CIBUS, INC. 2,106,723 Shares of Class A Common Stock and Pre-Funded Warrants to Purchase 50,000 Shares of Class A Common Stock UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
Exhibit 1.1
2,106,723 Shares of Class A Common Stock
and
Pre-Funded Warrants to Purchase 50,000 Shares of Class A Common Stock
UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
December 11, 2023
XXXXXX, XXXXXXXX & COMPANY, INCORPORATED
CANACCORD GENUITY LLC
As representatives of the several Underwriters
named in Schedule I hereto
c/o Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx & Company, Incorporated
000 Xxxxxxx Xxx, 00xx Xxxxx
New York, NY 10019
c/o Canaccord Genuity LLC
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, 0xx Xxxxx
New York, NY 10022
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to the several underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “Underwriters”) for whom you are acting as representatives (the “Representatives”) (i) an aggregate of 2,106,723 shares (the “Shares”) of the Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company (“Common Stock”) and (ii) pre-funded warrants to purchase an aggregate of 50,000 shares of Common Stock in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A (the “Warrants”, and together with the Shares, the “Securities”). The shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants are hereinafter referred to as the “Warrant Shares”.
The Company confirms as follows its agreements with the Representatives and the several other Underwriters.
1. The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each of the Underwriters that, as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date (as defined herein):
(i) A registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-273062) in respect of the Securities and one or more pre-effective amendments thereto (together, the “Initial Registration Statement”) have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”); the Initial Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, each in the form heretofore delivered to you, have been declared effective by the Commission in such form; other than a registration statement, if any, increasing the size of the offering (a “Rule 462(b) Registration Statement”), filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), which became effective upon filing, no other document with respect to the Initial Registration Statement has heretofore been filed with the Commission; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Initial Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment thereto or the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, has been issued, no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened by the Commission and any request on the part of the Commission for additional information from the Company has been satisfied in all material respects; any preliminary prospectus included in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(a) of the rules and regulations of the Commission under the Securities Act is hereinafter called a “Preliminary Prospectus”; the various parts of the Initial Registration Statement and the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, including all schedules and exhibits thereto and including the information contained in the form of final prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act and deemed by virtue of Rule 430A under the Securities Act to be part of the Initial Registration Statement at the time it was declared effective or such part of the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, became or hereafter becomes effective, each as amended at the time such part of the Initial Registration Statement became effective, are hereinafter collectively called the “Registration Statement”; the Preliminary Prospectus relating to the Securities that was included in the Registration Statement immediately prior to the Applicable Time (as defined in Section 1(a)(iii) hereof) is hereinafter called the “Pricing Prospectus”; such final prospectus, in the form first filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, is hereinafter called the “Prospectus”; and any “issuer free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 433 under the Securities Act relating to the Securities is hereinafter called an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus”; and all references to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any amendment or supplement to any of the foregoing shall be deemed to include the copy filed with the Commission pursuant to its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system (“XXXXX”). “Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any oral or written communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Section 5(d) of the Securities Act or Rule 163B under the Securities Act.
(ii) (1) at the respective times the Initial Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and any post-effective amendments thereto became effective and at the Closing Date (as defined herein), the Initial Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and any amendments and supplements thereto complied and will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of
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the Commission thereunder (the “Rules and Regulations”) and did not and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and (2) at the time the Prospectus or any amendments or supplements thereto were issued and at the Closing Date, neither the Prospectus nor any amendment or supplement thereto included or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that the representations and warranties in clauses (1) and (2) above shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or any supplements or amendments to the foregoing made in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by any Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, it being understood and agreed that the only such information provided by any Underwriter is that described as such in Section 9(b) hereof. No order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus has been issued by the Commission.
Each Preliminary Prospectus, Pricing Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus filed as part of the Initial Registration Statement as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act, complied when so filed in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and each Preliminary Prospectus, Pricing Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus delivered to the Underwriters for use in connection with this offering was identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to XXXXX, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(iii) For the purposes of this Agreement, the “Applicable Time” is 6:15 p.m. (Eastern time) on the date of this Agreement; the Pricing Prospectus as supplemented by the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses, Written Testing-the-Waters Communications (as hereinafter defined) and other documents listed and information included in Schedule II hereto, taken together (collectively, the “Pricing Disclosure Package”) as of the Applicable Time, did not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and/or Written Testing-the-Waters Communication listed on Schedule II hereto does not conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus and each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and/or Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, as supplemented by and taken together with the Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time, did not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that this representation and warranty shall not apply to statements or omissions made in an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or Written Testing-the-Waters Communication in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by an Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein.
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(iv) The Company has filed a registration statement pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), to register the Common Stock, and such registration statement has been declared effective. At the time of filing the Initial Registration Statement the Company was not and is not an “ineligible issuer,” as defined under Rule 405 under the Securities Act.
(v) The Company has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware, with power and authority (corporate and other) to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Pricing Prospectus and to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure so to qualify or be in good standing would not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the business, prospects, management, financial position, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries (defined below), considered as one enterprise (a “Material Adverse Effect”).
(vi) Each subsidiary of the Company (each a “Subsidiary”) has been duly incorporated (or organized) and is validly existing as a corporation (or other organization) in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation (or organization), with power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Pricing Prospectus, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation (or other organization) for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which its owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure so to qualify or be in good standing would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; all of the issued and outstanding capital stock (or other ownership interests) of each Subsidiary has been duly and validly authorized and issued, is fully paid and non-assessable and is owned by the Company, directly or through Subsidiaries, free and clear of any security interest, mortgage, pledge, lien, encumbrance, claim or equity.
(vii) The Company has an authorized capitalization as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus, and all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and conform to the descriptions thereof contained in the Pricing Prospectus; and none of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are subject to any preemptive or similar rights.
(viii) The Shares have been duly and validly authorized and, when issued and delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, will be duly and validly issued and fully paid and non-assessable and will conform in all material respects to the descriptions thereof contained in the Prospectus; and the issuance of such Shares is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights. The Warrants have been duly and validly authorized and, when executed by the Company and delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, will be valid and binding agreements of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, except as the
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enforcement thereof may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws relating to or affecting the rights and remedies of creditors or by general equitable principles, and will conform in all material respects to the descriptions thereof in the Pricing Prospectus. The Warrant Shares have been duly and validly authorized and reserved for issuance upon exercise of the Warrants in a number sufficient to meet the current exercise requirements. The Warrant Shares, when issued and delivered upon exercise of the Warrants in accordance therewith, will be duly and validly issued and fully paid and non-assessable and will conform in all material respects to the descriptions thereof contained in the Pricing Prospectus; and the issuance of such Warrant Shares is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights.
(ix) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.
(x) The issue and sale of the Securities, the execution of this Agreement by the Company and the compliance by the Company with all of the provisions of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated will not (A) conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is subject, (B) result in any violation of the provisions of the certificate or articles of incorporation or by-laws (or other organization documents) of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or (C) result in the violation of any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any of their properties, except in the case of (A) or (C), where such conflict, breach, violation, or default would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and no consent, approval, authorization, order, registration or qualification of or with any such court or governmental agency or body is required for the issue and sale of the Securities or the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, except the registration under the Securities Act of the Shares and such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required by the Nasdaq Capital Market or The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or under state securities or Blue Sky laws in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Securities by the Underwriters.
(xi) Ernst & Young LLP, which expressed its opinion with respect to the financial statements and supporting schedules of Calyxt, Inc. on a consolidated basis for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 filed with the Commission as a part of the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus was, for the applicable periods as to which it expressed its opinion an independent registered public accounting firm as required by the Securities Act, the Exchange Act, and the rules of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”). BDO USA, LLP, which has expressed its opinion with respect to the financial statements and supporting schedules of Cibus Global, LLC filed with the Commission as a part of the Registration Statement and the Prospectus is an independent auditor. The financial statements, together with related schedules and notes, included in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and present
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fairly the consolidated financial position, results of operations and changes in financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries on the basis stated in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus at the respective dates or for the respective periods to which they apply; such statements and related schedules and notes have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles consistently applied throughout the periods involved, except as disclosed therein; and the selected financial data and the summary financial data included in the Pricing Prospectus present fairly the information shown therein and have been compiled on a basis consistent with that of the financial statements included in the Registration Statement. The pro forma financial statements of the Company and the Subsidiaries and the related notes thereto included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus present fairly in all material respects the information shown therein, have been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines with respect to pro forma financial statements and have been properly compiled on the bases described therein, and the assumptions used in the preparation thereof are reasonable and the adjustments used therein are appropriate to give effect to the transactions and circumstances referred to therein. The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.
(xii) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the Pricing Prospectus any material loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus; and, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus, (1) there has not been any material change in the capital stock (other than as a result of the grant, vesting or exercise of stock options or other equity incentives pursuant to the Company’s equity incentive plans or the issuance of deferred shares as described in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus) or long-term debt of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, (2) there has not been any Material Adverse Effect, (3) there have been no transactions entered into by, and no obligations or liabilities, contingent or otherwise, incurred by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, whether or not in the ordinary course of business, which are material to the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise or (4) there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company on any class of its capital stock, in each case, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus.
(xiii) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is (1) in violation of its certificate or articles of incorporation or bylaws (or other organization documents) or (2) in violation of any law, ordinance, administrative or governmental rule or regulation applicable to the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, or (3) in violation of any decree of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, or (4) in default in the performance of any obligation, agreement or condition contained in any bond, debenture, note or any other evidence of indebtedness or in any agreement, indenture, lease or other instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which any of them or any of their respective properties may be bound, except, in the case of clauses (2), (3) and (4), where any such violation or default, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
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(xiv) Each of the Company and each Subsidiary has good and marketable title to all real and personal property owned by it which is material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects except such as are described in the Pricing Prospectus or such as do not materially affect the value of such property and do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company or any Subsidiary; and any real property and buildings held under lease by the Company or any Subsidiary which is material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, are held under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material and do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company or any Subsidiary.
(xv) Other than as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus, there are no legal or governmental proceedings pending to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or of which any property of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is the subject which, if determined adversely to the Company or the Subsidiary, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, or would prevent or materially impair the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, or which are required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Pricing Prospectus; and, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or others.
(xvi) The Company and the Subsidiaries possess all permits, licenses, approvals, consents and other authorizations (collectively, “Permits”) issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory agencies or bodies necessary to conduct the businesses now operated by them, except where the failure to so possess, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms and conditions of all such Permits and all of the Permits are valid and in full force and effect, except, in each case, where the failure so to comply or where the invalidity of such Permits or the failure of such Permits to be in full force and effect, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any written notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or material modification of any such Permits which, singly or in the aggregate, if subject to any unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xvii) Except where a failure thereof would not result in a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and the Subsidiaries own all rights in, or possess, or can acquire on reasonable terms, licenses to all copyrights, software, trade secrets, mask works, know-how, Internet domain names; trademarks, service marks, trade names, and other indicia of origin; and inventions (whether or not patentable), patents and patent rights (collectively “Intellectual Property”) material to carrying on the businesses of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, as described in the Pricing Prospectus. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has
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received any written correspondence relating to, or notice of, any misappropriation, infringement of or other violation of or conflict with the rights of others in any Intellectual Property, and to the knowledge of the Company there is no and has been no such misappropriation, infringement, violation or conflict and which misappropriation, infringement, violation or conflict (if the subject of any unfavorable decision, ruling or finding) or invalidity or inadequacy, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any written correspondence relating to, or notice of any allegation that any Intellectual Property owned by or held for use by the Company is invalid or inadequate to protect the interest of the Company and the Subsidiaries, or any challenge to the Company or any Subsidiary’s ownership of any Intellectual Property, and to the knowledge of the Company there is no valid basis for any such allegation or challenge and which invalidity or inadequacy would have or may reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xviii) No material labor dispute with the employees of the Company or the Subsidiaries exists, or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent. The Company is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbance by the employees of any of its or any Subsidiary’s principal suppliers, manufacturers, customers or contractors, which, individually or in the aggregate, may reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xix) The Company and the Subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are, in the Company’s judgement, prudent and customary in the businesses in which they are engaged, except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for; and the Company has no reason to believe that either it or any Subsidiary will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise.
(xx) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries have made and keep books, records and accounts, which, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company and its Subsidiaries. The Company maintains a system of internal accounting controls designed to provide reasonable assurance that (1) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations; (2) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and to maintain accountability for assets; (3) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; (4) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences; and (5) the interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement is in conformity in all material respects with generally accepted accounting principles and is updated as necessary to comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto and present fairly in all material respects the consolidated financial position, results of operations and changes in financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries on the basis stated in the Registration Statement at the respective dates or for the respective periods to which they apply.
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(xxi) Since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the Pricing Prospectus, (a) the Company has not been advised of (1) any significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal controls that could adversely affect the ability of the Company and each of its Subsidiaries to record, process, summarize and report financial data, or any material weaknesses in internal controls and (2) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the internal controls of the Company and each of its Subsidiaries, and (b) since that date, there has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.
(xxii) The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15 (e) of the Exchange Act) that comply with the requirements of the Exchange Act; such disclosure controls and procedures are effective.
(xxiii) All United States federal income tax returns of the Company and the Subsidiaries required by law to be filed (after taking into account any applicable extensions) have been filed and all taxes shown by such returns or otherwise assessed, which are due and payable, have been paid, except assessments against which appeals have been or will be promptly taken and as to which adequate reserves have been provided. The Company and the Subsidiaries have filed all other tax returns that are required to have been filed by them pursuant to applicable foreign, state, local or other law, except insofar as the failure to file such returns, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, and have paid all taxes due pursuant to such returns or pursuant to any assessment received by the Company or any Subsidiary except for such taxes, if any, as are being contested in good faith and as to which adequate reserves have been provided except insofar as the failure to pay such taxes or assessments, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The charges, accruals and reserves on the books of the Company and the Subsidiaries in respect of any income and corporation tax liability for any years not finally determined are adequate to meet any assessments or re-assessments for additional income tax for any years not finally determined except to the extent such inadequacy, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxiv) There are no statutes, regulations, documents or contracts of a character required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Pricing Prospectus or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement which are not described or filed as required.
(xxv) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is in violation of any statute or any rule, regulation, decision or order of any governmental agency or body or any court, domestic or foreign, relating to the use, production, disposal or release of hazardous or toxic substances or relating to the protection or restoration of the environment or human exposure to hazardous or toxic substances (collectively, “environmental laws”), owns or operates any real property contaminated with any substance that is subject to any environmental laws, is liable for
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any off-site disposal or contamination pursuant to any environmental laws, or is subject to any claim relating to any environmental laws, which violation, contamination, liability or claim, individually or in the aggregate, would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and the Company is not aware of any pending investigation which would reasonably be expected to lead to such a claim.
(xxvi) Each employee benefit plan, within the meaning of Section 3(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), that is maintained, administered or contributed to by the Company or any Subsidiary for employees or former employees of the Company and its affiliates has been maintained in compliance with its terms and the requirements of any applicable statutes, orders, rules and regulations, including but not limited to ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), except to the extent that failure to so comply, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. No prohibited transaction, within the meaning of Section 406 of ERISA or Section 4975 of the Code has occurred with respect to any such plan excluding transactions effected pursuant to a statutory or administrative exemption, except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxvii) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries, or any director or officer, nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any agent, employee or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, has (i) used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expense relating to political activity; (ii) made any direct or indirect unlawful payment to any foreign or domestic government official or employee from corporate funds, (iii) violated or is in violation of any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, or (iv) made any bribe, unlawful rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful payment.
(xxviii) There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply with any provision of the Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act of 2002, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith, including Section 402 related to loans and Sections 302 and 906 related to certifications.
(xxix) There are no persons with registration rights or other similar rights to have securities registered pursuant to the Registration Statement or otherwise registered by the Company under the Securities Act.
(xxx) The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Securities as contemplated herein and the application of the net proceeds therefrom as described in the Pricing Prospectus, will not be an “investment company”, as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”).
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(xxxi) The Company has not distributed and, prior to the later to occur of the Closing Date (as defined in Section 4 hereof) and completion of distribution of the Securities, will not distribute any offering materials in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities, other than the Pricing Prospectus, the Prospectus and, subject to compliance with Section 6 hereof, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus; and the Company has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or result in, or which constitutes or would reasonably be expected to constitute, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale of the Securities. The Company (a) has not alone engaged in any Testing-the-Waters Communication and (b) has not authorized anyone other than the Representatives to engage in Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company reconfirms that the Representatives have been authorized to act on its behalf in undertaking Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company has not distributed any Written Testing-the-Waters Communications other than those listed on Schedule II hereto. “Written Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act.
(xxxii) The statistical and market and industry-related data included in the Pricing Prospectus and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company believes to be reliable and accurate or represent the Company’s good faith estimates that are made on the basis of data derived from such sources.
(xxxiii) The Company’s information technology assets and equipment, computers, systems, networks, hardware, software, websites, applications, and databases (collectively, “IT Systems”) are adequate for, and operate and perform in all material respects as required in connection with the operation of the business of the Company as currently conducted, and to the knowledge of the Company are free and clear of all material bugs, errors, defects, Trojan horses, time bombs, malware and other corruptants. The Company has implemented and maintained or caused to be implemented and maintained commercially reasonable controls, policies, procedures, and safeguards to maintain and protect their material confidential information and the integrity, continuous operation, redundancy and security of all IT Systems and data (including all personal, personally identifiable, sensitive, confidential or regulated data (“Personal Data”)) used in connection with its businesses, and there have been no breaches, violations, outages, attacks, compromises or unauthorized uses of or accesses to same, except for those that have been remedied without material cost or liability or the duty to notify any other person, nor any incidents under internal review or investigations relating to the same. The Company is presently in material compliance with all applicable laws or statutes and all judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, internal policies and contractual obligations relating to the privacy and security of IT Systems and Personal Data and to the protection of such IT Systems and Personal Data from unauthorized use, access, misappropriation or modification. The Company and its Subsidiaries have taken commercially reasonable steps consistent with industry standards and best practices to protect the IT Systems and data within the control of the Company or its Subsidiaries. The Company and its Subsidiaries have used reasonable efforts to establish, and have established, commercially reasonable disaster recovery measures for their business consistent with industry standards and best practices, including, without limitation, for the IT Systems and data within the control of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries.
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(xxxiv) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has sent or received any written communication regarding termination of, or intent not to renew, any of the contracts or agreements referred to or described in the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Pricing Prospectus, or referred to or described in, or filed as an exhibit to, the Registration Statement, and no such termination or non-renewal has been threatened by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or, to the Company’s knowledge, any other party to any such contract or agreement, except as would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and its Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise.
(xxxv) The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted in compliance in all material respects with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements, including those of the Bank Secrecy Act, as amended by Title III of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA Patriot Act”), and the applicable anti-money laundering statutes of jurisdictions where the Company and its Subsidiaries conduct business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines issued, administered or enforced by any governmental or regulatory agency (collectively, the “Anti-Money Laundering Laws”), and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental or regulatory agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its Subsidiaries with respect to the Anti-Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.
(xxxvi) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries nor any director, officer, or, to the knowledge of the Company, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries (i) is, or is controlled or 50% or more owned in the aggregate by or is acting on behalf of, one or more individuals or entities that are currently the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States (including any administered or enforced by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of State or the Bureau of Industry and Security of the U.S. Department of Commerce), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, any member state of the European Union, HM’s Treasury of the United Kingdom or other relevant sanctions authority in a jurisdiction in which the Company or its subsidiaries operate (collectively, “Sanctions” and such persons, “Sanctioned Persons” and each such person, a “Sanctioned Person”), (ii) is located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is, or whose government is, the subject of Sanctions that broadly prohibit dealings with that country or territory (at the time of this Agreement, the Crimea, so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, Kherson, so-called Luhansk People’s Republic and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria, collectively, “Sanctioned Countries” and each such country, a “Sanctioned Country”) or (iii) will, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of this offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other individual or entity in any manner that would result in a violation of any Sanctions by, or would result in the imposition of Sanctions against, any individual or entity (including any individual or entity participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).
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(xxxvii) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries and has in the last five years engaged in any dealings or transactions with or for the benefit of a Sanctioned Person, or with, for the benefit of, or in a Sanctioned Country in violation of Sanctions nor does the Company or any of its Subsidiaries have any plans to engage in dealings or transactions with or for the benefit of a Sanctioned Person or with, for the benefit of, or in a Sanctioned Country. No action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company, or any of its Subsidiaries, with respect to Sanctions is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened.
(xxxiv) Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company delivered to the Underwriters or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company to the Underwriters as to the matters covered thereby.
2. Subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to sell to each of the Underwriters, and each of the Underwriters agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, (i) at a purchase price per share as set forth in Schedule I (the “Share Purchase Price”), the number of Shares (to be adjusted by you so as to eliminate fractional shares) determined by multiplying the aggregate number of Shares to be sold by the Company hereunder by a fraction, the numerator of which is the aggregate number of Shares to be purchased by such Underwriter as set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto and the denominator of which is the aggregate number of Shares to be purchased by all of the Underwriters from the Company hereunder, and (ii) at a purchase price per Warrant as set forth in Schedule I, the number of Warrants (to be adjusted by you so as to eliminate fractional Warrants) determined by multiplying the aggregate number of Warrants to be sold by the Company hereunder by a fraction, the numerator of which is the aggregate number of Warrants to be purchased by such Underwriter as set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto and the denominator of which is the aggregate number of Warrants to be purchased by all of the Underwriters from the Company hereunder.
3. It is understood that the several Underwriters propose to offer the Securities for sale to the public upon the terms and conditions set forth in the Prospectus.
4. The Company will deliver the Securities to the Representatives through the facilities of the Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) for the accounts of the Underwriters, against payment of the purchase price therefor in Federal (same day) funds by official bank check or checks or wire transfer drawn to the order of the Company at the office of Xxxxx Day, 000 Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, at 10:00 A.M., New York time, on December 14, 2023, or at such other time not later than seven full business days thereafter as the Representatives and the Company determine, such time being herein referred to as the “Closing Date”. For purposes of Rule 15c6-1 under the Exchange Act, the Closing Date (if later than the otherwise applicable settlement date) shall be the settlement date for payment of funds and delivery of securities for all the Securities. The Shares to be so delivered will be in book-entry form and the Warrants to be so delivered will be in certificated form, in such denominations and registered in such names as the Representatives request.
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5. The Company covenants and agrees with each of the Underwriters as follows:
(a) The Company, subject to Section 5(b), will comply with the requirements of Rule 430A under the Securities Act, and will notify the Representatives, and confirm the notice in writing, (i) when any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement shall become effective, or any supplement to the Prospectus or any amended prospectus shall have been filed, to furnish the Representatives with copies thereof (to the extent not available on XXXXX), and to file promptly all material required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, (ii) of the receipt of any comments from the Commission for a period of one year after the Closing Date, (iii) of any request by the Commission for any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus or for additional information for a period of one year after the Closing Date, and (iv) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or of any order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, or of the suspension of the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, or of the initiation or threatening of any proceedings for any of such purposes. The Company will promptly effect the filings necessary pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act and will take such steps as it deems necessary to ascertain promptly whether the form of prospectus transmitted for filing under Rule 424(b) was received for filing by the Commission and, in the event that it was not, it will promptly file such prospectus. The Company will make every reasonable effort to prevent the issuance of any stop order and, if any stop order is issued, to obtain the lifting thereof as promptly as practicable.
(b) The Company will give the Representatives notice of its intention to file or prepare any amendment to the Registration Statement (including any filing under Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act), or any amendment, supplement or revision to the Prospectus, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, will furnish the Representatives with copies of any such documents a reasonable amount of time prior to such proposed filing or use, as the case may be, and will not file or use any such document to which the Representatives or counsel for the Underwriters shall reasonably object.
(c) The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to qualify the Securities for offering and sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as you may reasonably request and to comply with such laws so as to permit the continuance of sales and dealings therein in such jurisdictions for as long as may be necessary to complete the distribution of the Securities, provided that nothing in this Section 5(c) shall require the Company to qualify as a foreign corporation in any jurisdiction in which it is not already so qualified, or to file a general consent to service of process in any jurisdiction.
(d) The Company has furnished or, upon the Representatives’ request, will deliver to the Representatives, without charge, conformed copies of the Initial Registration Statement as originally filed, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and of each amendment to each (including exhibits filed therewith or incorporated by reference therein) and conformed copies of all consents and certificates of experts, and will also, upon the Representatives’ request, deliver to the Representatives, without charge, a conformed copy of the Registration Statement as
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originally filed and of each amendment thereto (without exhibits) for each of the Underwriters. The copies of the Registration Statement and each amendment thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to XXXXX, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(e) The Company has delivered to each Underwriter, without charge, as many written and electronic copies of each Preliminary Prospectus as such Underwriter reasonably requested, and the Company hereby consents to the use of such copies for purposes permitted by the Securities Act. The Company will furnish to each Underwriter, without charge, prior to 5:00 P.M. (New York time) on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement and from time to time thereafter during the period when the Prospectus is required to be delivered in connection with sales of the Securities under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the Securities Act, such number of written and electronic copies of the Prospectus (as amended or supplemented) as such Underwriter may reasonably request. The Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to XXXXX, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(f) The Company will comply with the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations so as to permit the completion of the distribution of the Securities as contemplated in this Agreement and in the Prospectus. If at any time when, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, a prospectus is required to be delivered in connection with sales of the Securities under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the Securities Act), any event shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which it is necessary, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters or for the Company, to amend the Registration Statement or amend or supplement the Prospectus in order that the Prospectus will not include any untrue statements of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading in the light of the circumstances existing at the time it (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, or if it shall be necessary, in the opinion of either such counsel, at any such time to amend the Registration Statement or amend or supplement the Prospectus in order to comply with the requirements of the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations, the Company will promptly prepare and file with the Commission, subject to Section 5(b), such amendment or supplement as may be necessary to correct such statement or omission or to make the Registration Statement or the Prospectus comply with such requirements, and the Company will furnish to the Underwriters such number of written and electronic copies of such amendment or supplement as the Underwriters may reasonably request. The Company will provide the Representatives with notice of the occurrence of any event during the period specified above that may give rise to the need to amend or supplement the Registration Statement or the Prospectus as provided in the preceding sentence promptly after the occurrence of such event. If at any time following the distribution of any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly notify the Representatives and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication to eliminate or correct such untrue statement or omission.
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(g) The Company will make generally available (within the meaning of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act) to its security holders and to the Representatives as soon as practicable, but not later than 45 days after the end of its fiscal quarter in which the first anniversary date of the effective date of the Registration Statement occurs, an earnings statement (in form complying with the provisions of Rule 158 under the Securities Act) covering a period of at least twelve consecutive months beginning after the effective date of the Registration Statement.
(h) The Company will use the net proceeds received by it from the sale of the Securities in the manner specified in the Pricing Prospectus under the heading “Use of Proceeds”.
(i) The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to effect and maintain the listing of the Common Stock (including the Shares and the Warrant Shares, when issued and delivered upon exercise as provided under the Warrants) on the Nasdaq Capital Market.
(j) During a period of 30 days from the date of the Prospectus, the Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representatives, (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock or (ii) enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of Common Stock, whether any such transaction described in clause (i) or (ii) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, other than (1) the Securities to be sold hereunder, (2) the issuance of options to acquire shares of Common Stock, restricted stock units or other equity-based compensation granted pursuant to the Company’s benefit plans existing on the date hereof that are referred to in the Prospectus, as such plans may be amended, (3) the establishment of one or more employee stock plans and grants of equity-based compensation thereunder to each employee an amount equal to up to one times such employees’ annual salary, (4) the issuance of shares of Common Stock or equity-based compensation to independent directors as compensation for service on the Board and its committees, (5) the issuance of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of any options, the vesting of restricted stock units or shares of restricted Common Stock, the vesting or exercise of other equity-based compensation, or the exercise of the Warrants, (6) the issuance of shares of Common Stock upon the exchange of shares of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share and (7) the issuance of shares of Common Stock in an “at the market” offering with Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx & Company, Incorporated (“Stifel”) as sales agent.
(k) The Company, during the period when the Prospectus is required to be delivered in connection with sales of the Securities under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the Securities Act), will file all documents required to be filed with the Commission pursuant to the Exchange Act within the time periods required by the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.
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(l) The Company will file with the Commission such information on Form 10-Q or Form 10-K as may be required pursuant to Rule 463 under the Securities Act.
(m) During a period of three years from the effective date of the Registration Statement, the Company will furnish to you copies of all reports or other communications (financial or other) furnished to stockholders generally, and to deliver to you as soon as they are available, copies of any reports and financial statements furnished to or filed with the Commission or any national securities exchange on which any class of securities of the Company is listed, provided that the Company will be deemed to have furnished such reports and financial statements to the extent they are filed on XXXXX.
(n) If the Company elects to rely upon Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, the Company will file a Rule 462(b) Registration Statement with the Commission in compliance with Rule 462(b) by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement, and at the time of filing either to pay to the Commission the filing fee for the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement or to give irrevocable instructions for the payment of such fee pursuant to Rule 111(b) under the Securities Act.
(o) If so requested by the Representatives, the Company shall cause to be prepared and delivered, at its expense, within one business day from the effective date of this Agreement, to the Representatives an “electronic Prospectus” to be used by the Underwriters in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities. As used herein, the term “electronic Prospectus” means a form of the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus, and any amendment or supplement thereto, that meets each of the following conditions: (i) it shall be encoded in an electronic format, reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, that may be transmitted electronically by the Representatives and the other Underwriters to offerees and purchasers of the Securities, (ii) it shall disclose the same information as such paper Preliminary Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be; and (iii) it shall be in or convertible into a paper format or an electronic format, reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, that will allow investors to store and have continuously ready access to such Preliminary Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus at any future time, without charge to investors (other than any fee charged for subscription to the Internet generally). The Company hereby confirms that, if so requested by the Representatives, it has included or will include in the Prospectus filed with the Commission an undertaking that, upon receipt of a request by an investor or his or her representative, the Company shall transmit or cause to be transmitted promptly, without charge, a paper copy of such paper Preliminary Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus to such investor or representative.
(p) The Company shall, at all times while any Warrants are outstanding, reserve and keep available out of the aggregate of its authorized but unissued and otherwise unreserved Common Stock, solely for the purpose of enabling it to issue Warrant Shares upon exercise of such Warrants, the number of Warrant Shares that are initially issuable and deliverable upon the exercise of the then-outstanding Warrants.
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6. (a) The Company represents and agrees that, without the prior consent of the Representatives, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act; each Underwriter represents and agrees that, without the prior consent of the Company and the Representatives, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute a free writing prospectus; any such free writing prospectus the use of which has been consented to by the Company and the Representatives is listed on Schedule II hereto.
(b) The Company has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rule 433 under the Securities Act applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, including timely filing with the Commission or retention where required and legending; the Company represents that it has satisfied and agrees that it will satisfy the conditions under Rule 433 under the Securities Act to avoid a requirement to file with the Commission any electronic road show.
(c) The Company agrees that if at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus any event occurred or occurs as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus would conflict with the information in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances then prevailing, not misleading, the Company will give prompt notice thereof to the Representatives and, if requested by the Representatives, will prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or other document which will correct such conflict, statement or omission; provided, however, that this obligation shall not apply to any statements or omissions in an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus made in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by an Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein.
7. The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters that, whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are consummated, the Company will pay or cause to be paid all expenses incident to the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, including (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel, accountants and other advisors; (ii) filing fees and all other expenses in connection with the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement, each Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus and amendments and supplements thereto and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers; (iii) the cost of printing or producing this Agreement, closing documents (including any compilations thereof) and such other documents as may be required in connection with the offering, purchase, sale and delivery of the Securities; (iv) all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Securities for offering and sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 5(c), including filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky survey, not to exceed $35,000; (v) all fees and expenses in connection with listing the Common Stock (including the Shares and the Warrant Shares, when issued and delivered upon exercise as provided under the Warrants) on the Nasdaq Capital Market; (vi) the filing fees incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with, securing any required review by FINRA of the terms of the sale
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of the Securities; (vii) all fees and expenses in connection with the preparation, issuance and delivery of the certificates representing the Shares and the Warrants to the Underwriters, including any stock or other transfer taxes and any stamp or other duties payable upon the sale, issuance or delivery of the Securities to the Underwriters; (viii) the cost and charges of any transfer agent or registrar; (ix) the transportation and other expenses incurred by the Company in connection with presentations to prospective purchasers of Securities; and (x) all other costs and expenses of the Underwriters incident to the performance of their obligations hereunder not otherwise specifically provided for herein, including the fees, disbursements and other charges of counsel to the Underwriters (in addition to those set forth in clauses (iv) and (vi)); provided, however, that in no event under this clause (x) shall the Company be required to pay or reimburse if paid by the Underwriters any costs and expenses in excess of $200,000 in the aggregate.
8. The several obligations of the Underwriters hereunder to purchase the Securities on the Closing Date are subject to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:
(a) The Prospectus shall have been filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by the Rules and Regulations and in accordance with Section 5(a); all materials required to be filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act shall have been filed with the Commission within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by Rule 433 under the Securities Act; if the Company has elected to rely upon Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement shall have become effective by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof or the Prospectus or any part thereof or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been issued and no proceeding for that purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission or any state securities commission; and all requests for additional information on the part of the Commission shall have been complied with to the Representatives’ reasonable satisfaction.
(b) The representations and warranties of the Company contained herein are true and correct on and as of the Closing Date as if made on and as of the Closing Date and the Company shall have complied with all agreements and all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder at or prior to the Closing Date.
(c) [Reserved]
(d) (i) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary shall have sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the Pricing Prospectus any material loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus, and (ii) since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, (1) there shall not have been any material change in the capital stock (other than as a result of the grant, vesting or exercise of stock options or other equity incentives pursuant to the Company’s equity
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incentive plans or the issuance of deferred shares as described in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus) or long-term debt of the Company or any Subsidiary or (2) there shall not have been any Material Adverse Effect, or any development that would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, the effect of which, in any such case described in clause (i) or (ii), is in the judgment of the Representatives so material and adverse as to make it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or the delivery of the Securities being delivered at such Closing Date on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus.
(e) The Representatives shall have received on and as of the Closing Date, a certificate of two executive officers of the Company, at least one of whom has specific knowledge about the Company’s financial matters, satisfactory to the Representatives, to the effect (1) set forth in Sections 8(b) (with respect to the respective representations, warranties, agreements and conditions of the Company) and 8(c), (2) that none of the situations set forth in clause (i) or (ii) of Section 8(d) shall have occurred and (3) that no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued and to the knowledge of the Company, no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or are pending or contemplated by the Commission;
(f) On the Closing Date, Xxxxx Day, counsel for the Company, shall have furnished to the Representatives its favorable written opinion and negative assurance letter, dated the Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters, to such effect as counsel for the Underwriters may reasonably request.
(g) At the time of the execution of this Agreement and, if applicable, on the effective date of any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement filed subsequent to the date of this Agreement, each of BDO USA, P.C. and Xxxxx & Young LLP shall have furnished to the Representatives a letter, dated the date of delivery thereof, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives, containing statements and information of the type customarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.
(h) On the Closing Date, the Representatives shall have received from each of BDO USA, P.C. and Xxxxx & Young LLP a letter, dated the Closing Date, to the effect that they reaffirm the statements made in the letter or letters furnished pursuant to Section 8(g), except that the specified date referred to shall be a date not more than three business days prior to the Closing Date.
(i) On the Closing Date, Xxxxx, Xxxxx, Xxxx, Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxx and Xxxxx, P.C., counsel for the Underwriters, shall have furnished to the Representatives its favorable opinion and negative assurance letter, dated the Closing Date, with respect such matters as the Representatives may reasonably request, and such counsel shall have received such papers and information as they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.
(j) The Shares to be delivered on the Closing Date shall have been approved for listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market, subject to official notice of issuance.
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(k) At the time of the execution of this Agreement, dated the date hereof, and as of the Closing Date, the Representatives shall have received a certificate of the Chief Financial Officer, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives.
(l) On the Closing Date, Acuity Law Group, intellectual property counsel for the Company, shall have furnished to the Representatives its favorable written opinion, dated the Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives.
(m) The Representatives shall have received a letter from the Corporate Financing Department of FINRA confirming that such department has determined to raise no objection with respect to the fairness or reasonableness of the terms and arrangements related to the sale of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement.
(n) The Representatives shall have received “lock-up” agreements, each substantially in the form of Exhibit B hereto, from all the stockholders, officers and directors of the Company listed on Schedule III hereto and such agreements shall be in full force and effect on the Closing Date.
(o) On or prior to the Closing Date, the Company shall have furnished to the Representatives such further information, certificates and documents as the Representatives shall reasonably request.
(p) On or after the Applicable Time there shall not have occurred any of the following: (i) a suspension or material limitation in trading in securities generally on the Nasdaq Capital Market; (ii) a suspension or material limitation in trading in the Company’s securities on the Nasdaq Capital Market; (iii) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities declared by any of Federal or New York State authorities or a material disruption in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services in the United States; (iv) the outbreak or escalation of hostilities involving the United States or the declaration by the United States of a national emergency or war or (v) the occurrence of any other calamity or crisis or any change in financial, political or economic conditions in the United States or elsewhere, if the effect of any such event specified in clause (iv) or (v) in the judgment of the Representatives makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or the delivery of the Securities being delivered at such Closing Date, on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus;
If any condition specified in this Section 8 shall not have been fulfilled when and as required to be fulfilled, this Agreement may be terminated, subject to the provisions of Section 12, by the Representatives by notice to the Company at any time at or prior to the Closing Date, and such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party, except as provided in Section 12.
9. (a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including without limitation, reasonable attorneys’
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fees and any and all reasonable expenses whatsoever incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, the Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereof, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, or (ii) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, or any “issuer information” filed or required to be filed pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, the Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereof, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication in reliance upon and in strict conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter is the information described as such in Section 9(b) below.
(b) Each Underwriter severally, and not jointly, agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, each of the directors of the Company, each of the officers of the Company who shall have signed the Registration Statement, and each other person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act, against any losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and any and all reasonable expenses whatsoever incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, the Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereof, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, or (ii) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment
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thereof, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made therein in reliance upon and in strict conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the following information in the Prospectus furnished on behalf of each Underwriter: the concession and reallowance figures appearing in the fourth paragraph under the caption “Underwriting” and the information contained in the twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth paragraphs under the caption “Underwriting”.
(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under Section 9 (a) or 9 (b) of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such Section, notify each party against whom indemnification is to be sought in writing of the commencement thereof (but the failure so to notify an indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have under this Section 9 (except to the extent that the indemnifying party has been materially prejudiced, through the forfeiture of substantive rights or defenses, by such failure). In case any such action is brought against any indemnified party, and it notifies an indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party will be entitled to participate therein, and jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to the extent it may elect by written notice delivered to the indemnified party promptly after receiving the aforesaid notice from such indemnified party, to assume the defense thereof with counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party (who shall not, except with the consent of the indemnified party, be counsel to the indemnified party). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the indemnified party or parties shall have the right to employ its or their own counsel in any such case, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party or parties unless (i) the employment of such counsel shall have been authorized in writing by one of the indemnifying parties in connection with the defense of such action, (ii) the indemnifying parties shall not have employed counsel to have charge of the defense of such action within a reasonable time after notice of commencement of the action, or (iii) such indemnified party or parties shall have reasonably concluded that there may be defenses available to it or them which are different from or additional to those available to one or all of the indemnifying parties (in which case the indemnifying parties shall not have the right to direct the defense of such action on behalf of the indemnified party or parties), in any of which events such fees and expenses shall be borne by the indemnifying parties. In no event shall the indemnifying parties be liable for fees and expenses of more than one counsel (in addition to any local counsel) separate from their own counsel for all indemnified parties in connection with any one action or separate but similar or related actions in the same jurisdiction arising out of the same general allegations or circumstances, which counsel, in the event of indemnified parties under Section 9 (a), shall be selected by the Representatives. No indemnifying party shall, without the written consent of the indemnified party, effect the settlement or compromise of, or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to, any pending or threatened action or claim in respect of which
23
indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified party is an actual or potential party to such action or claim) unless such settlement, compromise or judgment (i) includes an unconditional release of the indemnified party from all liability arising out of such action or claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of any indemnified party.
(d) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 9 is unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under Section 9 (a) or 9 (b) in respect of any losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the offering of the Securities. If, however, the allocation provided by the immediately preceding sentence is not permitted by applicable law, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to such amount paid or payable by such indemnified party in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only such relative benefits but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof), as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the offering of the Securities shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering (before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus. The relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company on the one hand or the Underwriters on the other and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.
The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this Section 9(d) were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this Section 9(d). The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) referred to above in this Section 9 (d) shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 9 (d), no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Securities underwritten by it and distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages which such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission.
24
No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations in this Section 9 (d) to contribute are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations and not joint.
(e) The obligations of the parties to this Agreements contained in this Section 9 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.
10. If any Underwriter or Underwriters default in its or their obligations to purchase Securities hereunder on the Closing Date and the aggregate number of Securities that such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase does not exceed 10% of the total number of Securities that the Underwriters are obligated to purchase on such Closing Date, the Representatives may make arrangements satisfactory to the Company for the purchase of such Securities by other persons, including any of the Underwriters, but if no such arrangements are made by such Closing Date, the non-defaulting Underwriters shall be obligated severally, in proportion to their respective commitments hereunder, to purchase the Securities that such defaulting Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase on such Closing Date. If any Underwriter or Underwriters so default and the aggregate number of Securities with respect to which such default or defaults occur exceeds 10% of the total number of Securities that the Underwriters are obligated to purchase on such Closing Date, and arrangements satisfactory to the Representatives and the Company for the purchase of such Securities by other persons are not made within 36 hours after such default, this Agreement will terminate, subject to the provisions of Section 12, without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company, except as provided in Section 12. Nothing herein will relieve a defaulting Underwriter from liability for its default.
In the event of any such default which does not result in a termination of this Agreement, either the Representatives or the Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date or the relevant, for a period not exceeding seven days in order to effect any required changes in the Registration Statement or Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements. As used in this Agreement, the term “Underwriter” includes any person substituted for an Underwriter under this Section 10.
11. Notwithstanding anything herein contained, this Agreement may be terminated, subject to the provisions of Section 12, in the absolute discretion of the Representatives, by notice given to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date, (a) trading generally on the New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq Global Select Market, Nasdaq Global Market, or Nasdaq Capital Market shall have been suspended or materially limited, or minimum or maximum prices for trading have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices have been required, by any of said exchanges or by such system or by order of the Commission, FINRA or any other governmental or regulatory authority, (b) trading of any securities of or guaranteed by the Company or any Subsidiary shall have been suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market, (c) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities in New York shall have been declared by Federal, New York State authorities or a new restriction materially adversely affecting the distribution of the Securities, as the case may be, shall
25
have become effective, or (d) there has occurred any material adverse change in the financial markets in the United States or the international financial markets, any outbreak of hostilities or escalation thereof or other calamity or crisis or any change or development involving a prospective change in national or international political, financial or economic conditions, in each case the effect of which is such as to make it, in the judgment of the Representatives, impracticable to market the Securities to be delivered on the Closing Date, or to enforce contracts for the sale of the Securities.
If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to this Section 11, such termination will be without liability of any party to any other party except as provided in Section 12 hereof.
12. The respective indemnities, agreements, representations, warranties and other statements of the Company or its officers and of the several Underwriters set forth in or made pursuant to this Agreement will remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation, or statement as to the results thereof, made by or on behalf of any Underwriter, the Company or any of their respective representatives, officers or directors or any controlling person, and will survive delivery of and payment for the Securities. If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to Section 8, 10 or 11 or if for any reason the purchase of any of the Securities by the Underwriters is not consummated, the Company shall remain responsible for the expenses to be paid or reimbursed by it pursuant to Section 7, the respective obligations of the Company and the Underwriters pursuant to Section 9 and the provisions of Sections 12, 13 and 16 shall remain in effect and, if any Securities have been purchased hereunder the representations and warranties in Section 1 and all obligations under Section 5 and Section 6 shall also remain in effect. If this Agreement shall be terminated by the Underwriters, or any of them, under Section 8 or otherwise because of any failure or refusal on the part of the Company to comply with the terms or to fulfill any of the conditions of this Agreement, or if for any reason the Company shall be unable to perform its obligations under this Agreement or any condition of the Underwriters’ obligations cannot be fulfilled, the Company agrees to reimburse the Underwriters or such Underwriters as have so terminated this Agreement with respect to themselves, severally (but, in the case of any termination in accordance with Section 10, only the non-defaulting Underwriters), for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the reasonable and documented fees and expenses of its counsel) reasonably incurred and documented by the Underwriter in connection with this Agreement or the offering contemplated hereunder, but in such event the Company shall not be under any further liability to such Underwriter except as provided in Section 9 hereof.
13. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Company and the Underwriters, the officers and directors of the Company referred to herein, any controlling persons referred to herein and their respective successors and assigns. Nothing expressed or mentioned in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any other person, firm or corporation any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision herein contained. No purchaser of Securities from any Underwriter shall be deemed to be a successor or assign by reason merely of such purchase.
26
14. All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given upon receipt thereof by the recipient if mailed or transmitted by any standard form of telecommunication. Notices to the Underwriters shall be given to the Representatives, c/o Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx & Company, Incorporated, 000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, 00xx Xxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000, Attention: Equity Capital Markets, and c/o Canaccord Genuity LLC, 00 Xxxx Xxxxxx, 00xx Xxxxx, Xxxxxx, XX 00000, Attention: Equity Capital Markets. Notices to the Company shall be given to it at Cibus, Inc., 0000 Xxxxx Xxxxx Xxxxx, Xxx Xxxxx, XX 00000, Attention: Chief Executive Officer with a copy to Xxxxx Day, 000 Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxxx.
15. This Agreement may be signed in counterparts, each of which shall be an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.
16. THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, WITHOUT REGARD TO SUCH STATE’S PRINCIPLES OF CONFLICTS OF LAWS.
17. The parties hereby submit to the jurisdiction of and venue in the federal courts located in the City of New York, New York in connection with any dispute related to this Agreement, any transaction contemplated hereby, or any other matter contemplated hereby.
18. In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States. In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
For purposes of this Section 18, a “BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning assigned to the term “affiliate” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. § 1841(k). “Covered Entity” means any of the following: (i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b); (ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b); or (iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b). “Default Right” has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable. “U.S. Special Resolution Regime” means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Xxxx-Xxxxx Xxxx Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
27
19. The Company acknowledges and agrees that (i) the purchase and sale of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement, including the determination of the public offering price of the Securities and any related discounts and commissions, is an arm’s-length commercial transaction between the Company on the one hand, and the several Underwriters, on the other, (ii) in connection therewith and with the process leading to such transaction each Underwriter is acting solely as a principal and not the agent or fiduciary of the Company or its respective stockholders, creditors, employees or any other party, (iii) no Underwriter has assumed an advisory or fiduciary responsibility in favor of the Company with respect to the offering contemplated hereby or the process leading thereto (irrespective of whether such Underwriter has advised or is currently advising the Company on other matters) or any other obligation to the Company except the obligations expressly set forth in this Agreement, and (iv) the Company has consulted its own legal and financial advisors to the extent it deemed appropriate. The Company agrees that it will not claim that the Underwriters, or any of them, has rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owes a fiduciary or similar duty to the Company, in connection with such transaction or the process leading thereto.
20. The Company acknowledges that the Underwriters’ research analysts and research departments are required to be independent from their respective investment banking divisions and are subject to certain regulations and internal policies, and that such Underwriters’ research analysts may hold views and make statements or investment recommendations and/or publish research reports with respect to the Company and/or the offering that differ from the views of their respective investment banking divisions. The Company hereby waives and releases, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claims that the Company may have against the Underwriters with respect to any conflict of interest that may arise from the fact that the views expressed by their independent research analysts and research departments may be different from or inconsistent with the views or advice communicated to the Company by such Underwriters’ investment banking divisions. The Company acknowledges that each of the Underwriters is a full service securities firm and as such from time to time, subject to applicable securities laws, may effect transactions for its own account or the account of its customers and hold long or short positions in debt or equity securities of the companies that may be the subject of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.
21. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Company is authorized to disclose to any persons the U.S. federal and state income tax treatment and tax structure of the potential transaction and all materials of any kind (including tax opinions and other tax analyses) provided to the Company relating to that treatment and structure, without the Underwriters imposing any limitation of any kind. However, any information relating to the tax treatment and tax structure shall remain confidential (and the foregoing sentence shall not apply) to the extent necessary to enable any person to comply with securities laws. For this purpose, “tax structure” is limited to any facts that may be relevant to that treatment.
22. This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements and understandings (whether written or oral) between the Company and the Underwriters, or any of them, with respect to the subject matter hereof. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, the engagement letter dated as of November 13, 2023, by and between Stifel and the Company (the “Engagement Letter”) shall remain in full force and effect in accordance with its terms except for the fees and discounts solely related to the offering contemplated by this Agreement for which this Agreement shall control. In addition, the rights set forth in Section 6(b) of the Engagement Letter shall only apply for 12 months following the date of this Agreement.
28
23. The Company and each of the Underwriters hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.
24. (a) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
(b) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
As used in this Section 23:
“BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning assigned to the term “affiliate” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. Section 1841(k).
“Covered Entity” means any of the following: (i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. Section 252.82(b); (ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. Section 47.3(b); or (iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R Section 382.2(b).
“Default Right” has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R Sections 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable.
“U.S. Special Resolution Regime” means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Xxxx-Xxxxx Xxxx Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
29
If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to the Company a counterpart hereof, whereupon this instrument will become a binding agreement among the Company and the Underwriters.
Very truly yours, | ||
CIBUS, INC. | ||
By: | /s/ Xxxx Xxxxx | |
Name: | Xxxx Xxxxx | |
Title: | Chief Executive Officer |
Accepted as of the date hereof:
XXXXXX, XXXXXXXX & COMPANY, INCORPORATED
For itself and as a Representative of the
other Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
By: | /s/ Xxxx Xxxxxx | |
Name: | Xxxx Xxxxxx | |
Title: | Director |
CANACCORD GENUITY LLC
For itself and as a Representative of the
other Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
By: | /s/ Xxxxxxxx Xxxxx | |
Name: | Xxxxxxxx Xxxxx | |
Title: | Managing Director |
SCHEDULE I
The offering price per Share for the 517,107 Shares sold to an executive officer of the Company (the “Insider”) shall be $10.58.
The purchase price per Share for the 517,107 Shares sold to the Insider that is to be paid by the several Underwriters shall be $10.58.
The offering price per Share for the 1,589,616 Shares, other than the Shares sold to the Insider, shall be $9.00.
The purchase price per Share for the 1,589,616 Shares, other than the Shares sold to the Insider, that is to be paid by the several Underwriters shall be $8.5725, being an amount equal to the $9.00 offering price set forth above less $0.4275 per share.
Underwriter |
Number of Shares to be Purchased, other than Shares Purchased by the Insider |
Number of Shares to be Purchased by the Insider |
Number of Warrants to be Purchased |
|||||||||
Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx & Company, Incorporated |
1,033,250 | 336,120 | 32,500 | |||||||||
Canaccord Genuity LLC |
556,366 | 180,987 | 17,500 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
Total |
1,589,616 | 517,107 | 50,000 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
SC-I
SCHEDULE II
Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses:
None
Written Testing-the-Waters Communication:
None
The following information is also included in the Pricing Disclosure Package:
Number of Shares to be Issued by the Company: 2,106,723
Number of Warrants to be Issued by the Company: 50,000
Offering Price per Share for the Insider: $10.58
Proceeds to Company per Share sold to the Insider (before expenses): $10.58
Offering Price per Share: $9.00
Underwriting Discount per Share, other than the Shares sold to the Insider: $0.4275
Proceeds to Company per Share, other than the Shares sold to the Insider (before expenses): $8.5725
Offering Price per Warrant: $10.57
Proceeds to Company per Warrant (before expenses): $10.57
SC-II
SCHEDULE III
Xxxx Xxxxx
Xxxx Xxxx, M.D.
Xxxxxxx Xxxxx, Ph.D.
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx, Ph.D.
Xxxx Xxxx
Xxxx-Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx
Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, Ph.D.
Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Ph.D.
Xxxxxxxx Xxxx
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx
New Ventures Agtech Solutions, LLC
New Ventures I, LLC
JPL Investments SA
SC-III
EXHIBIT A
FORM OF PRE-FUNDED WARRANT
A-1
FORM OF WARRANT TO PURCHASE SHARES OF CLASS A COMMON STOCK
Number of Shares: [ ] (subject to adjustment)
Warrant No. CS—[ ] | Original Issue Date: [•] [ ], 2023 |
Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), hereby certifies that, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, [__] or its registered assigns (the “Holder”), is entitled, subject to the terms set forth below, to purchase from the Company up to a total of [__] shares of Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (“Class A Common Stock”), of the Company (each such share, a “Warrant Share” and all such shares, the “Warrant Shares”) at an exercise price equal to $0.01 per share (as adjusted from time to time as provided in Section 9 herein, the “Exercise Price”) upon surrender of this Warrant to Purchase Shares of Class A Common Stock (including any Warrants to Purchase Shares of Class A Common Stock issued in exchange, transfer or replacement hereof, the “Warrant”) at any time and from time to time on or after the date hereof (the “Original Issue Date”) and, subject to the following terms and conditions:
1. Definitions. For purposes of this Warrant, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
(a) “Affiliate” means any Person directly or indirectly controlled by, controlling or under common control with, a Holder, as such terms are used in and construed under Rule 405 under the Securities Act, but only for so long as such control shall continue. For purposes of this definition, “control” (including, with correlative meanings, “controlled by,” “controlling” and “under common control with”) means, with respect to a Person, possession, direct or indirect, of (a) the power to direct or cause direction of the management and policies of such Person (whether through ownership of securities or partnership or other ownership interests, by contract or otherwise), or (b) at least 50% of the voting securities (whether directly or pursuant to any option, warrant, or other similar arrangement) or other comparable equity interests.
(b) “Commission” means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
(c) “Marketable Securities” means securities meeting all of the following requirements: (i) the issuer thereof is then subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and is then current in its filing of all required reports and other information under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act; (ii) the class and series of shares or other security of the issuer that would be received by Holder in connection with the Fundamental Transaction (as defined below) were Holder to exercise this Warrant on or prior to the closing thereof is then traded or quoted on a nationally recognized securities exchange, inter-dealer quotation system or over-the-counter market, and (iii) following the closing of such Fundamental Transaction, the Holder would not be restricted from publicly re-selling all of the issuer’s shares and/or other securities that would be received by the Holder in such Fundamental Transaction were the Holder to exercise or convert this Warrant in full on or prior to the closing of such Fundamental Transaction, except to the extent that any such restriction (x) arises solely under federal or state securities laws, rules or regulations, and (y) does not extend beyond six (6) months from the closing of such Fundamental Transaction.
A-1
(d) “Principal Trading Market” means the national securities exchange or other trading market on which the shares of Class A Common Stock are primarily listed on and quoted for trading, which, as of the Original Issue Date, shall be the Nasdaq Capital Market.
(e) “Registration Statement” means the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-273062), that became effective on October 27, 2023.
(f) “Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
(g) “Trading Day” means any weekday on which the Principal Trading Market is open for trading. If the shares of Class A Common Stock are not listed or admitted for trading, “Trading Day” means any day except any Saturday, any Sunday, any day which is a federal legal holiday in the United States or any day on which banking institutions in New York City are authorized or required by law or other governmental action to close.
(h) “Transfer Agent” means Broadridge Corporate Issuer Solutions, LLC, the Company’s transfer agent and registrar for the Class A Common Stock, and any successor appointed in such capacity.
(i) “VWAP” means, for any date, the price determined by the first of the following clauses that applies: (i) if the Class A Common Stock is then listed or quoted on a national securities exchange or other trading market, the daily volume weighted average price of the Class A Common Stock for such date (or the nearest preceding date) on the Principal Trading Market as reported by Bloomberg L.P. (based on a Trading Day from 9:30 a.m. (New York City time) to 4:02 p.m. (New York City time)), (ii) if the Class A Common Stock is then listed or quoted for trading and neither OTCQB nor OTCQX is the Principal Trading Market, the volume weighted average price of the Class A Common Stock for such date (or the nearest preceding date) on OTCQB or OTCQX, as applicable, (iii) if the Class A Common Stock is not then listed or quoted for trading on OTCQB or OTCQX and if prices for the Class A Common Stock are then reported in the “Pink Sheets” published by OTC Markets Group, Inc. (or a similar organization or agency succeeding to its functions of reporting prices), the most recent bid price per share of the Class A Common Stock so reported, or (iv) in all other cases, the fair market value of a share of Class A Common Stock as determined by an independent appraiser selected in good faith by the Holder and reasonably acceptable to the Company, the fees and expenses of which shall be paid by the Company
2. Issuance of Securities; Registration of Warrants. The Warrant, as initially issued by the Company, is offered and sold pursuant to the Registration Statement. As of the Original Issue Date, the Warrant Shares are issuable under the Registration Statement. Accordingly, the Warrant and, assuming issuance pursuant to the Registration Statement or an exchange meeting the requirements of Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act as in effect on the Original Issue Date, the Warrant Shares, are not “restricted securities” under Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act. The Company shall register ownership of this Warrant, upon records to be maintained by the
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Company for that purpose (the “Warrant Register”), in the name of the record Holder (which shall include the initial Holder or, as the case may be, any assignee to which this Warrant is permissibly assigned hereunder) from time to time. The Company may deem and treat the registered Holder of this Warrant as the absolute owner hereof for the purpose of any exercise hereof or any distribution to the Holder, and for all other purposes, absent actual notice to the contrary.
3. Registration of Transfers. Subject to compliance with all applicable securities laws and, if applicable, the rules of the Principal Trading Market, the Company shall, or will cause its Transfer Agent to, register the transfer of all or any portion of this Warrant in the Warrant Register, upon surrender of this Warrant, and payment for all applicable transfer taxes (if any). Upon any such registration or transfer, a new warrant to purchase shares of Class A Common Stock in substantially the form of this Warrant (any such new warrant, a “New Warrant”) evidencing the portion of this Warrant so transferred shall be issued to the transferee, and a New Warrant evidencing the remaining portion of this Warrant not so transferred, if any, shall be issued to the transferring Holder. The acceptance of the New Warrant by the transferee thereof shall be deemed the acceptance by such transferee of all of the rights and obligations in respect of the New Warrant that the Holder has in respect of this Warrant. The Company shall, or will cause its Transfer Agent to, prepare, issue and deliver at the Company’s own expense any New Warrant under this Section 3. Until due presentment for registration of transfer, the Company may treat the registered Holder hereof as the owner and holder for all purposes, and the Company shall not be affected by any notice to the contrary.
4. Exercise and Duration of Warrants.
(a) All or any part of this Warrant shall be exercisable by the registered Holder in the manner set forth in Section 10 at any time and from time to time on or after the Original Issue Date.
(b) The Holder may exercise this Warrant by delivering to the Company (i) an exercise notice, in the form attached as Schedule 1 hereto (the “Exercise Notice”), completed and duly signed, and (ii) payment of the Exercise Price for the number of Warrant Shares as to which this Warrant is being exercised (which may take the form of a “cashless exercise” if so indicated in the Exercise Notice pursuant to Section 10 below), and the date on which the last of such items is delivered to the Company (as determined in accordance with the notice provisions hereof) is an “Exercise Date.” The Holder shall not be required to deliver the original Warrant in order to effect an exercise hereunder. Execution and delivery of the Exercise Notice shall have the same effect as cancellation of the original Warrant and issuance of a New Warrant evidencing the right to purchase the remaining number of Warrant Shares, if any. The Holder and any assignee, by acceptance of this Warrant, acknowledge and agree that, by reason of the provisions of this paragraph, following the purchase of a portion of the Warrant Shares hereunder, the number of Warrant Shares available for purchase hereunder at any given time may be less than the amount stated on the face hereof.
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5. Delivery of Warrant Shares.
(a) Upon exercise of this Warrant, the Company shall promptly (but in no event later than three (3) Trading Days after the Exercise Date), upon the request of the Holder, credit such aggregate number of shares of Class A Common Stock to which the Holder is entitled pursuant to such exercise to the Holder’s or its designee’s balance account with The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) through its Deposit Withdrawal Agent Commission system, or if the Transfer Agent is not participating in the Fast Automated Securities Transfer Program (the “FAST Program”), issue and dispatch by overnight courier to the address as specified in the Exercise Notice, a certificate, registered in the Company’s share register in the name of the Holder or its designee, for the number of shares of Class A Common Stock to which the Holder is entitled pursuant to such exercise. The Holder, or any natural person or legal entity (each, a “Person”) so designated by the Holder to receive Warrant Shares, shall be deemed to have become the holder of record of such Warrant Shares as of the Exercise Date, irrespective of the date such Warrant Shares are credited to the Holder’s DTC account or the date of delivery of the certificates evidencing such Warrant Shares, as the case may be.
(b) If by the close of the third (3rd) Trading Day after the Exercise Date, the Company fails to deliver to the Holder a certificate representing the required number of Warrant Shares in the manner required pursuant to Section 5(a) or fails to credit the Holder’s DTC account for such number of Warrant Shares to which the Holder is entitled, and if after such third (3rd) Trading Day and prior to the receipt of such Warrant Shares, the Holder purchases (in an open market transaction, provided such purchases shall be made in a commercially reasonable manner at prevailing market prices) shares of Class A Common Stock to deliver in satisfaction of a sale by the Holder of the Warrant Shares which the Holder anticipated receiving upon such exercise (a “Buy-In”), then the Company shall, within two (2) Trading Days after the Holder’s request, in the Holder’s sole discretion, either (i) pay cash to the Holder in an amount equal to the Holder’s total purchase price (including commercially reasonable brokerage commissions, if any) for the shares of Class A Common Stock so purchased, at which point the Company’s obligation to deliver such Warrant Shares shall terminate, or (ii) (A) pay in cash to the Holder the amount, if any, by which (1) the Holder’s total purchase price (including commercially reasonable brokerage commissions, if any) for the shares of Class A Common Stock purchased in the Buy-In exceeds (2) the product of (x) the number of Warrant Shares that the Company was required to deliver to the Holder in connection with the exercise at issue, multiplied by (y) the price at which the sell order giving rise to such purchase obligation was executed (assuming such sale was executed on commercially reasonable terms at prevailing market prices and, if the sale was executed in multiple transactions, the volume weighted average price), and (B) at the option of the Holder, either (1) reinstate the portion of the Warrant and equivalent number of Warrant Shares for which such exercise was not honored (in which case such exercise shall be deemed rescinded) or (2) deliver to the Holder the number of shares of Class A Common Stock that would have been issued had the Company timely complied with its exercise and delivery obligations hereunder. The provisions of this Section 5(b) shall be the only remedy available to the Holder in the event the Company fails to deliver to the Holder the required number of Warrant Shares in the manner required pursuant to Section 5(a) and a Buy-In occurs. Irrespective of whether there is a Buy-In, no remedy shall be available, notwithstanding the requirements of Section 5(a), unless and until the Company fails to deliver to the Holder the required number of Warrant Shares by the close of the third Trading Day after the Exercise Date.
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(c) To the extent permitted by law and subject to Section 5(b), the Company’s obligations to issue and deliver Warrant Shares in accordance with and subject to the terms hereof (including the limitations set forth in Section 11 below) are absolute and unconditional, irrespective of any action or inaction by the Holder to enforce the same, any waiver or consent with respect to any provision hereof, the recovery of any judgment against any Person or any action to enforce the same, or any setoff, counterclaim, recoupment, limitation or termination, or any breach or alleged breach by the Holder or any other Person of any obligation to the Company or any violation or alleged violation of law by the Holder or any other Person, and irrespective of any other circumstance that might otherwise limit such obligation of the Company to the Holder in connection with the issuance of Warrant Shares. Subject to Section 5(b), nothing herein shall limit the Holder’s right to pursue any other remedies available to it hereunder, at law or in equity including, without limitation, a decree of specific performance and/or injunctive relief with respect to the Company’s failure to timely deliver certificates representing shares of Class A Common Stock upon exercise of the Warrant as required pursuant to the terms hereof.
6. Charges, Taxes and Expenses. Issuance and delivery of certificates for shares of Class A Common Stock upon exercise of this Warrant shall be made without charge to the Holder for any issue or transfer tax, transfer agent fee or other incidental tax or expense (excluding any applicable stamp duties) in respect of the issuance of such certificates, all of which taxes and expenses shall be paid by the Company; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required to pay any tax that may be payable in respect of any transfer involved in the registration of any certificates for Warrant Shares or the Warrants in a name other than that of the Holder or an Affiliate thereof. The Holder shall be responsible for all other tax liability that may arise as a result of holding or transferring this Warrant or receiving Warrant Shares upon exercise hereof.
7. Replacement of Warrant. If this Warrant is mutilated, lost, stolen or destroyed, the Company shall issue or cause to be issued in exchange and substitution for and upon cancellation hereof, or in lieu of and substitution for this Warrant, a New Warrant, but only upon receipt of evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company of such loss, theft or destruction (in such case) and, in each case, a customary and reasonable indemnity and surety bond, if requested by the Company. Applicants for a New Warrant under such circumstances shall also comply with such other reasonable regulations and procedures and pay such other reasonable third-party costs as the Company may prescribe. If a New Warrant is requested as a result of a mutilation of this Warrant, then the Holder shall deliver such mutilated Warrant to the Company as a condition precedent to the Company’s obligation to issue the New Warrant.
8. Reservation of Warrant Shares. The Company covenants that it will, at all times while this Warrant is issued and outstanding, reserve and keep available out of the aggregate of its authorized but unissued and otherwise unreserved shares of Class A Common Stock, solely for the purpose of enabling it to issue Warrant Shares upon exercise of this Warrant as herein provided, the number of Warrant Shares that are initially issuable and deliverable upon the exercise of this entire Warrant, free from preemptive rights or any other contingent purchase rights of persons other than the Holder (taking into account the adjustments and restrictions of Section 9). The Company covenants that all Warrant Shares so issuable and deliverable shall, upon issuance and the payment of the applicable Exercise Price in accordance with the terms hereof, be duly and validly authorized, issued and fully paid and non-assessable. The Company will take all such action as may be reasonably necessary to assure that such shares of Class A Common Stock may
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be issued as provided herein without violation of any applicable law or regulation, or of any requirements of any securities exchange or automated quotation system upon which the shares of Class A Common Stock may be listed. The Company further covenants that it will not, without the prior written consent of the Holder, take any actions to increase the par value of the shares of Class A Common Stock at any time while this Warrant is issued and outstanding.
9. Certain Adjustments. The Exercise Price and number of Warrant Shares issuable upon exercise of this Warrant are subject to adjustment from time to time as set forth in this Section 9.
(a) Stock Dividends and Splits. If the Company, at any time while this Warrant is issued and outstanding, (i) pays a stock dividend on its shares of Class A Common Stock or otherwise makes a distribution on any class of capital shares issued and outstanding on the Original Issue Date and in accordance with the terms of such stock on the Original Issue Date or as amended, as described in the Registration Statement, that is payable in shares of Class A Common Stock, (ii) subdivides its issued and outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock into a larger number of shares of Class A Common Stock, (iii) combines its issued and outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock into a smaller number of shares of Class A Common Stock or (iv) issues by reclassification of capital shares any additional shares of Class A Common Stock of the Company, then in each such case the Exercise Price shall be multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which shall be the number of shares of Class A Common Stock issued and outstanding immediately before such event and the denominator of which shall be the number of shares of Class A Common Stock issued and outstanding immediately after such event. Any adjustment made pursuant to clause (i) of this paragraph shall become effective immediately after the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to receive such dividend or distribution, provided, however, that if such record date shall have been fixed and such dividend is not fully paid on the date fixed therefor, the Exercise Price shall be recomputed accordingly as of the close of business on such record date and thereafter the Exercise Price shall be adjusted pursuant to this paragraph as of the time of actual payment of such dividends. Any adjustment pursuant to clause (ii) or (iii) of this paragraph shall become effective immediately after the effective date of such subdivision or combination.
(b) Pro Rata Distributions. If the Company, at any time while this Warrant is issued and outstanding, distributes to all holders of shares of Class A Common Stock for no consideration (i) evidences of its indebtedness, (ii) any security (other than a distribution of shares of Class A Common Stock covered by the preceding paragraph), (iii) rights or warrants to subscribe for or purchase any security, or (iv) cash or any other asset (in each case, “Distributed Property”), then, upon any exercise of this Warrant that occurs after the record date fixed for determination of stockholders entitled to receive such distribution, the Holder shall be entitled to receive, in addition to the Warrant Shares otherwise issuable upon such exercise (if applicable), the Distributed Property that such Holder would have been entitled to receive in respect of such number of Warrant Shares had the Holder been the record holder of such Warrant Shares immediately prior to such record date without regard to any limitation on exercise contained therein.
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(c) Fundamental Transactions. If, at any time while this Warrant is issued and outstanding (i) the Company effects any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another Person, in which the Company is not the surviving entity and in which the stockholders of the Company immediately prior to such merger or consolidation do not own, directly or indirectly, at least 50% of the voting power of the surviving entity immediately after such merger or consolidation, (ii) the Company effects any sale to another Person of all or substantially all of its assets in one transaction or a series of related transactions, (iii) pursuant to any tender offer or exchange offer (whether by the Company or another Person), holders of capital stock tender shares representing more than 50% of the voting power of the capital stock of the Company and the Company or such other Person, as applicable, accepts such tender for payment, (iv) the Company consummates a share purchase agreement or other business combination (including, without limitation, a reorganization, recapitalization, spin-off or scheme of arrangement) with another Person whereby such other Person acquires more than the 50% of the voting power of the capital stock of the Company (except for any such transaction in which the stockholders of the Company immediately prior to such transaction maintain, in substantially the same proportions, the voting power of such Person immediately after the transaction); or (v) the Company effects any reclassification of the shares of Class A Common Stock or any compulsory share exchange pursuant to which the shares of Class A Common Stock are effectively converted into or exchanged for other securities, cash or property (other than as a result of a subdivision or combination of shares of Class A Common Stock covered by Section 9(a) above) (in any such case, a “Fundamental Transaction”), then following such Fundamental Transaction the Holder shall have the right to receive, upon exercise of this Warrant, the same amount and kind of securities, cash or property as it would have been entitled to receive upon the occurrence of such Fundamental Transaction if it had been, immediately prior to such Fundamental Transaction, the holder of the number of Warrant Shares then issuable upon exercise in full of this Warrant without regard to any limitations on exercise contained herein (the “Alternate Consideration”). The Company shall not effect any Fundamental Transaction in which the Company is not the surviving entity or the Alternate Consideration includes securities of another Person unless (i) the Alternate Consideration is solely cash and the Company provides for the simultaneous “cashless exercise” of this Warrant pursuant to Section 10 below or (ii) prior to, simultaneously with or promptly following the consummation thereof, any successor to the Company, surviving entity or other Person (including any purchaser of assets of the Company) shall assume the obligation to deliver to the Holder such Alternate Consideration as, in accordance with the foregoing provisions, the Holder may be entitled to receive, and the other obligations under this Warrant. The provisions of this paragraph (c) shall similarly apply to subsequent transactions analogous of a Fundamental Transaction type. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event of a Fundamental Transaction where the consideration payable to holders of shares of Class A Common Stock consists solely of cash, solely of Marketable Securities or a combination of cash and Marketable Securities, then this Warrant shall automatically be deemed to be exercised in full in a “cashless exercise” pursuant to Section 10 below effective immediately prior to and contingent upon the consummation of such Fundamental Transaction.
(d) Number of Warrant Shares. Simultaneously with any adjustment to the Exercise Price pursuant to Section 9 (including any adjustment to the Exercise Price that would have been effected but for the final sentence in this paragraph (d)), the number of Warrant Shares that may be purchased upon exercise of this Warrant shall be increased or decreased proportionately, so that after such adjustment the aggregate Exercise Price payable hereunder for the increased or decreased number of Warrant Shares shall be the same as the aggregate Exercise Price in effect immediately prior to such adjustment. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event may the Exercise Price be adjusted below the par value of the shares of Class A Common Stock then in effect.
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(e) Calculations. All calculations under this Section 9 shall be made to the nearest one-hundredth of one cent or the nearest share, as applicable.
(f) Notice of Adjustments. Upon the occurrence of each adjustment pursuant to this Section 9, the Company at its expense will, at the written request of the Holder, promptly compute such adjustment, in good faith, in accordance with the terms of this Warrant and prepare a certificate setting forth such adjustment, including a statement of the adjusted Exercise Price and adjusted number or type of Warrant Shares or other securities issuable upon exercise of this Warrant (as applicable), describing the transactions giving rise to such adjustments and showing in detail the facts upon which such adjustment is based. Upon written request, the Company will promptly deliver a copy of each such certificate to the Holder and to the Company’s transfer agent.
(g) Notice of Corporate Events. If, while this Warrant is issued and outstanding, the Company (i) declares a dividend or any other distribution of cash, securities or other property in respect of its shares of Class A Common Stock, including, without limitation, any granting of rights or warrants to subscribe for or purchase any capital stock of the Company or any subsidiary, (ii) authorizes or approves, enters into any agreement contemplating or solicits stockholder approval for any Fundamental Transaction or (iii) authorizes the voluntary dissolution, liquidation or winding up of the affairs of the Company, then, except if such notice and the contents thereof shall be deemed to constitute material non-public information, the Company shall deliver to the Holder a notice of such transaction at least ten (10) days prior to the applicable record or effective date on which a Person would need to hold shares of Class A Common Stock in order to participate in or vote with respect to such transaction; provided, however, that the failure to deliver such notice or any defect therein shall not affect the validity of the corporate action required to be described in such notice. In addition, if while this Warrant is issued and outstanding, the Company authorizes or approves, enters into any agreement contemplating or solicits stockholder approval for any Fundamental Transaction contemplated by Section 9(c), other than a Fundamental Transaction under clause (iii) of Section 9(c), then, except if such notice and the contents thereof shall be deemed to constitute material non-public information, the Company shall deliver to the Holder a notice of such Fundamental Transaction at least ten (10) days prior to the date such Fundamental Transaction is consummated.
10. Payment of Cashless Exercise Price. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, the Holder may, in its sole discretion, satisfy its obligation to pay the Exercise Price through a “cashless exercise”, in which event the Company shall issue to the Holder the number of Warrant Shares in an exchange of securities effected pursuant to Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act as determined as follows:
X = Y [(A-B)/A] where:
“X” | equals the number of Warrant Shares to be issued to the Holder; |
“Y” | equals the total number of Warrant Shares with respect to which this Warrant is then being exercised; |
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“A” | equals the last VWAP immediately preceding the time of delivery of the Exercise Notice giving rise to the applicable “cashless exercise”, as set forth in the applicable Exercise Notice (to clarify, the “last VWAP” will be the last VWAP as calculated over an entire Trading Day such that, in the event that this Warrant is exercised at a time that the Trading Market is open, the prior Trading Day’s VWAP shall be used in this calculation); and |
“B” | equals the Exercise Price per Warrant Share then in effect on the Exercise Date. |
For purposes of Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act, it is intended, understood and acknowledged that the Warrant Shares issued in such a “cashless exercise” transaction shall be deemed to have been acquired by the Holder, and the holding period for the Warrant Shares shall be deemed to have commenced, on the date this Warrant was originally issued (provided that the Commission continues to take the position that such treatment is proper at the time of such exercise).
Except as set forth in Section 12 (payment of cash in lieu of fractional shares), in no event will the exercise of this Warrant be settled in cash.
11. Limitations on Exercise.
(a) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, the Company shall not effect any exercise of this Warrant, and the Holder shall not be entitled to exercise this Warrant for a number of Warrant Shares in excess of that number of Warrant Shares which, upon giving effect or immediately prior to such exercise, would cause [(i)] (A) the outstanding Class A Common Stock beneficially owned by the Holder and any other Persons whose beneficial ownership of shares of Class A Common Stock would be aggregated with the Holder’s for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act (such as any other members of a Section 13(d) “group”) to exceed [19.99]% of the outstanding Class A Common Stock (as computed in accordance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act); or (B) the combined voting power of the securities of the Company beneficially owned by the Holder and its Affiliates and any other Persons whose beneficial ownership of shares of Class A Common Stock and the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Class B Common Stock”), would be aggregated with the Holder’s for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act (such as any other members of a Section 13(d) “group”) to exceed [19.99]% of the combined voting power of all of the securities of the Company then outstanding following such exercise[, or (ii) the aggregate number of shares of Class A Common Stock beneficially owned by the Holder, its Affiliates and any other Persons whose beneficial ownership of shares of Class A Common Stock would be aggregated with the Holder’s for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act (such as any other members of a Section 13(d) “group”) to exceed [4.99][9.99]% (the “Maximum Percentage”) of the total number of issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock of the Company following such exercise]. For purposes of this Warrant, in determining the number of outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock, the Holder may rely on the number of outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as reflected in (x) the Company’s most recent Form 10-Q or Form 10-K, as the case may be, filed with the Commission prior to the date hereof, (y) a more recent public announcement by the Company or (z) any other
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notice by the Company or its transfer agent setting forth the number of shares of Class A Common Stock or Class B Common Stock outstanding. Upon the written request of the Holder, the Company shall within three (3) Trading Days confirm in writing or by electronic mail to the Holder the number of shares of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock then outstanding. In any case, the number of outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock shall be determined after giving effect to the conversion or exercise of securities of the Company, including this Warrant, by the Holder since the date as of which such number of outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock was reported. [By written notice to the Company, the Holder may from time to time increase or decrease the Maximum Percentage to any other percentage specified not in excess of 19.99% specified in such notice; provided that any such increase will not be effective until the sixty-first (61st) day after such notice is delivered to the Company.] For purposes of this Section 11(a), the aggregate number of shares of Class A Common Stock or voting securities beneficially owned by the Holder and its Affiliates and any other Persons whose beneficial ownership of shares of Class A Common Stock would be aggregated with the Holder’s for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act (such as any other members of a Section 13(d) “group”) shall include the shares of Class A Common Stock issuable upon the exercise of this Warrant with respect to which such determination is being made, but shall exclude the number of shares of Class A Common Stock which would be issuable upon (x) exercise of the remaining unexercised and non-cancelled portion of this Warrant by the Holder and (y) exercise or conversion of the unexercised, non-converted or non-cancelled portion of any other securities of the Company that do not have voting power (including without limitation any securities of the Company which would entitle the holder thereof to acquire at any time shares of Class A Common Stock, including without limitation any debt, preferred stock, right, option, warrant or other instrument that is at any time convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for, or otherwise entitles the holder thereof to receive, shares of Class A Common Stock), is subject to a limitation on conversion or exercise analogous to the limitation contained herein and is beneficially owned by the Holder or any of its Affiliates and other Persons whose beneficial ownership of shares of Class A Common Stock would be aggregated with the Holder’s for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act (such as any other members of a Section 13(d) “group”).
(b) This Section 11 shall not restrict the number of shares of Class A Common Stock which a Holder may receive or beneficially own in order to determine the amount of securities or other consideration that such Holder may receive in the event of a Fundamental Transaction as contemplated in Section 9(c) of this Warrant.
12. No Fractional Shares. No fractional Warrant Shares will be issued in connection with any exercise of this Warrant. In lieu of any fractional shares that would otherwise be issuable, the number of Warrant Shares to be issued shall be rounded down to the next whole number and the Company shall pay the Holder in cash the fair market value (based on the last VWAP immediately preceding the time of delivery of the applicable Exercise Notice) for any such fractional shares.
13. Notices. Any and all notices or other communications or deliveries hereunder (including, without limitation, any Exercise Notice) shall be in writing and shall be deemed given and effective on the earliest of (i) the date of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via confirmed e-mail prior to 5:30 P.M., New York City time, on a Trading Day, (ii) the next Trading Day after the date of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via
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confirmed e-mail on a day that is not a Trading Day or later than 5:30 P.M., New York City time, on any Trading Day, (iii) the Trading Day following the date of mailing, if sent by nationally recognized overnight courier service specifying next business day delivery, or (iv) upon actual receipt by the Person to whom such notice is required to be given, if by hand delivery. The addresses and e-mail addresses for such communications shall be:
If to the Company:
0000 Xxxxx Xxxxx Xxxxx
San Diego, California 92121
with copies to:
000 Xxxxx Xxxxxx
New York, New York 10281
Attention: Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxxx
If to the Holder, to its address or e-mail address set forth herein or on the books and records of the Company.
Or, in each of the above instances, to such other address or e-mail address as the recipient party has specified by written notice given to each other party at least five (5) days prior to the effectiveness of such change.
14. Warrant Agent. The Company shall initially serve as warrant agent under this Warrant. Upon ten (10) days’ notice to the Holder, the Company may appoint a new warrant agent. Any corporation into which the Company or any new warrant agent may be merged or any corporation resulting from any consolidation to which the Company or any new warrant agent shall be a party or any corporation to which the Company or any new warrant agent transfers substantially all of its corporate trust or stockholders services business shall be a successor warrant agent under this Warrant without any further act. Any such successor warrant agent shall promptly cause notice of its succession as warrant agent to be mailed (by first class mail, postage prepaid) to the Holder at the Holder’s last address as shown on the Warrant Register.
15. Miscellaneous.
(a) No Rights as a Stockholder. The Holder, solely in such Person’s capacity as a holder of this Warrant, shall not be entitled to vote or receive dividends or be deemed the holder of capital stock of the Company for any purpose, nor shall anything contained in this Warrant be construed to confer upon the Holder, solely in such Person’s capacity as the Holder of this Warrant, any of the rights of a stockholder of the Company or any right to vote, give or withhold consent to any corporate action (whether any reorganization, issue of stock, reclassification of stock, consolidation, merger, amalgamation, conveyance or otherwise), receive notice of meetings, receive dividends or subscription rights, or otherwise, prior to the issuance to the Holder of the Warrant Shares which such Person is then entitled to receive upon the due exercise of this Warrant. In addition, nothing contained in this Warrant shall be construed as imposing any liabilities on the Holder to purchase any securities (upon exercise of this Warrant or otherwise) or as a stockholder of the Company, whether such liabilities are asserted by the Company or by creditors of the Company.
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(b) Authorized Shares. Except and to the extent as waived or consented to by the Holder, the Company shall not by any action, including, without limitation, amending its certificate or articles of incorporation or through any reorganization, transfer of assets, consolidation, merger, amalgamation, dissolution, issue or sale of securities or any other voluntary action, avoid or seek to avoid the observance or performance of any of the terms of this Warrant, but will at all times in good faith assist in the carrying out of all such terms and in the taking of all such actions as may be necessary or appropriate to protect the rights of Holder as set forth in this Warrant against impairment. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Company will (i) not increase the par value of any Warrant Shares above the amount payable therefor upon such exercise immediately prior to such increase in par value, (ii) take all such action as may be necessary or appropriate in order that the Company may validly and legally issue fully paid and non-assessable Warrant Shares upon the exercise of this Warrant, and (iii) use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain all such authorizations, exemptions or consents from any public regulatory body having jurisdiction thereof as may be necessary to enable the Company to perform its obligations under this Warrant.
(c) Successors and Assigns. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, this Warrant may be assigned by the Holder. This Warrant may not be assigned by the Company without the written consent of the Holder, except to a successor in the event of a Fundamental Transaction in which this Warrant is not automatically “cashless exercised”. This Warrant shall be binding on and inure to the benefit of the Company and the Holder and their respective successors and assigns. Subject to the preceding sentence, nothing in this Warrant shall be construed to give to any Person other than the Company and the Holder any legal or equitable right, remedy or cause of action under this Warrant. This Warrant may be amended only in writing signed by the Company and the Holder, or their successors and assigns.
(d) Amendment and Waiver. Except as otherwise provided herein, this Warrant may be modified or amended or the provisions hereof waived with the written consent of the Company and the Holder.
(e) Acceptance. Receipt of this Warrant by the Holder shall constitute acceptance of and agreement to all of the terms and conditions contained herein.
(f) Governing Law; Jurisdiction. ALL QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE CONSTRUCTION, VALIDITY, ENFORCEMENT AND INTERPRETATION OF THIS WARRANT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED AND ENFORCED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT REGARD TO THE PRINCIPLES OF CONFLICTS OF LAW THEREOF. EACH OF THE COMPANY AND THE HOLDER HEREBY IRREVOCABLY SUBMITS TO THE EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OF THE STATE AND FEDERAL COURTS SITTING IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN, FOR THE ADJUDICATION OF ANY DISPUTE HEREUNDER OR IN CONNECTION HEREWITH OR WITH ANY TRANSACTION CONTEMPLATED HEREBY OR DISCUSSED HEREIN (INCLUDING WITH RESPECT TO THE ENFORCEMENT OF ANY OF THE TRANSACTION DOCUMENTS), AND HEREBY
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IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, AND AGREES NOT TO ASSERT IN ANY SUIT, ACTION OR PROCEEDING, ANY CLAIM THAT IT IS NOT PERSONALLY SUBJECT TO THE JURISDICTION OF ANY SUCH COURT. EACH OF THE COMPANY AND THE HOLDER HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES PERSONAL SERVICE OF PROCESS AND CONSENTS TO PROCESS BEING SERVED IN ANY SUCH SUIT, ACTION OR PROCEEDING BY MAILING A COPY THEREOF VIA REGISTERED OR CERTIFIED MAIL OR OVERNIGHT DELIVERY (WITH EVIDENCE OF DELIVERY) TO SUCH PERSON AT THE ADDRESS IN EFFECT FOR NOTICES TO IT AND AGREES THAT SUCH SERVICE SHALL CONSTITUTE GOOD AND SUFFICIENT SERVICE OF PROCESS AND NOTICE THEREOF. NOTHING CONTAINED HEREIN SHALL BE DEEMED TO LIMIT IN ANY WAY ANY RIGHT TO SERVE PROCESS IN ANY MANNER PERMITTED BY LAW. EACH OF THE COMPANY AND THE HOLDER HEREBY WAIVES ALL RIGHTS TO A TRIAL BY JURY.
(g) Headings. The headings herein are for convenience only, do not constitute a part of this Warrant and shall not be deemed to limit or affect any of the provisions hereof.
(h) Severability. In case any one or more of the provisions of this Warrant shall be invalid or unenforceable in any respect, the validity and enforceability of the remaining terms and provisions of this Warrant shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby, and the Company and the Holder will attempt in good faith to agree upon a valid and enforceable provision which shall be a commercially reasonable substitute therefor, and upon so agreeing, shall incorporate such substitute provision in this Warrant.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this Warrant to be duly executed by its authorized officer as of the date first indicated above.
CIBUS, INC. | ||
By: | ||
Name: | ||
Title: |
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SCHEDULE 1
FORM OF EXERCISE NOTICE
[To be executed by the Holder to purchase shares of Class A Common Stock under the Warrant]
Ladies and Gentlemen:
(1) The undersigned is the Holder of Warrant No. (the “Warrant”) issued by Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”). Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined herein have the respective meanings set forth in the Warrant.
(2) The undersigned hereby exercises its right to purchase Warrant Shares pursuant to the Warrant.
(3) The Holder intends that payment of the Exercise Price shall be made as (check one):
☐ Cash Exercise
☐ “Cashless Exercise” under Section 10 of the Warrant
(4) Pursuant to this Exercise Notice, the Company shall deliver to the Holder Warrant Shares determined in accordance with the terms of the Warrant. The Warrant Shares shall be delivered to the following DWAC Account Number:
(5) By its delivery of this Exercise Notice, the undersigned represents and warrants to the Company that in giving effect to the exercise evidenced hereby the Holder will not violate Section 11(a) of the Warrant to which this notice relates.
Dated: |
Name of Holder: |
By: |
Name: |
Title: |
(Signature must conform in all respects to name of Xxxxxx as specified on the face of the Warrant)
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EXHIBIT B
LOCK-UP AGREEMENT
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LOCK-UP AGREEMENT
CIBUS, INC.
0000 Xxxxx Xxxxx Xxxxx
San Diego, CA 92121
XXXXXX, XXXXXXXX & COMPANY, INCORPORATED
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, 00xx Xxxxx
New York, NY 10019
CANACCORD GENUITY LLC
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, 0xx Xxxxx
New York, NY 10022
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The undersigned refers to the proposed Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) among Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx & Company, Incorporated (“Stifel”), Canaccord Genuity LLC (“Canaccord” and, together with Stifel, the “Representatives”) and the several underwriters named therein (collectively, the “Underwriters”). As an inducement to the Underwriters to execute the Underwriting Agreement in connection with the proposed public offering of shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Common Stock”), pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-3 (the “Offering”), the undersigned hereby agrees that from the date hereof and until 90 days after the public offering date set forth on the final prospectus used to sell the Common Stock (the “Public Offering Date”) pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement (such 90 day period being referred to herein as the “Lock-Up Period”), to which you are or expect to become parties, the undersigned will not (and will cause any spouse or immediate family member of the spouse or the undersigned living in the undersigned’s household, any partnership, corporation or other entity within the undersigned’s control, and any trustee of any trust that holds Common Stock or other securities of the Company for the benefit of the undersigned or such spouse or family member not to) offer, sell, contract to sell (including any short sale), pledge, hypothecate, establish an open “put equivalent position” within the meaning of Rule 16a-1(h) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), grant any option, right or warrant for the sale of, purchase any option or contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, or otherwise encumber, dispose of or transfer, or grant any rights with respect to, directly or indirectly, any shares of Common Stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for any shares of Common Stock, enter into a transaction which would have the same effect, or enter into any swap, hedge or other arrangement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock, whether any such aforementioned transaction is to be settled by delivery of the Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, or publicly disclose the intention to make any such offer, sale, pledge or disposition, or to enter into any such transaction, swap, hedge or other arrangement, without, in each case, the prior written consent of Stifel, which consent may be withheld in Stifel’s sole discretion.
The foregoing restrictions shall not apply to:
(a) bona fide gifts by the undersigned, provided that, (i) each resulting transferee of the Company’s securities executes and delivers to Stifel an agreement satisfactory to Stifel certifying that such transferee is bound by the terms of this Agreement and has been in compliance with the terms hereof since the date first above written as if it had been an original party hereto and (ii) to the extent any interest in the Company’s securities is retained by the undersigned (or such spouse or family member), such securities shall remain subject to the restrictions contained in this Agreement;
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(b) exercises of stock options or warrants of the Company, the vesting of restricted stock units of the Company or the vesting of restricted shares of Common Stock, provided that any Common Stock received upon exercise of options or warrants, the vesting or restricted stock units or the vesting of restricted Common Stock will also be subject to this letter agreement;
(c) conversions or exchanges of shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company for or into Common Stock;
(d) establishing a trading plan pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock, provided that (i) such plan does not provide for the transfer of the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock during the Lock-Up Period and (ii) no public announcement or filing under the Exchange Act, if any, is required or voluntarily made by or on behalf of the undersigned or the Company regarding the establishment of such plan during the Lock-Up Period, except those public announcements made in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for its fiscal year ending December 31, 2023;
(e) if the undersigned is a corporation, partnership, limited liability company or other business entity, any transfers to any stockholder, partner or member of, or owner of a similar equity interest in, the undersigned, as the case may be, if, in any such case, such transfer is not for value;
(f) if the undersigned is a corporation, partnership, limited liability company or other business entity, any transfer made by the undersigned (a) in connection with the sale or other bona fide transfer in a single transaction of all or substantially all of the undersigned’s capital stock, partnership interests, membership interests or other similar equity interests, as the case may be, or all or substantially all of the undersigned’s assets, in any such case not undertaken for the purpose of avoiding the restrictions imposed by this letter agreement or (b) to another corporation, partnership, limited liability company or other business entity so long as the transferee is an affiliate (as defined below) of the undersigned and such transfer is not for value; and
(g) transfers to the Company pursuant to agreements in effect on the date hereof under which the Company has the option to repurchase such securities upon termination of the undersigned’s service to the Company.
This letter agreement shall not apply to: (a) the transfer of the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock pursuant to a bona fide third party tender offer, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction made to all holders of the Common Stock involving a change of control (as defined below) of the Company, provided that in the event that the tender offer, merger, consolidation or other such transaction is not completed, the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock shall remain subject to the restrictions contained herein; (b) transactions relating to shares of Common Stock or other securities acquired in open market transactions after the completion of the Offering, provided that no filing under the Exchange Act shall be required or shall be voluntarily made in connection with subsequent sales of Common Stock or other securities acquired in such open market transactions; or (c) transfers to the Company in connection with the exercise of options or warrants on a “cashless” or “net exercise” basis or to cover tax withholding obligations upon the exercise of options or warrants or the vesting of restricted stock units, provided that any related filing under the Exchange Act reporting a disposition of shares of Common Stock made in connection with such exercise shall contain a description of the transaction and indicate that the disposition was made as part of such exercise or to cover tax withholding obligations in connection therewith. For the
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purposes of this paragraph, “change of control” means (a) the consummation of a reorganization, merger or consolidation, or sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, or (b) the acquisition by any individual, entity or group (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the Exchange Act) of beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Rule 13d-3 promulgated under such Act) of more than fifty percent (50%) of the combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors.
In addition, the undersigned agrees that, during the Lock-Up Period, without the prior written consent of Stifel (which consent may be withheld in its sole discretion): (a) the undersigned will not request, make any demand for or exercise any right with respect to, the registration of any Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock; and (b) the undersigned waives any and all notice requirements and rights with respect to the registration of any such security pursuant to any agreement, understanding or otherwise to which the undersigned is a party.
In furtherance of the foregoing, the Company and its transfer agent and registrar are hereby authorized to (a) decline to make any transfer of shares of Common Stock if such transfer would constitute a violation or breach of this letter agreement and (b) place legends and stop transfer instructions on any such shares of Common Stock owned by the undersigned.
This letter agreement is irrevocable and shall be binding on the undersigned and the successors, heirs, personal representatives and assigns of the undersigned. This letter agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to choice of law rules.
This letter agreement shall automatically terminate and the undersigned will be released from all of his, her or its obligations hereunder upon the earliest to occur, if any, of (i) prior to the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, the Company advises the Representatives in writing that it has determined not to proceed with the Offering, (ii) the Company files an application to withdraw the Registration Statement, (iii) the Underwriting Agreement is executed but is terminated (other than the provisions thereof which survive termination) prior to payment for and delivery of the Common Stock to be sold thereunder, or (iv) December 31, 2023, in the event the Underwriting Agreement has not been executed by such date.
Very truly yours, |
|
Printed Name: |
Date: |
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