warrant Agreement with respect to the private placement warrants, at least 65% 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 65% 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 65% 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, shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of ordinary shares purchasable upon exercise of a warrant.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 47
Our warrants are 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 ordinary shares or may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
We issued 11,250,000 public warrants as part of the units offered in our initial public offering and, simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering (including the closing of the partial exercise of the Over-Allotment Option), we issued in a private placement, 9,750,000 private placement warrants. Both the warrants comprising the units offered in our initial public offering and the private placement warrants are accounted for 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 and private warrants will be remeasured and the change in the fair value of the liability will be recorded as other income (expense) in our income statement. Changes in the inputs and assumptions for the valuation model we use to determine the fair value of such liability may have a material impact on the estimated fair value of the embedded derivative liability. The share price of our ordinary shares represents the primary underlying variable that impacts the value of the derivative instruments. Additional factors that impact the value of the derivative instruments include the volatility of our share price, discount rates and stated interest rates. As a result, our consolidated financial statements and results of operations will fluctuate quarterly, based on various factors, such as the share price of our ordinary shares, many of which are outside of our control. In addition, we may change the underlying assumptions used in our valuation model, which could in result in significant fluctuations in our results of operations. If our share price is volatile, we expect that we will recognize non-cash gains or losses on our warrants or any other similar derivative instruments each reporting period and that the amount of such gains or losses could be material. The impact of changes in fair value on earnings may have an adverse effect on the market price of our ordinary shares. In addition, potential targets may seek a 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 48
We are a recently formed company with limited operating history and limited revenues, and a public shareholder has no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a recently formed company with a limited history of operating results. Because we have a limited operating history, public shareholders have a limited 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 an initial business combination and may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we fail to complete our initial business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 49
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 or smaller reporting 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 shareholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our shareholders 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 ordinary shares held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the end of any second quarter of a fiscal year, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the end of such fiscal year. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we will 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 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 accounting 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 ordinary shares held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $250 million as of the end of that year's second fiscal quarter, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our ordinary shares held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the end of that year's second fiscal quarter. 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.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 50
Since only holders of our founder shares have the right to vote on the election of directors, the NYSE may consider us to be a ‘controlled company' within the meaning of the NYSE rules and, as a result, we may qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements.
Only holders of our founder shares have the right to vote on the election of directors. As a result, the NYSE may consider us to be a "controlled company" within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards. Under the NYSE 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 the NYSE;- 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 a nominating and corporate governance committee of our board that is comprised entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee's purpose and responsibilities. We do not intend to utilize these exemptions and intend to comply with the corporate governance requirements of the NYSE, subject to applicable phase-in rules. However, if we determine in the future to utilize some or all of these exemptions, public shareholders will not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 51
We may not hold an annual general meeting until after the consummation of our initial business combination. Our public shareholders will not have the right to elect or remove directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination.
In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual general meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. There is no requirement under the Companies Act for us to hold annual or general meetings to appoint directors. Until we hold an annual general meeting, public shareholders may not be afforded the opportunity to discuss company affairs with management. In addition, as holders of our Class A ordinary shares, our public shareholders will not have the right to vote on the appointment of directors prior to consummation of our initial business combination. In addition, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason.
Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 52
An investment in our units, ordinary shares or warrants may result in uncertain or adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences.
An investment in our units, Class A ordinary shares or warrants may result in uncertain U.S. federal income tax consequences. For instance, because there are no authorities that directly address instruments similar to the units issued in our initial public offering, the allocation an investor makes with respect to the purchase price of a unit between the Class A ordinary shares and the one-half of a warrant to purchase one Class A ordinary share included in each unit could be challenged by the IRS or courts. Furthermore, the U.S. federal income tax consequences of a cashless exercise of warrants included in the units we issued in our initial public offering are unclear under current law. Finally, it is unclear whether the redemption rights with respect to our ordinary shares suspend the running of a U.S. Holder's holding period for purposes of determining whether any gain or loss realized by such holder on the sale or exchange of Class A ordinary shares is long-term capital gain or loss and for determining whether any dividend we pay would be considered "qualified dividends" for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors with respect to these and other tax consequences when purchasing, holding or disposing of our securities.
Accounting & Financial Operations3 | 3.2%
Accounting & Financial Operations - Risk 1
Subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination, we may be required to subsequently 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 the price of our securities, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.
Even if we conduct extensive due diligence on a target business with which we combine, there can be no assurance that this diligence will identify all material issues that may be present 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 shareholder or warrant holder who chooses to remain a shareholder or warrant holder, respectively, following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such shareholders and warrant holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
Accounting & Financial Operations - Risk 2
We identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting and may identify additional material weaknesses in the future, or fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, which may result in material misstatements of our financial statements or cause us to fail to meet our periodic reporting obligations.
In connection with the audit of our financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2023, we identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting related to the incorrect presentation of net income (loss) per ordinary share within our financial statements. A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. Management, with oversight from the board of directors and the audit committee of the board of directors has implemented a remediation plan for this material weakness, including, among other things, additional post-closing review procedures including a review of the weighted average share outstanding and net income (loss) per ordinary shares calculation. We cannot be certain as to the timing of completion of our evaluation, testing, and remediation actions or their effect on our operations.
Accounting & Financial Operations - Risk 3
Added
Subsequent to the Closing, TopCo may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment, or other charges that could materially adversely affect its financial condition, results of operations and stock price, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.
We cannot assure you that the due diligence we conducted on Schmid revealed all material issues that may be present in Schmid, that it would uncover all material issues through customary due diligence, or that factors outside of our and Schmid's control will not later arise. As a result, Schmid may be forced to later write down or write off assets, restructure its operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in losses. Unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analyses. Even though these charges may be noncash items and not have an immediate impact on the liquidity of Schmid, the incurrence of charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about Schmid or its securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause TopCo to be unable to obtain future financing on favorable terms, or at all.
Debt & Financing5 | 5.3%
Debt & Financing - Risk 1
Changed
If the funds not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate until April 30, 2024, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
The funds available to us outside of the trust account may not be sufficient to allow us to operate until April 30, 2024 or through any Extension Period, assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. Of the funds available to us, we could 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 or merger agreements designed to keep target businesses from "shopping" around for transactions with other companies on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed initial business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent or other agreement 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 shareholders may receive only approximately $10.10 per share on the liquidation of the trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public shareholders may receive less than $10.10 per share upon our liquidation. If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to borrow funds from the Sponsor, our management team or other third parties to operate or may be forced to liquidate. None of the Sponsor, members of our management 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. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than the Sponsor or an affiliate of the 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 the 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 shareholders may only receive approximately $10.10 per share on our redemption of our public shares, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public shareholders may receive less than $10.10 per share on the redemption of their shares.
Debt & Financing - Risk 2
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 shareholders' investment in us.
Although we have no commitments as of the date of this Annual Report to issue any notes or other debt securities, or to otherwise incur outstanding debt, we may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our initial business combination. We 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;- 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 ordinary shares;- 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 ordinary shares if declared, expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions and 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, execution of our strategy and other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt.
Debt & Financing - Risk 3
We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy indemnification claims of our directors and officers.
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 (and any other persons who may become an officer or director prior to the initial business combination will also be required to waive) any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account and not to 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 consummate an initial business combination. Our obligation to indemnify our officers and directors may discourage shareholders 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 shareholders. Furthermore, a shareholder'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.
Debt & Financing - Risk 4
The securities in which we invest the proceeds held in the trust account could bear a negative rate of interest, which could reduce the interest income available for payment of taxes or reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per share redemption amount received by public shareholders may be less than $10.10 per share.
The net proceeds of our initial public offering and certain proceeds from the sale of the private placement warrants, in the amount of $50,081,776 (as of December 31, 2023), are held in an interest-bearing trust account. The proceeds held in the trust account may only be invested in direct U.S. government securities with a maturity of 185 days or less, or in certain money market funds which invest only in direct U.S. 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 of very low or negative yields, the amount of interest income (which we may withdraw to pay income taxes, if any) would be reduced. In the event that we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public shareholders are entitled to receive their share of the proceeds held in the trust account, plus any interest income. If the balance of the trust account is reduced as a result of negative interest rates, the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public shareholders may be reduced below $10.10 per share. On March 30, 2022, the SPAC Rule Proposal included a proposed rule that would provide SPACs a safe harbor from treatment as an investment company under the Investment Company Act if they satisfy certain conditions that limit a SPAC's duration, asset composition, business purpose and activities. Taking into account the proposed safe harbor rule, on October 12, 2023, we gave instructions to liquidate the assets held in trust, two money market funds comprised substantially of U.S. Treasury instruments, and reinvest the full proceeds into an interest-bearing direct deposit account with our custodian bank. The transfer was completed on October 16, 2023. The transfer was made ahead of the 24-month anniversary of the Company's initial public offering. As of October 16, 2023, $54,771,964 remained in the trust account and were held in an interest-bearing direct deposit account with our custodian bank. As a result, the interest earned from the reinvested assets held in trust may be lower than if we had not made the decision to liquidate the assets and reinvest the proceeds in a direct deposit account. Based on information received from the Company's custodian bank, the assets held in trust are yielding interest marginally below U.S. Treasury rates as of the end of October 2023.
Debt & Financing - Risk 5
If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination and we may depend on loans from our Sponsor or management team to fund our search, to pay our taxes and to complete our initial business combination.
Of the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, only $341,872 (as of December 31, 2023) is available to us outside the trust account to fund our working capital requirements. If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to borrow funds from our Sponsor, management team or other third parties to operate or may be forced to liquidate. Neither our Sponsor, members of our management team nor any of their respective affiliates is under any obligation to loan funds to, or otherwise invest in, us in such circumstances. Any such loans may be repaid only from funds held outside the trust account or from funds released to us upon completion of our initial business combination. If we have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. In such case, our public shareholders may receive only $10.10 per share, or less in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless. 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 shareholders may be less than $10.10 per share" and other risk factors herein.
Corporate Activity and Growth16 | 17.0%
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 1
Our management may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.
We may structure our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public shareholders own shares will own less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business, but we will complete such business combination only if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the issued and outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target business 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-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our shareholders 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 our initial business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new ordinary shares in exchange for all of the issued and outstanding capital stock, shares or other equity securities of a target, or issue a substantial number of new shares to third-parties in connection with financing our initial business combination. 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 ordinary shares, our shareholders immediately prior to such transaction could own less than a majority of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares subsequent to such transaction. In addition, other minority shareholders 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 our control of the target business.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 2
We may have limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may affect 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's management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities we suspected. Should the target'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 shareholder or warrant holder who chooses to remain a shareholder or warrant holder, respectively, following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such shareholders and warrant holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value. The directors and officers of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure 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.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 3
Past performance by our management team and their respective affiliates may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in the Company.
Information regarding performance by our management team and their respective affiliates, including StratCap, is presented for informational purposes only. Past performance by our management team and their respective affiliates is not a guarantee either (1) that we will be able to identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or (2) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. Public shareholders should not rely on the historical record of our management team or their respective affiliates, or any related investment's performance as indicative of our future performance of an investment in the company or the returns the company will, or is likely to, generate going forward. Further, our management team, directors and advisors, and their respective affiliates have had limited past experience with blank check and SPACs.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 4
A provision of our Warrant Agreement may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
Unlike some blank check companies, if (i)we issue additional ordinary shares 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 Class A ordinary share (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 sponsor or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the "Newly Issued Price"),(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 volume weighted average trading price of our Class A ordinary shares during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which we consummate 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 be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, the $18.00 per share redemption trigger price described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 per share redemption trigger price described in the Description of Securities exhibit filed as Exhibit 4.5 to this Annual Report will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price. This may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 5
If our management team pursues a 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 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 our management team pursues 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 market, 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 how relevant governments respond to such factors), including any of the following: - costs and difficulties inherent in managing cross-border business operations and complying with commercial and legal requirements of overseas markets;- rules and regulations regarding currency redemption;- complex corporate withholding taxes on individuals;- laws governing the manner in which future business combinations may be effected;- tariffs and trade barriers;- regulations related to customs and import/export matters;- longer payment cycles;- tax consequences, such as tax law changes, including termination or reduction of tax and other incentives that the applicable government provides to domestic companies, and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States;- currency fluctuations and exchange controls, including devaluations and other exchange rate movements;- rates of inflation, price instability and interest rate fluctuations;- liquidity of domestic capital and lending markets;- challenges in collecting accounts receivable;- cultural and language differences;- employment regulations;- energy shortages;- crime, strikes, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, wars and other forms of social instability;- deterioration of political relations with the United States;- obligatory military service by personnel; and - government appropriation of assets. We are currently operating in a period of economic uncertainty and capital markets disruption, which has been significantly impacted by geopolitical instability due among other things to the ongoing military conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict. Our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected by any negative impact on the global economy and capital markets resulting from events outside our control. The Israeli-Hamas conflict, Russian military actions and the resulting sanctions, the COVID-19 pandemic or future pandemics of infectious diseases, supply chain disruptions and rising or stagnant inflation rates have adversely affected and could continue to adversely affect the global economy and financial markets and lead to instability and lack of liquidity in capital markets, potentially making it more difficult for us to obtain additional funds if needed. Any of the above-mentioned factors could affect our business, prospects, financial condition, and operating results. The extent and duration of the military action, sanctions and resulting market disruptions are impossible to predict, but could be substantial. 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 combination or, if we complete such combination, our operations might suffer, either of which may adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 6
We may be able to complete only one business combination with the proceeds of our initial public 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.
The net proceeds from our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants provided us with $227,250,000 that we may use to complete our initial business combination (which includes $2,441,250 of deferred underwriting commissions being held in the trust account, and excludes a total of $1,640,821 of offering costs, including directors and officers insurance premiums of $891,167). 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 risks. 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.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 7
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. We do not, however, intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with 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 investigations (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.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 8
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. 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.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 9
We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses or assets that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our Sponsor, directors or officers which may raise potential conflicts of interest.
In light of the involvement of our Sponsor, directors and officers with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our Sponsor, directors and officers. Certain of our directors and officers also serve as officers and board members for other entities, including those described under "Part III Item 10. Directors, Executive Officer and Corporate Governance," entities may compete with us for business combination opportunities. Our Sponsor, directors and officers 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 preliminary discussions concerning a business combination with any such entity or entities. The Sponsor, our 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 preliminary discussions concerning an initial 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 and guidelines for a business combination and such transaction was approved by a majority of our independent and disinterested directors. Despite our agreement that we, or a committee of independent and disinterested directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or another valuation or appraisal firm that regularly renders fairness opinions on the type of target business we are seeking to acquire, regarding the fairness to the Company from a financial point of view of a business combination with one or more businesses or assets affiliated with our Sponsor, directors or officers, 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 shareholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 10
Changed
The requirement that we complete an initial business combination within the prescribed period of time may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination.
We have until April 30, 2024 to complete an initial business combination (unless we seek to further extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, which would require "shareholder" approval to further amend our third amended and restated memorandum and articles of association). Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware of this requirement. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete a business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete a business combination with any other target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the time limit referenced 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.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 11
Because of our special purpose acquisition company structure and 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 have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period, our public shareholders may receive only approximately $10.10 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on our redemption of their shares, 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 our initial public 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, in the event we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and we are obligated to pay cash for our Class A ordinary shares, it will potentially reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. Additionally, potential target companies may be less inclined to consummate a transaction with us because definitive documentation for such transaction will preclude any recourse against the trust account, meaning that potential counterparties may determine that they do not have adequate contractual remedies in the event a transaction fails to close. Any of these obligations may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. If we have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period, our public shareholders may receive only approximately $10.10 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. 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 shareholders may be less than $10.10 per share" and other risk factors herein.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 12
Added
If we determine to change our acquisition criteria or guidelines, many of the disclosures contained in this Form 10 - K would not be applicable and you would be investing in the Company without any basis on which to evaluate the potential target business we may acquire.
We could seek to deviate from the acquisition criteria or guidelines disclosed in this Annual Report although we have no current intention to do so. Accordingly, investors may be making an investment in the Company without any basis on which to evaluate the potential target business we may acquire. Regardless of whether or not we deviate from the acquisition criteria or guidelines in connection with any proposed business combination, investors will always be given the opportunity to redeem their shares in connection with any proposed business combination as described in this Annual Report.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 13
Changed
Although we obtained a fairness opinion in connection with the proposed Business Combination with Schmid, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or from an independent accounting firm in connection with an alternate transaction, and consequently, public shareholders may have no assurance from an independent source that the price we are paying for the business in connection with an alternate business combination is fair to the Company from a financial point of view.
We obtained a fairness opinion in connection with the proposed Business Combination with Schmid, a copy of which is filed as an annex to the registration statement on Form F-4 filed by the Company with the SEC and declared effective on March 28, 2024. If we do not complete the Business Combination with Schmid and instead pursue an alternate target, then, unless we complete our initial business combination with an affiliated entity or our board of directors cannot independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or an independent accounting firm that the price we are paying for the business in connection with a business combination is fair to our Company from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our shareholders 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 materials related to our initial business combination.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 14
Changed
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 COVID-19 pandemic, a future, similar pandemic and other events and the status of debt and equity markets.
The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected, and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases) could adversely affect economies and financial markets worldwide, business operations and the conduct of commerce generally. In addition, the business of any potential target business with which we consummate a business combination could be, or may already have been, materially and adversely affected by such events. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if concerns relating to COVID-19 or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases restrict travel, limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors or limit the ability to conduct due diligence, or the target company's personnel, vendors and services providers are unavailable to negotiate and consummate a transaction in a timely manner. The extent to which COVID-19 or a significant outbreak of another infectious disease impacts our search for a target company for our business combination or the completion of the Business Combination will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted. If the disruptions posed by COVID-19 or other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases) continue for an extensive period of time, our ability to consummate a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected. In addition, our ability to consummate a business combination may be dependent on the ability to raise equity and debt financing which may be impacted by COVID-19 and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases), including as a result of increased market volatility and decreased market liquidity and third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 15
Added
Resources could be spent researching acquisitions that are not consummated, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business.
It is anticipated 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 a decision is made not to complete a specific business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, even if an agreement is reached relating to a specific target business, we may fail to consummate the 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 have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period, our public shareholders may receive only approximately $10.10 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
Corporate Activity and Growth - Risk 16
Added
We anticipate that we will only be able to complete one business combination, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business.
We anticipate that we will consummate a business combination with a single target business. By consummating a business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous risks from 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, 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 risks from numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent to a business combination.
Legal & Regulatory
Total Risks: 10/94 (11%)Below Sector Average
Regulation7 | 7.4%
Regulation - Risk 1
We may reincorporate in another jurisdiction in connection with our initial business combination and such reincorporation may result in taxes imposed on shareholders.
We may, in connection with our initial business combination and subject to requisite shareholder approval under the Companies Act, reincorporate in the jurisdiction in which the target company or business is located or in another jurisdiction. The transaction may require a shareholder or warrant holder to recognize taxable income in the jurisdiction in which the shareholder or warrant holder is a tax resident or in which its members are resident if it is a tax transparent entity. We do not intend to make any cash distributions to shareholders or warrant holders to pay such taxes. Shareholders or warrant holders may be subject to withholding taxes or other taxes with respect to their ownership of us after the reincorporation.
Regulation - Risk 2
Added
Changes to laws or regulations or in how such laws or regulations are interpreted or applied, or a failure to comply with any laws, regulations, interpretations or applications, may adversely affect our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination.
We are subject to the laws and regulations, and interpretations and applications of such laws and regulations, of national, regional, state and local governments and, potentially, non-U.S. jurisdictions. In particular, we are required to comply with certain SEC and potentially other legal and regulatory requirements, and our consummation of an initial business combination may be contingent upon our ability to comply with certain laws, regulations, interpretations and applications and any post-business combination company may be subject to additional laws, regulations, interpretations and applications. Compliance with, and monitoring of, the foregoing 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, including our ability to negotiate and complete an initial business combination. 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 an initial business combination. The SEC has, in the past year, adopted certain rules and may, in the future adopt other rules, which may have a material effect on our activities and on our ability to consummate an initial business combination, including the SPAC Rule Proposal described below.
Regulation - Risk 3
Added
The SEC has issued proposed rules to regulate special purpose acquisition companies ("SPACs"). Certain of the procedures that we, a potential business combination target, or others may determine to undertake in connection with such proposals may increase our costs and the time needed to complete our initial business combination and may constrain the circumstances under which we could complete a business combination.
On March 30, 2022, the SEC issued proposed rules (the "SPAC Rule Proposal"), which included proposals relating to, among other items, disclosures in business combination transactions between SPACs such as us and private operating companies; the condensed financial statement requirements applicable to transactions involving shell companies; the use of projections by SPACs in SEC filings in connection with proposed business combination transactions; the potential liability of certain participants in proposed business combination transactions; and the extent to which SPACs could become subject to regulation under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Investment Company Act"), including a proposed rule that would provide SPACs a safe harbor from treatment as an investment company if they satisfy certain conditions that limit a SPAC's duration, asset composition, business purpose and activities. Taking into account the proposed safe harbor rule, on October 12, 2023, we gave instructions to liquidate the assets held in trust, two money market funds comprised substantially of U.S. Treasury instruments, and reinvest the full proceeds into an interest-bearing direct deposit account with our custodian bank. The transfer was completed on October 16, 2023. The transfer was made ahead of the 24-month anniversary of the Company's initial public offering. As of October 16, 2023, $54,771,964 remained in the trust account and were held in an interest-bearing direct deposit account with our custodian bank. As a result, the interest earned from the reinvested assets held in trust may be lower than if we had not made the decision to liquidate the assets and reinvest the proceeds in a direct deposit account. Based on information received from the Company's custodian bank, the assets held in trust are yielding interest marginally below U.S. Treasury rates as of the end of October 2023. Certain additional procedures that we, our business combination target, or others may determine to undertake in connection with the SPAC Rule Proposal, or pursuant to the SEC's views expressed in the SPAC Rule Proposal, may increase the costs and the time required to consummate a business combination, and may constrain the circumstances under which we could complete a business combination. The need for compliance with the SPAC Rule Proposal may cause us to liquidate the funds in the trust account or liquidate the Company at an earlier time than we might otherwise choose. Were we to liquidate, our warrants would expire worthless, and our securityholders would lose the investment opportunity associated with an investment in the combined company following a business combination, including potential price appreciation of our securities.
Regulation - Risk 4
Added
If we effect a business combination with a company located outside of the United States, the laws applicable to such company will likely govern all of our material agreements and we may not be able to enforce our legal rights.
If we effect a business combination with a company located outside of the United States, the laws of the country in which such company operates will govern almost all of the material agreements relating to its operations. We cannot assure you that the target business will be able to enforce any of its material agreements or that remedies will be available in this new jurisdiction. The system of laws and the enforcement of existing laws in such jurisdiction may not be as certain in implementation and interpretation as in the United States. The inability to enforce or obtain a remedy under any of our future agreements could result in a significant loss of business, business opportunities or capital. Additionally, if we acquire a company located outside of the United States, it is likely that substantially all of our assets would be located outside of the United States and some of our officers and directors might reside outside of the United States. As a result, it may not be possible for investors in the United States to enforce their legal rights, to effect service of process upon our directors or officers or to enforce judgments of United States courts predicated upon civil liabilities and criminal penalties of our directors and officers under federal securities laws.
Regulation - Risk 5
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 with the SEC;- adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and - reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations that we are currently not subject to. We do not believe that our anticipated principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. The proceeds held in the trust account may be invested by the trustee only in U.S. government treasury bills with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds investing solely in U.S. Treasuries and meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act. Because the investment of the proceeds will be restricted to these instruments, we believe we will meet the requirements for the exemption provided in Rule 3a-1 promulgated under 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 have not completed our initial business combination within the required time period, our public shareholders may receive only approximately $10.10 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
Regulation - Risk 6
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, especially as applied to special purpose acquisition companies, 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.
Regulation - Risk 7
Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to effectuate our initial 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 ended December 31, 2021. 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 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.
Litigation & Legal Liabilities1 | 1.1%
Litigation & Legal Liabilities - Risk 1
Legal proceedings in connection with a proposed business combination in the future, the outcomes of which are uncertain, could delay or prevent the completion of the business combination.
In connection with a proposed business combination, it is not uncommon for lawsuits to be filed against companies involved and/or their respective directors and officers alleging, among other things, that the proxy statement/prospectus contains false and misleading statements and/or omits material information concerning the business combination. It is possible that one or more legal actions may arise in connection with a proposed business combination we may undertake in the future and, if such actions do arise, they generally seek, among other things, injunctive relief and an award of attorneys' fees and expenses. Defending such lawsuits could require us to incur significant costs and draw the attention of our management team away from a proposed business combination. Further, the defense or settlement of any lawsuit or claim that remains unresolved at the time a proposed business combination is consummated may adversely affect the combined company's business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Such legal proceedings could delay or prevent a proposed business combination from becoming effective within an agreed upon timeframe.
Taxation & Government Incentives2 | 2.1%
Taxation & Government Incentives - Risk 1
We may be a passive foreign investment company (a "PFIC"), which could result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. investors.
If we are a PFIC for any taxable year (or portion thereof) that is included in the holding period of a beneficial owner of our ordinary shares or warrants who or that is for U.S. federal income tax purposes (i) an individual who is a citizen or resident of the United States, (ii) a corporation (or other entity taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia or (iii) an estate or trust the income of which is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes 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 U.S. 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 U.S. person (a "U.S. holder"), the U.S. Holder may be subject to adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences and may be subject to additional reporting requirements. Our PFIC status for our current and subsequent taxable years may depend upon the status of an acquired company pursuant to a business combination and whether we qualify for the PFIC start-up exception. Depending on the particular circumstances, the application of the start-up exception may be subject to uncertainty, and there cannot be any assurance that we will qualify for the start-up exception. Accordingly, there can be no assurances with respect to our status as a PFIC for our current taxable year or any subsequent taxable year. Our actual PFIC status for any taxable year, however, will not be determinable until after the end of such taxable year (and, in the case of the start-up exception, potentially not until after the two taxable years following our current taxable year). Moreover, if we determine we are a PFIC for any taxable year, upon written request, we will endeavor to provide to a U.S. Holder such information as the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") may require, including a PFIC Annual Information Statement, in order to enable the U.S. Holder to make and maintain a "qualified electing fund" election, but there can be no assurance that we will timely provide such required information, and such election would likely be unavailable with respect to our warrants in all cases.
Taxation & Government Incentives - Risk 2
Our initial business combination may involve a jurisdiction that could impose taxes on shareholders.
We may, subject to requisite shareholder approval by special resolution under the Companies Act, effect a business combination with a target company in another jurisdiction, reincorporate in the jurisdiction in which the target company or business is located, or reincorporate in another jurisdiction. Such transactions may result in tax liability for a shareholder in the jurisdiction in which the shareholder is a tax resident (or in which its members are resident if it is a tax transparent entity), in which the target company is located, or in which we reincorporate. In the event of a reincorporation pursuant to our initial business combination, such tax liability may attach prior to any consummation of redemptions. We do not intend to make any cash distributions to shareholders to pay such taxes.
Production
Total Risks: 5/94 (5%)Below Sector Average
Employment / Personnel4 | 4.3%
Employment / Personnel - Risk 1
We are dependent upon our directors and officers and their departure could adversely affect our ability to operate.
We are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and in particular, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Sir Ralf Speth FRS FrEng KBE, F. Jeremey Mistry, Dr. Stefan Berger, Patrick Miller, James Condon, Florian Wolf, Steve Norris, Jeff Foster and John Doherty. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our directors and officers, at least until we have completed our initial business combination. In addition, our directors and officers 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. Moreover, certain of our directors and officers have time and attention requirements for investment funds of which affiliates of our sponsor are the investment managers. 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.
Employment / Personnel - Risk 2
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 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 employ after our initial business combination, no assurance can be given 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. In addition, our officers and directors of an initial business combination candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of an initial business combination target's key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an initial business combination candidate's key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Employment / Personnel - Risk 3
Our key personnel may negotiate employment or consulting agreements, as well as reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses, if any, with a target business in connection with a particular business combination. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation or reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses, if any, 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 the 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. Additionally, they may negotiate reimbursement of any out-of-pocket expenses incurred on our behalf prior to the consummation of the initial business combination, should they choose to do so. 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 our initial business combination, or as reimbursement for such out-of-pocket expenses. 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 under Cayman Islands law. However, we believe the ability of such individuals to remain with us after the completion of our initial 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 initial business combination. No assurance can be given 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.
Employment / Personnel - Risk 4
Our directors and officers 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 directors and officers 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 directors and officers is engaged in several other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation and our directors and officers are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs. In particular, certain of our directors have fiduciary and contractual duties to StratCap and to its affiliates or to certain other entities, including companies in industries we may target for our initial business combination. Certain of our independent directors also serve as officers and/or 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 "Part III Item 10. Directors, Executive Officer and Corporate Governance."
Costs1 | 1.1%
Costs - Risk 1
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.
The market for directors' and officers' liability insurance for special purpose acquisition companies has changed. 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 has added increased transaction expenses to our proposed 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, we anticipate that the post-business combination entity will purchase additional insurance with respect to any such claims ("run-off insurance"). The need for run- off insurance will 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.
Ability to Sell
Total Risks: 2/94 (2%)Below Sector Average
Competition1 | 1.1%
Competition - Risk 1
Changed
As the number of SPACs increases, there may be more competition to find an attractive target for an initial business combination. This could increase the costs associated with completing our initial business combination and may result in our inability to find a suitable target for our initial business combination.
In recent years, the number of SPACs that have been formed has increased substantially. Many potential targets for SPACs have already entered into an initial business combination, and there are still many SPACs 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 SPACs 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 target companies to demand improved financial terms. Attractive deals could also become scarcer for other reasons, such as economic or industry sector downturns, geopolitical tensions including between the U.S. and China, Russia and Ukraine, and related to the conflicts in the Middle East between Hamas and Israel 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.
Sales & Marketing1 | 1.1%
Sales & Marketing - Risk 1
We may face risks related to companies in our target industries.
Business combinations with companies in the next-generation transportation sector industry entail special considerations and risks. If we are successful in completing a business combination with such a target business, we may be subject to, and possibly adversely affected by, the following risks: - an inability to compete effectively in a highly competitive environment with many incumbents having substantially greater resources;- an inability to manage rapid change, increasing consumer expectations and growth;- an inability to build strong brand identity and improve customer satisfaction and loyalty;- a reliance on proprietary technology to provide services and to manage our operations, and the failure of this technology to operate effectively, or our failure to use such technology effectively;- delays in the design, production and launch of new vehicles;- our inability to scale in a cost-effective manner;- an inability to license or enforce intellectual property rights on which our business may depend;- any significant disruption in our computer systems or those of third parties that we would utilize in our operations;- an inability by us, or a refusal by third parties, to license content to us upon acceptable terms;- potential liability for negligence, copyright, or trademark infringement or other claims based on the nature and content of products that we may sell;- competition for the leisure and entertainment time and discretionary spending of subscribers or customers, which may intensify in part due to advances in technology and changes in consumer expectations and behavior;- disruption or failure of our networks, systems or technology as a result of computer viruses, "cyber-attacks," misappropriation of data or other malfeasance, as well as outages, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, accidental releases of information or similar events;- an inability to obtain necessary hardware, software and operational support; and - reliance on third-party vendors or service providers. Any of the foregoing could have an adverse impact on our operations following a business combination. However, our efforts in identifying prospective target businesses will not be limited to the next-generation transportation sector. Accordingly, if we acquire a target business in another industry, these risks we will be subject to risks attendant with the specific industry in which we operate or target business which we acquire, which may or may not be different than those risks listed above.
Tech & Innovation
Total Risks: 1/94 (1%)Below Sector Average
Cyber Security1 | 1.1%
Cyber Security - Risk 1
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. With the rise in artificial intelligence ("AI"), cyber incidents using AI may increase in frequency and become more effective. 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.
See a full breakdown of risk according to category and subcategory. The list starts with the category with the most risk. Click on subcategories to read relevant extracts from the most recent report.

FAQ

What are “Risk Factors”?
Risk factors are any situations or occurrences that could make investing in a company risky.
    The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires that publicly traded companies disclose their most significant risk factors. This is so that potential investors can consider any risks before they make an investment.
      They also offer companies protection, as a company can use risk factors as liability protection. This could happen if a company underperforms and investors take legal action as a result.
        It is worth noting that smaller companies, that is those with a public float of under $75 million on the last business day, do not have to include risk factors in their 10-K and 10-Q forms, although some may choose to do so.
          How do companies disclose their risk factors?
          Publicly traded companies initially disclose their risk factors to the SEC through their S-1 filings as part of the IPO process.
            Additionally, companies must provide a complete list of risk factors in their Annual Reports (Form 10-K) or (Form 20-F) for “foreign private issuers”.
              Quarterly Reports also include a section on risk factors (Form 10-Q) where companies are only required to update any changes since the previous report.
                According to the SEC, risk factors should be reported concisely, logically and in “plain English” so investors can understand them.
                  How can I use TipRanks risk factors in my stock research?
                  Use the Risk Factors tab to get data about the risk factors of any company in which you are considering investing.
                    You can easily see the most significant risks a company is facing. Additionally, you can find out which risk factors a company has added, removed or adjusted since its previous disclosure. You can also see how a company’s risk factors compare to others in its sector.
                      Without reading company reports or participating in conference calls, you would most likely not have access to this sort of information, which is usually not included in press releases or other public announcements.
                        A simplified analysis of risk factors is unique to TipRanks.
                          What are all the risk factor categories?
                          TipRanks has identified 6 major categories of risk factors and a number of subcategories for each. You can see how these categories are broken down in the list below.
                          1. Financial & Corporate
                          • Accounting & Financial Operations - risks related to accounting loss, value of intangible assets, financial statements, value of intangible assets, financial reporting, estimates, guidance, company profitability, dividends, fluctuating results.
                          • Share Price & Shareholder Rights – risks related to things that impact share prices and the rights of shareholders, including analyst ratings, major shareholder activity, trade volatility, liquidity of shares, anti-takeover provisions, international listing, dual listing.
                          • Debt & Financing – risks related to debt, funding, financing and interest rates, financial investments.
                          • Corporate Activity and Growth – risks related to restructuring, M&As, joint ventures, execution of corporate strategy, strategic alliances.
                          2. Legal & Regulatory
                          • Litigation and Legal Liabilities – risks related to litigation/ lawsuits against the company.
                          • Regulation – risks related to compliance, GDPR, and new legislation.
                          • Environmental / Social – risks related to environmental regulation and to data privacy.
                          • Taxation & Government Incentives – risks related to taxation and changes in government incentives.
                          3. Production
                          • Costs – risks related to costs of production including commodity prices, future contracts, inventory.
                          • Supply Chain – risks related to the company’s suppliers.
                          • Manufacturing – risks related to the company’s manufacturing process including product quality and product recalls.
                          • Human Capital – risks related to recruitment, training and retention of key employees, employee relationships & unions labor disputes, pension, and post retirement benefits, medical, health and welfare benefits, employee misconduct, employee litigation.
                          4. Technology & Innovation
                          • Innovation / R&D – risks related to innovation and new product development.
                          • Technology – risks related to the company’s reliance on technology.
                          • Cyber Security – risks related to securing the company’s digital assets and from cyber attacks.
                          • Trade Secrets & Patents – risks related to the company’s ability to protect its intellectual property and to infringement claims against the company as well as piracy and unlicensed copying.
                          5. Ability to Sell
                          • Demand – risks related to the demand of the company’s goods and services including seasonality, reliance on key customers.
                          • Competition – risks related to the company’s competition including substitutes.
                          • Sales & Marketing – risks related to sales, marketing, and distribution channels, pricing, and market penetration.
                          • Brand & Reputation – risks related to the company’s brand and reputation.
                          6. Macro & Political
                          • Economy & Political Environment – risks related to changes in economic and political conditions.
                          • Natural and Human Disruptions – risks related to catastrophes, floods, storms, terror, earthquakes, coronavirus pandemic/COVID-19.
                          • International Operations – risks related to the global nature of the company.
                          • Capital Markets – risks related to exchange rates and trade, cryptocurrency.
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