TYDE Crptyde Inc

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 8-K

 

CURRENT REPORT

 

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

 

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): February 22, 2024

 

EIGHTCO HOLDINGS INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Delaware		001-41033		87-2755739
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)		(Commission File Number)		(IRS Employer Identification No.)

 

101 Larry Holmes Dr., Suite 313, Easton, PA		18042
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (888) 765-8933

 

909 New Brunswick Avenue Phillipsburg, New Jersey 08865

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

 

☐	Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
☐	Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Title of each class		Trading Symbol(s)		Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $0.001 par value		OCTO		The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

 

Emerging growth company ☒

 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

 

 

 

Item 1.01

Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

 

Private Placement

 

On February 26, 2024, Eightco Holdings Inc. (the “Company”) entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) with certain investors (the “Investors”), pursuant to which the Company has agreed to sell to the Investors an aggregate of 987,807 shares (the “Shares”) of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Common Stock”), at a purchase price of $0.82 per Share (the “Private Placement”). The Company expects to receive aggregate gross proceeds from the Private Placement of approximately $0.81 million. The Shares are being offered and sold in reliance on the exemption from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), provided by Section 4(a)(2) and Regulation D promulgated thereunder for transactions not involving a public offering.

 

The Purchase Agreement contains representations and warranties of the Company and the Investors that are typical for transactions of this type. The Purchase Agreement also contains covenants on the part of the Company that are typical for transactions of this type.

 

The foregoing description of the Purchase Agreement contained in this Item 1.01 does not purport to be a complete description of the terms and provisions therein and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Purchase Agreement, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.1 and incorporated herein by reference.

 

Series B Financing

 

As previously reported on the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on October 24, 2023, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Forever 8 Fund, LLC (the “Borrower” or “Forever 8”), has previously entered into that certain Series B Loan and Security Agreement (the “Series B Agreement”), dated as of October 6, 2023, with lenders party thereto from to time (collectively, the “Lender”). Under the terms of the Series B Agreement, the Borrower may request permanent increases to the aggregate commitment therein by (x) admitting additional Lenders in accordance with the terms of the Series B Agreement (each, a “Subsequent Lender”) or (y) obtaining an increase in the commitment of any Lender, or both, in each case as invited to participate in such increase at Borrower’s option.

 

On February 26, 2024, the Borrower entered into that certain Lender Joinder Agreement (the “Joinder Agreement”) with (i) an entity controlled by the Company’s former Chief Executive Officer and (ii) a entity related to a former employee, as Subsequent Lenders. Under the terms of the Joinder Agreement, the Subsequent Lenders agreed to become Lenders and be bound by the terms of the Series B Agreement as Lenders pursuant to Section 2.6 of the Series B Agreement. On February 26, 2024, the Subsequent Lenders advanced the Borrower an aggregate of $75,000 (together, “Subsequent Lender Loans”), which Subsequent Lender Loans are evidenced by promissory notes made by the Borrower in favor of the Subsequent Lenders (the “Notes”).

 

As previously reported on the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on December 5, 2023, each of the Lenders under the Series B Agreement (together, the “Subordinated Lenders”) entered into a Subordination Agreement (the “Subordination Agreement”) with the Borrower, the Senior Lenders (as defined below) under that certain Series C Loan and Security Agreement, dated as of October 19, 2023, by and among the Borrower and the lenders party thereto from time to time (the “Senior Lenders”), and the collateral agent for the Senior Lenders. In connection with the transactions described herein, on February 26, 2024, the Subsequent Lenders entered into a Joinder to the Subordination Agreement.

 

Item 2.03.

Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an Off-Balance Sheet Arrangement of the Registrant.

 

The information under Item 1.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K as related to the Notes is incorporated herein by reference.

 

 

Item 3.02

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities.

 

The information under Item 1.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K as related to the Notes and the Shares is incorporated herein by reference.

 

Item 5.02

Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

 

McFadden Severance Agreement

 

On February 26, 2024, the Company and Brian McFadden entered into General Release and Severance Agreement, (the “McFadden Severance Agreement”), effective as of the eighth day following the McFadden Severance Agreement (the “McFadden Effective Date”) in connection with Mr. McFadden’s resignation as Chief Executive Officer of the Company, effective as of December 31, 2023 (the “Separation Date”). Pursuant to the McFadden Severance Agreement, Mr. McFadden is eligible to receive $146,683 in accrued but unpaid base salary through the Separation Date in four quarterly payments of $36,670.75 each, less all applicable tax withholdings, by December 31, 2024.

 

In consideration of the McFadden Severance Agreement, the release therein and Mr. McFadden’s resignation as Chief Executive Officer of the Company, the Company shall provide Mr. McFadden severance pay in the gross amount of amount of $422,500, less all lawful and authorized withholdings and deductions (the “Severance Payment”), which Severance Payment shall be paid in four quarterly installments of $105,625 per each installment, payable at the Company’s option in either cash or Common Stock, with the payment to be made as follows: (i) as of the McFadden Effective Date, on which such date Mr. McFadden shall be granted, in lieu of cash, 128,811 fully-vested restricted shares of the Common Stock at a price of $0.82 per share, which such shares of Common Stock subject to the terms and conditions of the Company’s 2022 Long-Term Incentive Plan (the “Plan”), and as of each of (ii) April 1, 2024, (iii) July 1, 2024, and (iv) October 1, 2024, payable at the Company’s option, in either cash or Common Stock. The shares of Common Stock to be issued to Mr. McFadden under installments (ii), (iii) and (iv), if applicable, shall be fully vested and the number of shares to be issued shall be determined based on the volume weighted average trading price of the Common Stock on the principal exchange on which the Common Stock is listed or admitted to trade during the period of 10 trading days immediately prior to the date of such issuance.

 

Pursuant to the McFadden Severance Agreement, the Company shall also reimburse to Mr. McFadden the premiums associated with the continuation of Mr. McFadden’s health insurance for the period commencing on the Separation Date through December 31, 2024, pursuant to applicable law, and approved but unpaid business expenses through the Separation Date within 30 days following McFadden Effective Date.

 

Pursuant to the McFadden Severance Agreement, as of the Separation Date, the amended and restated employment agreement, by and between the Company and Mr. McFadden, effective as of September 27, 2022 (the “McFadden Employment Agreement”), shall terminate forever, and no party shall have any further obligation or liability thereunder except as related to any obligations that survive employment termination, including but not limited to the obligations set forth under the Employee Confidential Disclosure, Invention Assignment, Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation and Non-Interference Agreement (the “Restrictive Covenants Agreement”), attached to the McFadden Employment Agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company has agreed to waive certain post-termination obligations as related to certain non-competition and non-compete provisions in the Restrictive Covenants Agreement.

 

Pursuant to the McFadden Severance Agreement, for a period of 8 weeks following the Separation Date, Mr. McFadden has agreed to reasonably cooperate with the Company in the transition of positions. Additionally, Mr. McFadden shall remain a director of the Company’s board of directors (the “Board”) under the standard terms, conditions, and bylaws of the Company from the Separation Date through March 31, 2024, at which time Mr. McFadden shall resign from the Board. The McFadden Severance Agreement also provides for a mutual waiver and release of any claims in connection with Mr. McFadden’s employment, separation and departure from the Company, and for certain customary covenants regarding confidentiality.

 

The foregoing description of the McFadden Severance Agreement contained in this Item 5.02 does not purport to be a complete description of the terms and provisions therein and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the McFadden Severance Agreement, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.2 and incorporated herein by reference.

 

 

Appointment of Interim Chief Executive Officer

 

On February 22, 2024, the Board appointed Kevin O’Donnell as Interim Chief Executive Officer of the Company, effective as of the Separation Date, to serve until a successor is chosen and qualified, or until his earlier resignation or removal.

 

Mr. O’Donnell, age 48, has served as Chairman of the Board since October 15, 2021. Mr. O’Donnell founded Poptop Partners, LLC, a boutique operating and investment firm specializing in small to mid-market companies with an emphasis on the retail sector in April 2011 and continues to serve as its Managing Partner. From May 2007 to June 2010, Mr. O’Donnell served as the Founder/President of KOR Capital, LLC, a private equity and consulting firm specializing in turn around management of mid-market companies. Mr. O’Donnell has been an early-stage investor in multiple industries including hospitality, beverage, cannabis, hemp and technology. Mr. O’Donnell has served or continues to serve on numerous private and public boards including but not limited to SRM Entertainment, Vinco, Lakeside Alternatives Hospital Foundation, and The University Club.

 

There is no family relationship between Mr. O’Donnell and any director or executive officer of the Company. There are no transactions between Mr. O’Donnell and the Company that would be required to be reported under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

 

Vroman Severance Agreement and Consulting Agreement

 

On February 26, 2024, the Company and Brett Vroman entered into General Release and Severance Agreement, (the “Vroman Severance Agreement”), effective as of the eighth date following the Vroman Severance Agreement (the “Vroman Effective Date”) in connection with the termination of the amended and restated employment agreement, by and between the Company and Mr. Vroman, effective as of September 27, 2022 (the “Vroman Employment Agreement”). Pursuant to the Vroman Severance Agreement, as of the Separation Date, the Vroman Employment Agreement shall terminate forever, and no party shall have any further obligation or liability thereunder except as related to any obligations that survive employment termination, including but not limited to the obligations set forth under the Employee Confidential Disclosure, Invention Assignment, Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation and Non-Interference Agreement, attached to the Vroman Employment Agreement.

 

Additionally, on February 22, 2024, the Company and CXO Lite, LLC, a limited liability company organized under the laws of Pennsylvania, of which Mr. Vroman is the sole member, entered into a consulting agreement (the “Consulting Agreement”) pursuant to which Mr. Vroman shall be engaged and continue to serve the Company as its Chief Financial Officer. Pursuant to the Consulting Agreement, the Company has agreed to compensate Mr. Vroman at a rate of $10,000 per month for services rendered as Chief Financial Officer of the Company, commencing as of January 1, 2024. The term of the Consulting Agreement shall automatically renew on a month-to-month basis unless terminated by either the Company or Mr. Vroman upon 30 days written notice to the other party. The Consulting Agreement additionally provides for certain customary covenants regarding confidentiality.

 

Pursuant to the Vroman Severance Agreement, the Company will provide Mr. Vroman with (i) back pay wages through the Separation Date in the amount of $151,615.46, less all lawful and authorized withholdings and deductions, to be paid as soon as practicable following the Vroman Effective Date and (ii) severance of 24 months of Mr. Vroman’s base salary, less all lawful and authorized withholdings and deductions, under the Vroman Employment Agreement. Pursuant to the Vroman Severance Agreement, the Company shall also reimburse to Mr. Vroman the premiums associated with the continuation of Mr. Vroman’s health insurance for the period commencing on the Separation Date through December 31, 2024, pursuant to applicable law, expenses in accordance with the Company’s expense reimbursement policy, and the full vesting of any earned shares of Common Stock. The Vroman Severance Agreement also provides for a mutual waiver and release of any claims in connection with Mr. Vroman’s employment, separation and departure from the Company, and for certain customary covenants regarding confidentiality.

 

The foregoing descriptions of the Vroman Severance Agreement and Consulting Agreement contained in this Item 5.02 do not purport to be a complete description of the terms and provisions therein and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the full text of the Vroman Severance Agreement and the Consulting Agreement, copies of which are attached hereto as Exhibits 10.3 and 10.4, respectively, and incorporated herein by reference.

 

 

Item 8.01

Other Events.

 

On February 22, 2024, the Board approved the issuance of an aggregate of (i) 600,000 shares of Common Stock to two consulting companies in exchange for services to be provided in the calendar year 2024 (ii) 128,984 shares of Common Stock to a consultant for legal related services rendered in 2023, (iii) 252,169 shares of Common Stock to certain former Forever 8 securityholders as settlement of the warrant buyout obligation of $206,779.37 in connection with that certain Membership Interest Purchase Agreement, dated as of September 14, 2022 (the “MIPA”), by and between the Company and Forever 8, and (iv) 370,563 shares of Common Stock to certain former Forever 8 securityholders, pursuant to the settlement agreements by and among the Company and certain former Forever 8 securityholders, as consideration for the immediate termination of the Company’s obligation to deliver to the such former Forever 8 securityholders the consideration provided for in the MIPA.

 

On February 22, 2024, the Compensation Committee of the Board approved the issuance of an aggregate of 457,625 fully-vested restricted shares of Common Stock to certain officer and director and certain non-officer and non-director employees of the Company, subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.

 

On February 22, 2024, the Compensation Committee of the Board approved the issuance of an aggregate of 256,098 fully-vested restricted shares of Common Stock to the three independent directors of the Company for services rendered in 2023, subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan. The Company will also pay each independent director $40,000 in cash, paid quarterly in four installments during 2024 for services rendered in 2023.

 

On February 26, 2024, pursuant to the Prepayment and Redemption Agreement, dated as of October 23, 2023, by and between the Company and Hudson Bay Master Fund Ltd. (“Hudson Bay”), the Company paid to Hudson Bay a final payment of $365,000 in remaining principal due under Senior Secured Convertible Note, issued to Hudson Bay in March 2023.

 

As a result of all transactions to date approved by the Board and the Compensation Committee, the total fully diluted shares outstanding as of the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K is approximately 8.9 million shares.

 

On February 26, 2024, the Company issued a press release announcing the Private Placement, the aforementioned debt repayments and share issuances and provided a brief discussion on the strategic direction of the Company. A copy of the press release is furnished as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated by reference herein.

 

Item 9.01

Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d) Exhibits

 

Exhibit No.		Description
10.1		Form of Securities Purchase Agreement, dated as of February 26, 2024, by and between Eightco Holdings Inc. and the investors named therein
10.2		General Release and Severance Agreement, dated as of February 26, 2024, by and between Eightco Holdings Inc. and Brian McFadden
10.3		General Release and Severance Agreement, dated as of February 26, 2024, by and between Eightco Holdings Inc. and Brett Vroman
10.4		Consulting Agreement, dated as of February 22, 2024, by and between Eightco Holdings Inc. and CXO Lite, LLC
99.1		Press Release, dated February 26, 2024
104		Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document).

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

Date: February 26, 2024

 

	eightco holdings Inc.
	By:	/s/ Kevin O’Donnell
	Name:	Kevin O’Donnell
	Title:	Interim Chief Executive Officer

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.1

 

SECURITIES PURCHASE AGREEMENT

 

This Securities Purchase Agreement (this “Agreement”) is dated as of February 26, 2024, between Eightco Holdings Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and each purchaser identified on the signature pages hereto (each, including its successors and assigns, a “Purchaser” and collectively, the “Purchasers”).

 

WHEREAS, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement and pursuant to Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act (as defined below), and Rule 506 promulgated thereunder, the Company desires to issue and sell to each Purchaser, and each Purchaser, severally and not jointly, desires to purchase from the Company, securities of the Company as more fully described in this Agreement.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, IN CONSIDERATION of the mutual covenants contained in this Agreement, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby acknowledged, the Company and each Purchaser agree as follows:

 

ARTICLE I.
DEFINITIONS

 

1.1 Definitions. In addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement, for all purposes of this Agreement, the following terms have the meanings set forth in this Section 1.1:

 

“Acquiring Person” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 4.4.

 

“Action” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(j).

 

“Affiliate” means any Person that, directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is controlled by or is under common control with a Person, as such terms are used in and construed under Rule 405 under the Securities Act.

 

“Board of Directors” means the board of directors of the Company.

 

“Business Day” means any day other than Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banks in The City of New York are authorized or required by law to remain closed; provided, however, for clarification, commercial banks shall not be deemed to be authorized or required by law to remain closed due to “stay at home”, “shelter-in-place”, “non-essential employee” or any other similar orders or restrictions or the closure of any physical branch locations at the direction of any governmental authority so long as the electronic funds transfer systems (including for wire transfers) of commercial banks in The City of New York generally are open for use by customers on such day.

 

“Closing” means the closing of the purchase and sale of the Shares pursuant to Section 2.1.

 

“Closing Date” means the Trading Day on which all of the Transaction Documents have been executed and delivered by the applicable parties thereto, and all conditions precedent to (i) the Purchasers’ obligations to pay the Subscription Amount and (ii) the Company’s obligations to deliver the Shares, in each case, have been satisfied or waived.

 

 

“Commission” means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

“Common Stock” means the common stock of the Company, par value $0.001 per share, and any other class of securities into which such securities may hereafter be reclassified or changed.

 

“Common Stock Equivalents” means any securities of the Company or the Subsidiaries which would entitle the holder thereof to acquire at any time 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, Common Stock.

 

“Disclosure Time” means, (i) if this Agreement is signed on a day that is not a Trading Day or after 9:00 a.m. (New York City time) and before midnight (New York City time) on any Trading Day, 9:01 a.m. (New York City time) on the Trading Day immediately following the date hereof, unless otherwise instructed as to an earlier time by the Placement Agent, and (ii) if this Agreement is signed between midnight (New York City time) and 9:00 a.m. (New York City time) on any Trading Day, no later than 9:01 a.m. (New York City time) on the date hereof, unless otherwise instructed as to an earlier time by the Placement Agent.

 

“Evaluation Date” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(s).

 

“Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

“FCPA” means the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended.

 

“GAAP” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(h).

 

“Indebtedness” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(bb).

 

“Intellectual Property Rights” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(p).

 

“Liens” means a lien, charge pledge, security interest, encumbrance, right of first refusal, preemptive right or other restriction.

 

“Material Adverse Effect” shall have the meaning assigned to such term in Section 3.1(b).

 

“Material Permits” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(n).

 

“Per Share Purchase Price” equals $0.82, subject to adjustment for reverse and forward stock splits, stock dividends, stock combinations and other similar transactions of the Common Stock that occur after the date of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date.

 

“Person” means an individual or corporation, partnership, trust, incorporated or unincorporated association, joint venture, limited liability company, joint stock company, government (or an agency or subdivision thereof) or other entity of any kind.

 

“Proceeding” means an action, claim, suit, investigation or proceeding (including, without limitation, an informal investigation or partial proceeding, such as a deposition), whether commenced or threatened.

 

 

“Purchaser Party” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 4.7.

 

“Registration Statement” means a registration statement covering the resale by the Purchasers of the Shares.

 

“Required Approvals” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(e).

 

“Rule 144” means Rule 144 promulgated by the Commission pursuant to the Securities Act, as such Rule may be amended or interpreted from time to time, or any similar rule or regulation hereafter adopted by the Commission having substantially the same purpose and effect as such Rule.

 

“Rule 424” means Rule 424 promulgated by the Commission pursuant to the Securities Act, as such Rule may be amended or interpreted from time to time, or any similar rule or regulation hereafter adopted by the Commission having substantially the same purpose and effect as such Rule.

 

“SEC Reports” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(h).

 

“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

“Shares” means the shares of Common Stock issued or issuable to each Purchaser pursuant to this Agreement.

 

“Short Sales” means all “short sales” as defined in Rule 200 of Regulation SHO under the Exchange Act (but shall not be deemed to include locating and/or borrowing shares of Common Stock).

 

“Subscription Amount” means, as to each Purchaser, the aggregate amount to be paid for Shares purchased hereunder as specified below such Purchaser’s name on the signature page of this Agreement and next to the heading “Subscription Amount,” in United States dollars and in immediately available funds.

 

“Subsidiary” means any subsidiary of the Company as set forth in the SEC Reports and shall, where applicable, also include any direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company formed or acquired after the date hereof.

 

“Trading Day” means a day on which the principal Trading Market is open for trading.

 

“Trading Market” means any of the following markets or exchanges on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted for trading on the date in question: the NYSE American, the Nasdaq Capital Market, the Nasdaq Global Market, the Nasdaq Global Select Market or the New York Stock Exchange (or any successors to any of the foregoing).

 

“Transaction Documents” means this Agreement, all exhibits and schedules hereto and any other documents or agreements executed in connection with the transactions contemplated hereunder.

 

“Transfer Agent” means Securities Nevada Agency and Transfer Company, with a mailing address of 50 West Liberty Str., Suite 880, Reno, NV 89501, the current transfer agent of the Company, and any successor transfer agent of the Company.

 

 

ARTICLE II.
PURCHASE AND SALE

 

2.1 Closing. On the Closing Date, upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth herein, the Company agrees to sell, and the Purchasers, severally and not jointly, agree to purchase, up to an aggregate of $810,001.74 of Shares. Each Purchaser shall deliver to the Company, via wire transfer, immediately available funds equal to such Purchaser’s Subscription Amount as set forth on the signature page hereto executed by such Purchaser, and the Company shall deliver to each Purchaser its respective Shares, as determined pursuant to Section 2.2(a), and the Company and each Purchaser shall deliver the other items set forth in Section 2.2 deliverable at the Closing. Upon satisfaction of the covenants and conditions set forth in Sections 2.2 and 2.3, the Closing shall occur at the offices of Company Counsel or such other location (including remotely by electronic transmission) as the parties shall mutually agree.

 

2.2 Deliveries.

 

(a) On or prior to the Closing Date, the Company shall deliver or cause to be delivered to each Purchaser the following:

 

(i) this Agreement duly executed by the Company;

 

(ii) a copy of the irrevocable instructions to the Transfer Agent instructing the Transfer Agent to deliver, on an expedited basis, a certificate evidencing a number of Shares equal to such Purchaser’s Subscription Amount divided by the Per Share Purchase Price, registered in the name of such Purchaser, or, at the election of such Purchaser, evidence of the issuance of such Purchaser’s Shares hereunder as held in DRS book-entry form by the Transfer Agent and registered in the name of such Purchaser, which evidence shall be reasonably satisfactory to such Purchaser; and

 

(iii) the Company shall have provided each Purchaser with its wire instructions, on Company letterhead and executed by the Chief Executive Officer or Chief Financial Officer or via email by an authorized Company representative.

 

(b) On or prior to the Closing Date, each Purchaser shall deliver or cause to be delivered to the Company the following:

 

(i) this Agreement duly executed by such Purchaser; and

 

(ii) such Purchaser’s Subscription Amount by wire transfer to the account of the Company specified in writing by the Company.

 

2.3 Closing Conditions.

 

(a) The obligations of the Company hereunder in connection with the Closing are subject to the following conditions being met:

 

(i) the accuracy in all material respects (or, to the extent representations or warranties are qualified by materiality or Material Adverse Effect, in all respects) on the Closing Date of the representations and warranties of the Purchasers contained herein (unless as of a specific date therein in which case they shall be accurate as of such date);

 

 

(ii) all obligations, covenants and agreements of each Purchaser required to be performed at or prior to the Closing Date shall have been performed; and

 

(iii) the delivery by each Purchaser of the items set forth in Section 2.2(b) of this Agreement.

 

(b) The respective obligations of the Purchasers hereunder in connection with the Closing are subject to the following conditions being met:

 

(i) the accuracy in all material respects (or, to the extent representations or warranties are qualified by materiality or Material Adverse Effect, in all respects) when made and on the Closing Date of the representations and warranties of the Company contained herein (unless as of a specific date therein in which case they shall be accurate as of such date);

 

(ii) all obligations, covenants and agreements of the Company required to be performed at or prior to the Closing Date shall have been performed;

 

(iii) the delivery by the Company of the items set forth in Section 2.2(a) of this Agreement;

 

(iv) there shall have been no Material Adverse Effect with respect to the Company since the date hereof; and

 

(v) from the date hereof to the Closing Date, trading in the Common Stock shall not have been suspended by the Commission or the Company’s principal Trading Market, and, at any time prior to the Closing Date, trading in securities generally as reported by Bloomberg L.P. shall not have been suspended or limited, or minimum prices shall not have been established on securities whose trades are reported by such service, or on any Trading Market, nor shall a banking moratorium have been declared either by the United States or New York State authorities nor shall there have occurred any material outbreak or escalation of hostilities or other national or international calamity of such magnitude in its effect on, or any material adverse change in, any financial market which, in each case, in the reasonable judgment of such Purchaser, makes it impracticable or inadvisable to purchase the Shares at the Closing.

 

ARTICLE III.
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

 

3.1 Representations and Warranties of the Company. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, the Company hereby makes the following representations and warranties to each Purchaser:

 

(a) Subsidiaries. All of the direct and indirect subsidiaries of the Company are set forth in the SEC Reports. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, the Company owns, directly or indirectly, all of the capital stock or other equity interests of each Subsidiary free and clear of any Liens, and all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of each Subsidiary are validly issued and are fully paid, non-assessable and free of preemptive and similar rights to subscribe for or purchase securities. If the Company has no subsidiaries, all other references to the Subsidiaries or any of them in the Transaction Documents shall be disregarded.

 

 

(b) Organization and Qualification. The Company and each of the Subsidiaries is an entity duly incorporated or otherwise organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation or organization, with the requisite power and authority to own and use its properties and assets and to carry on its business as currently conducted. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is in violation nor default of any of the provisions of its respective certificate or articles of incorporation, bylaws or other organizational or charter documents. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries is duly qualified to conduct business and is in good standing as a foreign corporation or other entity in each jurisdiction in which the nature of the business conducted or property owned by it makes such qualification necessary, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing, as the case may be, could not have or reasonably be expected to result in: (i) a material adverse effect on the legality, validity or enforceability of any Transaction Document, (ii) a material adverse effect on the results of operations, assets, business, prospects or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or (iii) a material adverse effect on the Company’s ability to perform in any material respect on a timely basis its obligations under any Transaction Document (any of (i), (ii) or (iii), a “Material Adverse Effect”) and no Proceeding has been instituted in any such jurisdiction revoking, limiting or curtailing or seeking to revoke, limit or curtail such power and authority or qualification.

 

(c) Authorization; Enforcement. The Company has the requisite corporate power and authority to enter into and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and each of the other Transaction Documents and otherwise to carry out its obligations hereunder and thereunder. The execution and delivery of this Agreement and each of the other Transaction Documents by the Company and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Company and no further action is required by the Company, the Board of Directors or the Company’s stockholders in connection herewith or therewith other than in connection with the Required Approvals. This Agreement and each other Transaction Document to which it is a party has been (or upon delivery will have been) duly executed by the Company and, when delivered in accordance with the terms hereof and thereof, 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.

 

(d) No Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents to which it is a party, the issuance and sale of the Shares and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby 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, anti-dilution or similar adjustments, 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.

 

 

(e) Filings, Consents and Approvals. The Company is not required to obtain any consent, waiver, authorization or order of, give any notice to, or make any filing or registration with, any court or other federal, state, local or other governmental authority or other Person in connection with the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of the Transaction Documents, other than: (i) the filings required pursuant to Section 4.3 of this Agreement, (ii) the filing with the Commission pursuant to Section 3.1(w), (iii) the notice and/or application(s) to each applicable Trading Market for the issuance and sale of the Shares and the listing of the Shares for trading thereon in the time and manner required thereby and (iv) the filing of Form D with the Commission and such filings as are required to be made under applicable state securities laws (collectively, the “Required Approvals”).

 

(f) Issuance of the Shares. The Shares are duly authorized and, when issued and paid for in accordance with the applicable Transaction Documents, will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable, free and clear of all Liens imposed by the Company other than restrictions on transfer provided for in the Transaction Documents. The Company has reserved from its duly authorized capital stock the maximum number of shares of Common Stock issuable pursuant to this Agreement.

 

(g) Capitalization. The capitalization of the Company as of the date hereof is as set forth in the SEC Reports. The Company has not issued any capital stock since its most recently filed periodic report under the Exchange Act, other than pursuant to the exercise of employee stock options under the Company’s stock option plans, the issuance of shares of Common Stock to employees pursuant to the Company’s employee stock purchase plans and pursuant to the conversion and/or exercise of Common Stock Equivalents outstanding as of the date of the most recently filed periodic report under the Exchange Act. No Person has any right of first refusal, preemptive right, right of participation, or any similar right to participate in the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents. Except as a result of the purchase and sale of the Shares, there are no outstanding options, warrants, scrip rights to subscribe to, calls or commitments of any character whatsoever relating to, or securities, rights or obligations convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for, or giving any Person any right to subscribe for or acquire, any shares of Common Stock or the capital stock of any Subsidiary, or contracts, commitments, understandings or arrangements by which the Company or any Subsidiary is or may become bound to issue additional shares of Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents or capital stock of any Subsidiary. The issuance and sale of the Shares will not obligate the Company or any Subsidiary to issue shares of Common Stock or other securities to any Person (other than the Purchasers). There are no outstanding securities or instruments of the Company or any Subsidiary with any provision that adjusts the exercise, conversion, exchange or reset price of such security or instrument upon an issuance of securities by the Company or any Subsidiary. There are no outstanding securities or instruments of the Company or any Subsidiary that contain any redemption or similar provisions, and there are no contracts, commitments, understandings or arrangements by which the Company or any Subsidiary is or may become bound to redeem a security of the Company or such Subsidiary. The Company does not have any stock appreciation rights or “phantom stock” plans or agreements or any similar plan or agreement. All of the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable, have been issued in compliance with all federal and state securities laws, and none of such outstanding shares was issued in violation of any preemptive rights or similar rights to subscribe for or purchase securities. No further approval or authorization of any stockholder, the Board of Directors or others is required for the issuance and sale of the Shares. There are no stockholders agreements, voting agreements or other similar agreements with respect to the Company’s capital stock to which the Company is a party or, to the knowledge of the Company, between or among any of the Company’s stockholders.

 

 

(h) SEC Reports; Financial Statements. The Company has filed all reports, schedules, forms, statements and other documents required to be filed by the Company under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, including pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) thereof, for the two years preceding the date hereof (or such shorter period as the Company was required by law or regulation to file such material) (the foregoing materials, including the exhibits thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein, being collectively referred to herein as the “SEC Reports”) on a timely basis or has received a valid extension of such time of filing and has filed any such SEC Reports prior to the expiration of any such extension. As of their respective dates, the SEC Reports complied in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, as applicable, and none of the SEC Reports, when filed, contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted 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 under which they were made, not misleading. The Company has never been an issuer subject to Rule 144(i) under the Securities Act. The financial statements of the Company included in the SEC Reports comply in all material respects with applicable accounting requirements and the rules and regulations of the Commission with respect thereto as in effect at the time of filing. Such financial statements have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles applied on a consistent basis during the periods involved (“GAAP”), except as may be otherwise specified in such financial statements or the notes thereto and except that unaudited financial statements may not contain all footnotes required by GAAP, and fairly present in all material respects the financial position of the Company and its consolidated Subsidiaries as of and for the dates thereof and the results of operations and cash flows for the periods then ended, subject, in the case of unaudited statements, to normal, immaterial, year-end audit adjustments.

 

(i) Material Changes; Undisclosed Events, Liabilities or Developments. Since the date of the latest audited financial statements included within the SEC Reports, except as set forth in the SEC Reports, (i) there has been no event, occurrence or development that has had or that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, (ii) the Company has not incurred any liabilities (contingent or otherwise) other than (A) trade payables and accrued expenses incurred in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and (B) liabilities not required to be reflected in the Company’s financial statements pursuant to GAAP or disclosed in filings made with the Commission, (iii) the Company has not altered its method of accounting, (iv) the Company has not declared or made any dividend or distribution of cash or other property to its stockholders or purchased, redeemed or made any agreements to purchase or redeem any shares of its capital stock and (v) the Company has not issued any equity securities to any officer, director or Affiliate, except pursuant to existing Company stock option plans. The Company does not have pending before the Commission any request for confidential treatment of information. Except for the issuance of the Shares contemplated by this Agreement or as set forth in the SEC Reports, no event, liability, fact, circumstance, occurrence or development has occurred or exists or is reasonably expected to occur or exist with respect to the Company or its Subsidiaries or their respective businesses, prospects, properties, operations, assets or financial condition that would be required to be disclosed by the Company under applicable securities laws at the time this representation is made or deemed made that has not been publicly disclosed at least 1 Trading Day prior to the date that this representation is made.

 

(j) Litigation. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, there is no action, suit, inquiry, notice of violation, proceeding or investigation pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened against or affecting the Company, any Subsidiary or any of their respective properties before or by any court, arbitrator, governmental or administrative agency or regulatory authority (federal, state, county, local or foreign) (collectively, an “Action”). None of the Actions set forth in the SEC Reports, (i) adversely affects or challenges the legality, validity or enforceability of any of the Transaction Documents or the Shares or (ii) could, if there were an unfavorable decision, have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary, nor any director or officer thereof, is or has been the subject of any Action involving a claim of violation of or liability under federal or state securities laws or a claim of breach of fiduciary duty. There has not been, and to the knowledge of the Company, there is not pending or contemplated, any investigation by the Commission involving the Company or any current or former director or officer of the Company. The Commission has not issued any stop order or other order suspending the effectiveness of any registration statement filed by the Company or any Subsidiary under the Exchange Act or the Securities Act.

 

 

(k) Labor Relations. No labor dispute exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent with respect to any of the employees of the Company, which could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. None of the Company’s or its Subsidiaries’ employees is a member of a union that relates to such employee’s relationship with the Company or such Subsidiary, and neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is a party to a collective bargaining agreement, and the Company and its Subsidiaries believe that their relationships with their employees are good. To the knowledge of the Company, no executive officer of the Company or any Subsidiary is, or is now expected to be, in violation of any material term of any employment contract, confidentiality, disclosure or proprietary information agreement or non-competition agreement, or any other contract or agreement or any restrictive covenant in favor of any third party, and the continued employment of each such executive officer does not subject the Company or any of its Subsidiaries to any liability with respect to any of the foregoing matters. The Company and its Subsidiaries are in compliance with all U.S. federal, state, local and foreign laws and regulations relating to employment and employment practices, terms and conditions of employment and wages and hours, except where the failure to be in compliance could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(l) Compliance. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary: (i) is in default under or in violation of (and no event has occurred that has not been waived that, with notice or lapse of time or both, would result in a default by the Company or any Subsidiary under), nor has the Company or any Subsidiary received notice of a claim that it is in default under or that it is in violation of, any indenture, loan or credit agreement or any other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it or any of its properties is bound (whether or not such default or violation has been waived), (ii) is in violation of any judgment, decree, or order of any court, arbitrator or other governmental authority or (iii) is or has been in violation of any statute, rule, ordinance or regulation of any governmental authority, including without limitation all foreign, federal, state and local laws relating to taxes, environmental protection, occupational health and safety, product quality and safety and employment and labor matters, except in each case as could not have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(m) Environmental Laws. The Company and its Subsidiaries (i) are in compliance with all federal, state, local and foreign laws relating to pollution or protection of human health or the environment (including ambient air, surface water, groundwater, land surface or subsurface strata), including laws relating to emissions, discharges, releases or threatened releases of chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, or toxic or hazardous substances or wastes (collectively, “Hazardous Materials”) into the environment, or otherwise relating to the manufacture, processing, distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or handling of Hazardous Materials, as well as all authorizations, codes, decrees, demands, or demand letters, injunctions, judgments, licenses, notices or notice letters, orders, permits, plans or regulations, issued, entered, promulgated or approved thereunder (“Environmental Laws”); (ii) have received all permits licenses or other approvals required of them under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct their respective businesses; and (iii) are in compliance with all terms and conditions of any such permit, license or approval where in each clause (i), (ii) and (iii), the failure to so comply could be reasonably expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(n) Regulatory Permits. The Company and the Subsidiaries possess all certificates, authorizations and permits issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory authorities necessary to conduct their respective businesses as described in the SEC Reports, except where the failure to possess such permits could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect (“Material Permits”), and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any Material Permit.

 

 

(o) Title to Assets. The Company and the Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property owned by them and good and marketable title in all personal property owned by them that is material to the business of the Company and the Subsidiaries, in each case free and clear of all Liens, except for (i) Liens 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 and the Subsidiaries, and (ii) Liens for the payment of federal, state or other taxes, for which appropriate reserves have been made therefor in accordance with GAAP and the payment of which is neither delinquent nor subject to penalties. Any real property and facilities held under lease by the Company and the Subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with which the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance.

 

(p) Intellectual Property. The Company and the Subsidiaries have, or have rights to use, all patents, patent applications, trademarks, trademark applications, service marks, trade names, trade secrets, inventions, copyrights, licenses and other intellectual property rights and similar rights necessary or required for use in connection with their respective businesses as described in the SEC Reports and which the failure to so have could have a Material Adverse Effect (collectively, the “Intellectual Property Rights”). None of, and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received a notice (written or otherwise) that any of, the Intellectual Property Rights has expired, terminated or been abandoned, or is expected to expire or terminate or be abandoned, within two (2) years from the date of this Agreement. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included within the SEC Reports, a written notice of a claim or otherwise has any knowledge that the Intellectual Property Rights violate or infringe upon the rights of any Person, except as could not have or reasonably be expected to not have a Material Adverse Effect. To the knowledge of the Company, all such Intellectual Property Rights are enforceable and there is no existing infringement by another Person of any of the Intellectual Property Rights. The Company and its Subsidiaries have taken reasonable security measures to protect the secrecy, confidentiality and value of all of their intellectual properties, except where failure to do so could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(q) Insurance. The Company and the Subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent and customary in the businesses in which the Company and the Subsidiaries are engaged, including, but not limited to, directors and officers insurance coverage at least equal to the aggregate Subscription Amount. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has any reason to believe that it 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 without a significant increase in cost.

 

(r) Transactions with Affiliates and Employees. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, none of the officers or directors of the Company or any Subsidiary and, to the knowledge of the Company, none of the employees of the Company or any Subsidiary is presently a party to any transaction with the Company or any Subsidiary (other than for services as employees, officers and directors), including any contract, agreement or other arrangement providing for the furnishing of services to or by, providing for rental of real or personal property to or from, providing for the borrowing of money from or lending of money to or otherwise requiring payments to or from any officer, director or such employee or, to the knowledge of the Company, any entity in which any officer, director, or any such employee has a substantial interest or is an officer, director, trustee, stockholder, member or partner, in each case in excess of $120,000 other than for (i) payment of salary or consulting fees for services rendered, (ii) reimbursement for expenses incurred on behalf of the Company and (iii) other employee benefits, including stock option agreements under any stock option plan of the Company.

 

 

(s) Sarbanes-Oxley; Internal Accounting Controls. The Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with any and all applicable requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 that are effective as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date, and any and all applicable rules and regulations promulgated by the Commission thereunder that are effective as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date. The Company and the Subsidiaries maintain a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that: (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations, (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain asset accountability, (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization, and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences. The Company and the Subsidiaries have established disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the Company and the Subsidiaries and designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules and forms. The Company’s certifying officers have evaluated the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures of the Company and the Subsidiaries as of the end of the period covered by the most recently filed periodic report under the Exchange Act (such date, the “Evaluation Date”). The Company presented in its most recently filed periodic report under the Exchange Act the conclusions of the certifying officers about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures based on their evaluations as of the Evaluation Date. Since the Evaluation Date, there have been no changes in the internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in the Exchange Act) of the Company and its Subsidiaries that have materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the internal control over financial reporting of the Company and its Subsidiaries.

 

(t) Certain Fees. No brokerage or finder’s fees or commissions are or will be payable by the Company or any Subsidiary to any broker, financial advisor or consultant, finder, placement agent, investment banker, bank or other Person with respect to the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents. The Purchasers shall have no obligation with respect to any fees or with respect to any claims made by or on behalf of other Persons for fees of a type contemplated in this Section that may be due in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.

 

(u) Private Placement. Assuming the accuracy of the Purchasers’ representations and warranties set forth in Section 3.2, no registration under the Securities Act is required for the offer and sale of the Shares by the Company to the Purchasers as contemplated hereby. The issuance and sale of the Shares hereunder does not contravene the rules and regulations of the Trading Market.

 

(v) Investment Company. The Company is not, and is not an Affiliate of, and immediately after receipt of payment for the Shares, will not be or be an Affiliate of, an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. The Company shall conduct its business in a manner so that it will not become an “investment company” subject to registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

 

(w) Registration Rights. As soon as practicable (and in any event within 90 calendar days of the date of this Agreement), the Company shall file a registration statement on Form S-3 (or other appropriate form if the Company is not then S-3 eligible) providing for the resale by the Purchasers of the Shares issued. The Company shall use commercially reasonable efforts to cause such registration statement to become effective within 120 days following the Closing Date and to keep such registration statement effective at all times until no Purchaser owns any Shares.

 

 

(x) Listing and Maintenance Requirements. The Common Stock is registered pursuant to Section 12(b) or 12(g) of the Exchange Act, and the Company has taken no action designed to, or which to its knowledge is likely to have the effect of, terminating the registration of the Common Stock under the Exchange Act nor has the Company received any notification that the Commission is contemplating terminating such registration. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, the Company has not, in the 12 months preceding the date hereof, received notice from any Trading Market on which the Common Stock is or has been listed or quoted to the effect that the Company is not in compliance with the listing or maintenance requirements of such Trading Market. The Company is, and has no reason to believe that it will not in the foreseeable future continue to be, in compliance with all such listing and maintenance requirements. The Common Stock is currently eligible for electronic transfer through the Depository Trust Company or another established clearing corporation and the Company is current in payment of the fees to the Depository Trust Company (or such other established clearing corporation) in connection with such electronic transfer.

 

(y) Application of Takeover Protections. The Company and the Board of Directors have taken all necessary action, if any, in order to render inapplicable any control share acquisition, business combination, poison pill (including any distribution under a rights agreement) or other similar anti-takeover provision under the Company’s certificate of incorporation (or similar charter documents) or the laws of its state of incorporation that is or could become applicable to the Purchasers as a result of the Purchasers and the Company fulfilling their obligations or exercising their rights under the Transaction Documents, including without limitation as a result of the Company’s issuance of the Shares and the Purchasers’ ownership of the Shares.

 

(z) Disclosure. Except with respect to the material terms and conditions of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents, the Company confirms that neither it nor any other Person acting on its behalf has provided any of the Purchasers or their agents or counsel with any information that it believes constitutes or might constitute material, non-public information. The Company understands and confirms that the Purchasers will rely on the foregoing representation in effecting transactions in securities of the Company. All of the disclosure furnished by or on behalf of the Company to the Purchasers regarding the Company and its Subsidiaries, their respective businesses and the transactions contemplated hereby, is true and correct and does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements made therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. The press releases disseminated by the Company during the twelve months preceding the date of this Agreement taken as a whole do not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or 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 under which they were made and when made, not misleading. The Company acknowledges and agrees that no Purchaser makes or has made any representations or warranties with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby other than those specifically set forth in Section 3.2 hereof.

 

(aa) No Integrated Offering. Assuming the accuracy of the Purchasers’ representations and warranties set forth in Section 3.2, neither the Company, nor any of its Affiliates, nor any Person acting on its or their behalf has, directly or indirectly, made any offers or sales of any security or solicited any offers to buy any security, under circumstances that would cause this offering of the Shares to be integrated with prior offerings by the Company for purposes of (i) the Securities Act which would require the registration of any such securities under the Securities Act, or (ii) any applicable shareholder approval provisions of any Trading Market on which any of the securities of the Company are listed or designated.

 

 

(bb) Solvency. Based on the consolidated financial condition of the Company as of the Closing Date, after giving effect to the receipt by the Company of the proceeds from the sale of the Shares hereunder, (i) the fair saleable value of the Company’s assets exceeds the amount that will be required to be paid on or in respect of the Company’s existing debts and other liabilities (including known contingent liabilities) as they mature, (ii) the Company’s assets do not constitute unreasonably small capital to carry on its business as now conducted and as proposed to be conducted including its capital needs taking into account the particular capital requirements of the business conducted by the Company, consolidated and projected capital requirements and capital availability thereof, and (iii) the current cash flow of the Company, together with the proceeds the Company would receive, were it to liquidate all of its assets, after taking into account all anticipated uses of the cash, would be sufficient to pay all amounts on or in respect of its liabilities when such amounts are required to be paid. The Company does not intend to incur debts beyond its ability to pay such debts as they mature (taking into account the timing and amounts of cash to be payable on or in respect of its debt). The Company has no knowledge of any facts or circumstances which lead it to believe that it will file for reorganization or liquidation under the bankruptcy or reorganization laws of any jurisdiction within one year from the Closing Date. The SEC Reports set forth as of the date hereof all outstanding secured and unsecured Indebtedness of the Company or any Subsidiary, or for which the Company or any Subsidiary has commitments. For the purposes of this Agreement, “Indebtedness” means (x) any liabilities for borrowed money or amounts owed in excess of $100,000 (other than trade accounts payable incurred in the ordinary course of business), (y) all guaranties, endorsements and other contingent obligations in respect of indebtedness of others, whether or not the same are or should be reflected in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet (or the notes thereto), except guaranties by endorsement of negotiable instruments for deposit or collection or similar transactions in the ordinary course of business; and (z) the present value of any lease payments in excess of $100,000 due under leases required to be capitalized in accordance with GAAP. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is in default with respect to any Indebtedness.

 

(cc) Tax Status. Except for matters that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and its Subsidiaries each (i) has made or filed all United States federal, state and local income and all foreign income and franchise tax returns, reports and declarations required by any jurisdiction to which it is subject, (ii) has paid all taxes and other governmental assessments and charges that are material in amount, shown or determined to be due on such returns, reports and declarations and (iii) has set aside on its books provision reasonably adequate for the payment of all material taxes for periods subsequent to the periods to which such returns, reports or declarations apply. There are no unpaid taxes in any material amount claimed to be due by the taxing authority of any jurisdiction, and the officers of the Company or of any Subsidiary know of no basis for any such claim.

 

(dd) No General Solicitation. Neither the Company nor any Person acting on behalf of the Company has offered or sold any of the Shares by any form of general solicitation or general advertising. The Company has offered the Shares for sale only to the Purchasers and certain other “accredited investors” within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act.

 

(ee) Foreign Corrupt Practices. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary, nor to the knowledge of the Company or any Subsidiary, any agent or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiary, has (i) directly or indirectly, used any funds for unlawful contributions, gifts, entertainment or other unlawful expenses related to foreign or domestic political activity, (ii) made any unlawful payment to foreign or domestic government officials or employees or to any foreign or domestic political parties or campaigns from corporate funds, (iii) failed to disclose fully any contribution made by the Company or any Subsidiary (or made by any person acting on its behalf of which the Company is aware) which is in violation of law or (iv) violated in any material respect any provision of FCPA.

 

 

(ff) Accountants. The Company’s accounting firm is set forth in the SEC Reports. To the knowledge and belief of the Company, such accounting firm (i) is a registered public accounting firm as required by the Exchange Act and (ii) shall express its opinion with respect to the financial statements to be included in the Company’s Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.

 

(gg) No Disagreements with Accountants and Lawyers. There are no disagreements of any kind presently existing, or reasonably anticipated by the Company to arise, between the Company and the accountants and lawyers formerly or presently employed by the Company and the Company is current with respect to any fees owed to its accountants and lawyers which could affect the Company’s ability to perform any of its obligations under any of the Transaction Documents.

 

(hh) Acknowledgment Regarding Purchasers’ Purchase of Shares. The Company acknowledges and agrees that each of the Purchasers is acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length purchaser with respect to the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby. The Company further acknowledges that no Purchaser is acting as a financial advisor or fiduciary of the Company (or in any similar capacity) with respect to the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby and any advice given by any Purchaser or any of their respective representatives or agents in connection with the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby is merely incidental to the Purchasers’ purchase of the Shares. The Company further represents to each Purchaser that the Company’s decision to enter into this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents has been based solely on the independent evaluation of the transactions contemplated hereby by the Company and its representatives.

 

(ii) Acknowledgment Regarding Purchaser’s Trading Activity. Anything in this Agreement or elsewhere herein to the contrary notwithstanding (except for Sections 3.2(g) and 4.10 hereof), it is understood and acknowledged by the Company that: (i) none of the Purchasers has been asked by the Company to agree, nor has any Purchaser agreed, to desist from purchasing or selling, long and/or short, securities of the Company, or “derivative” securities based on securities issued by the Company or to hold the Shares for any specified term, (ii) past or future open market or other transactions by any Purchaser, specifically including, without limitation, Short Sales or “derivative” transactions, before or after the closing of this or future private placement transactions, may negatively impact the market price of the Company’s publicly-traded securities, (iii) any Purchaser, and counter-parties in “derivative” transactions to which any such Purchaser is a party, directly or indirectly, presently may have a “short” position in the Common Stock and (iv) each Purchaser shall not be deemed to have any affiliation with or control over any arm’s length counter-party in any “derivative” transaction. The Company further understands and acknowledges that (y) one or more Purchasers may engage in hedging activities at various times during the period that the Shares are outstanding, and (z) such hedging activities (if any) could reduce the value of the existing stockholders’ equity interests in the Company at and after the time that the hedging activities are being conducted. The Company acknowledges that such aforementioned hedging activities do not constitute a breach of any of the Transaction Documents.

 

(jj) Regulation M Compliance. The Company has not, and to its knowledge no one acting on its behalf has, (i) taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or to result in the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of any of the Shares, (ii) sold, bid for, purchased, or paid any compensation for soliciting purchases of, any of the Shares, or (iii) paid or agreed to pay to any Person any compensation for soliciting another to purchase any other securities of the Company, other than, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii), compensation paid to the Company’s placement agent in connection with the placement of the Shares.

 

 

(kk) [RESERVED].

 

(ll) Form S-3 Eligibility. The Company is eligible to register the resale of the Shares for resale by the Purchaser on Form S-3 promulgated under the Securities Act.

 

(mm) Stock Option Plans. Each stock option granted by the Company under the Company’s stock option plan was granted (i) in accordance with the terms of the Company’s stock option plan and (ii) with an exercise price at least equal to the fair market value of the Common Stock on the date such stock option would be considered granted under GAAP and applicable law. No stock option granted under the Company’s stock option plan has been backdated. The Company has not knowingly granted, and there is no and has been no Company policy or practice to knowingly grant, stock options prior to, or otherwise knowingly coordinate the grant of stock options with, the release or other public announcement of material information regarding the Company or its Subsidiaries or their financial results or prospects.

 

(nn) Cybersecurity. (i)(x) There has been no security breach or other compromise of or relating to any of the Company’s or any Subsidiary’s information technology and computer systems, networks, hardware, software, data (including the data of its respective customers, employees, suppliers, vendors and any third party data maintained by or on behalf of it), equipment or technology (collectively, “IT Systems and Data”) and (y) the Company and the Subsidiaries have not been notified of, and has no knowledge of any event or condition that would reasonably be expected to result in, any security breach or other compromise to its IT Systems and Data; (ii) the Company and the Subsidiaries are presently in 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 Data and to the protection of such IT Systems and Data from unauthorized use, access, misappropriation or modification, except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; (iii) the Company and the Subsidiaries have implemented and maintained commercially reasonable safeguards to maintain and protect its material confidential information and the integrity, continuous operation, redundancy and security of all IT Systems and Data; and (iv) the Company and the Subsidiaries have implemented backup and disaster recovery technology consistent with industry standards and practices.

 

(oo) Office of Foreign Assets Control. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any Subsidiary is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”).

 

(pp) Money Laundering. The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial record-keeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, applicable money laundering statutes and applicable rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”), and no Action or Proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any Subsidiary with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company or any Subsidiary, threatened.

 

(qq) No Disqualification Events. With respect to the Shares to be offered and sold hereunder in reliance on Rule 506 under the Securities Act, none of the Company, any of its predecessors, any affiliated issuer, any director, executive officer, other officer of the Company participating in the offering hereunder, any beneficial owner of 20% or more of the Company’s outstanding voting equity securities, calculated on the basis of voting power, nor any promoter (as that term is defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) connected with the Company in any capacity at the time of sale (each, an “Issuer Covered Person” and, together, “Issuer Covered Persons”) is subject to any of the “Bad Actor” disqualifications described in Rule 506(d)(1)(i) to (viii) under the Securities Act (a “Disqualification Event”), except for a Disqualification Event covered by Rule 506(d)(2) or (d)(3). The Company has exercised reasonable care to determine whether any Issuer Covered Person is subject to a Disqualification Event. The Company has complied, to the extent applicable, with its disclosure obligations under Rule 506(e), and has furnished to the Purchasers a copy of any disclosures provided thereunder.

 

 

(rr) Other Covered Persons. The Company is not aware of any person (other than any Issuer Covered Person) that has been or will be paid (directly or indirectly) remuneration for solicitation of purchasers in connection with the sale of any Shares.

 

(ss) Notice of Disqualification Events. The Company will notify the Purchasers in writing, prior to the Closing Date of (i) any Disqualification Event relating to any Issuer Covered Person and (ii) any event that would, with the passage of time, become a Disqualification Event relating to any Issuer Covered Person.

 

3.2 Representations and Warranties of the Purchasers. Each Purchaser, for itself and for no other Purchaser, hereby represents and warrants as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date to the Company as follows (unless as of a specific date therein, in which case they shall be accurate as of such date):

 

(a) Organization; Authority. Such Purchaser is either an individual or an entity duly incorporated or formed, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation or formation with full right, corporate, partnership, limited liability company or similar power and authority to enter into and to consummate the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents and otherwise to carry out its obligations hereunder and thereunder. The execution and delivery of the Transaction Documents and performance by such Purchaser of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate, partnership, limited liability company or similar action, as applicable, on the part of such Purchaser. Each Transaction Document to which it is a party has been duly executed by such Purchaser, and when delivered by such Purchaser in accordance with the terms hereof, will constitute the valid and legally binding obligation of such Purchaser, enforceable against it 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.

 

(b) Own Account. Such Purchaser understands that the Shares are “restricted securities” and have not been registered under the Securities Act or any applicable state securities law and is acquiring the Shares as principal for its own account and not with a view to or for distributing or reselling such Shares or any part thereof in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable state securities law, has no present intention of distributing any of such Shares in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable state securities law and has no direct or indirect arrangement or understandings with any other persons to distribute or regarding the distribution of such Shares in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable state securities law (this representation and warranty not limiting such Purchaser’s right to sell the Shares pursuant to the Registration Statement or otherwise in compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws). Such Purchaser is acquiring the Shares hereunder in the ordinary course of its business.

 

(c) Purchaser Status. At the time such Purchaser was offered the Shares, it was, and as of the date hereof it is, an “accredited investor” as defined in Rule 501(a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(7), (a)(8), (a)(9), (a)(12), or (a)(13) under the Securities Act.

 

(d) Experience of Such Purchaser. Such Purchaser, either alone or together with its representatives, has such knowledge, sophistication and experience in business and financial matters so as to be capable of evaluating the merits and risks of the prospective investment in the Shares, and has so evaluated the merits and risks of such investment. Such Purchaser is able to bear the economic risk of an investment in the Shares and, at the present time, is able to afford a complete loss of such investment.

 

 

(e) General Solicitation. Such Purchaser is not, to such Purchaser’s knowledge, purchasing the Shares as a result of any advertisement, article, notice or other communication regarding the Shares published in any newspaper, magazine or similar media or broadcast over television or radio or presented at any seminar or, to the knowledge of such Purchaser, any other general solicitation or general advertisement.

 

(f) Access to Information. Such Purchaser acknowledges that it has had the opportunity to review the Transaction Documents (including all exhibits and schedules thereto) and the SEC Reports and has been afforded (i) the opportunity to ask such questions as it has deemed necessary of, and to receive answers from, representatives of the Company concerning the terms and conditions of the offering of the Shares and the merits and risks of investing in the Shares; (ii) access to information about the Company and its financial condition, results of operations, business, properties, management and prospects sufficient to enable it to evaluate its investment; and (iii) the opportunity to obtain such additional information that the Company possesses or can acquire without unreasonable effort or expense that is necessary to make an informed investment decision with respect to the investment.

 

(g) Certain Transactions and Confidentiality. Other than consummating the transactions contemplated hereunder, such Purchaser has not, nor has any Person acting on behalf of or pursuant to any understanding with such Purchaser, directly or indirectly executed any purchases or sales, including Short Sales, of the securities of the Company during the period commencing as of the time that such Purchaser first received a term sheet (written or oral) from the Company or any other Person representing the Company setting forth the material terms of the transactions contemplated hereunder and ending immediately prior to the execution hereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the case of a Purchaser that is a multi-managed investment vehicle whereby separate portfolio managers manage separate portions of such Purchaser’s assets and the portfolio managers have no direct knowledge of the investment decisions made by the portfolio managers managing other portions of such Purchaser’s assets, the representation set forth above shall only apply with respect to the portion of assets managed by the portfolio manager that made the investment decision to purchase the Shares covered by this Agreement. Other than to other Persons party to this Agreement or to such Purchaser’s representatives, including, without limitation, its officers, directors, partners, legal and other advisors, employees, agents and Affiliates, such Purchaser has maintained the confidentiality of all disclosures made to it in connection with this transaction (including the existence and terms of this transaction). Notwithstanding the foregoing, for the avoidance of doubt, nothing contained herein shall constitute a representation or warranty, or preclude any actions, with respect to locating or borrowing shares in order to effect Short Sales or similar transactions in the future.

 

The Company acknowledges and agrees that the representations contained in this Section 3.2 shall not modify, amend or affect such Purchaser’s right to rely on the Company’s representations and warranties contained in this Agreement or any representations and warranties contained in any other Transaction Document or any other document or instrument executed and/or delivered in connection with this Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for the avoidance of doubt, nothing contained herein shall constitute a representation or warranty, or preclude any actions, with respect to locating or borrowing shares in order to effect Short Sales or similar transactions in the future.

 

 

ARTICLE IV.
OTHER AGREEMENTS OF THE PARTIES

 

4.1 Transfer Restrictions.

 

(a) The Shares may only be disposed of in compliance with state and federal securities laws. In connection with any transfer of Shares other than pursuant to an effective registration statement or Rule 144, to the Company or to an Affiliate of a Purchaser or in connection with a pledge as contemplated in Section 4.1(b), the Company may require the transferor thereof to provide to the Company an opinion of counsel selected by the transferor and reasonably acceptable to the Company, the form and substance of which opinion shall be reasonably satisfactory to the Company, to the effect that such transfer does not require registration of such transferred Shares under the Securities Act. As a condition of transfer, any such transferee shall agree in writing to be bound by the terms of this Agreement and shall have the rights and obligations of a Purchaser under this Agreement.

 

(b) The Purchasers agree to the imprinting, so long as is required by this Section 4.1, of a legend on any of the Shares in the following form:

 

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR THE SECURITIES COMMISSION OF ANY STATE IN RELIANCE UPON AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), AND, ACCORDINGLY, MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR PURSUANT TO AN AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE STATE SECURITIES LAWS. THIS SECURITY MAY BE PLEDGED IN CONNECTION WITH A BONA FIDE MARGIN ACCOUNT WITH A REGISTERED BROKER-DEALER OR OTHER LOAN WITH A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION THAT IS AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR” AS DEFINED IN RULE 501(a) UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR OTHER LOAN SECURED BY SUCH SECURITIES.

 

The Company acknowledges and agrees that a Purchaser may from time to time pledge pursuant to a bona fide margin agreement with a registered broker-dealer or grant a security interest in some or all of the Shares to a financial institution that is an “accredited investor” as defined in Rule 501(a) under the Securities Act and, if required under the terms of such arrangement, such Purchaser may transfer pledged or secured Shares to the pledgees or secured parties. Such a pledge or transfer would not be subject to approval of the Company and no legal opinion of legal counsel of the pledgee, secured party or pledgor shall be required in connection therewith. Further, no notice shall be required of such pledge. At the appropriate Purchaser’s expense, the Company will execute and deliver such reasonable documentation as a pledgee or secured party of Shares may reasonably request in connection with a pledge or transfer of the Shares, including, if the Shares are subject to registration, the preparation and filing of any required prospectus supplement under Rule 424(b)(3) under the Securities Act or other applicable provision of the Securities Act to appropriately amend the list of Selling Stockholders thereunder.

 

(c) Certificates evidencing the Shares shall not contain any legend (including the legend set forth in Section 4.1(b) hereof), (i) while a registration statement (including the Registration Statement) covering the resale of such security is effective under the Securities Act, (ii) following any sale of such Shares pursuant to Rule 144, or (iii) if such Shares are eligible for sale under Rule 144. The Company shall cause its counsel to issue a legal opinion to the Transfer Agent or the Purchaser if required by the Transfer Agent to effect the removal of the legend hereunder, or if requested by a Purchaser, respectively. The Company may not make any notation on its records or give instructions to the Transfer Agent that enlarge the restrictions on transfer set forth in this Section 4.

 

 

(d) Each Purchaser, severally and not jointly with the other Purchasers, agrees with the Company that such Purchaser will sell any Shares pursuant to either the registration requirements of the Securities Act, including any applicable prospectus delivery requirements, or an exemption therefrom, and that if Shares are sold pursuant to a Registration Statement, they will be sold in compliance with the plan of distribution set forth therein, and acknowledges that the removal of the restrictive legend from certificates representing Shares as set forth in this Section 4.1 is predicated upon the Company’s reliance upon this understanding.

 

4.2 Integration. The Company shall not sell, offer for sale or solicit offers to buy or otherwise negotiate in respect of any security (as defined in Section 2 of the Securities Act) that would be integrated with the offer or sale of the Shares in a manner that would require the registration under the Securities Act of the sale of the Shares or that would be integrated with the offer or sale of the Shares for purposes of the rules and regulations of any Trading Market such that it would require shareholder approval prior to the closing of such other transaction unless shareholder approval is obtained before the closing of such subsequent transaction.

 

4.3 Securities Laws Disclosure; Publicity. The Company shall (a) by the Disclosure Time, issue a press release disclosing the material terms of the transactions contemplated hereby, and (b) file a Current Report on Form 8-K, including the Transaction Documents as exhibits thereto, with the Commission within the time required by the Exchange Act. From and after the issuance of such press release, the Company represents to the Purchasers that it shall have publicly disclosed all material, non-public information delivered to any of the Purchasers by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or any of their respective officers, directors, employees or agents in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents. In addition, effective upon the issuance of such press release, the Company acknowledges and agrees that any and all confidentiality or similar obligations under any agreement, whether written or oral, between the Company, any of its Subsidiaries or any of their respective officers, directors, agents, employees or Affiliates on the one hand, and any of the Purchasers or any of their Affiliates on the other hand, shall terminate. The Company and each Purchaser shall consult with each other in issuing any other press releases with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby, and neither the Company nor any Purchaser shall issue any such press release nor otherwise make any such public statement without the prior consent of the Company, with respect to any press release of any Purchaser, or without the prior consent of each Purchaser, with respect to any press release of the Company, which consent shall not unreasonably be withheld or delayed, except if such disclosure is required by law, in which case the disclosing party shall promptly provide the other party with prior notice of such public statement or communication. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company shall not publicly disclose the name of any Purchaser, or include the name of any Purchaser in any filing with the Commission or any regulatory agency or Trading Market, without the prior written consent of such Purchaser, except (a) as required by federal securities law in connection with (i) any registration statement and (ii) the filing of final Transaction Documents with the Commission and (b) to the extent such disclosure is required by law or Trading Market regulations, in which case the Company shall provide the Purchasers with prior notice of such disclosure permitted under this clause (b).

 

4.4 Shareholder Rights Plan. No claim will be made or enforced by the Company or, with the consent of the Company, any other Person, that any Purchaser is an “Acquiring Person” under any control share acquisition, business combination, poison pill (including any distribution under a rights agreement) or similar anti-takeover plan or arrangement in effect or hereafter adopted by the Company, or that any Purchaser could be deemed to trigger the provisions of any such plan or arrangement, by virtue of receiving Shares under the Transaction Documents or under any other agreement between the Company and the Purchasers.

 

 

4.5 Non-Public Information. Except with respect to the material terms and conditions of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents, the Company covenants and agrees that neither it, nor any other Person acting on its behalf will provide any Purchaser or its agents or counsel with any information that constitutes, or the Company reasonably believes constitutes, material non-public information, unless prior thereto such Purchaser shall have consented to the receipt of such information and agreed with the Company to keep such information confidential. The Company understands and confirms that each Purchaser shall be relying on the foregoing covenant in effecting transactions in securities of the Company. To the extent that the Company, any of its Subsidiaries, or any of their respective officers, directors, agents, employees or Affiliates delivers any material, non-public information to a Purchaser without such Purchaser’s consent, the Company hereby covenants and agrees that such Purchaser shall not have any duty of confidentiality to the Company, any of its Subsidiaries, or any of their respective officers, directors, agents, employees or Affiliates, or a duty to the Company, any of its Subsidiaries or any of their respective officers, directors, agents, employees or Affiliates not to trade on the basis of, such material, non-public information, provided that the Purchaser shall remain subject to applicable law. To the extent that any notice provided pursuant to any Transaction Document constitutes, or contains, material, non-public information regarding the Company or any Subsidiaries, the Company shall simultaneously file such notice with the Commission pursuant to a Current Report on Form 8-K. The Company understands and confirms that each Purchaser shall be relying on the foregoing covenant in effecting transactions in securities of the Company.

 

4.6 Use of Proceeds. The Company shall use the net proceeds from the sale of the Shares hereunder for working capital purposes.

 

4.7 Indemnification of Purchasers. Subject to the provisions of this Section 4.7, the Company will indemnify and hold each Purchaser and its directors, officers, shareholders, members, partners, employees and agents (and any other Persons with a functionally equivalent role of a Person holding such titles notwithstanding a lack of such title or any other title), each Person who controls such Purchaser (within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act and Section 20 of the Exchange Act), and the directors, officers, shareholders, agents, members, partners or employees (and any other Persons with a functionally equivalent role of a Person holding such titles notwithstanding a lack of such title or any other title) of such controlling persons (each, a “Purchaser Party”) harmless from any and all losses, liabilities, obligations, claims, contingencies, damages, costs and expenses, including all judgments, amounts paid in settlements, court costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs of investigation that any such Purchaser Party may suffer or incur as a result of or relating to (a) any breach of any of the representations, warranties, covenants or agreements made by the Company in this Agreement or in the other Transaction Documents or (b) any action instituted against the Purchaser Parties in any capacity, or any of them or their respective Affiliates, by any stockholder of the Company who is not an Affiliate of such Purchaser Party, with respect to any of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents (unless such action is solely based upon a material breach of such Purchaser Party’s representations, warranties or covenants under the Transaction Documents or any agreements or understandings such Purchaser Party may have with any such stockholder or any violations by such Purchaser Party of state or federal securities laws or any conduct by such Purchaser Party which is finally judicially determined to constitute fraud, gross negligence or willful misconduct). If any action shall be brought against any Purchaser Party in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to this Agreement, such Purchaser Party shall promptly notify the Company in writing, and the Company shall have the right to assume the defense thereof with counsel of its own choosing reasonably acceptable to the Purchaser Party. Any Purchaser Party shall have the right to employ separate counsel in any such action and participate in the defense thereof, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such Purchaser Party except to the extent that (i) the employment thereof has been specifically authorized by the Company in writing, (ii) the Company has failed after a reasonable period of time to assume such defense and to employ counsel or (iii) in such action there is, in the reasonable opinion of counsel, a material conflict on any material issue between the position of the Company and the position of such Purchaser Party, in which case the Company shall be responsible for the reasonable fees and expenses of no more than one such separate counsel. The Company will not be liable to any Purchaser Party under this Agreement (y) for any settlement by a Purchaser Party effected without the Company’s prior written consent, which shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed; or (z) to the extent, but only to the extent that a loss, claim, damage or liability is attributable to any Purchaser Party’s breach of any of the representations, warranties, covenants or agreements made by such Purchaser Party in this Agreement or in the other Transaction Documents. The indemnification required by this Section 4.7 shall be made by periodic payments of the amount thereof during the course of the investigation or defense, as and when bills are received or are incurred. The indemnity agreements contained herein shall be in addition to any cause of action or similar right of any Purchaser Party against the Company or others and any liabilities the Company may be subject to pursuant to law.

 

 

4.8 Reservation of Common Stock. As of the date hereof, the Company has reserved and the Company shall continue to reserve and keep available at all times, free of preemptive rights, a sufficient number of shares of Common Stock for the purpose of enabling the Company to issue Shares pursuant to this Agreement.

 

4.9 Listing of Common Stock. The Company hereby agrees to use best efforts to maintain the listing or quotation of the Common Stock on the Trading Market on which it is currently listed, and concurrently with the Closing, the Company shall apply to list or quote all of the Shares on such Trading Market and promptly secure the listing of all of the Shares on such Trading Market. The Company further agrees, if the Company applies to have the Common Stock traded on any other Trading Market, it will then include in such application all of the Shares, and will take such other action as is necessary to cause all of the Shares to be listed or quoted on such other Trading Market as promptly as possible. The Company will then take all action reasonably necessary to continue the listing and trading of its Common Stock on a Trading Market and will comply in all respects with the Company’s reporting, filing and other obligations under the bylaws or rules of the Trading Market. The Company agrees to maintain the eligibility of the Common Stock for electronic transfer through the Depository Trust Company or another established clearing corporation, including, without limitation, by timely payment of fees to the Depository Trust Company or such other established clearing corporation in connection with such electronic transfer.

 

4.10 Certain Transactions and Confidentiality. Each Purchaser, severally and not jointly with the other Purchasers, covenants that neither it, nor any Affiliate acting on its behalf or pursuant to any understanding with it will execute any purchases or sales, including Short Sales, of any of the Company’s securities during the period commencing with the execution of this Agreement and ending at such time that the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are first publicly announced pursuant to the initial press release as described in Section 4.3. Each Purchaser, severally and not jointly with the other Purchasers, covenants that until such time as the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are publicly disclosed by the Company pursuant to the initial press release as described in Section 4.3, such Purchaser will maintain the confidentiality of the existence and terms of this transaction. Notwithstanding the foregoing and notwithstanding anything contained in this Agreement to the contrary, the Company expressly acknowledges and agrees that (i) no Purchaser makes any representation, warranty or covenant hereby that it will not engage in effecting transactions in any securities of the Company after the time that the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are first publicly announced pursuant to the initial press release as described in Section 4.3, (ii) no Purchaser shall be restricted or prohibited from effecting any transactions in any securities of the Company in accordance with applicable securities laws from and after the time that the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are first publicly announced pursuant to the initial press release as described in Section 4.3 and (iii) no Purchaser shall have any duty of confidentiality or duty not to trade in the securities of the Company to the Company or its Subsidiaries after the issuance of the initial press release as described in Section 4.3. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the case of a Purchaser that is a multi-managed investment vehicle whereby separate portfolio managers manage separate portions of such Purchaser’s assets and the portfolio managers have no direct knowledge of the investment decisions made by the portfolio managers managing other portions of such Purchaser’s assets, the covenant set forth above shall only apply with respect to the portion of assets managed by the portfolio manager that made the investment decision to purchase the Shares covered by this Agreement.

 

4.11 Form D; Blue Sky Filings. The Company agrees to timely file a Form D with respect to the Shares as required under Regulation D and to provide a copy thereof, promptly upon request of any Purchaser. The Company shall take such action as the Company shall reasonably determine is necessary in order to obtain an exemption for, or to qualify the Shares for, sale to the Purchasers at the Closing under applicable securities or “Blue Sky” laws of the states of the United States, and shall provide evidence of such actions promptly upon request of any Purchaser.

 

4.12 Acknowledgment of Dilution. The Company acknowledges that the issuance of the Shares may result in dilution of the outstanding shares of Common Stock, which dilution may be substantial under certain market conditions. The Company further acknowledges that its obligations under the Transaction Documents, including, without limitation, its obligation to issue the Shares pursuant to the Transaction Documents, are unconditional and absolute and not subject to any right of set off, counterclaim, delay or reduction, regardless of the effect of any such dilution or any claim the Company may have against any Purchaser and regardless of the dilutive effect that such issuance may have on the ownership of the other stockholders of the Company.

 

 

ARTICLE V.
MISCELLANEOUS

 

5.1 Termination. This Agreement may be terminated by any Purchaser, as to such Purchaser’s obligations hereunder only and without any effect whatsoever on the obligations between the Company and the other Purchasers, by written notice to the other parties, if the Closing has not been consummated on or before the fifth (5^th) Trading Day following the date hereof; provided, however, that no such termination will affect the right of any party to sue for any breach by any other party (or parties).

 

5.2 Fees and Expenses. Except as expressly set forth in the Transaction Documents to the contrary, each party shall pay the fees and expenses of its advisers, counsel, accountants and other experts, if any, and all other expenses incurred by such party incident to the negotiation, preparation, execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement. The Company shall pay all Transfer Agent fees (including, without limitation, any fees required for same-day processing of any instruction letter delivered by the Company and any exercise notice delivered by a Purchaser), stamp taxes and other taxes and duties levied in connection with the delivery of any Shares to the Purchasers.

 

5.3 Entire Agreement. The Transaction Documents, together with the exhibits and schedules thereto, contain the entire understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and thereof and supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral or written, with respect to such matters, which the parties acknowledge have been merged into such documents, exhibits and schedules.

 

5.4 Notices. Any and all notices or other communications or deliveries required or permitted to be provided hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed given and effective on the earliest of: (a) the time of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via facsimile at the facsimile number or email attachment at the email address as set forth on the signature pages attached hereto at or prior to 5:30 p.m. (New York City time) on a Trading Day, (b) the next Trading Day after the time of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via facsimile at the facsimile number or email attachment at the email address as set forth on the signature pages attached hereto on a day that is not a Trading Day or later than 5:30 p.m. (New York City time) on any Trading Day, (c) the second (2^nd) Trading Day following the date of mailing, if sent by U.S. nationally recognized overnight courier service or (d) upon actual receipt by the party to whom such notice is required to be given. The address for such notices and communications shall be as set forth on the signature pages attached hereto.

 

5.5 Amendments; Waivers. No provision of this Agreement may be waived, modified, supplemented or amended except in a written instrument signed, in the case of an amendment, by the Company and Purchasers which purchased at least 50.1% in interest of the Shares based on the initial Subscription Amounts hereunder (or, prior to the Closing, the Company and each Purchaser) or, in the case of a waiver, by the party against whom enforcement of any such waived provision is sought, provided that if any amendment, modification or waiver disproportionately and adversely impacts a Purchaser (or group of Purchasers), the consent of at least 50.1% in interest of the Shares (based on the initial Subscription Amounts hereunder) of such disproportionately impacted Purchaser (or group of Purchasers) shall also be required. No waiver of any default with respect to any provision, condition or requirement of this Agreement shall be deemed to be a continuing waiver in the future or a waiver of any subsequent default or a waiver of any other provision, condition or requirement hereof, nor shall any delay or omission of any party to exercise any right hereunder in any manner impair the exercise of any such right. Any proposed amendment or waiver that disproportionately, materially and adversely affects the rights and obligations of any Purchaser relative to the comparable rights and obligations of the other Purchasers shall require the prior written consent of such adversely affected Purchaser. Any amendment effected in accordance with this Section 5.5 shall be binding upon each Purchaser and holder of Shares and the Company.

 

 

5.6 Headings. The headings herein are for convenience only, do not constitute a part of this Agreement and shall not be deemed to limit or affect any of the provisions hereof.

 

5.7 Successors and Assigns. This Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties and their successors and permitted assigns. The Company may not assign this Agreement or any rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of each Purchaser (other than by merger). Any Purchaser may assign any or all of its rights under this Agreement to any Person to whom such Purchaser assigns or transfers any Shares, provided that such transferee agrees in writing to be bound, with respect to the transferred Shares, by the provisions of the Transaction Documents that apply to the “Purchasers.”

 

5.8 No Third-Party Beneficiaries. This Agreement is intended for the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and permitted assigns and is not for the benefit of, nor may any provision hereof be enforced by, any other Person, except as otherwise set forth in Section 4.7.

 

5.9 Governing Law. All questions concerning the construction, validity, enforcement and interpretation of the Transaction Documents shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York, without regard to the principles of conflicts of law thereof. Each party agrees that all legal Proceedings concerning the interpretations, enforcement and defense of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and any other Transaction Documents (whether brought against a party hereto or its respective affiliates, directors, officers, shareholders, partners, members, employees or agents) shall be commenced exclusively in the state and federal courts sitting in the City of New York. Each party 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 irrevocably waives, and agrees not to assert in any Action or Proceeding, any claim that it is not personally subject to the jurisdiction of any such court, that such Action or Proceeding is improper or is an inconvenient venue for such Proceeding. Each party hereby irrevocably waives personal service of process and consents to process being served in any such Action or Proceeding by mailing a copy thereof via registered or certified mail or overnight delivery (with evidence of delivery) to such party at the address in effect for notices to it under this Agreement 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 other manner permitted by law. If any party shall commence an Action or Proceeding to enforce any provisions of the Transaction Documents, then, in addition to the obligations of the Company under Section 4.7, the prevailing party in such Action or Proceeding shall be reimbursed by the non-prevailing party for its reasonable attorneys’ fees and other costs and expenses incurred with the investigation, preparation and prosecution of such Action or Proceeding.

 

5.10 Survival. The representations and warranties contained herein shall survive the Closing and the delivery of the Shares.

 

5.11 Execution. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, all of which when taken together shall be considered one and the same agreement and shall become effective when counterparts have been signed by each party and delivered to each other party, it being understood that the parties need not sign the same counterpart. In the event that any signature is delivered by facsimile transmission or by e-mail delivery of a “.pdf” format data file, such signature shall create a valid and binding obligation of the party executing (or on whose behalf such signature is executed) with the same force and effect as if such facsimile or “.pdf” signature page were an original thereof.

 

 

5.12 Severability. If any term, provision, covenant or restriction of this Agreement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable, the remainder of the terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions set forth herein shall remain in full force and effect and shall in no way be affected, impaired or invalidated, and the parties hereto shall use their commercially reasonable efforts to find and employ an alternative means to achieve the same or substantially the same result as that contemplated by such term, provision, covenant or restriction. It is hereby stipulated and declared to be the intention of the parties that they would have executed the remaining terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions without including any of such that may be hereafter declared invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable.

 

5.13 Rescission and Withdrawal Right. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in (and without limiting any similar provisions of) any of the other Transaction Documents, whenever any Purchaser exercises a right, election, demand or option under a Transaction Document and the Company does not timely perform its related obligations within the periods therein provided, then such Purchaser may rescind or withdraw, in its sole discretion from time to time upon written notice to the Company, any relevant notice, demand or election in whole or in part without prejudice to its future actions and rights.

 

5.14 Replacement of Shares. If any certificate or instrument evidencing any Shares is mutilated, lost, stolen or destroyed, the Company shall issue or cause to be issued in exchange and substitution for and upon cancellation thereof (in the case of mutilation), or in lieu of and substitution therefor, a new certificate or instrument, but only upon receipt of evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company of such loss, theft or destruction. The applicant for a new certificate or instrument under such circumstances shall also pay any reasonable third-party costs (including customary indemnity) associated with the issuance of such replacement Shares.

 

5.15 Remedies. In addition to being entitled to exercise all rights provided herein or granted by law, including recovery of damages, each of the Purchasers and the Company will be entitled to specific performance under the Transaction Documents. The parties agree that monetary damages may not be adequate compensation for any loss incurred by reason of any breach of obligations contained in the Transaction Documents and hereby agree to waive and not to assert in any Action for specific performance of any such obligation the defense that a remedy at law would be adequate.

 

5.16 Payment Set Aside. To the extent that the Company makes a payment or payments to any Purchaser pursuant to any Transaction Document or a Purchaser enforces or exercises its rights thereunder, and such payment or payments or the proceeds of such enforcement or exercise or any part thereof are subsequently invalidated, declared to be fraudulent or preferential, set aside, recovered from, disgorged by or are required to be refunded, repaid or otherwise restored to the Company, a trustee, receiver or any other Person under any law (including, without limitation, any bankruptcy law, state or federal law, common law or equitable cause of action), then to the extent of any such restoration the obligation or part thereof originally intended to be satisfied shall be revived and continued in full force and effect as if such payment had not been made or such enforcement or setoff had not occurred.

 

5.17 Independent Nature of Purchasers’ Obligations and Rights. The obligations of each Purchaser under any Transaction Document are several and not joint with the obligations of any other Purchaser, and no Purchaser shall be responsible in any way for the performance or non-performance of the obligations of any other Purchaser under any Transaction Document. Nothing contained herein or in any other Transaction Document, and no action taken by any Purchaser pursuant hereto or thereto, shall be deemed to constitute the Purchasers as a partnership, an association, a joint venture or any other kind of entity, or create a presumption that the Purchasers are in any way acting in concert or as a group with respect to such obligations or the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents. Each Purchaser shall be entitled to independently protect and enforce its rights including, without limitation, the rights arising out of this Agreement or out of the other Transaction Documents, and it shall not be necessary for any other Purchaser to be joined as an additional party in any Proceeding for such purpose. Each Purchaser has been represented by its own separate legal counsel in its review and negotiation of the Transaction Documents. The Company has elected to provide all Purchasers with the same terms and Transaction Documents for the convenience of the Company and not because it was required or requested to do so by any of the Purchasers. It is expressly understood and agreed that each provision contained in this Agreement and in each other Transaction Document is between the Company and a Purchaser, solely, and not between the Company and the Purchasers collectively and not between and among the Purchasers.

 

 

5.18 Liquidated Damages. The Company’s obligations to pay any partial liquidated damages or other amounts owing under the Transaction Documents is a continuing obligation of the Company and shall not terminate until all unpaid partial liquidated damages and other amounts have been paid notwithstanding the fact that the instrument or security pursuant to which such partial liquidated damages or other amounts are due and payable shall have been canceled.

 

5.19 Saturdays, Sundays, Holidays, etc. If the last or appointed day for the taking of any action or the expiration of any right required or granted herein shall not be a Business Day, then such action may be taken or such right may be exercised on the next succeeding Business Day.

 

5.20 Construction. The parties agree that each of them and/or their respective counsel have reviewed and had an opportunity to revise the Transaction Documents and, therefore, the normal rule of construction to the effect that any ambiguities are to be resolved against the drafting party shall not be employed in the interpretation of the Transaction Documents or any amendments thereto. In addition, each and every reference to share prices and shares of Common Stock in any Transaction Document shall be subject to adjustment for reverse and forward stock splits, stock dividends, stock combinations and other similar transactions of the Common Stock that occur after the date of this Agreement.

 

5.21 WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL. IN ANY ACTION, SUIT, OR PROCEEDING IN ANY JURISDICTION BROUGHT BY ANY PARTY AGAINST ANY OTHER PARTY, THE PARTIES EACH KNOWINGLY AND INTENTIONALLY, TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, HEREBY ABSOLUTELY, UNCONDITIONALLY, IRREVOCABLY AND EXPRESSLY WAIVES FOREVER TRIAL BY JURY.

 

(Signature Pages Follow)

 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Securities Purchase Agreement to be duly executed by their respective authorized signatories as of the date first indicated above.

 

EIGHTCO HOLDINGS INC.			Address for Notice:
By:
Name:
Title:

 

[REMAINDER OF PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

SIGNATURE PAGE FOR PURCHASER FOLLOWS]

 

 

[PURCHASER SIGNATURE PAGES TO OCTO SECURITIES PURCHASE AGREEMENT]

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned have caused this Securities Purchase Agreement to be duly executed by their respective authorized signatories as of the date first indicated above.

 

Name of Purchaser (Entity Name if Entity): _________________________________________

 

Signature of Authorized Signatory of Purchaser: __________________________________

 

Name of Authorized Signatory: ____________________________________________________

 

Title of Authorized Signatory (if individual leave blank): _________________________________

 

Email Address and Phone Number: ______________________________________________

 

Address for Notice to Purchaser:

 

Address for Delivery of Shares to Purchaser (if not same as address for notice):

 

Subscription Amount: $_________________

 

Shares: _________________

 

EIN/SSN Number: _______________________

 

[SIGNATURE PAGES CONTINUE]

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.2

 

GENERAL RELEASE AND SEVERANCE AGREEMENT

 

This General Release and Severance Agreement (the “Agreement”), dated as of February 26, 2024 is made and entered into by and between Brian McFadden (“Employee”) and Eightco Holdings Inc. (formerly and including Cryptyde, Inc.) (the “Company”).

 

For good and valuable consideration, receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, in order to effect a mutually satisfactory and amicable separation of employment from the Company and to resolve and settle finally, fully and completely all matters and disputes that now or may exist between them, as set forth below, Employee and the Company agree as follows:

 

1. Separation from Employment. Effective December 31, 2023 (the “Separation Date”), Employee’s employment with the Company ceased, and he relinquished all offices, positions, and any authority with the Company and any affiliates of the Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Employee shall remain a director of the Company under the standard terms, conditions, and bylaws of the Company from the Separation Date through March 31, 2024, at which time Employee shall resign from the Board of Directors of the Company. Employee acknowledges and agrees, except for as set forth herein, and including, but not limited to the payments set forth in Section 2, Section 3, and Section 5, Employee has no rights to any other wages and/or other compensation or remuneration of any kind due or owing or owed from the Company, including, but not limited, to all wages, commissions, reimbursements, bonuses, advances, vacation pay, severance pay, or incentive compensation to which Employee was or may become entitled or eligible. The Company and Employee acknowledge and agree that all previously granted equity awards have vested as of the Separation Date and all such equity awards shall continue to be governed by the terms of the applicable equity plan and award agreements.

 

2. Payment of Base Salary. The Company and Employee agree that Employee is eligible to receive the gross amount of $146,683 (less all applicable tax withholdings) in accrued but unpaid base salary through the Separation Date (the “Base Salary”). The Company agrees to pay the Base Salary through four (4) quarterly payments of $36,670.75 (less all applicable tax withholdings) by December 31, 2024, totaling $146,683 in the aggregate (less all applicable tax withholdings), which must be paid to Employee no later than December 31, 2024. In the event that the Company fails to pay any amount of Base Salary pursuant to this Section 2, the Company agrees and stipulates that Employee may obtain a judgment against the Company for the amount of unpaid Base Salary owed to Executive in any court of competent jurisdiction in accordance with Section 13, and the Company hereby consents to the entry of such judgment.

 

3. Expense Reimbursement. The Company agrees to pay Employee all amounts owed for approved but unpaid business expenses through the Separation Date within thirty (30) days following the Effective Date.

 

 

4. Continuing Obligations/Compliance. As of the Separation Date, the amended and restated employment agreement between the parties with an effective date of September 27, 2022 (the “Employment Agreement”) shall terminate forever and no party shall have any further obligation or liability thereunder, except that Employee acknowledges and agrees that Employee shall remain bound by, and agrees to comply with, any obligations that survive an employment termination as set forth in the Employment Agreement, including, without limitation those set forth in the Employee Confidential Disclosure, Invention Assignment, Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation and Non-Interference Agreement that was attached as Attachment A to the Employment Agreement (the “Restrictive Covenants Agreement”). Provided, however, the Company agrees to waive the post-termination obligations contained in and Employee’s compliance with Section 2(a) (Non-Competition), Section 2(b) (Non-Solicitation of Customers), and Section 2(c) (Non-Recruitment) of the Restrictive Covenants Agreement. The Company acknowledges that Employee has returned all Company property in Employee’s possession, pursuant to Section 1(f) of the Restrictive Covenants Agreement and that Employee may retain such Company information to which he may be entitled as a director of the Company.

 

5. Consideration. In consideration of this Agreement, the release herein, and Employee’s resignation, as mutually agreed by the Company, the Company will provide Employee with the following:

 

(i) severance pay in the gross amount of amount of $422,500, less all lawful and authorized withholdings and deductions (the “Severance Payment”), which shall be paid in four (4) quarterly installments with a value of $105,625 per each installment (totaling $422,500 in the aggregate), payable at the Company’s option, in either cash or Common Stock (as defined below), with the payment to be made as follows:

 

	●	Installment 1 – As of the Effective Date, Employee shall be granted, in lieu of cash, 128,811 fully-vested restricted shares of the Company’s common stock (“Common Stock”) at a price of $0.82 per share, which shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the Company’s 2022 Long-Term Incentive Plan;
	●	Installment 2 – payable, at the Company’s option, in either cash or Common Stock by April 1, 2024;
	●	Installment 3 – payable, at the Company’s option, in either cash or Common Stock by July 1, 2024; and
	●	Installment 4 – payable, at the Company’s option, in either cash or Common Stock by October 1, 2024.

 

The number of shares of Common Stock to be issued to Employee shall be determined based on the volume weighted average trading price of such stock (on the principal exchange on which such stock is listed or admitted to trade) during the period of ten (10) trading days immediately prior to the date of the issuance (for Installments 2, 3 & 4); and (3) such Common Stock shall be fully-vested, not subject to any contractual sale or other restrictions; and

 

(ii) reimbursement of Employee for the period commencing on the Separation Date and continuing through and including December 31, 2024 of the premiums associated with Employee’s continuation of health insurance for Employee and Employee’s family pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986, as amended (“COBRA”), provided Employee timely elects and is eligible to continue to receive COBRA benefits (less all applicable tax withholdings), payable in accordance with the Company’s normal expense reimbursement policy.

 

 

The entire amount of the Severance Payment must be paid to Employee no later than December 31, 2024. In the event that the Company fails to pay any amount of the Severance Payment or COBRA reimbursement pursuant to this Section 5, the Company agrees and stipulates that Employee may obtain a judgment against the Company for the amount of unpaid Severance Payment and/or COBRA reimbursement Employee is eligible to receive under this Agreement in any court of competent jurisdiction in accordance with Section 13, and the Company hereby consents to the entry of such judgment.

 

6. Transition Services. For a period of eight (8) weeks following the Separation Date, Employee agrees to reasonably cooperate with the Company in the transition of Employee’s positions with the Company, and the Company agrees to promptly reimburse Employee for any and all reasonable and necessary expenses incurred by Employee in connection with such services rendered under this Section 4. Employee also agrees to assist with the execution of all documents which the Company and Employee reasonably deems necessary to effect the termination of Employee’s employment.

 

7. Cooperation. Employee agrees to reasonably cooperate and make himself reasonably available to the Company (and its representatives and advisors) in any pending or future governmental or regulatory investigation, inquiry, or request for information, or civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding or arbitration, in each case involving the Company with regard to matters that occurred during the course of Employee’s employment with the Company and of which matters he has knowledge or information. Employee agrees that, upon reasonable notice and without the necessity of the Company’s obtaining a subpoena or court order, he shall reasonably respond to all reasonable inquiries of the Company about any matters concerning the Company or its affairs that occurred or arose during his employment by the Company, of which matters he has knowledge or information. The Company agrees to reimburse Employee for all reasonable costs, including attorneys’ fees, incurred by Employee in connection with the performance of his obligations under this Section 7. Nothing in this Section 7, however, shall require Employee to act against his own interests.

 

 

8. Mutual Release of Claims. For and in consideration of the right to receive the consideration described in Section 5 of this Agreement, Employee fully and irrevocably releases and discharges the Company, including all of its affiliates, parent companies, subsidiary companies, employees, owners, directors, officers, principals, agents, insurers, and attorneys (collectively, the “Releasees”) from any and all actions, causes of action, suits, debts, sums of money, attorneys’ fees, costs, accounts, covenants, controversies, agreements, promises, damages, claims, grievances, arbitrations, and demands whatsoever, known or unknown, at law or in equity, by contract (express or implied), in tort, or pursuant to statute, or otherwise (collectively, “Claims”) arising or existing on, or at any time prior to, the date this Agreement is signed by Employee. Such released Claims include, without limitation, Claims relating to or arising out of: (i) Employee’s hiring, compensation, benefits and employment with the Company, (ii) Employee’s separation from employment with the Company, and (iii) all Claims known or unknown or which could or have been asserted by Employee against the Company, at law or in equity, or sounding in contract (express or implied) or tort, including claims arising under any federal, state, or local laws of any jurisdiction that prohibit age, sex, race, national origin, color, disability, religion, veteran, military status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, or any other form of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation, including, without limitation, under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act; the Americans with Disabilities Act; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Rehabilitation Act; the Equal Pay Act; the Family and Medical Leave Act, 42 U.S.C. §1981; the Civil Rights Act of 1991; the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and/or 1871; the Sarbanes Oxley Act; the Employee Polygraph Protection Act; the Uniform Services and Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act; the Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification Act; the National Labor Relations Act and the Labor Management Relations Act; the Florida Human Civil Rights Act and any other similar or equivalent state laws; and any other federal, state, local, municipal or common law whistleblower protection claim, discrimination or anti-retaliation statute or ordinance; claims arising under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended; claims arising under the Fair Labor Standards Act; claims related to the COVID-19 pandemic and related mandates, policies and/or protocols; or any other statutory, contractual or common law claims. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the foregoing release does not apply to any obligation of the Company (or any other Releasee) to Employee pursuant to any of the following: (1) any equity-based awards previously granted by the Company to Employee; (2) any right to indemnification that Employee may have pursuant to applicable law, the Company’s bylaws, its corporate charter or under any written indemnification agreement with the Company (or any corresponding provision of any subsidiary or affiliate of the Company), including, but not limited to the Directors and Officers Liability Insurance required under Article II, Section of the Employment Agreement, with respect to any loss, damages or expenses (including but not limited to attorneys’ fees to the extent otherwise provided) that Employee may in the future incur with respect to Employee’s service as an employee, officer or director of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates; (3) with respect to any rights that Employee may have to insurance coverage for such losses, damages or expenses under any Company (or subsidiary or affiliate) directors and officers liability insurance policy; (4) any rights to continued medical and dental coverage that Employee may have under COBRA; (5) any rights to payment of benefits that Employee may have under a retirement plan sponsored or maintained by the Company that is intended to qualify under Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended; (6) Employee’s final paycheck; or (7) claims for unemployment compensation benefits. In addition, the foregoing release does not cover any Claim that cannot be so released as a matter of applicable law.

 

In consideration of Employee’s releases given and other agreements in this Agreement, the Company, all of its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiary companies, fully and irrevocably release and discharge Employee from any and all actions, causes of action, suits, debts, sums of money, attorneys’ fees, costs, accounts, covenants, controversies, agreements, promises, damages, claims, grievances, arbitrations, and demands whatsoever, known or unknown, at law or in equity, by contract (express or implied), in tort, or pursuant to statute, or otherwise, arising or existing on, or at any time prior to, the date this Agreement is signed by the Company. The Company represents and warrants to Employee that it has the authority to execute this Agreement and agree to such release by and on behalf of its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiary companies.

 

 

9. No Legal Actions. Employee represents that he has not filed or caused to be filed any lawsuit, complaint, or charge against any Releasees in any court, any municipal, state, or federal agency, or any other tribunal. Employee further represents that he has no unasserted claims (whether by his or any other individual or entity) against the Company currently in existence, and no unreported workplace injuries or occupational diseases. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Employee agrees that he will not sue or file a complaint in any court, or file or pursue a demand for arbitration, pursuing any Claims released under this Agreement, or assist or otherwise participate in any such proceeding. Employee represents and warrants further that he has not assigned or conveyed to any other person or entity any of his rights vis-à-vis the Releasees, including any of the Claims released in this Agreement. He further expressly waives any claim to any monetary or other damages or any other form of recovery in connection with any proceeding made by his in violation of this Agreement. The Company represents that it (including all of its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiary companies) has not filed or caused to be filed any lawsuit, complaint, or charge against Employee in any court, any municipal, state, or federal agency, or any other tribunal. The Company represents that it (including all of its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiary companies) has no unasserted claims against Employee currently in existence. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company (including all of its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiary companies) agrees that it will not sue or file a complaint in any court, or file or pursue a demand for arbitration, pursuing any claims released by any of them under this Agreement, or assist or otherwise participate in any such proceeding. The Company (including all of its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiary companies) represents that it has not assigned or conveyed to any other person or entity any of its rights vis-à-vis the Employee, including any of the claims released by any of them in this Agreement.

 

10. No Interference. Nothing in this Agreement is intended to (nor does it) interfere with Employee’s right to report possible violations of federal, state or local law or regulation to any governmental or law enforcement agency or entity (including, without limitation, the Securities and Exchange Commission), or to make other disclosures that are protected under the whistleblower provisions of federal or state law or regulation. Employee further acknowledges that nothing in this Agreement is intended to (nor does it) interfere with Employee’s right to file a claim or charge with, or testify, assist, or participate in an investigation, hearing, or proceeding conducted by, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (the “EEOC”), any state human rights commission, or any other government agency or entity. However, by executing this Agreement, Employee hereby waives the right to recover any damages or benefits in any proceeding Employee may bring before the EEOC, any state human rights commission, or any other government agency or in any proceeding brought by the EEOC, any state human rights commission, or any other government agency on Employee’s behalf with respect to any claim released in this Agreement; provided, however, for purposes of clarity, Employee does not waive any right to any whistleblower award pursuant to Section 21F of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or any other similar provision.

 

11. Review. Employee acknowledges that: (a) this Agreement is written in terms and sets forth conditions in a manner which Employee understands; (b) Employee has carefully read and understands all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement; (c) Employee agrees with the terms and conditions of this Agreement; and (d) Employee enters into this Agreement knowingly and voluntarily. Employee acknowledges that Employee does not waive rights or claims that may arise after the date this Agreement is executed, that Employee has been given 21 days from receipt of this Agreement in which to consider whether Employee wanted to sign it, that any modifications, material or otherwise made to this Agreement do not restart or affect in any manner the original 21 day consideration period, and that the Company advises Employee to consult with an attorney before Employee signs this Agreement. The Company agrees, and Employee represents that Employee understands, that Employee may revoke Employee’s acceptance of this Agreement at any time for 7 days following Employee’s execution of the Agreement and must provide notice of such revocation by giving written notice to the Company. If not revoked by written notice received on or before the 8^th day following the date of Employee’s execution of the Agreement, this Agreement shall be deemed to have become enforceable and on such 8^th day (the “Effective Date”).

 

 

12. Confidentiality of Agreement. Employee and Company agree to keep both the fact of this Agreement and the terms of this Agreement confidential, and Employee will not disclose the fact of this Agreement or the terms of this Agreement to anyone other than Employee’s spouse/registered domestic partner, attorney or accountant/tax advisor, unless otherwise required to under applicable law or regulation or at the request of any regulator after, to the extent legally permissible, after providing reasonable notice in writing to the Company, and a reasonable opportunity to challenge any such disclosure.

 

13. Governing Law/Venue. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed under the laws of the State of Florida. Venue of any litigation arising from this Agreement or any disputes relating to Employee’s employment shall be in the federal and state courts situated in Florida. Employee consents to personal jurisdiction of the federal and state courts situated in Florida for any dispute relating to or arising out of this Agreement or Employee’s employment, and Employee agrees that Employee shall not challenge personal or subject matter jurisdiction in such courts. The parties also hereby waive any right to trial by jury in connection with any litigation or disputes under or in connection with this Agreement.

 

14. Voluntary. This Agreement is executed voluntarily and without any duress or undue influence on the part or behalf of the parties hereto.

 

15. Acknowledgment. Employee acknowledges and agrees that the payments and other consideration provided herein are consideration to which Employee is not otherwise entitled except pursuant to the terms of this Agreement, and are being provided in exchange for Employee’s compliance with his obligations set forth hereunder.

 

16. No Admission of Liability. This Agreement shall not in any way be construed as an admission by the Company or Employee of any acts of wrongdoing or violation of any statute, law or legal right.

 

17. No Third-Party Beneficiaries. Except as expressly provided to the contrary in this Agreement, no third party is intended to be, and no third party shall be deemed to be, a beneficiary of any provision of this Agreement. Employee agrees that all Releasees shall be express third-party beneficiaries of the release of claims contained in Section 8 of this Agreement, and shall be permitted to enforce the terms of Section 8 of this Agreement as if they were parties hereto.

 

18. Sole Agreement and Severability. Except as set forth herein, this Agreement is the sole, entire and complete agreement of the parties relating in any way to the subject matter hereof. No statements, promises or representations have been made by any party to any other party, or relied upon, and no consideration has been offered, promised, expected or held out other than as expressly set forth herein, provided only that the release of claims in any prior agreement or release shall remain in full force and effect. The covenants contained in this Agreement are intended by the parties hereto as separate and divisible provisions, and in the event that any or all of the covenants expressed herein shall be determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining parts, terms or provisions of this Agreement shall not be affected and such provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

 

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

 

 

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY. THIS GENERAL RELEASE AND SEVERANCE AGREEMENT INCLUDES A RELEASE OF ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, KNOWN OR UNKNOWN, AGAINST THE COMPANY.

 

EIGHTCO HOLDINGS INC.			BRIAN MCFADDEN
By:	/s/ Kevin O’Donnell		/s/ BRIAN MCFADDEN
Title:	Executive Chairman		Date:	February 26, 2024
Date:	February 26, 2024

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.3

 

GENERAL RELEASE AND SEVERANCE AGREEMENT

 

This General Release and Severance Agreement (the “Agreement”), dated as of February 26, 2024 is made and entered into by and between Brett Vroman (“Employee”) and Eightco Holdings Inc. (formerly and including Cryptyde, Inc.) (the “Company”).

 

For good and valuable consideration, receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, in order to effect a mutually satisfactory and amicable separation of employment from the Company and to resolve and settle finally, fully and completely all matters and disputes that now or may exist between them, as set forth below, Employee and the Company agree as follows:

 

1. Separation from Employment. Effective December 31, 2023 (the “Separation Date”), Employee’s employment with the Company ceased and he relinquished all offices, positions, and any authority with the Company and any affiliates of the Company except where granted under the Consulting Agreement entered into on February 7, 2024. Employee acknowledges and agrees, except for the payments described hereunder, Employee has no rights to any other wages and/or other compensation or remuneration of any kind due or owing or owed from the Company, including, but not limited, to all wages, commissions, reimbursements, bonuses, advances, vacation pay, severance pay, vested or unvested equity or stock options, awards, and any other incentive-based compensation or benefits to which Employee was or may become entitled or eligible. Except as set forth herein, any equity awards previously granted to Employee shall continue to be governed by the terms of the applicable equity plan and award agreements.

 

2. Continuing Obligations/Compliance. As of the Separation Date, the amended and restated employment agreement between the parties with an effective date of September 27, 2022 (the “Employment Agreement”) shall terminate forever and no party shall have any further obligation or liability thereunder, except that Employee acknowledges and agrees that Employee shall remain bound by, and agrees to comply with, any obligations that survive an employment termination as set forth in the Employment Agreement, including, without limitation those set forth in the Employee Confidential Disclosure, Invention Assignment, Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation and Non-Interference Agreement that was attached as Attachment A to the Employment Agreement. Employee shall further remain bound by, and agrees to comply with, any obligations that survive an employment termination as set forth in any other agreement or employee policy to which he became subject during and in connection with his employment with the Company, including without limitation his continuing obligation to maintain the confidentiality of the Company’s confidential information and other restrictive covenants. Employee acknowledges that Employee has returned all Company property and information.

 

3. Consideration. In consideration of this Agreement and the release herein, and his compliance with his obligations hereunder and under the Confidentiality Agreement, the Company will provide Employee with the following:

 

(i) back pay wages through December 31, 2023 in the amount of $151,615.46, less all lawful and authorized withholdings and deductions (the “Salary Back Payment”), to be paid as soon as practicable following the Effective Date (as defined below) of this Agreement;

 

 

(ii) the employee is entitled to severance of 24 months of the Employee’s base salary, less all lawful and authorized withholdings and deductions (the “Cash Severance”) under their Employment Agreement and both parties have agreed to engage in good faith negotiations on the amount of severance to be paid in the future in cash or stock awards as soon as practicable following the Effective Date (as defined below) of this Agreement;

 

(iii) reimbursement of Employee for the period commencing on the Separation Date and continuing through and including December 31, 2024 of the premiums associated with Employee’s continuation of health insurance for Employee and Employee’s family pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986, as amended (“COBRA”), provided Employee timely elects and is eligible to continue to receive COBRA benefits (less all applicable tax withholdings), payable in accordance with the Company’s normal expense reimbursement policy;

 

(iv) reimbursement of expenses incurred by the Company and paid by the Employee, payable in accordance with the Company’s normal expense reimbursement policy; and

 

(v) full vesting of any earned shares of the Company’s common stock.

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event the Company determines, in its reasonable discretion, that payment of the Cash Severance Payment would jeopardize the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern, then in accordance with Treasury Regulation § 1.409A-3(d), the Company shall not pay the Cash Severance Payment until the first taxable year in which it is able to make such payment without jeopardizing the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

 

4. Transition Services. Following the Separation Date, Employee agrees to reasonably cooperate and make himself reasonably available to assist with the transition of Employee’s positions, offices, authority, duties, or responsibilities with the Company. Employee also agrees to assist with the execution of all documents and all other instruments which the Company shall deem necessary to accomplish any such transition.

 

5. Cooperation. Employee agrees to reasonably cooperate and make himself reasonably available to the Company (and its representatives and advisors) in any pending or future governmental or regulatory investigation, inquiry, or request for information, or civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding or arbitration, in each case involving the Company. Employee agrees that, upon reasonable notice and without the necessity of the Company’s obtaining a subpoena or court order, he shall reasonably respond to all reasonable inquiries of the Company about any matters concerning the Company or its affairs that occurred or arose during his employment by the Company, of which matters he has knowledge or information.

 

 

6. Release of Claims. For and in consideration of the right to receive the consideration described in Section 3 of this Agreement, Employee fully and irrevocably releases and discharges the Company, including all of its affiliates, parent companies, subsidiary companies, employees, owners, directors, officers, principals, agents, insurers, and attorneys (collectively, the “Releasees”) from any and all actions, causes of action, suits, debts, sums of money, attorneys’ fees, costs, accounts, covenants, controversies, agreements, promises, damages, claims, grievances, arbitrations, and demands whatsoever, known or unknown, at law or in equity, by contract (express or implied), in tort, or pursuant to statute, or otherwise (collectively, “Claims”) arising or existing on, or at any time prior to, the date this Agreement is signed by Employee. Such released Claims include, without limitation, Claims relating to or arising out of: (i) Employee’s hiring, compensation, benefits and employment with the Company, (ii) Employee’s separation from employment with the Company, and (iii) all Claims known or unknown or which could or have been asserted by Employee against the Company, at law or in equity, or sounding in contract (express or implied) or tort, including claims arising under any federal, state, or local laws of any jurisdiction that prohibit age, sex, race, national origin, color, disability, religion, veteran, military status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, or any other form of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation, including, without limitation, under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act; the Americans with Disabilities Act; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Rehabilitation Act; the Equal Pay Act; the Family and Medical Leave Act, 42 U.S.C. §1981; the Civil Rights Act of 1991; the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and/or 1871; the Sarbanes Oxley Act; the Employee Polygraph Protection Act; the Uniform Services and Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act; the Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification Act; the National Labor Relations Act and the Labor Management Relations Act; the Florida Human Civil Rights Act and any other similar or equivalent state laws; and any other federal, state, local, municipal or common law whistleblower protection claim, discrimination or anti-retaliation statute or ordinance; claims arising under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended; claims arising under the Fair Labor Standards Act; claims related to the COVID-19 pandemic and related mandates, policies and/or protocols; or any other statutory, contractual or common law claims.

 

7. No Legal Actions. Employee represents that he has not filed or caused to be filed any lawsuit, complaint, or charge against any Releasees in any court, any municipal, state, or federal agency, or any other tribunal. Employee further represents that he has no unasserted claims (whether by his or any other individual or entity) against the Company currently in existence, and no unreported workplace injuries or occupational diseases. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Employee agrees that he will not sue or file a complaint in any court, or file or pursue a demand for arbitration, pursuing any Claims released under this Agreement, or assist or otherwise participate in any such proceeding. Employee represents and warrants further that he has not assigned or conveyed to any other person or entity any of his rights vis-à-vis the Releasees, including any of the Claims released in this Agreement. He further expressly waives any claim to any monetary or other damages or any other form of recovery in connection with any proceeding made by his in violation of this Agreement.

 

 

8. No Interference. Nothing in this Agreement is intended to interfere with Employee’s right to report possible violations of federal, state or local law or regulation to any governmental or law enforcement agency or entity (including, without limitation, the Securities and Exchange Commission), or to make other disclosures that are protected under the whistleblower provisions of federal or state law or regulation. Employee further acknowledges that nothing in this Agreement is intended to interfere with Employee’s right to file a claim or charge with, or testify, assist, or participate in an investigation, hearing, or proceeding conducted by, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (the “EEOC”), any state human rights commission, or any other government agency or entity. However, by executing this Agreement, Employee hereby waives the right to recover any damages or benefits in any proceeding Employee may bring before the EEOC, any state human rights commission, or any other government agency or in any proceeding brought by the EEOC, any state human rights commission, or any other government agency on Employee’s behalf with respect to any claim released in this Agreement; provided, however, for purposes of clarity, Employee does not waive any right to any whistleblower award pursuant to Section 21F of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or any other similar provision.

 

9. Review. Employee acknowledges that: (a) this Agreement is written in terms and sets forth conditions in a manner which Employee understands; (b) Employee has carefully read and understands all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement; (c) Employee agrees with the terms and conditions of this Agreement; and (d) Employee enters into this Agreement knowingly and voluntarily. Employee acknowledges that Employee does not waive rights or claims that may arise after the date this Agreement is executed, that Employee has been given 21 days from receipt of this Agreement in which to consider whether Employee wanted to sign it, that any modifications, material or otherwise made to this Agreement do not restart or affect in any manner the original 21 day consideration period, and that the Company advises Employee to consult with an attorney before Employee signs this Agreement. The Company agrees, and Employee represents that Employee understands, that Employee may revoke Employee’s acceptance of this Agreement at any time for 7 days following Employee’s execution of the Agreement and must provide notice of such revocation by giving written notice to the Company. If not revoked by written notice received on or before the 8^th day following the date of Employee’s execution of the Agreement, this Agreement shall be deemed to have become enforceable and on such 8^th day (the “Effective Date”).

 

10. No Further Services. Employee agrees that he will not seek, apply for, accept, or otherwise pursue employment, engagement, or arrangement to provide further services with or for the Company, as an employee, independent contractor or otherwise, except as provided herein.

 

11. Non-Disparagement. Employee agrees that Employee will not, directly or indirectly, disclose, communicate, or publish any disparaging, reckless or maliciously untrue information concerning the Company’s products, services, customers, or business policies. Nothing in this Agreement is intended to prevent Employee from testifying truthfully in any legal proceeding, and nothing in this provision is intended to interfere with Employee’s right to engage in the conduct set forth in Paragraph 8, nor is it intended to interfere with any rights afforded to Employee under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act.

 

12. Confidentiality of Agreement. Employee and Company agree to keep both the fact of this Agreement and the terms of this Agreement confidential, and Employee will not disclose the fact of this Agreement or the terms of this Agreement to anyone other than Employee’s spouse/registered domestic partner, attorney or accountant/tax advisor, unless otherwise required to under applicable law or regulation or at the request of any regulator after, to the extent legally permissible, after providing reasonable notice in writing to the Company, and a reasonable opportunity to challenge any such disclosure.

 

 

13. Governing Law/Venue. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed under the laws of the State of Florida. Venue of any litigation arising from this Agreement or any disputes relating to Employee’s employment shall be in the federal and state courts situated in Florida. Employee consents to personal jurisdiction of the federal and state courts situated in Florida for any dispute relating to or arising out of this Agreement or Employee’s employment, and Employee agrees that Employee shall not challenge personal or subject matter jurisdiction in such courts. The parties also hereby waive any right to trial by jury in connection with any litigation or disputes under or in connection with this Agreement.

 

14. Voluntary. This Agreement is executed voluntarily and without any duress or undue influence on the part or behalf of the parties hereto.

 

15. Acknowledgment. Employee acknowledges and agrees that the payments and other consideration provided herein are consideration to which Employee is not otherwise entitled except pursuant to the terms of this Agreement, and are being provided in exchange for Employee’s compliance with his obligations set forth hereunder.

 

16. No Admission of Liability. This Agreement shall not in any way be construed as an admission by the Company or Employee of any acts of wrongdoing or violation of any statute, law or legal right.

 

17. No Third-Party Beneficiaries. Except as expressly provided to the contrary in this Agreement, no third party is intended to be, and no third party shall be deemed to be, a beneficiary of any provision of this Agreement. Employee agrees that all Releasees shall be express third-party beneficiaries of this Agreement (and the release of Claims contained herein), and shall be permitted to enforce the terms of this Agreement as if they were parties hereto.

 

18. Sole Agreement and Severability. Except as set forth herein, this Agreement is the sole, entire and complete agreement of the parties relating in any way to the subject matter hereof. No statements, promises or representations have been made by any party to any other party, or relied upon, and no consideration has been offered, promised, expected or held out other than as expressly set forth herein, provided only that the release of claims in any prior agreement or release shall remain in full force and effect. The covenants contained in this Agreement are intended by the parties hereto as separate and divisible provisions, and in the event that any or all of the covenants expressed herein shall be determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining parts, terms or provisions of this Agreement shall not be affected and such provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

 

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

 

 

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY. THIS GENERAL RELEASE AND SEVERANCE AGREEMENT INCLUDES A RELEASE OF ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, KNOWN OR UNKNOWN, AGAINST THE COMPANY.

 

EIGHTCO HOLDINGS INC.			BRETT VROMAN
/s/ Kevin O’Donnell			/s/ Brett Vroman
Kevin O’Donnell
Title:	Executive Chairman		Date:	February 26, 2024
Date:	February 26, 2024

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.4

 

CONSULTING AGREEMENT

 

This CONSULTING AGREEMENT (the “Agreement”) is made and entered into as of this 22^nd day of February 2024, with an effective date of January 1, 2024 (the “Effective Date”) by and between Eightco Holdings, Inc., a corporation organized under laws of the State of Delaware (the “Company”), and CXO Lite, LLC, a limited liability company organized under laws of the State of Pennsylvania (the “Consultant”), of which Brett Vroman is the sole member.

 

Services. Consultant is in the business of providing fractional CFO services, bookkeeping, financing, strategic and financial planning, mergers and acquisitions, growth and development, audit preparation and securities regulation and compliance (the “Services”). Consultant shall be engaged as the “Chief Financial Officer” of the Client during the term of this agreement and shall provide the Services that are customary of the position and generally described in Appendix A of this Agreement.

 

Term. The term of this Agreement shall commence on the Effective Date, and it shall automatically renew on a month-to-month basis unless terminated by either party upon 30 days’ written notice to the other party.

 

Compensation. The Company agrees to compensate the Consultant at the rate of $10,000 per month for the provision of the Services commencing on the effective date. Payments shall be made monthly. Additionally, the Consultant may be eligible to receive additional compensation in the form of shares of common stock of the Company at the Board’s discretion. The specific terms and conditions regarding any issuance of shares shall be determined by the Board and outlined in a separate agreement.

 

Consultant shall be entitled to reimbursement of all reasonable expenses, paid on behalf of the Client.

 

Confidentiality. The Consultant acknowledges that it may have access to confidential information regarding the Company and its business. The Consultant agrees that it will not, during or subsequent to the term of this Agreement, divulge, furnish, or make accessible to any person (other than with the written permission of the Company) any knowledge or information or plans of the Company with respect to the Company or its business. This includes but is not limited to financial data, business strategies, and any other information deemed confidential by either party.

 

Independent Contractor Status. Consultant agrees to perform the Services as an independent contractor and not as an employee of the Company. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to create a partnership, joint venture, or employer-employee relationship between the parties.

 

D&O Insurance Coverage. The Consultant, in their capacity as operating as an officer of the Company, shall be covered under the Company’s Directors and Officers (D&O) liability insurance policy during the term of this Agreement. The coverage will extend to protect the Consultant against personal losses in connection with the performance of their duties as an officer, subject to the terms and conditions of the D&O policy. The Consultant agrees to cooperate with the Company in obtaining and maintaining such coverage, including providing any necessary information and documentation required by the insurance provider. Any changes or modifications to the D&O policy shall be promptly communicated to the Consultant.

 

 

Termination. Either party may terminate this Agreement upon 30 days’ written notice to the other party. In the event of termination, the Consultant shall be compensated for the Services rendered up to the date of termination.

 

Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, without regard to its conflict of law principles.

 

Entire Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire understanding between the parties concerning the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior agreements, whether written or oral, relating to the same subject matter.

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement as of the date first above written.

 

CONSULTANT:

 

CXO Lite, LLC

 

/s/ Brett Vroman
By:	Brett Vroman
Dated: February 22, 2024

 

COMPANY:

 

Eightco Holdings, Inc.

 

/s/ Kevin O’Donnell
By:	Kevin O’Donnell, Executive Chairman
Dated: February 22, 2024

 

 

Appendix A – Services

 

Reporting directly to the CEO, responsible for oversight of Financial Analysis, Budgeting and Forecasting, Implementing Financial and Accounting Policies, Managing Finance and Accounting teams and acting as Strategic business partner to the directors and officers.

 

Duties shall include, but not be limited to, the oversight and/or direct completion of the following:

 

	●	Assessing and evaluating both short-term and long-term financial performance.
	●	Regular communication and interaction with the Board of Directors, CEO, and senior management team members.
	●	Creating and establishing annual financial objectives that align with the company’s growth and expansion plans.
	●	Serve key role as a member of the executive leadership team and engaging in pivotal decisions related to strategic initiatives and operational models.
	●	Aligning and executing the Board of Directors’ plans, initiatives, and recommendations.
	●	Implementing policies, procedures, and processes as directed by the senior leadership team.
	●	Developing, improving, and issuing timely monthly financial records and reports for the CEO.
	●	Managing the cash flow planning process and ensuring the availability of funds.
	●	Overseeing weekly cash management and the Accounts Payable Department, including approving large payables, signing checks, and authorizing significant wires and ACH transactions.
	●	Managing cash, investments, and asset management, exploring new investment opportunities, and providing recommendations on potential returns and risks.
	●	Maintaining strong banking relationships and strategic alliances with vendors and business partners.
	●	Supervising Accounts Receivable management and offering guidance on the collection process.
	●	Safeguarding assets and ensuring accurate and timely recording of all transactions through the implementation of internal audits, controls, and checks across all accounting-related departments.
	●	Preparing reports required by regulatory agencies and assisting in the annual audit and the preparation of the Company’s tax returns.
	●	Reviewing and ensuring the application of appropriate internal controls, SOX compliance, and financial procedures.

 

 

 

Exhibit 99.1

 

Eightco announces early repayment of debt, private placement and certain changes at the parent company level

 

Easton, PA, February 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – Eightco Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: OCTO) (the “Company”) today announced that it has, ahead of schedule, made its final repayment pursuant to the Prepayment and Redemption Agreement, dated as of October 23, 2023, by and between the Company and Hudson Bay Master Fund Ltd. (“Hudson Bay”) in remaining principal due under the Senior Secured Convertible Note (the “Hudson Bay Note”) issued to Hudson Bay in March 2023. In addition to lowering debt levels, the repayment of the Hudson Bay Note now gives the Company the ability to attract efficient capital to grow its subsidiary, Forever 8 Fund, LLC (“Forever 8”).

 

The Company has also conducted a private placement priced at a purchase price of $0.82 per under Nasdaq rules (the “Private Placement”) and (ii) issued to certain investors promissory notes (the “Notes”).

 

The Company also announced the appointment and departures of certain officers, as well as the issuance of common stock to reduce and satisfy certain outstanding obligations as related to consultants, former and current employees and directors of the company.

 

The Company continues to reduce ongoing costs at the parent company level so it can focus its resources on delivering growth via its main subsidiary Forever 8.

 

The offer and sale of the shares of common stock offered in the Private Placement and the Notes described above are being offered in private placements under Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), and Regulation D promulgated thereunder and have not been registered under the Act, or applicable state securities laws. Accordingly, the shares of common stock issued in the Private Placement and the Notes may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an effective registration statement or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Act and such applicable state securities laws.

 

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.

 

About Eightco Holdings Inc.

 

Eightco Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: OCTO) is committed to growth focused around its existing subsidiaries, including Forever 8, an inventory management platform for e-commerce sellers, and Ferguson Containers, a provider of complete manufacturing and logistical solutions for product and packaging needs, through strategic management and investment. In addition, the company is actively seeking new opportunities to add to its portfolio of technology solutions focused on the e-commerce ecosystem through strategic acquisitions. Through a combination of innovative strategies and focused execution, Eightco Holdings Inc. aims to create significant value and growth for its portfolio companies and stockholders.

 

For additional information, please visit www.8co.holdings

 

 

Forward-Looking Statements

 

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact could be deemed forward looking. Words such as “plans,” “expects,” “will,” “anticipates,” “continue,” “expand,” “advance,” “develop” “believes,” “guidance,” “target,” “may,” “remain,” “project,” “outlook,” “intend,” “estimate,” “could,” “should,” and other words and terms of similar meaning and expression are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such terms. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current beliefs and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance and include statements regarding the closing of the private placement, the satisfaction of the closing conditions of the private placement, and the use of net proceeds from the private placement. Actual results could differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement as a result of various factors, including, without limitation: the failure to achieve the expected benefits of the Inventory Management Agreement with Mobi-hub; the potential that the expected benefits of Eightco Holdings Inc.’s acquisition of Forever 8 are not achieved; achievement of the expected benefits of Eightco Holdings Inc.’s spin-off from Vinco Ventures, Inc.; tax treatment of the spin-off; market and other conditions; the risks that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may disrupt Eightco Holdings Inc.’s business more severely than it has to date or more severely than anticipated; unexpected costs, charges or expenses that reduce Eightco Holdings Inc.’s capital resources; Eightco Holdings Inc.’s inability to raise adequate capital to fund its business; Eightco Holdings Inc.’s inability to innovate and attract users for Eightco Holdings Inc.’s products; future legislation and rulemaking negatively impacting digital assets; and shifting public and governmental positions on digital asset mining activity. Given these risks and uncertainties, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. For a discussion of other risks and uncertainties, and other important factors, any of which could cause Eightco Holdings Inc.’s actual results to differ from those contained in forward-looking statements, see Eightco Holdings Inc.’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including in its Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on April 17, 2023. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release, and Eightco Holdings Inc. undertakes no duty to update this information or to publicly announce the results of any revisions to any of such statements to reflect future events or developments, except as required by law.

 

For further information, please contact:

Investor Relations

investors@8co.holdings

 

 

v3.24.0.1

Cover	Feb. 22, 2024
Cover [Abstract]
Document Type	8-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Feb. 22, 2024
Entity File Number	001-41033
Entity Registrant Name	EIGHTCO HOLDINGS INC.
Entity Central Index Key	0001892492
Entity Tax Identification Number	87-2755739
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	DE
Entity Address, Address Line One	101 Larry Holmes Dr.
Entity Address, Address Line Two	Suite 313
Entity Address, City or Town	Easton
Entity Address, State or Province	PA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	18042
City Area Code	(888)
Local Phone Number	765-8933
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock, $0.001 par value
Trading Symbol	OCTO
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Emerging Growth Company	true
Elected Not To Use the Extended Transition Period	false

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