CBUS 8-K
Cibus, Inc. (CBUS)
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
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(Commission File Number) |
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Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:
(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:
| 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 |
Name of exchange on which registered | ||
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 8.01 | Other Events. |
On January 29, 2026, Cibus, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with BTIG, LLC, as the sole underwriter (the “Underwriter”), relating to the underwritten public offering (the “Offering”) of 13,333,333 shares (each a “Share” and collectively, the “Shares”) of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Class A Common Stock”), at a public offering price of $1.50 per Share. Members of the Company’s board of directors will purchase 1,000,000 shares of Class A Common Stock in the Offering at the public offering price. In addition, the Company granted the Underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to 1,999,999 additional shares of Class A Common Stock.
The Offering is expected to close on or about January 30, 2026, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The Company estimates that the net proceeds of the Offering will be approximately $17.8 million (or $20.5 million, if the Underwriter’s option to purchase additional shares of Class A Common Stock is exercised in full), in each case, after deducting compensation payable in connection with the offering and other estimated offering expenses payable by the Company.
The Offering is being made pursuant to a prospectus supplement and related prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) pursuant to the Company’s shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-273062) filed on June 30, 2023, as amended, and declared effective by the Commission on October 27, 2023. The prospectus supplement (the “Prospectus Supplement”) related to the Offering was filed with the Commission on January 29, 2026.
The Underwriting Agreement contains customary representations, warranties and agreements of the Company, and customary conditions to closing, obligations of the parties and termination provisions. The Company has agreed to indemnify the Underwriter against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or to contribute to payments that the Underwriter may be required to make because of such liabilities. In addition, the Company and the Company’s directors and executive officers also agreed not to sell or transfer any Class A Common Stock without first obtaining the written consent of the Underwriter, subject to certain exceptions as described in the Prospectus Supplement, for sixty (60) days after the date of the Underwriting Agreement.
Pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, the Underwriter will receive an underwriting discount of 6.25% of the gross proceeds received from the sale of the Shares in this Offering. In addition, the Company has agreed to reimburse the Underwriter for reasonable and documented out-of-pocket legal and other expenses incurred by them in connection with the Offering in an amount not to exceed $150,000.
A copy of the Underwriting Agreement is attached as Exhibit 1.1 hereto and is incorporated herein by reference. The foregoing descriptions of the Underwriting Agreement and lock-up arrangements do not purport to be complete and are qualified in their entirety by reference to such exhibit.
A copy of the opinion of Jones Day relating to the validity of the Shares issued in the Offering is filed herewith as Exhibit 5.1.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K regarding matters that are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may involve risks and uncertainties, such as statements related to the anticipated closing of the Offering and the amount of proceeds expected from the Offering. The risks and uncertainties involved include the Company’s ability to satisfy certain conditions to closing on a timely basis or at all, as well as other risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s Commission filings, including in its Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Commission on March 20, 2025 and the Prospectus Supplement.
| Item 9.01. | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits
| Exhibit Number |
Description | |
| 1.1 | Underwriting Agreement, dated as of January 29, 2026, between Cibus, Inc. and BTIG, LLC | |
| 5.1 | Opinion of Jones Day | |
| 23.1 | Consent of Jones Day (included in Exhibit 5.1) | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) | |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Cibus, Inc. has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Dated: January 30, 2026 | ||||||
| CIBUS, INC. | ||||||
| By: | /s/ Peter Beetham | |||||
| Name: | Peter Beetham | |||||
| Title: | Interim Chief Executive Officer | |||||
Exhibit 1.1
13,333,333 Shares of Class A Common Stock
CIBUS, INC.
UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
January 29, 2026
BTIG, LLC
As Representative of the several
Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
BTIG, LLC
350 Bush Street, 9th Floor
San Francisco, California 94104
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to sell to the several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “Underwriters”) an aggregate of 13,333,333 shares (the “Firm Shares”) of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company (the “Common Stock”). The Firm Shares consist of 13,333,333 authorized but unissued shares of Common Stock to be issued and sold by the Company. The Company has also granted to the several Underwriters an option to purchase up to 1,999,999 additional shares of Common Stock on the terms and for the purposes set forth in Section 3 hereof (the “Option Shares”). The Firm Shares and any Option Shares purchased pursuant to this Underwriting Agreement (this “Agreement”) are herein collectively called the “Securities.”
The Company hereby confirms its agreement with respect to the sale of the Securities to the several Underwriters, for whom BTIG, LLC is acting as representative (the “Representative”). To the extent there are no additional Underwriters listed in Schedule I other than BTIG, LLC, references to multiple Underwriters shall be disregarded and the term Representative as used herein shall have the same meaning as Underwriter.
1. Registration Statement and Prospectus. The Company has prepared and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) a registration statement on Form S-3, as amended (File No. 333-273062), under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (the “Rules and Regulations”), and such amendments to such registration statement as may have been required to the date of this Agreement.
Such registration statement was declared effective by the Commission on October 27, 2023. Each part of such registration statement, including the amendments, exhibits and any schedules thereto, the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12 of Form S-3 under the Securities Act and the documents and information otherwise deemed to be a part thereof or included therein by Rule 430B under the Securities Act (the “Rule 430B Information”) or otherwise pursuant to the Rules and Regulations, as of the time the Registration Statement became effective, is herein collectively called the “Registration Statement.” Any registration statement filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act is called the “Rule 462(b) Registration Statement” and, from and after the date and time of filing of the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, the term “Registration Statement” shall include the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement.
The prospectus in the form in which it has most recently been filed with the Commission on or prior to the date of this Agreement is herein called the “Base Prospectus.” Each preliminary prospectus supplement to the Base Prospectus (including the Base Prospectus as so supplemented), that describes the Securities and the offering thereof, that omitted the Rule 430B Information and that was used prior to the filing of the final prospectus supplement referred to in the following sentence is herein called a “Preliminary Prospectus.” Promptly after execution and delivery of this Agreement, the Company will prepare and file with the Commission a final prospectus supplement to the Base Prospectus relating to the Securities and the offering thereof in accordance with the provisions of Rule 430B and Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations. Such final supplemental form of prospectus (including the Base Prospectus as so supplemented), in the form filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) is herein called the “Prospectus.” Any reference herein to the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to include the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12 of Form S-3 under the Securities Act as of the date of such prospectus.
For purposes of this Agreement, all references to the Registration Statement, the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement to any of the foregoing shall be deemed to include the copy filed with the Commission pursuant to its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval System or any successor system thereto (“EDGAR”). All references in this Agreement to financial statements and schedules and other information which is “described,” “contained,” “included” or “stated” in the Registration Statement, the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus (or other references of like import) shall be deemed to mean and include all such financial statements and schedules and other information which is incorporated by reference in or otherwise deemed by the Rules and Regulations to be a part of or included in the Registration Statement, the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be; and all references in this Agreement to amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement, the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to mean and include the subsequent filing of any document under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and which is deemed to be incorporated therein by reference therein or otherwise deemed by the Rules and Regulations to be a part thereof.
2. Representations and Warranties of the Company.
(a) Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, the several Underwriters as follows:
(i) Registration Statement and Prospectuses. No order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus (or any supplement thereto) has been issued by the Commission and no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission. As of the time each part of the Registration Statement (or any post-effective amendment thereto) became or becomes
effective (including each deemed effective date with respect to the Underwriters pursuant to Rule 430B or otherwise under the Securities Act), such part conformed or will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations. Upon the filing or first use within the meaning of the Rules and Regulations, each Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus (or any supplement to either) conformed or will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations. The Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto has become effective under the Securities Act within three years of the date hereof. The Company has complied to the Commission’s satisfaction with all requests of the Commission for additional or supplemental information. No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment or any part thereof is in effect and no proceedings for such purpose have been instituted or are pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, are threatened by the Commission.
(ii) Accurate Disclosure. Each Preliminary Prospectus, at the time of filing thereof or the time of first use within the meaning of the Rules and Regulations, did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. Neither the Registration Statement nor any amendment thereto, at the effective time of each part thereof, at the First Closing Date (as defined below) or at the Second Closing Date (as defined below), contained, contains or will contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading. As of the Time of Sale (as defined below), neither (A) the Time of Sale Disclosure Package (as defined below) nor (B) any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (as defined below), when considered together with the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, included an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. Neither the Prospectus nor any supplement thereto, as of its issue date, at the time of any filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations, at the First Closing Date or Second Closing Date, included, includes or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. The representations and warranties in this Section 2(a)(ii) shall not apply to statements in or omissions from any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any supplement thereto) made in reliance upon, and in conformity with, written information furnished to the Company by the Representative, or by any Underwriter through the Representative, specifically for use in the preparation of such document, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 6(e).
Each reference to an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus” herein means an issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations.
“Time of Sale Disclosure Package” means the Preliminary Prospectus dated January 28, 2026, any free writing prospectus set forth on Schedule II and the information on Schedule III, all considered together.
Each reference to a “free writing prospectus” herein means a free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations.
“Time of Sale” means 7:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) on the date of this Agreement.
(iii) Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses.
(A) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus as of its issue date and at all subsequent times through the completion of the public offer and sale of the Securities or until any earlier date that the Company notified or notifies the Representative as described in Section 4(a)(iii)(A), did not, does not and will not include any information that conflicted, conflicts or will conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus. The foregoing sentence does not apply to statements in or omissions from any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus based upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by the Representative or by any Underwriter through the Representative specifically for use therein; it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 6(e).
(B) At the time of filing of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, and at the date hereof, the Company was not, is not and will not be (as applicable) an “ineligible issuer,” as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations, without taking account of any determination by the Commission pursuant to Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations that it is not necessary that the Company be considered an ineligible issuer.
(C) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus satisfied, as of its issue date and at all subsequent times to the Time of Sale, all other conditions to use thereof as set forth in Rules 164 and 433 under the Securities Act.
(iv) Testing-the-Waters Materials. The Company (i) has not alone engaged in any Testing-the-Waters Communications (as defined below), other than Testing-the-Waters Communications with the prior consent of the Representative with entities that are qualified institutional buyers within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act or institutions that are accredited investors within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act and (ii) has not authorized anyone other than the Representative to engage in Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company reconfirms that the Representative has been authorized to act on its behalf in undertaking Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company has not distributed any Written Testing-the-Waters Communications (as defined below) other than those listed on Schedule V hereto. “Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any oral or written communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Rule 163B under the Securities Act. “Written Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act. Any individual Written Testing-the-Waters Communication does not conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement or the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, complied in all material respects with the Securities Act, and when taken together with the Time of Sale Disclosure Package as of the Time of Sale, did not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.
(v) No Other Offering Materials. The Company has not distributed and will not distribute any prospectus or other offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities other than any Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or other materials permitted by the Securities Act to be distributed by the Company; provided, however, that, except as set forth on Schedule II, the Company has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute a free writing prospectus, except in accordance with the provisions of Section 4(a)(xv) of this Agreement and, except as set forth on Schedule V, the Company has not made and will not make any communication relating to the Securities that would constitute a Testing-the-Waters Communication, except in accordance with the provisions of Section 2(a)(iv) of this Agreement.
(vi) Conformity with the Securities Act and Exchange Act. The Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, and the documents incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, when such documents were or are filed with the Commission under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act or became or become effective under the Securities Act, as the case may be, conformed or will conform in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, as applicable.
(vii) Financial Information. The consolidated financial statements of the Company included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and the Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, if any, together with the related notes and schedules, present fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries (as defined below) as of the dates indicated and the consolidated results of operations, cash flows and changes in stockholders’ equity of the Company for the periods specified and have been prepared in compliance with the requirements of the Securities Act and Exchange Act and in conformity with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis during the periods involved (except as may be specified therein or in the notes thereto); the other financial data with respect to the Company and the Subsidiaries (as defined below) contained or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses, if any, are accurately and fairly presented and prepared on a basis consistent with the financial statements and books and records of the Company; there are no financial statements (historical or pro forma) that are required to be included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not included or incorporated by reference as required; the Company and the Subsidiaries (as defined below) do not have any material liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent (including any off-balance sheet obligations), not described in the Registration Statement (excluding the exhibits thereto), the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, other than liabilities incurred in the ordinary course of business; and all disclosures contained or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses, if any, regarding non-GAAP financial measures comply with Regulation G of the Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act, to the extent applicable. The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.
(viii) Conformity with EDGAR Filing. The Preliminary Prospectus and Prospectus delivered to the Underwriters for use in connection with the sale of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement will be identical to the versions of the Prospectus created to be transmitted to the Commission for filing via EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(ix) Organization. The Company and each of its Subsidiaries are duly organized, validly existing as a corporation and in good standing under the laws of their respective jurisdictions of organization. The Company and each of its Subsidiaries are duly licensed or qualified as a foreign corporation for transaction of business and in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which their respective ownership or lease of property or the conduct of their respective businesses requires such license or qualification, and have all corporate power and authority necessary to own or hold their respective properties and to conduct their respective businesses as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing or have such power or authority would not, individually or in the aggregate, (i) have a material adverse effect or (ii) reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on or affecting the assets, business, operations, earnings, properties, condition (financial or otherwise), prospects, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, or prevent or materially interfere with consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby (a “Material Adverse Effect”).
(x) Subsidiaries. The subsidiaries set forth on Exhibit 21.1 to the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K (collectively, the “Subsidiaries”) are the Company’s only significant subsidiaries (as such term is defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X promulgated by the Commission). Except as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company owns, directly or indirectly, all of the equity interests of the Subsidiaries free and clear of any lien, charge, security interest, mortgage, pledge, encumbrance, right of first refusal or other restriction, and all the equity interests of the Subsidiaries are duly authorized, validly issued and are fully paid, nonassessable and free of preemptive and similar rights. None of the outstanding capital stock or equity interest in any Subsidiary was issued in violation of preemptive or similar rights of any security holder of such Subsidiary. Except as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, no Subsidiary is currently prohibited, directly or indirectly, from paying any dividends to the Company, from making any other distribution on such Subsidiary’s capital stock, from repaying to the Company any loans or advances to such Subsidiary from the Company or from transferring any of such Subsidiary’s property or assets to the Company or any other Subsidiary of the Company. The constitutive or organizational documents of each of the Subsidiaries comply in all material respects with the requirements of applicable laws of its jurisdiction of incorporation or organization and are in full force and effect.
(xi) No Violation or Default. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries (i) is in violation of its certificate of incorporation or by-laws (or similar organizational documents), (ii) is in default, and no event has occurred that, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default, in the due performance or observance of any term, covenant, condition or other obligation contained in any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, license or other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it is bound or to which any of its properties or assets is subject, or (iii) is in violation of any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or Governmental Authority (as defined below) has failed to obtain any license, permit, certificate, franchise or other governmental authorization or permit necessary to the ownership of its property or to the conduct of its business, except in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii), to the extent any such violation or default would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. To the Company’s knowledge, no other party under any material contract or other agreement to which it or any of its Subsidiaries is a party is in default in any respect thereunder where such default would have a Material Adverse Effect. “Governmental Authority” means (i) any federal, state, local, municipal, national or international government or governmental authority, regulatory or administrative agency, governmental commission, department, board, bureau, agency or instrumentality, court, tribunal, arbitrator or arbitral body (public or private); (ii) any self-regulatory organization; or (iii) any political subdivision of any of the foregoing.
(xii) No Material Adverse Change. Subsequent to the date of the most recent balance sheet included in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and the Free Writing Prospectuses, if any (including any document deemed incorporated by reference therein), there has not been (i) any Material Adverse Effect, (ii) any obligation or liability, direct or contingent (including any off-balance sheet obligations), incurred by the Company or any Subsidiary, which is material to the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, (iii) any material change in the capital stock or outstanding long-term indebtedness of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or (iv) any dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made on the capital stock of the Company or any Subsidiary, other than in each case above in the ordinary course of business or as otherwise disclosed in the Registration Statement or Prospectus (including any document deemed incorporated by reference therein).
(xiii) Capitalization. The issued and outstanding shares of the capital stock of the Company have been validly issued, are fully paid and nonassessable and, other than as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, are not subject to any preemptive rights, rights of first refusal or similar rights. The Company has an authorized, issued and outstanding capitalization as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus as of the dates referred to therein (other than the grant of additional options, shares of restricted stock, or other stock-based awards under the Company’s existing stock option plans, or changes in the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock due to the issuance of shares upon the exercise or conversion of securities exercisable for, or convertible into, shares of Common Stock on the date hereof) and such authorized capital stock conforms to the description thereof set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. The description of the securities of the Company in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus is complete and accurate in all material respects. Except as disclosed in or contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, as of the date referred to therein, the Company does not have outstanding any options to purchase, or any rights or warrants to subscribe for, or any securities or obligations convertible into, or exchangeable for, or any contracts or commitments to issue or sell, any shares of the capital stock of the Company or other securities.
(xiv) Authorization; Enforceability. The Company has full legal right, power and authority to enter into this Agreement and perform the transactions contemplated hereby. This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and is a legal, valid and binding agreement of the Company enforceable in accordance with its terms, except to the extent that enforceability may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles and except to the extent that indemnification and contribution provisions may be limited by applicable law or public policy.
(xv) Authorization of Securities. The Securities have been duly authorized for issuance and sale pursuant to this Agreement and, when issued and delivered by the Company against payment therefor as provided herein, will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable, free and clear of any pledge, mortgage, hypothecation, lien, encumbrance, security interest or other claim, including any statutory or contractual preemptive rights, resale rights, rights of first refusal or other similar rights, and will be registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act. The Securities, when issued, will conform to the description thereof set forth in or incorporated into the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(xvi) No Consents Required. No consent, approval, authorization or order of, or registration or filing with, any Governmental Authority is required for the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement or for the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, including the issuance or sale of the Securities by the Company, except such as may be required under the Securities Act, the rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), The Nasdaq Capital Market (“Nasdaq”) or state securities or blue sky laws; and the Company has full power and authority to enter into this Agreement and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby, including the authorization, issuance and sale of the Securities as contemplated by this Agreement.
(xvii) No Preferential Rights. Except as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, (i) no person, as such term is defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X promulgated under the Securities Act (each, a “Person”), has the right, contractual or otherwise, to cause the Company to issue or sell to such Person any shares of Common Stock or shares of any other capital stock or other securities of the Company, (ii) no Person has any preemptive rights, resale rights, rights of first refusal, rights of co-sale, or any other rights (whether pursuant to a “poison pill” provision or otherwise) to purchase any shares of Common Stock or shares of any other capital stock or other securities of the Company, (iii) no Person has the right to act as an underwriter or as a financial advisor to the Company in connection with the offer and sale of shares of Common Stock, and (iv) no Person has the right, contractual or otherwise, to require the Company to register under the Securities Act, any shares of Common Stock or shares of any other capital stock or other securities of the Company, or to include any such shares or other securities in the Registration Statement or the offering contemplated thereby, whether as a result of the filing or effectiveness of the Registration Statement or the sale of the Securities as contemplated thereby or otherwise.
(xviii) Independent Public Accounting Firm. BDO USA, P.C. (the “Accountant”), whose report on the consolidated financial statements of the Company is filed with the Commission as part of the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Commission and incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, is and, during the period covered by their report, were an independent registered public accounting firm within the meaning of the Securities Act and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. To the Company’s knowledge, the Accountant is not in violation of the auditor independence requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”).
(xix) Enforceability of Agreements. All agreements between the Company and third parties expressly referenced in the Prospectus are legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company enforceable in accordance with their respective terms, except to the extent that (i) enforceability may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles and (ii) the indemnification provisions of certain agreements may be limited by federal or state securities laws or public policy considerations in respect thereof.
(xx) No Litigation. Except as set forth in the Registration Statement, Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there is not pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened or contemplated, any action, suit or proceeding (a) to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or (b) which has as the subject thereof any officer or director of the Company or any Subsidiary, any employee benefit plan sponsored by the Company or any Subsidiary or any property or assets owned or leased by the Company or any Subsidiary before or by any court or Governmental Authority, or any arbitrator, which would, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect or which are otherwise material in the context of the sale of the Securities. There are no current or, to the knowledge of the Company, pending, legal, governmental or regulatory actions, suits or proceedings (x) to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is subject or (y) which has as the subject thereof any officer or director of the Company or any Subsidiary, any employee plan sponsored by the Company or any Subsidiary or any property or assets owned or leased by the Company or any Subsidiary, that are required to be described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus by the Securities Act or by the Rules and Regulations and that have not been so described.
(xxi) Consents and Permits. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company and its Subsidiaries have made all filings, applications and submissions required by, possesses and are operating in compliance with, all approvals, licenses, certificates, certifications, clearances, consents, grants, exemptions, marks, notifications, orders, permits and other authorizations issued by, the appropriate federal, state or foreign Governmental Authority (including, without limitation, the United States Department of Agriculture ( “USDA”), USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (“AMS”), USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (“APHIS”) and any other foreign, federal, state, court or local government or regulatory authorities including self-regulatory organizations, engaged in the regulation of agricultural seeds and products) necessary for the ownership or lease of their respective properties or to conduct its businesses as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, except for such Permits the
failure of which to possess, obtain or make the same would not have a Material Adverse Effect (each, a “Material Permit”), and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any Material Permit. The disclosures in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus concerning the effects of Federal, State, local and all foreign regulation on the Company’s business as currently contemplated are correct in all material respects.
(xxii) Regulatory Filings. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has failed to file with the applicable Governmental Authorities any required filing, declaration, listing, registration, report or submission, except for such failures that, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, all such filings, declarations, listings, registrations, reports or submissions were in compliance with applicable laws when filed and no deficiencies have been asserted by any applicable regulatory authority with respect to any such filings, declarations, listings, registrations, reports or submissions, except for any deficiencies that, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxiii) Intellectual Property. Except where a failure thereof would not result in a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and its Subsidiaries own all rights in, or possess, or can acquire on reasonable terms, licenses to all copyrights, software, trade secrets, mask works, know-how, Internet domain names; trademarks, service marks, trade names, and other indicia of origin; and inventions (whether or not patentable), patents and patent rights (collectively “Intellectual Property”) material to carrying on the businesses of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any written correspondence relating to, or notice of, any misappropriation, infringement of or other violation of or conflict with the rights of others in any Intellectual Property, and to the knowledge of the Company there is no and has been no such misappropriation, infringement, violation or conflict and which misappropriation, infringement, violation or conflict (if the subject of any unfavorable decision, ruling or finding) or invalidity or inadequacy, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any written correspondence relating to, or notice of any allegation that any Intellectual Property owned by or held for use by the Company is invalid or inadequate to protect the interest of the Company and the Subsidiaries, or any challenge to the Company or any Subsidiary’s ownership of any Intellectual Property, and to the knowledge of the Company there is no valid basis for any such allegation or challenge and which invalidity or inadequacy would have or may reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. To the Company’s knowledge, there is no interference, derivation, opposition, inter partes review, post-grant review, reissue, reexamination, cancellation, protest, or other proceeding against any patent or patent application described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus as being owned by or licensed to the Company. To the Company’s knowledge, none of the Intellectual Property owned or Licensed by the Company was conceived, developed or reduced to practice (in whole or in part) using funding, facilities or personnel of any Governmental Authority or university or subject to any governmental rights (including “march-in” rights).
(xxiv) Market Capitalization. At the time the Registration Statement was originally declared effective, and at the time the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K was filed with the Commission, the Company met the then applicable requirements for the use of Form S-3 under the Securities Act, including, but not limited to, General Instruction I.B.1/I.B.6 of Form S-3, and as of the date hereof, the Company meets the requirements for the use of Form S-3 under General Instruction I.B.1 of Form S-3. . The Company is not a shell company (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) and has not been a shell company for at least 12 calendar months previously and if it has been a shell company at any time previously, has filed current Form 10 information (as defined in Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3) with the Commission at least 12 calendar months previously reflecting its status as an entity that is not a shell company.
(xxv) FINRA Matters. The information provided to the Underwriters by the Company, its counsel, and its officers and directors for purposes of the Underwriters’ compliance with applicable FINRA rules in connection with the offering of the Securities is true, complete, and correct.
(xxvi) No Material Defaults. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has defaulted on any installment on indebtedness for borrowed money or on any rental on one or more long-term leases, which defaults, individually or in the aggregate, would have a Material Adverse Effect. The Company has not (i) failed to pay any dividend or sinking fund installment on preferred stock or (ii) has defaulted on any installment on indebtedness for borrowed money or on any rental on one or more long-term leases, which defaults, individually or in the aggregate, would have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxvii) Certain Market Activities. Neither the Company, nor any of the Subsidiaries, nor any of their respective directors, officers or controlling persons has taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed, or that has constituted or might reasonably be expected to cause or result in, under the Exchange Act or otherwise, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Common Stock or of any other securities, including any “reference security” (as defined in Rule 100 of Regulation M under the Exchange Act (“Regulation M”)) with respect to the Common Stock, whether to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities or otherwise, and has taken no action which would directly or indirectly violate Regulation M or applicable foreign securities laws and rules.
(xxviii) Broker/Dealer Relationships. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries (i) is required to register as a “broker” or “dealer” in accordance with the provisions of the Exchange Act or (ii) directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is a “person associated with a member” or “associated person of a member” (within the meaning set forth in the FINRA Manual).
(xxix) No Reliance. The Company has not relied upon the Underwriters or legal counsel for the Underwriters for any legal, tax or accounting advice in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities.
(xxx) Incorporated Documents. The documents incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, when they became effective or were filed with the Commission, as the case may be, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, as applicable, and were filed on a timely basis with the Commission and none of such documents contained an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; any further documents so filed and incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, Time of Sale Disclosure Package or in the Prospectus, when such documents are filed with the Commission, will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Exchange Act, and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading
(xxxi) Taxes. The Company and each of its Subsidiaries have filed all federal, state, local and foreign tax returns which have been required to be filed and paid all taxes shown thereon through the date hereof, to the extent that such taxes have become due and are not being contested in good faith, except where the failure to so file or pay would not have a Material Adverse Effect. Except as otherwise disclosed in or contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, no tax deficiency has been determined adversely to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries which has had, or would have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect. The Company has no knowledge of any federal, state or other governmental tax deficiency, penalty or assessment which has been or might be asserted or threatened against it which would have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxxii) Title to Real and Personal Property. Except as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, the Company and its Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all items of real property owned by them, good and valid title to all personal property described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or Prospectus as being owned by them, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and claims, except those matters that (i) do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and any of its Subsidiaries or (ii) would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. Any real or personal property described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or Prospectus as being leased by the Company and any of its Subsidiaries is held by them under valid, existing and enforceable leases, except for such leases that are not valid, existing and enforceable that would not be reasonably expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect. Each of the properties of the Company and its Subsidiaries complies with all applicable codes, laws and regulations (including, without limitation, building and zoning codes, laws and regulations and laws relating to access to such properties), except if and to the extent disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or Prospectus or except for such failures to comply that would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to interfere in any material respect with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and its Subsidiaries or otherwise have a Material Adverse Effect. None of the Company or its Subsidiaries has received from any Governmental Authorities any notice of any condemnation of, or zoning change affecting, the properties of the Company and its Subsidiaries, and the Company knows of no such condemnation or zoning change which is threatened, except for such that would not reasonably be expected to interfere in any material respect with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and its Subsidiaries or otherwise have a Material Adverse Effect, individually or in the aggregate.
(xxxiii) Environmental Laws. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is in violation of any statute or any rule, regulation, decision or order of any governmental agency or body or any court, domestic or foreign, relating to the use, production, disposal or release of hazardous or toxic substances or relating to the protection or restoration of the environment or human exposure to hazardous or toxic substances (collectively, “Environmental Laws”); owns or operates any real property contaminated with any substance that is subject to any environmental laws, is liable for any off-site disposal or contamination pursuant to any environmental laws, or is subject to any claim relating to any environmental laws, which violation, contamination, liability or claim, individually or in the aggregate, would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and the Company is not aware of any pending investigation which would reasonably be expected to lead to such a claim.
(xxxiv) Disclosure Controls. The Company on a consolidated basis maintain systems of internal accounting controls designed 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’s internal control over financial reporting is effective and the Company is not aware of any material weaknesses in its internal control over financial reporting (in each case, other than as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus). Since the date of the latest audited financial statements of the Company included in the Prospectus, there has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (other than as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Prospectus or the Prospectus). The Company has established disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15) for the Company and designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that material information relating to the Company and each of its Subsidiaries is made known to the certifying officers by others within those entities. The Company’s certifying officers have evaluated the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the Company’s most recently completed fiscal quarter (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 and the disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of such date. Since the Evaluation Date, there have been no significant changes in the Company’s internal controls (as such term is defined in Item 307(b) of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act) or, to the Company’s knowledge, in other factors that could significantly affect the Company’s internal controls (in each case, other than as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus).
(xxxv) Sarbanes-Oxley. The Company is in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act applicable to it, and has implemented or will implement such programs and taken reasonable steps to ensure the Company’s future compliance (not later than the relevant statutory and regulatory deadlines therefor) with all of the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply in all material respects with any applicable provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. Each of the principal executive officer and the principal financial officer of the Company (or each former principal executive officer of the Company and each former principal financial officer of the Company as applicable) has made all certifications required by Sections 302 and 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act with respect to all reports, schedules, forms, statements and other documents required to be filed by it or furnished by it to the Commission. For purposes of the preceding sentence, “principal executive officer” and “principal financial officer” shall have the meanings given to such terms in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
(xxxvi) Finder’s Fees. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has incurred any liability for any finder’s fees, brokerage commissions or similar payments in connection with the transactions herein contemplated, except as may otherwise exist with respect to the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement or as disclosed in writing to the Representative on or prior to the date hereof.
(xxxvii) Labor Disputes. No labor disturbance by or dispute with employees of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is threatened which would result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxxviii) Investment Company Act. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is or, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Securities, will be an “investment company” or an entity “controlled” by an “investment company,” as such terms are defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”).
(xxxix) Operations. 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, the money laundering statutes of all jurisdictions to which the Company or its Subsidiaries are subject, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any Governmental Authority (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”); and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any Governmental Authority involving the Company or any of its Subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.
(xl) Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements. There are no transactions, arrangements and other relationships between and/or among the Company, and/or any of its affiliates and any unconsolidated entity, including, but not limited to, any structured finance, special purpose or limited purpose entity (each, an “Off-Balance Sheet Transaction”) that would reasonably be expected to affect materially the Company’s liquidity or the availability of or requirements for its capital resources, including those Off-Balance Sheet Transactions described in the Commission’s Statement about Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations (Release Nos. 33-8056; 34-45321; FR-61), required to be described in the Prospectus which have not been described as required.
(xli) Employee Benefits. The Company is not in violation of or has not received notice of any violation with respect to any federal, state or foreign law relating to discrimination in the hiring, promotion or pay of employees, nor any applicable federal, state or foreign wages and hours law, nor any state law precluding the denial of credit due to the neighborhood in which a property is situated, the violation of any of which would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xlii) ERISA. To the knowledge of the Company, each material employee benefit plan, within the meaning of Section 3(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), that is maintained, administered or contributed to by the Company or any of its affiliates for employees or former employees of the Company and any of its Subsidiaries has been maintained in material compliance with its terms and the requirements of any applicable statutes, orders, rules and regulations, including but not limited to ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”); no prohibited transaction, within the meaning of Section 406 of ERISA or Section 4975 of the Code, has occurred which would result in a material liability to the Company with respect to any such plan excluding transactions effected pursuant to a statutory or administrative exemption; and for each such plan that is subject to the funding rules of Section 412 of the Code or Section 302 of ERISA, no “accumulated funding deficiency” as defined in Section 412 of the Code has been incurred, whether or not waived, and the fair market value of the assets of each such plan (excluding for these purposes accrued but unpaid contributions) exceeds the present value of all benefits accrued under such plan determined using reasonable actuarial assumptions.
(xliii) Forward-Looking Statements. No forward-looking statement (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act) contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus has been made or reaffirmed without a reasonable basis or has been disclosed other than in good faith.
(xliv) Margin Rules. Neither the issuance, sale and delivery of the Securities nor the application of the proceeds thereof by the Company as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus will violate Regulation T, U or X of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any other regulation of such Board of Governors.
(xlv) Insurance. The Company and each of its Subsidiaries carry, or are covered by, insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as the Company and each of its Subsidiaries reasonably believe are adequate for the conduct of their business and as is customary for companies engaged in similar businesses in similar industries.
(xlvi) No Improper Practices. (i) Neither the Company nor the Subsidiaries, nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any director, officer, employee of the Company or any Subsidiary, any agent, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiary has, in the past five years, made any unlawful contributions to any candidate for any political office (or failed fully to disclose any contribution in violation of applicable law) or made any contribution or other payment to any official of, or candidate for, any federal, state, municipal, or foreign office or other person charged with similar public or quasi-public duty in violation of any applicable law or of the character required to be disclosed in the Prospectus; (ii) no relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company or any Subsidiary or any affiliate of any of them, on the one hand, and the directors, officers and stockholders of the Company or any Subsidiary, on the other hand, that is required by the Securities Act to be described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus that is not so described; (iii) no relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company or any Subsidiary or any affiliate of them, on the one hand, and the directors, officers, or stockholders of the Company or any Subsidiary, on the other hand, that is required by the rules of FINRA to be described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus that is not so described; (iv) except as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there are no material outstanding loans or advances or material guarantees of indebtedness by the Company or any Subsidiary to or for the benefit of any of their respective officers or directors or any of the members of the families of any of them; and (v) the Company has not offered, or caused any placement agent to offer, shares of Common Stock to any person with the intent to influence unlawfully (A) a customer or supplier of the Company or any Subsidiary to alter the customer’s or supplier’s level or type of business with the Company or any Subsidiary or (B) a trade journalist or publication to write or publish favorable information about the Company or any Subsidiary or any of their respective products or services, and, (vi) neither the Company nor any Subsidiary nor any director, officer or employee of the Company or any Subsidiary nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiary has (A) violated or is in violation of any applicable provision of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, each or any other applicable anti-bribery or anti-corruption law (collectively, “Anti-Corruption Laws”), (B) promised, offered, provided, attempted to provide or authorized the provision of anything of value, directly or indirectly, to any person for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business, influencing any act or decision of the recipient, or securing any improper advantage; or (C) made any payment of funds of the Company or any Subsidiary or received or retained any funds in violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws.
(xlvii) No Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated will not (A) conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries pursuant to any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is subject, (B) result in any violation of the provisions of the Company’s certificate of incorporation or (C) result in the violation of any law or statute or any judgment, order, rule, regulation or decree of Governmental Authority, except in the case of clause (A) or (C) as would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xlviii) Sanctions.
(A) The Company represents that, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries (collectively, the “Entity”) or any director, officer, or, to the knowledge of the Company, employee, agent, affiliate or representative of the Entity, is a government, individual, or entity (in this paragraph (li), “Person”) that is, or is owned or controlled by a Person that is:
(1) the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, His Majesty’s Treasury, or pursuant to other relevant sanctions authorities, including, without limitation, designation on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List or OFAC’s Foreign Sanctions Evaders List (as amended, collectively, “Sanctions”), nor
(2) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of Sanctions that broadly prohibit dealings with that country or territory (including, without limitation, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic, the non-government controlled areas of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions of Ukraine and the Crimea Region of the Ukraine) (the “Sanctioned Countries”).
(B) The Entity represents and covenants that it will not, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other Person:
(1) to fund or facilitate any activities or business of or with any Person or in any country or territory that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is the subject of Sanctions or is a Sanctioned Country; or
(2) in any other manner that will result in a violation of Sanctions by any Person (including any Person participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).
(C) The Entity represents and covenants that, except as detailed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, for the past five years, it has not engaged in, is not now engaging in, and will not engage in, any dealings or transactions with any Person, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject of Sanctions or is or was a Sanctioned Country.
(xlix) Duties, Transfer Taxes, Etc. No stamp or other issuance or transfer taxes or duties are payable by the Underwriters to the United States or any political subdivision or taxing authority thereof or therein in connection with the execution, delivery or performance of this Agreement by the Company or the sale and delivery by the Company of the Securities.
(l) Compliance with Laws. Each of the Company and its Subsidiaries: (A) is and at all times has been in compliance with all statutes, rules, or regulations applicable to the ownership, testing, development, manufacture, packaging, processing, use, distribution, marketing, labeling, promotion, sale, offer for sale, storage, import, export or disposal of any product manufactured or distributed by the Company or its Subsidiaries (“Applicable Laws”), except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material
Adverse Effect; (B) has not received any correspondence or notice from any Governmental Authority alleging or asserting noncompliance with any Applicable Laws or any licenses, certificates, approvals, clearances, authorizations, permits and supplements or amendments thereto required by any such Applicable Laws (“Authorizations”); (C) possesses all Authorizations and such Authorizations are valid and in full force and effect and are not in violation of any term of any such Authorizations, except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect; (D) has not received notice of any claim, action, suit, proceeding, hearing, enforcement, investigation, arbitration or other action from any Governmental Authority or third party alleging that any product operation or activity is in violation of any Applicable Laws or Authorizations and has no knowledge that any such Governmental Authority or third party is considering any such claim, litigation, arbitration, action, suit, investigation or proceeding; (E) has not received notice that any Governmental Authority has taken, is taking or intends to take action to limit, suspend, modify or revoke any Authorizations and has no knowledge that any such Governmental Authority is considering such action; (F) has filed, obtained, maintained or submitted all material reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments as required by any Applicable Laws or Authorizations and that all such reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments were complete and correct on the date filed (or were corrected or supplemented by a subsequent submission), except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, and, to the Company’s knowledge, no third party has initiated, conducted or intends to initiate any such notice or action; and (G) has not, either voluntarily or involuntarily, initiated, conducted, or issued or caused to be initiated, conducted or issued, any recall, market withdrawal or replacement, post-sale warning, or other notice or action relating to the alleged lack of safety or efficacy of any product or any alleged product defect or violation, except as could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, and, to the Company’s knowledge, no third party has initiated, conducted or intends to initiate any such notice or action.
(li) Statistical and Market-Related Data. The statistical, demographic and market-related data included in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and Prospectus are based on or derived from sources that the Company believes to be reliable and accurate or represent the Company’s good faith estimates that are made on the basis of data derived from such sources.
(lii) Stock Exchange Listing. The Common Stock is registered pursuant to Section 12(b) or 12(g) of the Exchange Act and is listed on Nasdaq, the Company has taken no action designed to terminate the registration of the Common Stock under the Exchange Act or delist the Common Stock from Nasdaq, and the Company has not received any notification that the Commission, or Nasdaq is contemplating terminating such registration or listing. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus in compliance with all applicable listing requirements of Nasdaq.
(liii) Cybersecurity. The Company and its Subsidiaries’ information technology assets and equipment, computers, systems, networks, hardware, software, websites, applications, and databases (collectively, “IT Systems”) are materially adequate for, and operate and perform in all material respects as required in connection with, the operation of the business of the Company as currently conducted, and, to the knowledge of the Company, are free and clear of all material bugs, errors, defects, Trojan horses, time bombs, malware and other corruptants. The Company and its Subsidiaries have implemented and maintained commercially reasonable physical, technical and administrative controls, policies, procedures, and safeguards to maintain and protect their material confidential information and the integrity, continuous operation, redundancy and security of all IT Systems and data, including all “Personal Data” (defined below) and all sensitive, confidential or regulated data (“Confidential Data”) used in connection with their businesses. “Personal Data” means (i) a natural person’s name, street address, telephone number, e-mail address, photograph, social security number or tax identification number, driver’s license number, passport number, credit card number, bank information, or customer or account number; (ii) any information which would qualify as “personally identifying information” under the Federal Trade Commission Act, as amended; (iii) any “personal information” as defined by the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”); and (iv) any other piece of information that allows the identification of such natural person, or his or her family, or permits the collection or analysis of any data related to an identified person’s health or sexual orientation. To the knowledge of the Company, there have been no material breaches, violations, outages or unauthorized uses of or accesses to same, except for those that have been remedied without material cost or liability or the duty to notify any other person, nor are any such incidents under internal review or investigations relating to the same. The Company and its Subsidiaries are presently in material compliance with all applicable laws or statutes and all judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, internal policies and contractual obligations relating to the privacy and security of IT Systems, Confidential Data, and Personal Data and to the protection of such IT Systems, Confidential Data, and Personal Data from unauthorized use, access, misappropriation or modification.
(liv) Compliance with Data Privacy Laws. The Company and its Subsidiaries are in material compliance with all applicable state and federal data privacy and security laws and regulations, including without limitation CCPA (collectively, the “Privacy Laws”). To ensure compliance with the Privacy Laws, the Company has in place policies and procedures, and complies with and takes commercially reasonable steps to ensure compliance, in each case in all material respects, with its policies and procedures, relating to data privacy and security and the collection, storage, use, processing, disclosure, handling, and analysis of Personal Data and Confidential Data (the “Policies”). The Company has at all times made all disclosures to users or customers required by applicable laws and regulatory rules or requirements, and none of such disclosures made or contained in any Policy have been inaccurate or in violation of any applicable laws and regulatory rules or requirements in any material respect. The Company further certifies that neither it nor any Subsidiary: (i) has received notice of any actual or potential liability under or relating to, or actual or potential violation of, any of the Privacy Laws, and has no knowledge of any event or condition that would reasonably be expected to result in any such notice; (ii) is currently conducting or paying for, in whole or in part, any investigation, remediation, or other corrective action pursuant to any Privacy Law; or (iii) is a party to any order, decree, or agreement that imposes any obligation or liability under any Privacy Law.
(lv) Submission to Jurisdiction. The Company has the power to submit, and pursuant to Section 15 of this Agreement, has legally, validly, effectively and irrevocably submitted, to the personal jurisdiction of the Specified Courts (as defined below), and the Company has the power to designate, appoint and authorize, and pursuant to Section 15 of this Agreement, has legally, validly, effectively and irrevocably designated, appointed and authorized an agent for service of process in any action arising out of or relating to this Agreement, the Securities in any Specified Court, and service of process effected on such authorized agent will be effective to confer valid personal jurisdiction over the Company as provided in Section 15 hereof.
(lvi) Effect of Certificates. Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company and delivered to the Representative or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company to each Underwriter as to the matters covered thereby.
3. Purchase, Sale and Delivery of Securities.
(a) Firm Shares. On the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to issue and sell the Firm Shares, to the several Underwriters, and each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto. The purchase price for each Firm Share shall be as set forth on Schedule III hereto. The obligation of each Underwriter to the Company shall be to purchase from the Company that number of Firm Shares (to be adjusted by the Representative to avoid fractional shares) which represents the same proportion of the number of Firm Shares to be sold by the Company pursuant to this Agreement as the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto represents to the total number of Firm Shares to be purchased by all Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement. In making this Agreement, each Underwriter is contracting severally and not jointly; except as provided in paragraph (c) of this Section 3 and in Section 8 hereof, the agreement of each Underwriter is to purchase only the respective number of Firm Shares specified in Schedule I.
The Firm Shares will be delivered by the Company to the Representative for the accounts of the several Underwriters against payment of the purchase price therefor by wire transfer of same day funds payable to the order of the Company, as appropriate, at the offices of Lowenstein Sandler LLP, 1251 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020, or such other location as may be mutually acceptable, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time on the first (or if the Time of Sale occurs after 4:30 p.m. Eastern time, the second) full business day following the date hereof, or at such other time and date as the Representative and the Company determine pursuant to Rule 15c6-1(a) under the Exchange Act, such time and date of delivery being herein referred to as the “First Closing Date.”
(b) Option Shares. On the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company hereby grants to the several Underwriters an option to purchase all or any portion of the Option Shares at the same purchase price as the Firm Shares. The option granted hereunder may be exercised in whole or in part at any time (but not more than once) within 30 days after the First Closing Date upon notice (confirmed in writing) by the Representative to the Company setting forth the aggregate number of Option Shares as to which the several Underwriters are exercising the option and the date and time, as determined by the Representative, when the Option Shares are to be delivered, such time and date being herein referred to as the “Second Closing” and “Second Closing Date,” respectively, provided, however, that the Second Closing Date shall not be earlier
than the First Closing Date nor earlier than the first business day after the date on which the option shall have been exercised. The number of Option Shares to be purchased by each Underwriter shall be the same percentage of the total number of Option Shares to be purchased by the several Underwriters as the number of Firm Shares to be purchased by such Underwriter is of the total number of Firm Shares to be purchased by the several Underwriters, as adjusted by the Representative in such manner as the Representative deems advisable to avoid fractional shares. No Option Shares shall be sold and delivered unless the Firm Shares previously have been, or simultaneously are, sold and delivered.
The Option Shares will be delivered by the Company, as appropriate, to the Representative for the accounts of the several Underwriters against payment of the purchase price therefor by wire transfer of same day funds payable to the order of the Company at the offices of Lowenstein Sandler LLP, 1251 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020, or such other location as may be mutually acceptable at 10:00 a.m., Central time, on the Second Closing Date.
(c) Delivery. Delivery of the Firm Shares or the Option Shares will be made by credit through full fast transfer to the accounts at the Depository Trust Company designated by the Representative. In the event that the Firm Shares (and Option Shares, if elected by the Representative) are not delivered to the Representative by 2:30 p.m., New York City time, on the First Closing Date (and the Second Closing Date, if elected by the Representative), the Company will return payment of the full purchase price to the Representative via same day funds by 4:30 p.m., New York City time. The Company shall remain liable to the Representative for the full amount of the purchase price and any costs associated with recovering the purchase price until the full amount has been received by the Representative.
(d) Purchase by Representative on Behalf of Underwriters. It is understood that the Representative, individually and not as Representative of the several Underwriters, may (but shall not be obligated to) make payment to the Company, on behalf of any Underwriter for the Securities to be purchased by such Underwriter. Any such payment by the Representative shall not relieve any such Underwriter of any of its obligations hereunder. Nothing herein contained shall constitute any of the Underwriters an unincorporated association or partner with the Company.
4. Covenants.
(a) Covenants of the Company. The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters as follows:
(i) Required Filings. During the period beginning on the date hereof and ending on the later of the Second Closing Date or such date, as in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, the Prospectus is no longer required by law to be delivered (assuming the absence of Rule 172 under the Securities Act), in connection with sales by an Underwriter or dealer (the “Prospectus Delivery Period”), prior to amending or supplementing the Registration Statement (including any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement), the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, the Company shall furnish to the Representative for review a copy of each such proposed amendment or supplement, and the Company shall not file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which the Representative or counsel to the Underwriters reasonably object. Subject to this Section 4(a)(i), immediately following execution of this Agreement, the
Company will prepare the Prospectus containing the Rule 430B Information and other selling terms of the Securities, the plan of distribution thereof and such other information as may be required by the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations or as the Representative and the Company may deem appropriate, and if requested by the Representative, an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus containing the selling terms of the Securities and such other information as the Company and the Representative may deem appropriate, and will file or transmit for filing with the Commission, in accordance with Rule 424(b) or Rule 433, as the case may be, copies of the Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus.
(ii) Notification of Certain Commission Actions. During the Prospectus Delivery Period, the Company shall promptly advise the Representative in writing (A) of the receipt of any comments of, or requests for additional or supplemental information from, the Commission, (B) of the time and date of any filing of any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to any Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, (C) of the time and date that any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement becomes effective, (D) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto or of any order preventing or suspending its use or the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, or (E) of any proceedings to remove, suspend or terminate from listing or quotation the Common Stock from any securities exchange upon which it is listed for trading or included or designated for quotation, or of the threatening or initiation of any proceedings for any of such purposes. If the Commission shall enter any such stop order at any time, the Company will use its best efforts to obtain the lifting of such order at the earliest possible moment. Additionally, the Company agrees that it shall comply with the provisions of Rules 424(b), 430A and 430B, as applicable, under the Securities Act and will use its reasonable efforts to confirm that any filings made by the Company under Rule 424(b), Rule 433 or Rule 462 were received in a timely manner by the Commission (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8) or Rule 164(b)).
(iii) Continued Compliance with Securities Laws.
(A) During the Prospectus Delivery Period, the Company will comply as far as it is able with all requirements imposed upon it by the Securities Act, as now and hereafter amended, and by the Rules and Regulations, as from time to time in force, and by the Exchange Act so far as necessary to permit the continuance of sales of or dealings in the Securities as contemplated by the provisions hereof, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. If during such period any event occurs as a result of which the Prospectus (or if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package) would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances then existing, not misleading, or if during such period it is necessary or appropriate in the opinion of the Company or its counsel or the Representative or counsel to the Underwriters to amend the Registration Statement or supplement the Prospectus (or, if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package) to comply with the Securities Act or to file under the Exchange Act any document which would be deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Prospectus in order to comply with the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, the Company promptly will (x) notify the Representative of such untrue statement or omission, (y) amend the Registration Statement or
supplement the Prospectus (or, if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package) or file such document (at the expense of the Company) so as to correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance, and (z) notify the Representative when any amendment to the Registration Statement is filed or becomes effective or when any supplement to the Prospectus (or, if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package) is filed.
(B) If at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conflicted or would conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus or included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances prevailing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company (x) has promptly notified or promptly will notify the Representative of such conflict, untrue statement or omission, (y) has promptly amended or will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict, untrue statement or omission, and (z) has notified or promptly will notify the Representative when such amendment or supplement was or is filed with the Commission where so required to be filed.
(iv) Blue Sky Qualifications. The Company shall take or cause to be taken all necessary action to qualify the Securities for sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as the Representative reasonably designates and to continue such qualifications in effect so long as required for the distribution of the Securities, except that the Company shall not be required in connection therewith to qualify as a foreign corporation (where not otherwise required), subject itself to taxation in any jurisdiction where not otherwise required, or to execute a general consent to service of process in any jurisdiction (where not otherwise required).
(v) Provision of Documents. The Company will furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and counsel for the Underwriters copies of the Registration Statement, and to the Underwriters and any dealer each Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and all amendments and supplements to such documents, in each case as soon as available and in such quantities as the Representative may from time to time reasonably request.
(vi) Rule 158. The Company will make generally available to its security holders as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 months after the end of the Company’s current fiscal quarter, an earnings statement (which need not be audited) covering a 12-month period that shall satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and Rule 158 of the Rules and Regulations.
(vii) Payment and Reimbursement of Expenses. The Company, whether or not the transactions contemplated hereunder are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, will pay or cause to be paid all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses relating to the offering of the Securities, including, without limitation, in each case to the extent applicable, (A) all filing fees and communication expenses relating to the registration of the Securities with the Commission, (B) all filing fees and other expenses (including the fees and disbursements of
counsel to the Underwriters) incurred in connection with qualification of the Shares for sale under the laws of such jurisdictions as the Representative reasonably designates and the preparation and printing of memoranda relating thereto, (C) costs and expenses related to the review of the offering of the Securities by FINRA, including all filing fees and the fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters relating to such review, (D) costs and expenses relating to investor presentations or any “road show” in connection with the Offering, including, without limitation, any travel expenses of the Company’s officers and employees and any other expenses of the Company, (E) fees and expenses incident to listing the Securities, on Nasdaq and on such other stock exchanges as the Company and the Representative determine together determine, (F) fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel and accountants in connection with the offering of the Securities, (G) expenses incurred in preparing, printing and distributing Preliminary Prospectus and Prospectus (including any amendments and supplements thereto) to the Underwriters and for expenses incurred for preparing, printing and distributing any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, (H) fees, disbursements and expenses of counsel to the Underwriters, (I) the costs and expenses of a public relations firm, (J) the costs of preparing, printing and delivering certificates representing the Securities, (K) fees and expenses of the transfer agent for the Securities, and (L) stock transfer and/or stamp taxes, if any, payable upon the transfer of the Securities to the Underwriters; provided, however, that the fees, costs and expenses incurred by the Underwriters (including, without limitation, the aggregate fees, disbursements and expenses of counsel to the Underwriters provided for in this clause (vii)) shall not exceed $150,000 in the aggregate.
(viii) Use of Proceeds. The Company will apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Securities to be sold by it hereunder for the purposes set forth in the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus.
(ix) Company Lock Up. The Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representative, from the date of execution of this Agreement and continuing to and including the date sixty (60) days after the date of the Prospectus, (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any shares of the capital stock of the Company or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of the capital stock of the Company; (ii) file or caused to be filed any registration statement with the Commission relating to the offering of any shares of the capital stock of the Company or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of the capital stock of the Company; or (iii) enter into any swap or other arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of shares of the capital stock of the Company, whether any such transaction described in clause (i), (ii) or (iii) above is to be settled by delivery of shares of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, except (A) to the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement, (B) the issuance by the Company of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of any stock options or warrants, or upon the conversion, or in payment of dividends or interest on, any shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share of the Company, preferred stock or convertible notes of the Company, outstanding as of the date hereof and disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, (C) the issuance by the Company of shares of Common Stock or securities convertible into shares of Common Stock pursuant to the Company’s equity incentive plans in effect on the date hereof and described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, (D) the filing of a registration statement on Form
S-8 with respect to the Company’s equity incentive plans in effect on the date hereof and described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus or (E) the issuance of securities pursuant to acquisitions, joint ventures, strategic alliances or other strategic transactions, including without limitation, collaborations or arrangements involving research and development or the purchase, sale or licensing of intellectual property, approved by a majority of the disinterested directors of the Company, provided that such securities are issued as “restricted securities” (as defined in Rule 144 under the Securities Act) and carry no registration rights that require or permit the filing of any registration statement in connection therewith within sixty (60) days following the date of the Prospectus, and provided that any such issuance shall only be to a person or an entity (or to the equity holders of an entity) which is, itself or through its subsidiaries, an operating company or an owner of an asset in a business synergistic with the business of the Company and shall provide to the Company additional benefits in addition to the investment of funds, but shall not include a transaction in which the Company is issuing securities primarily for the purpose of raising capital or to an entity whose primary business is investing in securities.
(x) Lock-Up Agreements. The Company has caused to be delivered to the Representative prior to the date of this Agreement a letter, in the form of Exhibit A hereto (the “Lock-Up Agreements”), from each director and executive officer listed on Schedule IV. The Company will enforce the terms of each Lock-Up Agreement and issue stop-transfer instructions to the transfer agent for the Common Stock with respect to any transaction or contemplated transaction that would constitute a breach of or default under the applicable Lock-Up Agreement.
(xi) No Market Stabilization or Manipulation. The Company has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or which might reasonably be expected to cause or result in, or which has constituted, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities.
(xii) SEC Reports. During the Prospectus Delivery Period, the Company will file on a timely basis with the Commission such periodic and special reports as required by the Rules and Regulations.
(xiii) Sarbanes-Oxley. To the extent legally required, the Company and each of its Subsidiaries will comply with all provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
(xiv) Free Writing Prospectuses. The Company represents and agrees that, unless it obtains the prior written consent of the Representative, and each Underwriter severally represents and agrees that, unless it obtains the prior written consent of the Company and the Representative, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or that would otherwise constitute a free writing prospectus required to be filed with the Commission; provided that the prior written consent of the parties hereto shall be deemed to have been given in respect of the free writing prospectuses included in Schedule II. Any such free writing prospectus consented to by the Company and the Representative is hereinafter referred to as a “Permitted Free Writing Prospectus.” The Company represents that it has treated or agrees that it will treat each Permitted Free Writing Prospectus as an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rules 164 and 433 of the Rules and Regulations applicable to any Permitted Free Writing Prospectus. The Company agrees not to take any action that would result in the Company being
required to file with the Commission under Rule 433(d) a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of the Company that otherwise would not be required to be filed by the Company thereunder, but for the action of the Company. Each Underwriter severally represents and agrees that, (A) unless it obtains the prior written consent of the Company and the Representative, it has not distributed, and will not distribute any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication other than those listed on Schedule V, and (B) any Testing-the-Waters Communication undertaken by it was with entities that are qualified institutional buyers with the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act or institutions that are accredited investors within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act.
5. Conditions of Underwriters’ Obligations. The obligations of the several Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy, as of the date hereof and at each of the First Closing Date and the Second Closing Date (each, a “Closing Date”) (as if made at such Closing Date), of and compliance with all representations, warranties and agreements of the Company contained herein, to the performance by the Company of its respective obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:
(a) Required Filings; Absence of Certain Commission Actions. If filing of the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, is required under the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations, the Company shall have filed the Prospectus (or such amendment or supplement) or such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus with the Commission in the manner and within the time period so required (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8) or Rule 164(b)); the Registration Statement shall remain effective; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, or any amendment thereof, nor suspending or preventing the use of the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been issued; no proceedings for the issuance of such an order shall have been initiated or threatened; any request of the Commission for additional information (to be included in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or otherwise) shall have been complied with to the Representative’s satisfaction.
(b) Continued Compliance with Securities Laws. No Underwriter shall have advised the Company that (i) the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof or supplement thereto contains an untrue statement of a material fact which, in the Representative’s opinion, is material or omits to state a material fact which, in the Representative’s opinion, is required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, or (ii) the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, or any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus contains an untrue statement of fact which, in the Representative’s opinion, is material, or omits to state a fact which, in the Representative’s opinion, is material and is required to be stated therein, or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading.
(c) Absence of Certain Events. Except as contemplated in the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus, subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries shall have incurred any material liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent, or entered into any material transactions, or declared or paid any dividends or made any distribution of any kind with respect to its capital stock; and there shall not have been any change in the capital stock (other than a change in the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock due to the issuance of shares upon the exercise of outstanding options or warrants or conversion of convertible securities), or any material change in the short-term or long-term debt of the Company (other than as a result of the conversion of convertible securities), or any issuance of options, warrants, convertible securities or other rights to purchase shares of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or any Material Adverse Effect or any development involving a prospective Material Adverse Effect (whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business), or any loss by strike, fire, flood, earthquake, accident or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, incurred by the Company or any Subsidiary, the effect of which, in any such case described above, in the Representative’s judgment, makes it impractical or inadvisable to offer or deliver the Securities on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus.
(d) No Downgrade. On or after the Time of Sale (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating accorded any of the Company’s securities by any “nationally recognized statistical organization,” as that term is defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the Exchange Act, and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, with possible negative implications, its rating of any of the Company’s securities.
(e) Opinion of Company Counsel. On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to the Representative, as Representative of the several Underwriters, the opinion and negative assurance letter of Jones Day, counsel for the Company, dated such Closing Date and addressed to the Representative and in such form and substance as is reasonably satisfactory to the Representative.
(f) Opinion of Intellectual Property Counsel. On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to the Representative, as Representative of the several Underwriters, the opinion of Acuity Law Group, PC, intellectual property counsel for the Company, dated such Closing Date and addressed to the Representative in such form and substance as is reasonably satisfactory to the Representative.
(g) Opinion of Underwriters’ Counsel. On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to the Representative, as Representative of the several Underwriters, the opinion and negative assurance letter from Lowenstein Sandler LLP, counsel for the several Underwriters, dated such Closing Date and addressed to the Representative, with respect to the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package or the Prospectus and other related matters as you reasonably may request, and such counsel shall have received such papers and information as they request to enable them to pass upon such matters.
(h) Comfort Letters. On the date hereof, on the effective date of any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement filed after the date hereof and on each Closing Date the Representative, as Representative of the several Underwriters, shall have received an accountant’s “comfort” letter of the Accountant, dated such date and addressed to the Representative, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative.
(i) Officers’ Certificate. On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to the Representative, as Representative of the Underwriters, a certificate, dated such Closing Date and addressed to the Representative, signed by the chief executive officer and by the chief financial officer of the Company, to the effect that:
(i) The representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct as if made at and as of such Closing Date, and the Company has complied with all the agreements and satisfied all the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to such Closing Date;
(ii) No stop order or other order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof or any amendment thereof or the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale nor suspending or preventing the use of the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, has been issued, and no proceeding for that purpose has been instituted or, to the best of their knowledge, is contemplated by the Commission or any state or regulatory body; and
(iii) Affirms the accuracy of the matters set forth in subsection (c) of this Section 5.
(j) Lock-Up Agreements. The Underwriters shall have received all of the Lock-Up Agreements referenced in Section 4 and the Lock-Up Agreements shall remain in full force and effect.
(k) FINRA No Objections. FINRA shall have raised no objection to the fairness and reasonableness of the underwriting terms and arrangements.
(l) Other Documents. The Company shall have furnished to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters such additional documents, certificates and evidence as the Representative or they may have reasonably requested.
(m) Exchange Listing. The Company shall have taken such actions as required by Nasdaq in order to cause the Securities to be delivered on such Closing Date to be listed on Nasdaq.
(n) [Reserved]
All such opinions, certificates, letters and other documents will be in compliance with the provisions hereof only if they are reasonably satisfactory in form and substance to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters. The Company will furnish the Representative with such conformed copies of such opinions, certificates, letters and other documents as the Representative shall reasonably request.
6. Indemnification and Contribution.
(a) Indemnification by the Company. The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its affiliates, directors and officers and each person, if any, who controls such Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, from and against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which such Underwriter may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise (including any reasonable investigation, legal and other expenses incurred in connection with, and any amount paid in settlement of any action, suit or proceeding or any claim asserted), insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon: (i) an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, including the Rule 430B Information and any other information deemed to be a part of the Registration Statement at the time of effectiveness and at any subsequent time pursuant to the Rules and Regulations, if applicable, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any issuer information that the Company has filed or is required to file pursuant to Rule 433(d) of the Rules and Regulations, any roadshow materials, or any Testing-the-Waters Communication or (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading (in the case of the Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made), and will reimburse each Underwriter for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by it in connection with investigating or defending against such loss, claim, damage, liability or action as such expenses are incurred; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of or is based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by the Representative, or by any Underwriter through the Representative, specifically for use in the preparation thereof; it being understood and agreed that the only information furnished by an Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 6(e).
(b) Indemnification by the Underwriters. Each Underwriter will, severally and not jointly, indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its affiliates, directors and officers and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act and Section 20 of the Exchange Act, from and against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which the Company may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise (including in settlement of any litigation, if such settlement is effected with the written consent of such Underwriter), insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) (i) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any issuer information that the Company has filed or is required to file pursuant to Rule 433(d) of the Rules and Regulations, or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, or any road show, or (ii) arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading (in the case of the Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made), in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in reliance on or in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by the Representative, or by such Underwriter through the Representative, specifically for use in the preparation thereof (it being understood and agreed that the only information furnished by an Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 6(e)), and will reimburse the Company for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the Company in connection with investigating or defending against any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action as such expenses are incurred.
(c) Notice and Procedures. Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such subsection, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the commencement thereof; but the omission so to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve the indemnifying party from any liability that it may have to any indemnified party except to the extent such indemnifying party has been materially prejudiced by such failure (through the forfeiture of substantive rights or defenses). In case any such action shall be brought against any indemnified party, and it shall notify the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate in, and, to the extent that it shall wish, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume the defense thereof, with counsel satisfactory to such indemnified party, and after notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of the indemnifying party’s election so to assume the defense thereof, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to such indemnified party under such subsection for any legal or other expenses subsequently incurred by such indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation; provided, however, that if, in the sole judgment of the Representative, it is advisable for the Underwriters to be represented as a group by separate counsel, the Representative shall have the right to employ a single counsel (in addition to local counsel) to represent the Representative and all Underwriters who may be subject to liability arising from any claim in respect of which indemnity may be sought by the Underwriters under subsection (a) of this Section 6, in which event the reasonable fees and expenses of such separate counsel shall be borne by the indemnifying party or parties and reimbursed to the Underwriters as incurred. An indemnifying party shall not be obligated under any settlement agreement relating to any action under this Section 6 to which it has not agreed in writing. In addition, no indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed), effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party for all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding and does not include a statement as to, or an admission of, fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of an indemnified party. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel pursuant to this Section 6(c), such indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 45 days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request and (ii) such indemnifying party shall not have reimbursed such indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement.
(d) Contribution; Limitations on Liability; Non-Exclusive Remedy. If the indemnification provided for in this Section 6 is unavailable or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to in subsection (a) or (b) above, (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the
other from the offering of the Securities or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) above but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering (before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus. The relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or the Underwriters and the parties’ relevant intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such untrue statement or omission. The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this subsection (d) were to be determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in the first sentence of this subsection (d). The amount paid by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to in the first sentence of this subsection (d) shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending against any action or claim which is the subject of this subsection (d). Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (d), no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by such Underwriter with respect to the Securities purchased by it hereunder exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations in this subsection (d) to contribute are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations and not joint. The remedies provided for in this Section 6 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies that might otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.
(e) Information Provided by the Underwriters. The Underwriters severally confirm and the Company acknowledges that the statements with respect to the public offering of the Securities by the Underwriters set forth in the first and second paragraphs under the caption “Underwriting – Price Stabilization, Short Positions and Penalty Bids” and the selling concession in the third paragraph under the caption “Underwriting – Commissions and Discounts” in the Time of Sale Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus are correct and constitute the only information concerning such Underwriters furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of the Underwriters specifically for inclusion in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus.
7. Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery. All representations, warranties, and agreements of the Company herein or in certificates delivered pursuant hereto, including but not limited to the agreements of the several Underwriters and the Company contained in Section 6 hereof, shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or any controlling person thereof, or the Company or any of its officers, directors, or controlling persons, and shall survive delivery of, and payment for, the Securities to and by the Underwriters hereunder and any termination of this Agreement.
8. Substitution of Underwriters.
(a) Obligation to Purchase Under Certain Circumstances. If any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail to take up and pay for the amount of Firm Shares agreed by such Underwriter or Underwriters to be purchased hereunder, upon tender of such Firm Shares in accordance with the terms hereof, and the amount of Firm Shares not purchased does not aggregate to more than 10% of the total amount of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule I hereto, the remaining Underwriters shall be obligated to take up and pay for (in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations hereunder as set forth in Schedule I hereto except as may otherwise be determined by the Representative) the Firm Shares that the withdrawing or defaulting Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase.
(b) Termination Under Certain Circumstances. If any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail to take up and pay for the amount of Firm Shares agreed by such Underwriter or Underwriters to be purchased hereunder, upon tender of such Firm Shares in accordance with the terms hereof, and the amount of Firm Shares not purchased aggregates more than 10% of the total amount of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule I hereto, and arrangements satisfactory to the Representative for the purchase of such Firm Shares by other persons are not made within 36 hours thereafter, this Agreement shall terminate. In the event of any such termination the Company shall not be under any liability to any Underwriter (except to the extent provided in Section 4(a)(vii) and Section 6 hereof) nor shall any Underwriter (other than an Underwriter who shall have failed, otherwise than for some reason permitted under this Agreement, to purchase the amount of Firm Shares agreed by such Underwriter to be purchased hereunder) be under any liability to the Company (except to the extent provided in Section 6 hereof).
(c) Postponement of Closing. If Firm Shares to which a default relates are to be purchased by the non-defaulting Underwriters or by any other party or parties, the Representative or the Company shall have the right to postpone the First Closing Date for not more than seven business days in order that the necessary changes in the Registration Statement, in the Time of Sale Disclosure Package, in the Prospectus or in any other documents, as well as any other arrangements, may be effected. As used herein, the term “Underwriter” includes any person substituted for an Underwriter under this Section 8.
(d) No Relief from Liability. No action taken pursuant to this Section shall relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability, if any, in respect of such default.
9. Termination of this Agreement.
(a) Right to Terminate. The Representative, as Representative of the several Underwriters, shall have the right to terminate this Agreement by giving notice as hereinafter specified at any time at or prior to the First Closing Date, and the option referred to in Section 3(b), if exercised, may be cancelled at any time prior to the Second Closing Date, if (i) the Company shall have failed, refused or been unable, at or prior to such Closing Date, to perform any agreement on its part to be performed hereunder, (ii) any other condition of the Underwriters’ obligations hereunder is not fulfilled, (iii) trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market or New York Stock Exchange shall have been wholly suspended or trading in any securities of the Company on any exchange or in the over-the-counter market, shall have been suspended or materially limited, (iv) minimum or maximum prices for trading shall have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices for securities shall have been required, on the Nasdaq Stock Market or New York Stock Exchange, by such exchange or by order of the Commission or any other Governmental Authority, (v) a banking moratorium shall have been declared by federal or state authorities, or (vi) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis that, in the Representative’s judgment, is material and adverse and makes it impractical or inadvisable to proceed with the completion of the sale of and payment for the Securities. Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 4(g) and Section 6 hereof shall at all times be effective.
(b) Notice of Termination. If the Representative elect to terminate this Agreement as provided in this Section, the Company shall be notified promptly by the Representative by telephone, confirmed by letter.
10. Default by the Company.
(a) Default by the Company. If the Company shall fail at the First Closing Date to sell and deliver the number of Securities which it is obligated to sell hereunder, then this Agreement shall terminate without any liability on the part of any Underwriter or, except as provided in Section 4(a)(vii) and Section 6 hereof, any non-defaulting party.
(b) No Relief from Liability. No action taken pursuant to this Section shall relieve the Company from liability, if any, in respect of such default.
11. Notices. Except as otherwise provided herein, all communications hereunder shall be in writing and, if to the Underwriters, shall be mailed via overnight delivery service or hand delivered via courier to the Representative at c/o BTIG, LLC, 350 Bush Street, 9th Floor, San Francisco, California 94104, Attention: General Counsel, with a copy to Lowenstein Sandler LLP, 1251 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020, Attention: Steven Skolnick; if to the Company, shall be mailed or delivered to it at 6455 Nancy Ridge Drive, San Diego, CA 92121 Attention: Peter Beetham, with copies (which shall not constitute notice) to (i) Jason Stokes at 6455 Nancy Ridge Drive, San Diego, CA 92121, and (ii) Jones Day, 250 Vesey Street, New York, New York 10281, Attention: Peter Devlin. Any party to this Agreement may change such address for notices by sending to the parties to this Agreement written notice of a new address for such purpose.
12. Persons Entitled to Benefit of Agreement. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns and the controlling persons, officers and directors referred to in Section 6. Nothing in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give to any other person, firm or corporation any legal or equitable remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision herein contained. The term “successors and assigns” as herein used shall not include any purchaser, as such purchaser, of any of the Securities from any of the several Underwriters.
13. Absence of Fiduciary Relationship. The Company acknowledges and agrees that: (a) the Representative has been retained solely to act as underwriters in connection with the sale of the Securities and that no fiduciary, advisory or agency relationship between the Company and the Representative has been created in respect of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, irrespective of whether the Representative has advised or are advising the Company on other matters; (b) the price and other terms of the Securities set forth in this Agreement were established by the Company following discussions and arms-length negotiations with the Representative and the Company is capable of evaluating and understanding and understands and accepts the terms, risks and conditions of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement; (c) it has been advised that the Representative and its affiliates are engaged in a broad range of transactions which may involve interests that differ from those of the Company and that the Representative has no obligation to disclose such interest and transactions to the Company by virtue of any fiduciary, advisory or agency relationship; (d) it has been advised that the Representative is acting, in respect of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, solely for the benefit of the Representative and the other Underwriters, and not on behalf of the Company; (e) it, he or she waives to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claims it may have against the Representative for breach of fiduciary duty or alleged breach of fiduciary duty in respect of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and agrees that the Representative shall have no liability (whether direct or indirect) to the Company in respect of such a fiduciary duty claim on behalf of or in right of the Company, including stockholders, employees or creditors of the Company.
14. Governing Law; Waiver of Jury Trial. This Agreement and any transaction contemplated by this Agreement and any claim, controversy or dispute arising under or related thereto shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York without regard to principles of conflict of laws that would results in the application of any other law than the laws of the State of New York. The Company (on its behalf and, to the extent permitted by applicable law, on behalf of its stockholders and affiliates) and each of the Underwriters hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.
15. Submission to Jurisdiction, Etc. Each party hereby submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the U.S. federal and New York state courts sitting in the Borough of Manhattan, City of New York (collectively, the “Specified Courts”), in any suit or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby. The parties hereby irrevocably and unconditionally waive any objection to the laying of venue of any lawsuit, action or other proceeding in such courts, and hereby further irrevocably and unconditionally waive and agree not to plead or claim in any such court that any such lawsuit, action or other proceeding brought in any such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum. With respect to any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby (a “Related Proceeding”), each party irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, all immunity (whether on the basis of sovereignty or otherwise) from
jurisdiction, service of process, attachment (both before and after judgment) and execution to which it might otherwise be entitled in the Specified Courts, and with respect to any judgment of any such court (a “Related Judgment”), each party waives any such immunity in the Specified Courts or any other court of competent jurisdiction, and will not raise or claim or cause to be pleaded any such immunity at or in respect of any such Related Proceeding or Related Judgment, including, without limitation, any immunity pursuant to the United States Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, as amended.
16. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts and, if executed in more than one counterpart, the executed counterparts shall each be deemed to be an original and all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument. Counterparts may be delivered via facsimile or electronic mail (including, without limitation, “pdf”, “tif” or “jpg”) and any counterpart so delivered shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes.
17. General Provisions. Other than the Engagement Letter, dated October 27, 2025, by and among the Company and BTIG, LLC, as amended (which shall remain in full force and effect), this Agreement constitutes the entire agreement of the parties to this Agreement and supersedes all prior written or oral and all contemporaneous oral agreements, understandings and negotiations with respect to the subject matter hereof. This Agreement may not be amended or modified unless in writing by all of the parties hereto, and no condition herein (express or implied) may be waived unless waived in writing by each party whom the condition is meant to benefit. The Section headings herein are for the convenience of the parties only and shall not affect the construction or interpretation of this Agreement.
[Signature Page Follows]
Please sign and return to the Company the enclosed duplicates of this Agreement whereupon this Agreement will become a binding agreement between the Company and the several Underwriters in accordance with its terms.
| Very truly yours, | ||
| CIBUS, INC. | ||
| By | /s/ Peter Beetham | |
| Name: | Peter Beetham | |
| Title: | Interim Chief Executive Officer | |
| As Representative of the several Underwriters named in the attached Schedule I. | ||
| BTIG, LLC | ||
| By | /s/ KC Stone | |
| Name: | KC Stone | |
| Title: | Managing Director | |
Signature Page to Underwriting Agreement
SCHEDULE I
| Number of Firm Shares | ||||
| BTIG, LLC |
13,333,333 | |||
|
|
|
|||
| Total: |
13,333,333 | |||
|
|
|
|||
SCHEDULE II
Certain Permitted Free Writing Prospectuses
None.
SCHEDULE III
Pricing Information
Number of Firm Shares Being Offered: 13,333,333 shares of Common Stock
Number of Option Shares Being Offered: 1,999,999 shares of Common Stock
Public Offering Price Per Share of Common Stock: $1.50
Underwriting Discount and Commissions per share of Common Stock: $0.09375
SCHEDULE IV
List of Individuals and Entities Executing Lock-Up Agreements
| • | Peter Beetham |
| • | Greg Gocal |
| • | Cornelis (Carlo) Broos |
| • | Noel Sauer |
| • | Jason Stokes |
| • | Rory Riggs |
| • | Mark Finn |
| • | Jean-Pierre Lehmann |
| • | Gerhard Prante, Ph.D. |
| • | August Moretti |
| • | Keith Walker |
| • | Kimberly Box |
| • | Craig Wichner |
SCHEDULE V
Written Testing-the-Waters Communications
None.
EXHIBIT A
Form of Lock-Up Agreement
____________ 2026
BTIG, LLC
as Representative of the several Underwriters
c/o BTIG, LLC
350 Bush Street, 9th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94104
Re: Proposed Public Offering by Cibus, Inc.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The undersigned, an executive officer and/or director of Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), understands that BTIG, LLC (“BTIG”) proposes to enter into an Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with the Company providing for the public offering (the “Public Offering”) of shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”). In recognition of the benefit that such an offering will confer upon the undersigned as an executive officer and/or a director of the Company, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the undersigned agrees with each underwriter to be named in the Underwriting Agreement that, during the period beginning on the date hereof and ending on the date that is sixty (60) days from the date of the Underwriting Agreement (the “Lock-Up Period”), the undersigned will not, without the prior written consent of BTIG, on behalf of the Underwriters, directly or indirectly, (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant for the sale of, or otherwise dispose of or transfer any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for shares of Common Stock, whether now owned or hereafter acquired by the undersigned or with respect to which the undersigned has or hereafter acquires the power of disposition (collectively, the “Lock-Up Securities”), or exercise any right with respect to the registration of any of the Lock-Up Securities, or file or cause to be filed any registration statement in connection therewith, under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or (ii) enter into any swap or any other agreement or any transaction that transfers, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, the economic consequence of ownership of the Lock-Up Securities, whether any such swap or transaction is to be settled by delivery of shares of Common Stock or other securities, in cash or otherwise.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, and subject to the conditions below, the undersigned may transfer Lock-Up Securities without the prior written consent of BTIG, provided, in each case, that (1) in the case of clauses (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) below, (A) BTIG receives a signed lock-up agreement for the balance of the Lock-Up Period from each donee, trustee, distributee, or transferee, as the case may be and (B) any such transfer shall not involve a disposition for value, and (2) in the case of clauses (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v) and (vii) it shall be a condition to such transfer that if any filing under Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or other public filing, report or announcement reporting a reduction in beneficial ownership of shares of Common Stock in connection with such transfer or distribution shall be legally required during the Lock-Up Period, such filing, report or announcement shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto the nature and conditions of such transfer:
| (i) | as a bona fide gift or gifts, including a bona fide gift or gifts to a charitable organization or educational institution; |
| (ii) | to any member of the immediate family of the undersigned or to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family of the undersigned (for purposes of this lock-up agreement, “immediate family” shall mean any relationship by blood, marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin); |
| (iii) | as a distribution or other transfer by a partnership to its partners or former partners or by a limited liability company to its members or retired members or by a corporation to its stockholders or former stockholders or to any wholly-owned subsidiary of such corporation; |
| (iv) | to the undersigned’s affiliates or to any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by the undersigned; |
| (v) | by operation of law pursuant to an order of a court or regulatory agency or pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order or in connection with a divorce settlement; |
| (vi) | by will or intestate succession upon the death of the undersigned; |
| (vii) | to the Company in satisfaction of any tax withholding obligation; or |
| (viii) | in transactions relating to Securities acquired in the Public Offering or in open market transactions after the completion of the Public Offering; provided that no filing under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act or other public announcement shall be required or shall be voluntarily made during the Lock-Up Period in connection with subsequent sales of Securities acquired in the Public Offering or in such open market transactions. |
Furthermore, no provision in this letter shall be deemed to restrict or prohibit (1) the transfer of the undersigned’s Lock-Up Securities to the Company in connection with the termination of the undersigned’s services to the Company, provided that any filing under Section 16 of the Exchange Act made in connection with such transfer shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that the filing relates to the circumstances described in this clause (1); (2) the exercise or exchange by the undersigned of any option or warrant to acquire any shares of Common Stock or options to purchase shares of Common Stock or vesting and settlement of any restricted stock awards or units, including the transfers of shares of Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock to the Company upon a vesting
event of the Company’s securities or upon the exercise or conversion of options or warrants to purchase the Company’s securities in each case for cash or on a “cashless” or “net exercise” basis or any transfer to cover tax withholding obligations of the undersigned in connection with such vesting or exercise, pursuant to any stock option, stock bonus or other stock plan or arrangement; provided, however, that the underlying shares of Common Stock shall continue to be subject to the restrictions on transfer set forth in this letter and that any filing under Section 16 of the Exchange Act made in connection with such exercise or exchange shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that (a) the filing relates to the circumstances described in this clause (2) and (b) the purpose of such transfer was to cover tax withholding obligations of the undersigned in connection with such vesting or exercise; (3) the transfer of Lock-Up Securities upon the completion of a bona fide third-party tender offer, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction made to all holders of the Company’s securities involving a change of control of the Company; provided, however, that in the event that such tender offer, merger, consolidation or other such transaction is not completed, such securities held by the undersigned shall remain subject to the restrictions on transfer set forth in this letter; and (4) conversions or exchanges of shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company for or into Common Stock.
Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, nothing herein shall prevent the undersigned from establishing or continuing to use a 10b5-1 trading plan that complies with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act (“10b5-1 Trading Plan”) or from amending an existing 10b5-1 Trading Plan so long as, other than pursuant to any 10b5-1 Trading Plans in effect on the date hereof, there are no sales of Lock-Up Securities under any such 10b5-1 Trading Plan during the Lock-Up Period.
The undersigned also agrees and consents to the entry of stop transfer instructions with the Company’s transfer agent and registrar against the transfer of the Lock-Up Securities except in compliance with the foregoing restrictions. This lock-up agreement shall automatically terminate, and the undersigned shall be released from the undersigned’s obligations hereunder, upon the earliest to occur, if any, of (i) prior to the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, the Company advises BTIG in writing that it has determined not to proceed with the Public Offering; (ii) the Underwriting Agreement is executed but is terminated prior to the closing of the Public Offering (other than the provisions thereof which survive termination), or (iii) February 28, 2026, in the event that the Underwriting Agreement has not been executed by such date.
This agreement shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York, without regard to the conflict of laws principles thereof that would result in the application of the law of any other jurisdiction.
Delivery of a signed copy of this agreement by facsimile or e-mail/.pdf transmission shall be effective as the delivery of the original hereof.
| Very truly yours, |
| Name of Security Holder (Print exact name) |
| By: ________________________________________ |
| Signature |
| If not signing in an individual capacity: |
| Name of Authorized Signatory (Print) |
| Title of Authorized Signatory (Print) |
| (indicate capacity of person signing if signing as custodian, trustee, or on behalf of an entity) | ||
[SIGNATURE PAGE TO LOCK-UP AGREEMENT]
Exhibit 5.1
250 VESEY STREET • NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281.1047
TELEPHONE: +1.212.326.3939 • JONESDAY.COM
January 30, 2026
Cibus, Inc.
6455 Nancy Ridge Drive
San Diego, CA 92121
| Re: | Up to 15,333,332 Shares of Class A Common Stock of Cibus, Inc. |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We are acting as counsel for Cibus, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), in connection with the issuance and sale by the Company of up to 15,333,332 shares (the “Shares”) of the Company’s Class A Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Class A Common Stock”), pursuant to an Underwriting Agreement, dated as of January 29, 2026 (the “Underwriting Agreement”), by and among the Company and BTIG, LLC.
In connection with the opinion expressed herein, we have examined such documents, records and matters of law as we have deemed relevant or necessary for purposes of such opinion. Based upon the foregoing and subject to the further assumptions, qualifications and limitations set forth herein, we are of the opinion that the Shares, when issued and delivered pursuant to the terms of the Underwriting Agreement against payment of the consideration therefor as provided in the Underwriting Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.
As to facts material to the opinion expressed herein, we have relied upon oral or written statements and representations of officers and other representatives of the Company and others. The opinion expressed herein is limited to the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, as currently in effect, and we express no opinion as to the effect of any other Delaware law or the laws of any other jurisdiction.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as Exhibit 5.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K, dated the date hereof, filed by the Company and incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement on Form S-3 (Registration No. 333-273062) (the “Registration Statement”) filed by the Company to effect the registration of the Shares under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Act”), and to the reference to us under the caption “Legal Matters” in the prospectus constituting a part of such Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are included in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Act or the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission promulgated thereunder.
| Very truly yours, |
| /s/ Jones Day |
