HWH INTERNATIONAL INC. PLACEMENT AGENT AGREEMENT
Exhibit 1.1
_____________, 2024
X. Xxxxx Capital LLC (formerly known as XX Xxxxxx LLC)
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, 00xx Xxxxx
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Subject to the terms and conditions herein (this “Agreement”) HWH International Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), hereby agrees to sell up to an aggregate of (i) 3,571,429 (the “Shares”) of the Company’s common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (the “Common Stock”), and (ii) pre-funded warrants (the “Pre-Funded Warrants”) to purchase up to an aggregate of 3,571,429 shares of Common Stock (the “Warrant Shares”) directly to various purchasers (each, a “Purchaser” and, collectively, the “Purchasers”) through X. Xxxxx Capital LLC (formerly known as XX Xxxxxx LLC), as Placement Agent (the “Placement Agent”). This Agreement and the documents executed and delivered by the Company and the Purchasers in connection with the Offering (as defined below), including, without limitation, a securities purchase agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”), shall be collectively referred to herein as the “Transaction Documents.” The Shares and the Warrants are collectively referred to as the “Securities.” The Placement Agent may retain other brokers or dealers to act as sub-agents or selected-dealers on its behalf in connection with the Offering. The Securities and the Warrant Shares will be issued under the Registration Statement (as defined below) and pursuant to the terms of the Base Prospectus.
The Company has prepared and filed in conformity with the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the published rules and regulations thereunder (the “Rules”) adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) a registration statement on Form S-1 (No. 333-282567), as amended, which was initially filed on October 10, 2024 and declared effective on [ ], 2024 (the “Registration Statement”), for the registration of the Securities under the Securities Act. The term “Registration Statement” as used in this Agreement means the registration statement, including all exhibits, financial schedules and all documents and information deemed to be part of the Registration Statement by incorporation by reference or otherwise, as amended from time to time, including the information (if any) contained in the form of final prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and deemed to be part thereof at the time of effectiveness pursuant to Rule 430B of the Rules.
The Company hereby confirms that the Placement Agent and dealers have been authorized to distribute or cause to be distributed each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (as hereinafter defined) and are authorized to distribute the Prospectus (as from time to time amended or supplemented if the Company furnishes amendments or supplements thereto to the Placement Agent).
1.Agreement to Act as Placement Agent. On the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements contained in, and subject to the terms and conditions of, this Agreement:
(a) The Company hereby authorizes the Placement Agent to act as its exclusive agent to solicit offers for the purchase of all or part of the Securities from the Company in connection with the proposed offering of the Securities (the “Offering”). Until the Closing Date (as defined below) or earlier upon termination of this Agreement pursuant to Section 7, the Company shall not, without the prior written consent of the Placement Agent, solicit or accept offers to purchase the Securities otherwise than through the Placement Agent.
(b) The Company hereby acknowledges that the Placement Agent has agreed, as agent of the Company, to use its reasonable “best efforts” to solicit offers to purchase the Securities from the Company on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth herein. The Placement Agent shall use commercially reasonable efforts to assist the Company in obtaining performance by each Purchaser whose offer to purchase Securities has been solicited by the Placement Agent and accepted by the Company, but the Placement Agent shall not, except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, be obligated to disclose the identity of any potential purchaser or have any liability to the Company in the event any such purchase is not consummated for any reason. Under no circumstances will the Placement Agent be obligated to underwrite or purchase any Securities for its own account and, in soliciting purchases of the Securities, the Placement Agent shall act solely as the Company’s agent and not as principal.
(c) Subject to the provisions of this Section 1, offers for the purchase of the Securities may be solicited by the Placement Agent as agent for the Company at such times and in such amounts as the Placement Agent deems advisable. The Placement Agent shall communicate to the Company, orally or in writing, each reasonable offer to purchase Securities received by it as agent of the Company. The Company shall have the sole right to accept offers to purchase Securities and may reject any such offer, in whole or in part. The Placement Agent shall have the right, in its discretion reasonably exercised, without notice to the Company, to reject any offer to purchase Securities received by it, in whole or in part, and any such rejection shall not be deemed a breach of this Agreement.
(d) Each Share is being sold to the Purchasers at a price of $_____ and each Pre-Funded Warrant is being sold to the Purchasers at a price of $_____. The purchases of Securities by the Purchasers shall be evidenced by the execution of Purchase Agreement by each of the Purchasers and the Company.
(e) As compensation for services rendered, on the Closing Date (as defined in Section 4 hereof), the Company shall pay to the Placement Agent by wire transfer of immediately available funds to an account designated by the Placement Agent, an aggregate amount equal to seven and one half percent (7.5%) of the gross proceeds received by the Company (the “Placement Fee”) from the sale of the Securities on such Closing Date. The Placement Agent may retain other brokers or dealers to act as sub-agents on its behalf in connection with the Offering, the fees of which shall be paid out of the Placement Fee.
(f) The Company also agrees to reimburse Placement Agent’s fees and expenses of legal counsel and other out-of-pocket expenses of [$75,000] payable immediately upon the Closing of the Offering.
(g) No Securities which the Company has agreed to sell pursuant to this Agreement and the Purchase Agreement shall be deemed to have been purchased and paid for, or sold by the Company, until such Securities shall have been delivered to the Purchaser thereof against payment by such Purchaser. If the Company shall default in its obligations to deliver Securities to a Purchaser whose offer it has accepted, the Company shall indemnify and hold the Placement Agent harmless against any loss, claim, damage or expense arising from or as a result of such default by the Company subject to and in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section 5(c) herein.
(h) The time and date of closing and delivery of the documents required to be delivered to the Placement Agent pursuant to Sections 3 and 4 hereof (the “Closing”) shall be at [ ] (Eastern Time) on [ ], 2024 (the “Closing Date”) at the office of Lucosky Xxxxxxxx LLP, 000 Xxxx Xxxxxx Xxxxx, 0xx Xxxxx, Xxxxxxxxxx, XX 00000, or at such other time and location as the Company and the Placement Agent shall otherwise agree.
2. Representations and Warranties of the Company. The representations and warranties of the Company contained in Section 3.1 and Article IV of the Purchase Agreement are hereby incorporated by reference in this Agreement, as if made directly by the Company to the Placement Agent on the date of this Agreement, with the understanding that:
(a) any defined terms used in such incorporated sections shall have the meanings given to them in this Agreement or, if no definition is given to them in this Agreement, such defined terms will have the meanings given to them in the incorporated sections;
(b) in the event of a conflict in meaning or defined term between the incorporated sections and this Agreement, this Agreement shall control; and
(c) references to “this Agreement” in the incorporated sections from the Purchase Agreement means this Agreement.
3. Conditions of the Obligations of the Placement Agent and the Purchasers. The respective obligations of the Placement Agent hereunder and the Purchasers under the Purchase Agreement are subject to each of the following terms and conditions:
(a) Accountants’ Comfort Letter. On the date hereof, the Placement Agent shall have received, and the Company shall have caused to be delivered to the Placement Agent, a letter from Xxxxxx & Co., CPAs, P.C. (the independent registered public accounting firm of the Company), addressed to the Placement Agent, dated as of the date hereof, in form and substance satisfactory to the Placement Agent. The letter shall not disclose any change in the condition (financial or other), earnings, operations, business or prospects of the Company from that set forth in the Incorporated Documents or the applicable Prospectus or prospectus supplement, which, in the Placement Agent’s sole judgment, is material and adverse and that makes it, in the Placement Agent’s sole judgment, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the Offering of the Securities as contemplated by such Prospectus.
(b) Compliance with Registration Requirements; No Stop Order; No Objection from the FINRA. Each Prospectus (in accordance with Rule 424(b)) and “issuer free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act), if any, shall have been duly filed with the Commission, as appropriate; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof shall have been issued and no proceeding for that purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission; no order preventing or suspending the use of any Prospectus shall have been issued and no proceeding for that purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission; no order having the effect of ceasing or suspending the distribution of the Securities or any other securities of the Company shall have been issued by any securities commission, securities regulatory authority or stock exchange and no proceedings for that purpose shall have been instituted or shall be pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, contemplated by any securities commission, securities regulatory authority or stock exchange; all requests for additional information on the part of the Commission shall have been complied with; and the FINRA shall have raised no objection to the fairness and reasonableness of the placement terms and arrangements.
(c) Corporate Proceedings. All corporate proceedings and other legal matters in connection with this Agreement, the Registration Statement and each Prospectus, and the registration, sale and delivery of the Securities, shall have been completed or resolved in a manner reasonably satisfactory to the Placement Agent’s counsel, and such counsel shall have been furnished with such papers and information as it may reasonably have requested to enable such counsel to pass upon the matters referred to in this Section 3.
(d) No Material Adverse Change. Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date, in the Placement Agent’s sole judgment after consultation with the Company, there shall not have occurred any Material Adverse Effect or any material adverse change or development involving a prospective material adverse change in the condition or the business activities, financial or otherwise, of the Company from the latest dates as of which such condition is set forth in the Registration Statement and Prospectus (“Material Adverse Change”).
(e) Officers’ Certificate. The Placement Agent shall have received on the Closing Date a certificate of the Company, dated as of the Closing Date, signed by the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the Company, to the effect that, and the Placement Agent shall be satisfied that, the signers of such certificate have reviewed the Registration Statement, the Incorporated Documents, the Prospectus, and this Agreement and to the further effect that:
(i) The representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct in all material respects, as if made on and as of the Closing Date, and the Company has complied with all the agreements and satisfied all the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to the Closing Date;
(ii) No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or the use of any Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or are pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened under the Securities Act; no order having the effect of ceasing or suspending the distribution of the Securities or any other securities of the Company has been issued by any securities commission, securities regulatory authority or stock exchange in the United States and no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or are pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, contemplated by any securities commission, securities regulatory authority or stock exchange in the United States;
(iii) When the Registration Statement became effective, at the time of sale, and at all times subsequent thereto up to the delivery of such certificate, the Registration Statement and the Incorporated Documents, if any, when such documents became effective or were filed with the Commission, and any Prospectus, contained all material information required to be included therein by the Securities Act and the Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, as the case may be, and in all material respects conformed to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, as the case may be, and the Registration Statement and the Incorporated Documents, if any, and any Prospectus, did not and do not include any 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, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading (provided, however, that the preceding representations and warranties contained in this paragraph (iii) shall not apply to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by the Placement Agent expressly for use therein) and, since the effective date of the Registration Statement, there has occurred no event required by the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder to be set forth in the Incorporated Documents which has not been so set forth; and
(iv) Subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the Incorporated Documents and any Prospectus, there has not been: (a) any Material Adverse Change; (b) any transaction that is material to the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, except transactions entered into in the ordinary course of business; (c) any obligation, direct or contingent, that is material to the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, incurred by the Company or any Subsidiary, except obligations incurred in the ordinary course of business; (d) any material change in the capital stock (except changes thereto resulting from the exercise of outstanding stock options or warrants) or outstanding indebtedness of the Company or any Subsidiary; (e) any dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made on the capital stock of the Company; or (f) any loss or damage (whether or not insured) to the property of the Company or any Subsidiary which has been sustained or will have been sustained which has a Material Adverse Effect..
(f) Opinions of Counsel for the Company. The Placement Agent shall have received on the Closing Date the favorable opinions of Xxxxxxxxx Xxxx Xxxxxxx Carmel LLP, legal counsel to the Company, dated as of the Closing Date, including, without limitation, a negative assurance letter addressed to the Placement Agent and in form and substance satisfactory to the Placement Agent.
(g) Bring-down Comfort Letter. On the Closing Date, the Placement Agent shall have received from Xxxxxx & Co., CPAs, P.C., a letter dated as of the Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Placement Agent, to the effect that they reaffirm the statements made in the letter furnished pursuant to subsection (a) of this Section 3, except that the specified date referred to therein for the carrying out of procedures shall be no more than three business days prior to the Closing Date.
(h) Opinion of Counsel for the Placement Agent. The Placement Agent shall have received on the Closing Date from Lucosky Xxxxxxxx LLP, counsel for the Placement Agent, a negative assurance statement, addressed to the Placement Agent and dated the Closing Date, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Placement Agent.
(i) Lock-Up Agreements. On the date hereof, the Placement Agent shall have received the executed lock-up agreement, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A, from each of the directors and officers of the Company.
(j) Stock Exchange Listing. The Common Stock shall be registered under the Exchange Act and shall be listed on the Trading Market, and the Company shall not have taken any action designed to terminate, or likely to have the effect of terminating, the registration of the Common Stock under the Exchange Act or delisting or suspending from trading the Common Stock from the Trading Market, nor shall the Company have received any information suggesting that the Commission or the Trading Market is contemplating terminating such registration or listing.
(k) Additional Documents. On or before the Closing Date, the Placement Agent and counsel for the Placement Agent shall have received such information and documents as they may reasonably require for the purposes of enabling them to pass upon the issuance and sale of the Securities as contemplated herein, or in order to evidence the accuracy of any of the representations and warranties, or the satisfaction of any of the conditions or agreements, herein contained.
4. Covenants and other Agreements of the Company and the Placement Agent.
(a) The Company covenants and agrees as follows:
(i) Following the determination of pricing among the Company and the prospective investors introduced to the Company by Placement Agent, the Company will file with the Commission pursuant to Rules 430A and 424(b) under the Securities Act, and the rules and regulations (the “Rules and Regulations”) of the Commission promulgated thereunder, a final prospectus relating to the placement of the Securities, their respective pricings and the plan of distribution thereof and will advise the Placement Agent of all further information (financial and other) with respect to the Company required to be set forth therein. Such registration statement, at any given time, including the exhibits thereto filed at such time, as amended at such time, is hereinafter called the “Registration Statement”; such prospectus in the form in which it appears in the Registration Statement at the time of effectiveness is hereinafter called the “Preliminary Prospectus”; and the final prospectus, in the form in which it will be filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 430A and/or Rule 424(b) (including the Preliminary Prospectus as it may be amended or supplemented) is hereinafter called the “Final Prospectus.” The Registration Statement at the time it originally became effective is hereinafter called the “Original Registration Statement.” Any reference in this Agreement to the Registration Statement, the Original Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein (the “Incorporated Documents”), if any, which were or are filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), at any given time, as the case may be; and any reference in this Agreement to the terms “amend,” “amendment” or “supplement” with respect to the Registration Statement, the Original Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the filing of any document under the Exchange Act after the date of this Agreement, or the issue date of the Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus, as the case may be, deemed to be incorporated therein by reference. All references in this Agreement to financial statements and schedules and other information which is “contained,” “included,” “described,” “referenced,” “set forth” or “stated” in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus (and all other references of like import) shall be deemed to mean and include all such financial statements and schedules and other information which is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus, as the case may be. As used in this paragraph and elsewhere in this Agreement, “Time of Sale Disclosure Package” means the Preliminary Prospectus, any subscription agreement between the Company and the Investors, and any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433 of the Act (each, an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus”), if any, that the parties hereto shall hereafter expressly agree in writing to treat as part of the Time of Sale Disclosure Package. The term “any Prospectus” shall mean, as the context requires, the Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus, and any supplement to either thereof. The Company has not received any notice that the Commission has issued or intends to issue a stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or the use of the Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus or intends to commence a proceeding for any such purpose.
(ii) The Original Registration Statement, as amended, (and any further documents to be filed with the Commission) contains, in all material respects. all exhibits and schedules as required by the Securities Act. Each of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, at the time it became effective, complied in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable Rules and Regulations and did not contain any 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. The Preliminary Prospectus, and the Final Prospectus, each as of its respective date, comply or will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable Rules and Regulations. Each of the Preliminary Prospectus and the Final Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, did not and will not contain as of the date thereof any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. The Incorporated Documents, when they were filed with the Commission, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Exchange Act and the applicable Rules and Regulations promulgated thereunder, and none of such documents, when they were filed with the Commission, contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein (with respect to Incorporated Documents incorporated by reference in the Preliminary Prospectus or Final Prospectus), in light of the circumstances under which they were made not misleading. No post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement reflecting any facts or events arising after the date thereof which represent, individually or in the aggregate, a fundamental change in the information set forth therein is required to be filed with the Commission. Except for this Agreement, there are no documents required to be filed with the Commission in connection with the transaction contemplated hereby that (x) have not been filed as required pursuant to the Securities Act or (y) will not be filed within the requisite time period. Except for this Agreement, there are no contracts or other documents required to be described in the Preliminary Prospectus or Final Prospectus, or to be filed as exhibits or schedules to the Registration Statement, which have not been described or filed as required.
(iii) If at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus there occurs an event or development as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus would conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or would omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances prevailing at the subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly notify the Placement Agent and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict or so that the statements in such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances prevailing at such time, not misleading, as the case may be.
(iv) Neither the Company nor any of its directors and officers has distributed and none of them will distribute, prior to the Closing Date, any offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities other than the Time of Sale Disclosure Package.
(v) The Company has the requisite corporate power and authority to enter into and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and otherwise to carry out its obligations hereunder and thereunder. The execution and delivery of each of this Agreement by the Company and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby and under the Preliminary Prospectus have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Company and no further action is required by the Company, the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board of Directors”) or the Company’s stockholders in connection therewith other than in connection with the Required Approvals (as defined below). This Agreement has been duly executed by the Company and, when delivered in accordance with the terms hereof, will constitute the valid and binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except (i) as limited by general equitable principles and applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general application affecting enforcement of creditors’ rights generally, (ii) as limited by laws relating to the availability of specific performance, injunctive relief or other equitable remedies and (iii) insofar as indemnification and contribution provisions may be limited by applicable law.
(vi) The execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement and the transactions contemplated pursuant to the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the issuance and sale of the Securities and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby to which it is a party do not and will not (i) conflict with or violate any provision of the Company’s or any Subsidiary’s certificate or articles of incorporation, bylaws or other organizational or charter documents, or (ii) conflict with, or constitute a default (or an event that with notice or lapse of time or both would become a default) under, result in the creation of any Lien upon any of the properties or assets of the Company or any Subsidiary, or give to others any rights of termination, amendment, acceleration or cancellation (with or without notice, lapse of time or both) of, any agreement, credit facility, debt or other instrument (evidencing a Company or Subsidiary debt or otherwise) or other understanding to which the Company or any Subsidiary is a party or by which any property or asset of the Company or any Subsidiary is bound or affected, or (iii) subject to the Required Approvals, conflict with or result in a violation of any law, rule, regulation, order, judgment, injunction, decree or other restriction of any court or governmental authority to which the Company or a Subsidiary is subject (including federal and state securities laws and regulations), or by which any property or asset of the Company or a Subsidiary is bound or affected; except in the case of each of clauses (ii) and (iii), such as could not have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect
(vii) The Company shall furnish to the Placement Agent and counsel for the Placement Agent, without charge and upon request, signed copies of the Registration Statement (including all exhibits thereto and amendments thereof) and, so long as delivery of a prospectus by the Placement Agent or dealer may be required by the Securities Act or the Rules, as many copies of any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus and any amendments thereof and supplements thereto as the Placement Agent may reasonably request. If applicable, the copies of the Registration Statement, preliminary prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and Prospectus and each amendment and supplement thereto furnished to the Placement Agent 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.
(viii) The Company shall cooperate with the Placement Agent and its counsel with the offering under the laws of such jurisdictions as the Placement Agent may designate and shall maintain such qualifications in effect so long as required for the distribution of the Securities; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required in connection therewith, as a condition thereof, to qualify as a foreign corporation or to execute a general consent to service of process in any jurisdiction or subject itself to taxation as doing business in any jurisdiction.
(ix) The Company, during the period when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Rules) is required to be delivered under the Securities Act and the Rules or the Exchange Act, will file all reports and other documents required to be filed with the Commission pursuant to Section 13, 14 or 15 of the Exchange Act within the time periods required by the Exchange Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
(x) On or before completion of this offering, the Company shall make all filings required under applicable securities laws and by The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq”).
(xi) Prior to the Closing Date, the Company will issue no press release or other communications directly or indirectly and hold no press conference with respect to the Company, the condition, financial or otherwise, or the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of any of them, or the offering of the Securities without the prior written consent of the Placement Agent unless in the judgment of the Company and its counsel, and after notification to the Placement Agent, such press release or communication is required by law.
(xii) The Company will apply the net proceeds from the offering of the Securities in the manner set forth under “Use of Proceeds” in the Prospectus.
(b) The Company agrees to pay, or reimburse if paid by the Placement Agent, whether or not the transactions contemplated hereby are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, all costs and expenses incident to the public offering of the Securities and the performance of the obligations of the Company under this Agreement including those relating to: (i) the preparation, printing, reproduction filing and distribution of the Registration Statement including all exhibits thereto, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, all amendments and supplements thereto and any document incorporated by reference therein, and the printing, filing and distribution of this Agreement; (ii) the preparation and delivery of certificates for the Securities to or as directed by the Placement Agent or the Purchasers; (iii) the registration or qualification of the Securities for offer and sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of the various jurisdictions referred to in Section 5(a)(vi), including the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Placement Agent in connection with such registration and qualification and the preparation, printing, distribution and shipment of preliminary and supplementary Blue Sky memoranda; (iv) the furnishing (including costs of shipping and mailing) to the Placement Agent of copies of the Prospectus and all amendments or supplements to the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and of the several documents required by this Section to be so furnished, as may be reasonably requested for use in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities by the Placement Agent or by dealers to whom Securities may be sold; (v) the filing fees of FINRA in connection with its review of the terms of the public offering and reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Placement Agent in connection with such review; (vi) inclusion of the Securities for listing on Nasdaq; and (vii) all transfer taxes, if any, with respect to the sale and delivery of the Securities by the Company to the Purchasers. The Company will reimburse the Placement Agent for its reasonable out-of-pocket costs and expenses, including its legal fees and disbursements, in connection with the purchase and sale of the Securities contemplated hereby in an amount not to exceed $100,000 (including amounts payable pursuant to clauses (iii) and (v) above). Subject to the provisions of Section 7, the Placement Agent agrees to pay, whether or not the transactions contemplated hereby are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, all costs and expenses incident to the performance of the obligations of the Placement Agent under this Agreement not payable by the Company pursuant to the preceding sentence, including, without limitation, the fees and disbursements of counsel for the Placement Agent.
(c) The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Placement Agent has acted and is acting solely in the capacity of a principal in an arm’s length transaction between the Company, on the one hand, and the Placement Agent, on the other hand, with respect to the offering of Securities contemplated hereby (including in connection with determining the terms of the Offering) and not as a financial advisor, agent or fiduciary to the Company or any other person. Additionally, the Company acknowledges and agrees that the Placement Agent has not and will not advise the Company or any other person as to any legal, tax, investment, accounting or regulatory matters in any jurisdiction. The Company has consulted with its own advisors concerning such matters and shall be responsible for making its own independent investigation and appraisal of the transactions contemplated hereby, and the Placement Agent shall have no responsibility or liability to the Company or any other person with respect thereto, whether arising prior to or after the date hereof. Any review by the Placement Agent of the Company, the transactions contemplated hereby or other matters relating to such transactions have been and will be performed solely for the benefit of the Placement Agent and shall not be on behalf of the Company. The Company agrees that it will not claim that the Placement Agent has rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owes a fiduciary duty to the Company or any other person in connection with any such transaction or the process leading thereto.
(d) The Company represents and agrees that, unless it obtains the prior consent of the Placement Agent, and the Placement Agent represents and agrees that, unless it obtains the prior consent of the Company, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433, or that would otherwise constitute a “free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 405, required to be filed with the Commission. The Company has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rule 433 under the Act applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, including timely filing with the Commission where required, legending and record keeping. The Company represents that is has satisfied and agrees that it will satisfy the conditions set forth in Rule 433 of the Rules to avoid a requirement to file with the Commission any Road Show.
5. Indemnification.
(a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Placement Agent, its officers and employees and each person, if any, who controls the Placement Agent within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities, joint or several (including any reasonable investigation, legal and other expenses incurred in connection with, and any amount paid in settlement of, any action, suit or proceeding or any claim asserted), to which they, or any of them, may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or other Federal or state law or regulation, at common law or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any preliminary prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any “issuer-information” filed or required to be filed pursuant to Rule 433(d) of the Rules, any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or in any Blue Sky application or other information or other documents executed by the Company filed in any state or other jurisdiction to qualify any or all of the Securities under the securities laws thereof (any such application, document or information being hereinafter referred to as a “Blue Sky Application”) or arise out of or are based upon any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that such indemnity shall not inure to the benefit of the Placement Agent (or any person controlling such Placement Agent) on account of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities arising from the sale of the Securities to any person by or through the Placement Agent if such untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission was made in such preliminary prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or such amendment or supplement thereto, or in any Blue Sky Application in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing by the Agent specifically for use in the Prospectus (the “Agent Information”). This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have.
(b) The Placement Agent agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, each director of the Company, and each officer of the Company who signs the Registration Statement, against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities (including any reasonable investigation, legal and other expenses incurred in connection with, and any amount paid in settlement of, any action, suit or proceeding or any claim asserted) to which such party may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any preliminary prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, 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 light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or any such amendment or supplement in reliance upon and in conformity with the Agent Information; provided, however, that the obligation of the Placement Agent to indemnify the Company (including any controlling person, director or officer thereof) shall be limited to the amount of the Placement Fee actually received by the Placement Agent hereunder.
(c) Any party that proposes to assert the right to be indemnified under this Section will, promptly after receipt of notice of commencement of any action, suit or proceeding against such party in respect of which a claim is to be made against an indemnifying party or parties under this Section, notify each such indemnifying party of the commencement of such action, suit or proceeding, enclosing a copy of all papers served. No indemnification provided for in Section 5(a) or 5(b) shall be available to any party who shall fail to give notice as provided in this Section 5(c) if the party to whom notice was not given was unaware of the action, suit or proceeding to which such notice would have related and was prejudiced by the failure to give such notice but the omission so to notify such indemnifying party of any such action, suit or proceeding shall not relieve it from any liability that it may have to any indemnified party for contribution or otherwise than under this Section 5. In case any such action, suit or proceeding shall be brought against any indemnified party and it shall notify the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate in, and, to the extent that it shall wish, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume the defense thereof, with counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party, and after notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of its election so to assume the defense thereof and the approval by the indemnified party of such counsel, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to such indemnified party for any legal or other expenses, except as provided below and except for the reasonable costs of investigation subsequently incurred by such indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof. The indemnified party shall have the right to employ its counsel in any such action, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party unless (i) the employment of counsel by such indemnified party has been authorized in writing by the indemnifying parties, (ii) the indemnified party shall have been advised by counsel that there may be one or more legal defenses available to it which are different from or in addition to those available to the indemnifying party (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 (iii) the indemnifying parties shall not have employed counsel to assume the defense of such action within a reasonable time after notice of the commencement thereof, in each of which cases the fees and expenses of counsel shall be at the expense of the indemnifying parties. An indemnifying party shall not be liable for any settlement of any action, suit, and proceeding or claim effected without its written consent, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed.
(d) No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, effect any settlement, compromise or consent to the entry of judgment in any pending or threatened action, suit or proceeding in respect of which any indemnified party is a party or could be named and indemnity was or would be sought hereunder by such indemnified party, unless such settlement, compromise or consent (a) includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party from all liability for claims that are the subject matter of such action, suit or proceeding and (b) 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.
6. Contribution. In order to provide for just and equitable contribution in circumstances in which the indemnification provided for in Section 5(a) or 5(b) is due in accordance with its terms but for any reason is unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party in respect to any losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the aggregate losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses (including any investigation, legal and other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with, and any amount paid in settlement of, any action, suit or proceeding or any claims asserted, but after deducting any contribution received by any person entitled hereunder to contribution from any person who may be liable for contribution) incurred by such indemnified party, as incurred, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Placement Agent on the other hand from the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement or, if such allocation is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to above but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Placement Agent on the other hand in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The Company and the Placement Agent agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 6 were determined by pro rata allocation or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above. The aggregate amount of losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by an indemnified party and referred to above shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 6, (i) the Placement Agent shall not be required to contribute any amount in excess of the Placement Fee actually received by the Placement Agent; and 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. For purposes of this Section 6, each person, if any, who controls an Placement Agent within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act shall have the same rights to contribution as the Placement Agent, and each director of the Company, each officer of the Company who signed the Registration Statement, and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of the Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, shall have the same rights to contribution as the Company. Any party entitled to contribution will, promptly after receipt of notice of commencement of any action, suit or proceeding against such party in respect of which a claim for contribution may be made against another party or parties under this Section 6, notify such party or parties from whom contribution may be sought, but the omission so to notify such party or parties from whom contribution may be sought shall not relieve the party or parties from whom contribution may be sought from any other obligation it or they may have hereunder or otherwise than under this Section 6. No party shall be liable for contribution with respect to any action, suit, proceeding or claim settled without its written consent.
7. Termination.
(a) This Agreement may be terminated by the Placement Agent, in the absolute discretion of the Placement Agent, by notifying the Company at any time at or before the Closing Date if (i) trading in the Common Stock has been suspended by the Commission or The Nasdaq Stock Market, (ii) trading in securities generally as reported by Bloomberg L.P. has been suspended or limited, or minimum prices have not been established on securities whose trades are reported by such service, or on any trading market, (iii) a banking moratorium has been declared either by the United States or New York State authorities, (iv) there has occurred any material outbreak or escalation of hostilities or other national or international calamity of such magnitude in its effect on, or (v) any material adverse change in, any financial market which, in the case of clauses (i) through (v), in the reasonable judgment of the Placement Agent, makes it impracticable or inadvisable to market the Securities or enforce contracts for the sale of the Securities.
(b) If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to any of its provisions, the Company shall not be under any liability to Placement Agent, and the Placement Agent shall not be under any liability to the Company, except that if this Agreement is terminated by the Placement Agent because of any failure, refusal or inability on the part of the Company to comply with the terms or to fulfill any of the conditions of this Agreement or the other Transaction Documents, the Company will reimburse the Placement Agent for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the reasonable fees and disbursements of its counsel) incurred by it in connection with the proposed Offering or in contemplation of performing their obligations hereunder.
8. Governing Law Provisions. This Agreement shall be deemed to have been made and delivered in New York City and both this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby shall be governed as to validity, interpretation, construction, effect and in all other respects by the internal laws of the State of New York, without regard to the conflict of laws principles thereof. Each of the Placement Agent and the Company: (i) agrees that any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement and/or the transactions contemplated hereby shall be instituted exclusively in New York Supreme Court, County of New York, or in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, (ii) waives any objection which it may have or hereafter to the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding, and (iii) irrevocably consents to the jurisdiction of the New York Supreme Court, County of New York, and the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in any such suit, action or proceeding. Each of the Placement Agent and the Company further agrees to accept and acknowledge service of any and all process which may be served in any such suit, action or proceeding in the New York Supreme Court, County of New York, or in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and agrees that service of process upon the Company mailed by certified mail to the Company’s address shall be deemed in every respect effective service of process upon the Company, in any such suit, action or proceeding, and service of process upon the Placement Agent mailed by certified mail to the Placement Agent’s address shall be deemed in every respect effective service process upon the Placement Agent, in any such suit, action or proceeding. Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, the Company agrees that neither the Placement Agent nor its affiliates, and the respective officers, directors, employees, agents and representatives of the Placement Agent, its affiliates and each other person, if any, controlling the Placement Agent or any of its affiliates, shall have any liability (whether direct or indirect, in contract or tort or otherwise) to the Company for or in connection with the engagement and transaction described herein except for any such liability for losses, claims, damages or liabilities incurred by us that are finally judicially determined to have resulted from the willful misconduct or gross negligence of such individuals or entities. If either party shall commence an action or proceeding to enforce any provision of this Agreement, then the prevailing party in such action or proceeding shall be reimbursed by the other party for its reasonable attorney’s fees and other costs and expenses incurred with the investigation, preparation and prosecution of such action or proceeding.
9. Miscellaneous. The respective agreements, representations, warranties, indemnities, rights of contribution and other statements of the Company, and the Placement Agent, as set forth in this Agreement or made by or on behalf of them pursuant to this Agreement, shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation (or any statement as to the results thereof) made by or on behalf of the Placement Agent or the Company or the or any of their respective officers, directors or controlling persons referred to in Sections 5, 6 and 7 hereof, and shall survive delivery of and payment for the Securities. In addition, the provisions of Sections 4(b), 5, 6 and 7 shall survive the termination or cancellation of this Agreement.
This Agreement has been and is made for the benefit of the Placement Agent, the Company and their respective successors and assigns, and, to the extent expressed herein, for the benefit of persons controlling the Placement Agent, or the Company, and directors and officers of the Company, and their respective successors and assigns, and no other person shall acquire or have any right under or by virtue of this Agreement. The term “successors and assigns” shall not include any Purchaser merely because of such purchase. The invalidity or unenforceability of any Section, paragraph or provision of this Agreement shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other Section, paragraph or provision hereof. If any Section, paragraph or provision of this Agreement is for any reason determined to be invalid or unenforceable, there shall be deemed to be made such minor changes (and only such minor changes) as are necessary to make it valid and enforceable.
No amendment or waiver of any provision of this Agreement, nor any consent or approval to any departure therefrom, shall in any event be effective unless and until the same shall be in writing and signed by the Company and the Placement Agent.
All notices and communications hereunder shall be in writing and mailed or delivered or by telephone or if subsequently confirmed in writing, or other electronic transmission (a) if to the Placement Agent, c/o X. Xxxxx Capital LLC, 000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, 00xx Xxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000 Attention: [ ], and to Lucosky Xxxxxxxx LLP, Lucosky Xxxxxxxx LLP. 000 Xxxx Xxxxxx Xxxxx, 0xx Xxxxx, Xxxxxxxxxx, XX 00000, Attention: Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx and (b) if to the Company, to its agent for service as such agent’s address appears on the cover page of the Registration Statement.
This Agreement and any claim, controversy or dispute arising under or related to this Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York applicable to agreements made and to be performed in such state.
This Agreement may be signed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be an original, with the same effect as if the signatures thereto and hereto were upon the same instrument. The headings herein are included for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to affect the meaning or interpretation of, this Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement of the parties to this Agreement and supersedes all prior written or oral and all contemporaneous oral agreements, understandings and negotiations with respect to the subject matter hereof.
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Please confirm that the foregoing correctly sets forth the agreement among us.
Very truly yours, | ||
HWH INTERNATIONAL INC. | ||
By | ||
Name: | ||
Title: |
Confirmed: | ||
X. XXXXX CAPITAL LLC | ||
By | ||
Name: | ||
Title: |
Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses
None.