Tron Inc S-3/A, filed Aug 22, 2025
Tron Inc. (TRON)
As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 22, 2025
Registration No. 333-288986
UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO
FORM S-3
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
TRON INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Nevada | 32-0686534 | |
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) |
941
W. Morse Blvd. Suite 100
Winter Park, FL 32789
Phone: 407-230-8100
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)
Richard
Miller, Chief Executive Officer
Tron Inc.
941 W. Morse Blvd. Suite 100
Winter Park, FL 32789
Phone: 407-230-8100
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
Copies to:
Lawrence Venick, Esq.
Loeb & Loeb LLP
2206-19 Jardine House
1 Connaught Place, Central
Hong Kong SAR
+1 (310) 728 5129
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: From time to time after the effective date of the registration statement.
If the only securities being registered on this Form are being offered pursuant to dividend or interest reinvestment plans, please check the following box. ☐
If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, other than securities offered only in connection with dividend or interest reinvestment plans, check the following box. ☒
If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a registration statement pursuant to General Instruction I.D. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.D. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ☐ |
| Non-accelerated filer | ☒ | Smaller reporting company | ☒ |
| 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 7(a)(2)(B) of Securities Act. ☐
The registrant hereby amends this registration statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment that specifically states that this registration statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or until this registration statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.
The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED AUGUST 22, 2025
PROSPECTUS
TRON
INC.
$1,000,000,000
Common Stock
Preferred Stock
Debt Securities
Warrants
Rights
Units
We may, from time to time in one or more offerings, offer and sell up to $1,000,000,000 in the aggregate of common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants and rights to purchase common stock or preferred stock, or any combination of the foregoing, either individually or as units comprised of one or more of the other securities.
This prospectus provides a general description of the securities we may offer. We will provide the specific terms of the securities offered in one or more supplements to this prospectus. We may also authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to you in connection with these offerings. The prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus may add, update or change information contained in this prospectus. You should read carefully this prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, as well as the documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference, before you invest in any of our securities. This prospectus may not be used to offer or sell any securities unless accompanied by the applicable prospectus supplement.
Our common stock is traded on The Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “TRON.” On July 24, 2025, the last reported sale price for our common stock was $8.74 per share. As of that date, the Company is no longer subject to General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3.
We may sell these securities directly to investors, through agents designated from time to time or to or through underwriters or dealers. For additional information on the methods of sale, you should refer to the section entitled “Plan of Distribution” in this prospectus. If any underwriters are involved in the sale of any securities with respect to which this prospectus is being delivered, the names of such underwriters and any applicable commissions or discounts will be set forth in a prospectus supplement. The price to the public of such securities and the net proceeds we expect to receive from such sale will also be set forth in a prospectus supplement.
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risks. Please carefully consider the “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K incorporated by reference in this prospectus, the “Risk Factors” beginning on page 14 of this prospectus, and in any applicable prospectus supplement, for a discussion of the factors you should consider carefully before deciding to purchase these securities and consider the following:
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities, or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus or any accompanying prospectus supplement. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
The date of this prospectus is August 22, 2025.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, using a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf registration process, we may from time to time sell common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants or rights to purchase common stock or preferred stock, or any combination of the foregoing, either individually or as units comprised of one or more of the other securities, in one or more offerings up to a total dollar amount of $1,000,000,000. We have provided to you in this prospectus a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we sell securities under this shelf registration, we will, to the extent required by law, provide a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about the terms of that offering. We may also authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to you that may contain material information relating to these offerings. The prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus that we may authorize to be provided to you may also add, update or change information contained in this prospectus or in any documents that we have incorporated by reference into this prospectus. To the extent there is a conflict between the information contained in this prospectus and the prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus, you should rely on the information in the prospectus supplement or the related free writing prospectus; provided that if any statement in one of these documents is inconsistent with a statement in another document having a later date – for example, a document filed after the date of this prospectus and incorporated by reference into this prospectus or any prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus – the statement in the document having the later date modifies or supersedes the earlier statement.
We have not authorized any dealer, agent or other person to give any information or to make any representation other than those contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement, or any related free writing prospectus that we may authorize to be provided to you. You must not rely upon any information or representation not contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus or an accompanying prospectus supplement, or any related free writing prospectus that we may authorize to be provided to you. This prospectus and the accompanying prospectus supplement, if any, do not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities other than the registered securities to which they relate, nor do this prospectus and the accompanying prospectus supplement constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation in such jurisdiction. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus is accurate on any date subsequent to the date set forth on the front of the document or that any information we have incorporated by reference is correct on any date subsequent to the date of the document incorporated by reference (as our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date), even though this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus is delivered or securities are sold on a later date.
As permitted by SEC rules and regulations, the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part includes additional information not contained in this prospectus. You may read the registration statement and the other reports we file with the SEC at its website or at its offices described below under “Where You Can Find More Information.”
Unless the context otherwise requires, all references in this prospectus to “we,” “us,” “our company,” “the Company,” “our” or similar words refer to Tron Inc. (or SRM Entertainment, Inc., as the case may be), together with our subsidiaries.
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NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus and our SEC filings that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus contain or incorporate by reference forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. All statements other than statements of historical fact are “forward-looking statements,” including any projections of earnings, revenue or other financial items, any statements of the plans, strategies and objectives of management for future operations, any statements concerning proposed new projects or other developments, any statements regarding future economic conditions or performance, any statements of management’s beliefs, goals, strategies, intentions and objectives, and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. The words “believe,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “could,” “should,” “potential,” “likely,” “projects,” “continue,” “will,” and “would” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events, are based on assumptions and are subject to risks and uncertainties. We cannot guarantee that we actually will achieve the plans, intentions or expectations expressed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on these statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements. These important factors include those discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus and in the applicable prospectus supplement and any free writing prospectus we may authorize for use in connection with a specific offering. These factors and the other cautionary statements made in this prospectus should be read as being applicable to all related forward-looking statements whenever they appear in this prospectus. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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The following summary may not contain all the information that may be important to you in making an investment in our securities. This prospectus incorporates important business and financial information about us that is not included in, or delivered with, this prospectus. Before making an investment, you should read the entire prospectus carefully. You should also carefully read the risks of investing discussed under “Risk Factors” and the financial statements included in our other filings with the SEC. This information is incorporated by reference into this prospectus, and you can obtain it from the SEC as described below under the headings “Where You Can Find Additional Information About Us” and “Incorporation of Certain Documents by Reference.”
Our Business
General
Tron Inc., formerly SRM Entertainment, Inc., is a publicly traded company pioneering blockchain-integrated treasury strategies. As the public company with the largest TRON (TRX) tokens holdings, the Company is committed to transparency, and the adoption of decentralized financial for long-term value creation. In addition, through our wholly owned subsidiary, the Company designs, develops, and manufactures custom merchandise which includes toys and souvenirs for the world’s largest theme parks and other entertainment venues. Many of the Company’s products are based on award winning multi-billion-dollar entertainment franchises that are featured in popular movies and books. The products are distributed worldwide at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Universal Parks and Destinations, United Parks and Resorts – SeaWorld, Six Flags and other attractions.
Tron Inc. is a Nevada corporation and was incorporated on April 22, 2022. SRM Entertainment Limited (“SRM Ltd”), being a limited company incorporated in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China on January 23, 1981, was formerly owned by Safety Shot, Inc. Effective August 14, 2023, the Company acquired SRM Ltd. The combined company is collectively referred to as the Company.
On June 16, 2025, we entered into the June Securities Purchase Agreement (as defined below) with the Investor (as defined below). See “Recent Developments” for more information on this transaction and also on the Employment Agreement Amendments, the Name Change, the Symbol Change and the Charter Amendment (all as defined below). These moves reflect the Company’s broader strategic transformation and its commitment to aligning more closely with the Tron blockchain ecosystem, following the launch of its Tron-focused treasury strategy. The Company’s ticker change to “TRON” reinforces its brand identity and positions it as a key corporate player in the rapidly evolving blockchain and digital asset economy.
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying financial statements are presented in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of US Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).
Business
Toy and Souvenir
The Company is a trusted toy and souvenir designer and developer, selling into the world’s largest theme parks and entertainment venues.
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Our toy and souvenir business is built on the principle that almost everyone is a fan of something and the evolution of pop culture is leading to increasing opportunities for fan loyalty. We create whimsical, fun and unique products that enable fans to express their affinity for their favorite “something”-whether it is a movie, TV show, favorite celebrity, or favorite restaurant. We infuse our distinct designs and aesthetic sensibility into a wide variety of product categories, including figures, plush, accessories, apparel, and homewares. With our unique style, expertise in pop culture, broad product distribution and highly accessible price points, we have developed a passionate following for our products that has underpinned our growth. We believe we sit at the nexus of pop culture-content providers value us for our broad network of retail customers, retailers value us for our portfolio of pop culture products and pop culture insights, and consumers value us for our distinct, stylized products and the content they represent.
Pop culture pervades modern life and almost everyone is a fan of something. Today, more quality content is available and technology innovation has made content accessible anytime, anywhere. As a result, the breadth and depth of pop culture fandom resembles, and in many cases exceeds, the type of fandom previously associated only with sports. Everyday interactions at home, work or with friends are increasingly influenced by pop culture.
We have invested strategically in our relationships with key constituents in pop culture. Content providers value us for our broad network of retail customers and retailers value us for our pop culture products, pop culture insights and ability to drive consumer traffic. Consumers, who value us for our distinct, stylized products, remain at the center of everything we do.
Content Providers: We have licensing relationships with many established content providers, and our products appear in venues such as Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, Cedar Fair, Herschend Family Entertainment and Merlin Entertainment. We currently have licenses with Smurfs, The ICEE Company and Zoonicorn LLC, from which we can create multiple products based on each character within. Content providers trust us to design, create and manufacture unique, stylized extensions of their intellectual property that extend the relevance of their content with consumers through ongoing engagement, helping to maximize the lifetime value of their content.
Consumers: Fans are increasingly looking for ways to express their affinity for and engage with their favorite pop culture content. Over time, many of our consumers evolve from occasional buyers to more frequent purchasers, whom we categorize as enthusiasts or collectors. We create innovative products to appeal to a broad array of fans across consumer demographic groups-men, women, boys and girls-not a single, narrow demographic. We currently offer an array of products that sell across several categories. Our products are generally priced between $2.50 and $50.00, which allows our diverse consumer base to express their fandom frequently and impulsively. We continue to introduce innovative products designed to facilitate fan engagement at different price points and styles.
We have developed a nimble and low-fixed cost production model. The strength of our management team and relationships with content providers, retailers and third-party manufacturers allows us to move from product concept to a new product tactfully. As a result, we can dynamically manage our toy and souvenir business to balance current content releases and pop culture trends with timeless content based on classic movies, such as Harry Potter or Star Wars. This has allowed us to deliver significant growth while lessening our dependence on individual content releases.
TRX Tokens Treasury
Founded in 2017, TRON is a decentralized blockchain network that supports smart contracts and decentralized applications. TRX token is the governance token of the TRON network, which is used to pay for on-chain transaction fees, participate in network governance and incentivize validators who generate transaction blocks for the network. Users can also stake TRX tokens to vote for validators who facilitate the block validation process and earn staking rewards.
We believe that the TRX token is an attractive digital asset which can create long-term value for our shareholders by capitalizing on the global adoption of blockchain and digital innovation.
The Company has adopted a Treasury Reserve Policy (“Treasury Reserve Policy”) which set out our treasury management and capital allocation strategies, under which our treasury reserve assets will consist of:
| ● | cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments (“Cash Assets”) held by us that exceed working capital requirements; and | |
| ● | TRX tokens held by us, as the primary treasury holding asset on an ongoing basis, subject to market conditions and anticipated needs of the business for Cash Assets. |
TRX token is the native token of the TRON blockchain. As of July 28, 2025, TRX token ranked number 7 by market valuation among all non-stablecoin crypto tokens globally. The Company’s plan is to accumulate and hold TRX tokens in its treasury and stake substantially all TRX tokens to earn yield. The Company has been staking TRX tokens in its treasury through JustLend, the leading decentralized finance (“DeFi”) protocol on the TRON blockchain, to earn enhanced staking yield generated from both standard TRX staking (i.e. token rewards derived from delegating to super representative nodes) and “energy” renting from idle TRON resources entitled by TRX staking. Such yield, ranging from 5% to 10% annualized (or occasionally more), is in general higher than sector peers in the crypto treasury strategy category.
The use cases of TRX token include (but are not limited to):
(i) Governance of TRON blockchain: By staking their TRX token holdings, TRX token holders will be able to vote for super representative candidates. The top 27 super representative candidates with the highest votes will become the super representative nodes (the “SR”) and be able to participate in validation and block production. The super representative candidates who rank 28th to 127th are called super representative partners (the “SR Partners”). Each of the SR, SR Partners and other qualified token holders may initiate community proposals, but only SRs are entitled to vote for the proposals. As of July 28, 2025, the SRs of TRON blockchain include, among others, Google Cloud, Binance, HTX, Kraken, OKX, OKCoin Japan, Kiln, P2P.org, Nansen, and Abra Capital etc.
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(ii) Transaction fees on TRON blockchain: TRX token is primarily used to pay transaction fees on the TRON blockchain. Generally speaking, users of the TRON blockchain are required to utilize token resources (namely “bandwidth” and “energy”) in their wallets to process transactions. Users can obtain such resources by either burning or staking TRX tokens.
(iii) Incentivising SR to maintain security and functionality of TRON blockchain: Block generation rewards and voting rewards on the TRON blockchain are issued in the form of TRX token. SR is entitled to block generation rewards, and voting rewards are distributed to both SR and SR Partners.
The genesis supply of TRX token was 100 billion. New tokens are generated currently at the rate of approximately 1.5% per annum as governance and block validation rewards. On the offsetting side, TRX token is burned by the users to pay transaction fees for on-chain activities. Consequently, the supply change of TRX token depends on how active the blockchain is. During the period from January 1, 2022 to July 28, 2025, TRX token has been in deflation at approximately 2.0% per annum. As of July 28, 2025, the supply of TRX token is approximately 94.7 billion. Currently there is no lock-up, and substantially all the TRX tokens are in circulation.
The TRON protocol, one of the largest blockchain-based operating systems in the world, offers public blockchain support of high throughput, high scalability, and high availability for all decentralized applications (DApps) in the TRON ecosystem.
The TRON mainnet was launched in June 2018. It marked the transition of TRX token from being an ERC-20 token on the Ethereum blockchain to the native governance token of TRON blockchain, an independent and standalone network.
Through years of development, TRON blockchain has been uniquely positioned as the dominant settlement protocol for on-chain stablecoin payment. As of July 28, 2025, TRON had over 322 million in total user wallets globally, hosting approximately 82.7 billion in TRC-20 USDT (Tether) accounting for approximately 50.5% of total USDT circulation.
TRON block generation is secured and validated by a diverse group of super representative nodes globally including major industry players such as Google Cloud, Binance, HTX, Kraken, OKX, OKCoin Japan, Kiln, P2P.org, Nansen, and Abra Capital.
The Company holds the treasury tokens in a self-managed wallet (i.e. the board of directors of the Company has full control and access to the wallet) set up by BiT Global Trust Limited (“BiT Global”). BiT Global is a licensed Trust or Company Service Provider under the licensing regime administered by the Companies Registry of Hong Kong and a trust company registered under section 78(1) of the Trustee Ordinance (Cap. 29) of Hong Kong, and is therefore a regulated custodian.
The wallet is safely kept in a secure location controlled by BiT Global. It utilizes the proprietary technology and on-chain compliance monitoring services provided by BiT Global. Pursuant to the Self-Managed Wallet Services Agreement (the “BiT Global Services Agreement”) entered into by the Company and BiT Global on June 26, 2025, BiT Global will set up a self-managed cold wallet for the Company, license certain BiT Global technology, and provide monitoring services relating to on-chain wallet activities. The Company retains sole control of the wallet and private keys. The BiT Global Services Agreement contains customary provisions relating to fees, confidentiality, compliance with applicable law, indemnification, limitations of liability, and termination. The foregoing description of the BiT Global Services Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the BiT Global Services Agreement, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.
The Company has staked and plans to continue to stake TRX tokens in its treasury into Staked TRX (sTRX) tokens through JustLend, the leading DeFi protocol on the TRON blockchain, to earn enhanced staking yield from both standard TRX staking and energy rental. The Company has currently staked nearly 100% of TRX tokens in its treasury into sTRX tokens.
The staking of TRX tokens into sTRX tokens through JustLend was executed on https://app.justlend.org/strx . JustLend is a decentralized finance protocol, and the staking is governed by the Terms of Service of JustLend: https://www.justlend.org/docs/JustLend_Terms_of_Use_en.pdf. There is no separate agreement between the Company and JustLend.
Our TRX token strategy generally involves from time to time, subject to market conditions, (i) issuing debt or equity securities or engaging in other capital raising transactions with the objective of using the proceeds to purchase TRX tokens, and (ii) acquiring TRX tokens with our liquid assets that exceed working capital requirements. We intend to fund further TRX token acquisitions primarily through issuances of common stock and a variety of fixed-income instruments, including debt, convertible notes and preferred stock.
We view our TRX tokens holdings as long-term holdings and expect to continue to accumulate TRX tokens. We have not set any specific target for the amount of TRX tokens we seek to hold, and we will continue to monitor market conditions in determining whether to engage in additional financings to purchase additional TRX tokens. This overall strategy also contemplates that we may (i) enter into additional capital raising transactions that are collateralized by our TRX tokens holdings, and (ii) consider pursuing strategies to create income streams or otherwise generate funds using our TRX tokens holdings.
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Our TRX Tokens Holdings
Upon completion of the June PIPE Offering (as defined below), the Company received 365,096,845 TRX tokens, being the Consideration Tokens (as defined below) from the Investor (as defined below).
365,096,800 TRX tokens of the Consideration Tokens held by the Company have been “staked” on JustLend, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, on June 28, 2025 in exchange for approximately 297,543,246 Staked TRX (sTRX) tokens. “Staking” is a process commonly used in the blockchain industry that allows network participants to earn rewards by locking their tokens in wallets. sTRX token is a derivative token that represents the “staked” TRX tokens, which can automatically generate yield (through the combination of standard TRX staking reward and energy renting) for the token holders.
As of July 28, 2025, the Company holds approximately 297,543,246 Staked TRX (sTRX) tokens and approximately 18 TRX tokens in the Treasury Wallet (as defined below). We have not yet had any TRX token dispositions.
Recent Developments
June 2025 PIPE Offering
On June 16, 2025, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “June Securities Purchase Agreement”) with an institutional investor entity (the “Investor”) for a private investment in public equity (the “June PIPE Offering”) of 100,000 shares of its Series B Convertible Preferred Stock par value $0.0001 per share (the “Series B Preferred Stock”), convertible into 200,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 (the “Common Stock”), at a conversion price of $0.50 per share of Common Stock, and warrants (the “June PIPE Warrants”) to acquire up to 220,000,000 shares of Common Stock. The June PIPE Warrants issued in the June PIPE Offering are exercisable immediately upon issuance at an exercise price of $0.50 per share and will expire two years from the date of issuance. The 100,000 shares of Series B Preferred Stock are referred to herein as the “Preferred Stock Shares.”
The issuance of the Preferred Stock Shares and the June PIPE Warrants occurred on June 16, 2025.
On June 28, 2025, the Investor paid the $100 million purchase price for the Preferred Stock Shares and Warrants in the form of TRX tokens (the “Consideration Tokens”), based on the closing price of TRX tokens on June 15, 2025. The Consideration Tokens are held in the custodian wallet account (“Treasury Wallet”) designated and controlled by the board of directors of Tron Inc. (“Board”). The Treasury Wallet is set up by BiT Global, a licensed Trust or Company Service Provider and registered trust company in Hong Kong. BiT Global provides on-chain monitoring services for the Treasury Wallet while the Board has full control and access to the Treasury Wallet. Our director, Mr. Liu (as defined below), is one of the directors of BiT Global.
The Preferred Stock Shares cannot be converted into more than 19.99% of the currently outstanding shares of Common Stock until stockholder approval of such an issuance is obtained and becomes effective.
The Company entered into an Advisory Agreement (the “Sun Advisory Agreement”) with Justin Sun on June 16, 2025 along with the issuance of the Preferred Stock Shares and the June PIPE Warrants. Pursuant to the Sun Advisory Agreement, Justin Sun will provide strategic business advisory and brand consulting services to the Company as an independent contractor. The Sun Advisory Agreement has a one-year term, subject to renewal, and may be terminated by either party on 30 days’ notice. Work product developed under the agreement will be owned by the Company, subject to Mr. Sun’s retention of certain pre-existing intellectual property. The Sun Advisory Agreement also includes customary confidentiality, indemnification, non-disparagement, and arbitration provisions. The foregoing description of the Sun Advisory Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Sun Advisory Agreement, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.2 and is incorporated herein by reference.
Justin Sun’s father, Weike Sun is the sole shareholder of the Investor and was appointed as a member of the Board in connection with the June PIPE Offering.
The conversion price and exercise price and number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon conversion or exercise of the Preferred Stock Shares and the June PIPE Warrants, as the case may be is subject to appropriate adjustment in the event of stock dividends, stock splits, reorganizations or similar events affecting the Common Stock and the conversion price or exercise price. In the event of certain fundamental transactions, the holder of the June PIPE Warrants will have the right to receive the Black Scholes Value (as defined in the June PIPE Warrants) of its June PIPE Warrants calculated pursuant to a formula set forth in the June PIPE Warrants, payable in cash. There is no trading market available for the Preferred Stock Shares or the June PIPE Warrants on any securities exchange or nationally recognized trading system. The Company does not intend to list the Preferred Stock Shares or June PIPE Warrants on any securities exchange or nationally recognized trading system.
Dominari Securities, LLC acted as placement agent (the “Placement Agent”) in connection with the June PIPE Offering, pursuant to that certain Placement Agency Agreement, dated as of June 16, 2025, between the Company and the Placement Agent, pursuant to which the Company paid the Placement Agent for certain out-of-pocket expenses, including for reasonable expenses and legal fees of $50,000.
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On June 16, 2025, the Company also entered into a Financial Advisory Agreement (the “AV Advisory Agreement”) with American Ventures LLC (the “Advisor”), under which the Advisor will provide non-exclusive financial advisory services to the Company in connection with its blockchain-related initiatives, including exploring opportunities involving holding tokens, primarily TRX Tokens, the governance token of TRON blockchain, and identifying additional revenue-generating verticals within that ecosystem. As compensation, the Company agreed to issue the Advisor 5,360,000 warrants (the “American Ventures Warrants”) to purchase shares of common stock at $0.50 per share, exercisable for five (5) years, which were fully earned upon execution of the agreement. The AV Advisory Agreement includes customary confidentiality, indemnification, and termination provisions, and confirms that the Advisor will act as an independent contractor without access to material non-public information absent prior written consent. The foregoing description of the AV Advisory Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the AV Advisory Agreement, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.3 and is incorporated herein by reference.
The securities offered and sold by the Company in the June PIPE Offering and the American Ventures Warrants were not registered under the Securities Act, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration with the SEC or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. The securities were offered only to accredited investors.
Pursuant to the June PIPE Offering, on June 16, 2025, the Company filed a Certificate of Designation of Series B Preferred Stock with the Secretary of State of the State of Nevada (the “Series B Certificate of Designation”).
The stated value of the Series B Preferred Stock is $1,000 per share.
Holders of the Preferred Stock Shares are entitled to cast the number of votes equal to the number of whole shares of Common Stock into which the shares of Series B Preferred Stock are convertible on the basis of a conversion price of $0.50. The Holders shall vote together with the holders of shares of Common Stock as a single class. The Preferred Stock Shares cannot be voted on an “as converted basis” of more than 19.99% of the currently outstanding shares of Common Stock until shareholder approval of such voting rights is obtained and becomes effective.
Holders shall be entitled to receive, and the Company shall pay, dividends on Preferred Stock Shares equal (on an as-if-converted-to-Common-Stock basis) to and in the same form as dividends actually paid on shares of the Common Stock when, as and if such dividends are paid on shares of the Common Stock.
Upon any liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of the Company, the holders of Preferred Stock Shares have a preference for the distribution of the entire remaining assets and funds of the Company legally available for distribution over any holders of other series of preferred stock or of the Common Stock.
If, as of December 31, 2025, a Triggering Event (as defined in the Series B Certificate of Designation) has occurred, the holder of the Preferred Stock Shares shall have the right to request the Company redeem all or any of portion of the Preferred Stock Shares then held by the holder for a redemption price equal to the full (for fully redemption) or pro rata (for portion redemption) Triggering Redemption Amount as specified in the Series B Certificate of Designation.
May 2025 PIPE Offering
On May 21, 2025, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “May Securities Purchase Agreement”) with an institutional investor for a private investment in public equity (the “May PIPE Offering”) of 5,000 shares of its Series A Convertible Preferred Stock par value $0.0001 per share (the “Series A Preferred Stock”), convertible into 8,928,571 shares of Common Stock, at a conversion price of $0.56 per share of Series A Preferred Stock, and an aggregate of 8,928,571 warrants (the “May PIPE Warrants”) to acquire up to 8,928,571 shares of Common Stock, subject to beneficial ownership limitations set by the holder. The purchase price for one unit (consisting of one share of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock convertible into approximately 1,785 shares and the same number of warrants) was $1,000. The May PIPE Warrants issued in the May PIPE Offering are exercisable immediately upon issuance at an exercise price of $0.65 per share and will expire two years from the date of issuance.
The May PIPE Offering closed on May 27, 2025, with aggregate gross proceeds totaling approximately $5 million, before deducting placement agent fees and other expenses. The Company intends to use the proceeds from the May PIPE Offering for general corporate and working capital purposes.
The exercise price and number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the May PIPE Warrants is subject to appropriate adjustment in the event of stock dividends, stock splits, reorganizations or similar events affecting the Common Stock and the exercise price. Subject to limited exceptions, the investor may not exercise any portion of the May PIPE Warrants to the extent that the investor would beneficially own more than 4.99% (or, at the election of the holder prior to the date of issuance, 9.99%) of the outstanding Common Stock after exercise. In the event of certain fundamental transactions, the holder of the May PIPE Warrants will have the right to receive the Black Scholes Value (as defined in the May PIPE Warrants) of its May PIPE Warrants calculated pursuant to a formula set forth in the May PIPE Warrants, payable in cash. There is no trading market available for the May PIPE Warrants on any securities exchange or nationally recognized trading system. The Company does not intend to list the May PIPE Warrants on any securities exchange or nationally recognized trading system.
Pursuant to the May Securities Purchase Agreement, for a period of eighteen (18) months after the closing date, the Investor shall have the right of first refusal to participate with respect to any offering involving (i) future equity or equity-linked securities of the Company or (ii) debt of the Company, which is convertible into equity or in which there is an equity component.
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Pursuant to the May PIPE Offering, on May 22, 2025, the Company filed a Certificate of Designation of Series A Preferred Stock with the Secretary of State of the State of Nevada and subsequently, on May 23, 2025 the Company filed an Amended & Restated Certificate of Designation to correct the conversion price of the Series A Preferred Stock from $0.50 per share to $0.56 per share.
Dominari Securities, LLC acted as placement agent (the “Placement Agent”) in connection with the May PIPE Offering, pursuant to that certain Placement Agency Agreement, dated as of May 21, 2025, between the Company and the Placement Agent, pursuant to which the Company paid the Placement Agent (i) a cash fee equal to 6.00% of the aggregate gross proceeds from the sale of the shares of Common Stock in the May PIPE Offering and (ii) reimbursement for certain of out-of-pocket expenses, including for reasonable expenses and legal fees of $100,000. In addition, we issued to the Placement Agent or its designees the placement agent warrants (the “May Placement Agent Warrants”) to purchase up to an aggregate of 535,714 shares of Common Stock (6.0% of the Common Stock sold in the May PIPE Offering). The Placement Agent Warrants have identical terms as the May PIPE Warrants.
While the securities offered and sold by the Company in the May PIPE Offering were not registered under the Securities Act prior to issuance, they were registered in a resale registration statement on Form S-3 declared effective by the SEC on June 16, 2025. As of July 24, 2025, all of the Series A Preferred Stock shares sold pursuant to the May Securities Purchase Agreement were converted into shares of Common Stock.
Director Resignations
In connection with the June PIPE Offering, on June 16, 2025, Hans Haywood and Gary Herman resigned as members of the Board. These resignations were not a result of any disagreements with the Company on any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies, or practices.
In connection with the June PIPE Offering, Douglas McKinnon resigned as a member of the Board. Mr. McKinnon remains the Company’s Chief Financial Officer. Mr. McKinnon’s resignation as a member of the Board was not a result of any disagreements with the Company on any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies, or practices.
Director Appointments
In connection with the June PIPE Offering, on June 16, 2025, Weike Sun (“Mr. Sun”), Zhihong Liu (“Mr. Liu”), and Zi Yang (“Mr. Yang”) were appointed as members of the Board. Mr. Sun was named Chairman of the Board. Messrs. Liu and Yang have been appointed to each of the Audit, Compensation, and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees of the Board. Mr. Liu serves as chair of the Compensation Committee and Mr. Yang serves as chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
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Weike Sun, age 66, began his career in journalism and public infrastructure administration in China. Following his extensive experience in the public sector, Mr. Sun transitioned to the private sector holding senior management and advisory role to several fintech companies since 2016, including Ruibo (Beijing) Technology and Peiwo Huanle (Beijing) Technology. He was the Chairman of Guangzhou Keyhiway Printing Technology, a listed company on China’s National Equities Exchange and Quotations (NEEQ) from March 2022 to July 2023. Mr. Sun holds a bachelor’s degree from Qinghai Normal College. Mr. Weike Sun is the sole shareholder of the Investor.
Zhihong Liu, age 59, has been the senior advisor to Tron DAO since 2021, leading its strategic investment activities. Previously, Mr. Liu served as the board director of Valkyrie Investment helping to launch one of the first Bitcoin future ETFs in the US. Prior to joining the blockchain industry in 2021, he had held senior positions in the financial industry for over 20 years working for leading global firms including Ant Financial, NOMURA, Salomon Smith Barney and Fidelity Investment. Mr. Liu holds an MBA from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree from Zhejiang University in China.
Zi Yang, age 27, has been active in the blockchain industry for over 5 years. Mr. Yang currently holds senior positions for several leading blockchain projects including Tronscan, the official blockchain explorer for Tron protocol. Mr. Yang holds a bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management from Guangdong University of Foreign Studies in China.
Amendments to Employment Agreements with Officers
In connection with the June PIPE Offering, on June 16, 2025, the Company entered into amendments to the employment agreements of each of Richard Miller (the Company’s Chief Executive Officer), Mr. McKinnon (the Company’s Chief Financial Officer), Taft Flittner (the Company’s President), and Deborah McDaniel-Hand (the Company’s Vice President of Production, Development, and Operations) (collectively, the “Employment Agreement Amendments”).
Pursuant to each of the Employment Agreement Amendments, the executives agreed (a) not to terminate their employment and not to seek any compensation for any termination of their employment in connection with the June PIPE Offering and (b) that any incentive or bonus payments related to the Company’s performance would only be measured against the Company’s business of developing and marketing licensed consumer products, including children’s toys and entertainment merchandise. Such compensation would not be related to the Company’s TRON (TRX) tokens-related operations.
In addition, Messrs. Miller and McKinnon agreed that equity awards issued to them pursuant to the Company’s Equity Incentive Plans would, going forward, be solely determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board. The foregoing description of the Employment Agreement Amendments does not purport to be a complete description and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the individual Employment Agreement Amendments which are filed with the Form 8-K of the Company filed with the SEC on June 16, 2025 as Exhibits 10.4 (Miller), 10.5 (McKinnon), 10.6 (Flittner), and 10.7 (McDaniel-Hand) and incorporated by reference into Item 5.02 therein.
On July 11, 2025, the Board approved the change in the name of the Company to “Tron Inc.” (the “Name Change”) and the change in the trading symbol of the Company to “TRON” on the Nasdaq Capital Market (the “Symbol Change”) to align with its major transformation into a TRON treasury strategy company.
On July 11, 2025, to effectuate the Name Change, the Company filed a Certificate of Amendment to the Articles of Incorporation of the Company, as amended (the “Charter Amendment”) with the Secretary of State of the State of Nevada. The Name Change and the Symbol Change took effect on the Nasdaq Capital Market on July 17, 2025.
These moves reflect the Company’s broader strategic transformation and its commitment to aligning more closely with the Tron blockchain ecosystem, following the launch of its Tron-focused treasury strategy. The Company’s ticker change to “TRON” reinforces its brand identity and positions it as a key corporate player in the rapidly evolving blockchain and digital asset economy.
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Summary of Risk Factors
Investing in our securities involves significant risks. Our business is subject to a number of risks, including risks that may prevent us from achieving our business objectives or may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and prospects that you should consider before making a decision to invest in our securities. You should carefully consider the matters discussed under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on March 31, 2025, as well as other documents incorporated by reference in to this prospectus.
Risks Related to Our Toy and Souvenir Business
| ● | We expect the results of operations of our toy and souvenir business to fluctuate on a quarterly and annual basis, which could cause our stock price to fluctuate or decline. | |
| ● | Our use of third-party manufacturers to produce our products presents risks to our toy and souvenir business. | |
| ● | Our toy and souvenir business may be harmed by the imposition or threat of tariffs, including reciprocal or retaliatory tariffs, in markets in which we operate which could increase our product costs and other costs of doing business, impact consumer spending, or lower our revenues and earnings. | |
| ● | High levels of competition and low barriers to entry make it difficult to achieve, maintain, or build upon the success of the Company’s brands, products, and product lines. | |
| ● | The Company is not always able to successfully identify and/or satisfy consumer preferences, which could cause its business, financial condition, and results of operations to be adversely affected. | |
| ● | General economic conditions may have an adverse impact on our toy and souvenir business, financial condition or results of operations. | |
| ● | Failure to successfully implement new initiatives or meet product introduction schedules can have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations. | |
| ● | Bad or extreme weather conditions and forecasts of bad or mixed weather conditions, which may be due to climate change, can adversely impact attendance at parks where our products are sold. | |
| ● | The Company’s toy and souvenir business is highly seasonal, and its operating results depend, in large part, on sales during the relatively brief traditional holiday season. Events that disrupt the Company’s business during its peak demand times can adversely and disproportionately affect the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations. | |
| ● | We could be subject to future product liability suits or product recalls which could have a significant adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. | |
| ● | The Company’s toy and souvenir business depends in large part on the success of its vendors and outsourcers, and the Company’s brands and reputation are subject to harm from actions taken by third parties that are outside the Company’s control. In addition, any significant failure, inadequacy, or interruption from such vendors or outsourcers could harm the Company’s ability to effectively operate this business. | |
| ● | The Company depends on key personnel and may not be able to hire, retain, and integrate sufficient qualified personnel to maintain and expand its toy and souvenir business. | |
| ● | Failure to keep pace with developments in technology could adversely affect our operations or competitive position. |
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| ● | Increases in labor costs and employee health and welfare benefits could have a negative impact on our cash flows, financial condition, and results of operations. | |
| ● | Disruptions in the Company’s manufacturing operations or supply chain due to political instability, civil unrest, or disease could adversely affect the Company’s toy and souvenir business, financial position, sales, and results of operations. | |
| ● | Disruptions in our supply chain for materials and components and the resulting increase in equipment and logistics costs could adversely affect our financial performance. | |
| ● | We depend on large, recurring purchases from certain significant retailers, distributors and other channel partners, and a loss, cancellation or delay in purchases by these channel partners could negatively affect our revenue. | |
| ● | The Company relies extensively on information technology in its operations, and any material failure, inadequacy, interruption, or security breach of that technology could have an adverse effect on its business, financial condition, and results of operations. | |
| ● | The Company faces risks related to protecting its proprietary intellectual property and information and is subject to third-party claims that the Company is infringing on their intellectual property rights, either of which could adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations. | |
| ● | If disruptions in our transportation network occur or our shipping costs substantially increase, we may be unable to sell or timely deliver our products, and our operating expenses could increase. | |
| ● | As part of growing our business, we may make acquisitions. If we fail to successfully select, execute or integrate our acquisitions, then our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected and our stock price could decline. | |
| ● | If we do not effectively manage our sales channel inventory and product mix, we may incur costs associated with excess inventory, or lose sales from having too few products. | |
| ● | Changes in tax laws or exposure to additional income tax liabilities could affect our future profitability. | |
| ● | We must comply with indirect tax laws in multiple jurisdictions, as well as complex customs duty regimes worldwide. Audits of our compliance with these rules may result in additional liabilities for taxes, duties, interest and penalties related to our international operations which would reduce our profitability. | |
| ● | The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act and other existing or future government regulation could harm our business or may cause us to incur additional costs associated with compliance. | |
| ● | We may be subject to anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, economic sanctions and other similar laws and regulations, and non-compliance with such laws and regulations could subject the Company to civil, criminal and administrative penalties, remedial measures and legal expenses, all of which could adversely affect the Company’s business, prospects, results of operations, financial condition and reputation. | |
| ● | If one or more of our major customers were to experience difficulties in fulfilling their obligations to us, cease doing business with us, significantly reduce the amount of their purchases from us or return substantial amounts of our products, it could have a materially adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. | |
| ● | Customer complaints regarding our products and services could hurt our business. |
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Risks Related to Our Securities and Other Risks
| ● | We are an “emerging growth company” and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our common stock less attractive to investors. | |
| ● | The Investor holds Preferred Stock Shares and PIPE Warrants. If the Investor converts its Preferred Stock Shares and exercises its PIPE Warrants, such Investor will have majority voting power and may take actions that may not be in the best interests of our other stockholders. | |
| ● | We may regularly encounter potential conflicts of interest, and our failure to identify and address such conflicts of interest could adversely affect our business. |
Risks Related to Our TRX Token Strategy and Holdings
| ● | The TRX token is a highly volatile asset, and fluctuations in the price of the TRX token are likely to affect our financial results and the market price of our listed securities. | |
| ● | The TRX tokens and other digital assets are novel assets, and are subject to significant legal, commercial, regulatory and technical uncertainty. | |
| ● | A significant decrease in the market value of our TRX token holdings could adversely affect our ability to satisfy our financial obligations. | |
| ● | Our historical financial statements do not reflect the potential variability in earnings that we may experience in the future relating to our TRX token holdings. | |
| ● | Our TRX token strategy subjects us to enhanced regulatory oversight. | |
| ● | Due to the unregulated nature and lack of transparency surrounding the operations of many TRX token trading venues, the TRX token trading venues may experience greater fraud, security failures or regulatory or operational problems than trading venues for more established asset classes, which may result in a loss of confidence in the TRX token trading venues and adversely affect the value of our TRX tokens. | |
| ● | The concentration of our TRX token holdings enhances the risks inherent in our TRX token strategy. | |
| ● | The emergence or growth of other digital assets, including those with significant private or public sector backing, could have a negative impact on the price of the TRX token and adversely affect our business. | |
| ● | Our TRX token holdings are less liquid than our existing cash and cash equivalents and may not be able to serve as a source of liquidity for us to the same extent as cash and cash equivalents. | |
| ● | We face risks relating to the security of the wallets holding our TRX tokens, including the loss or destruction of private keys required to access our TRX tokens and cyberattacks or other data loss relating to our TRX tokens. | |
| ● | Absent federal regulations, there is a possibility that the TRX token may be classified as a “security.” Any classification of the TRX token as a “security” would subject us to additional regulation and could materially impact the operation of our business. | |
| ● | We are not subject to legal and regulatory obligations that apply to investment companies such as mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, or to obligations applicable to investment advisers. | |
| ● | Our TRX token strategy exposes us to risk of non-performance by counterparties. |
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This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed with the SEC utilizing a shelf registration process. Under this shelf registration process, we may sell any combination of:
| ● | common stock; | |
| ● | preferred stock; | |
| ● | debt securities; | |
| ● | warrants to purchase any of the securities listed above; | |
| ● | rights to purchase any of the securities listed above; and | |
| ● | units consisting of one or more of the foregoing, in one or more offerings up to a total dollar amount of $1,000,000,000. This prospectus provides you with a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we sell securities, we will provide a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about the terms of that specific offering and include a discussion of any risk factors or other special considerations that apply to those securities. The prospectus supplement may also add, update or change information contained in this prospectus. You should read both this prospectus and any prospectus supplement together with the additional information described under the heading “Where You Can Find Additional Information About Us.” |
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Investing in our securities involves risk. An investment in our securities involves risk. Before you invest in securities issued by us, you should carefully consider the risks involved. The discussion of risks related to our business contained in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus or into any prospectus supplement comprises material risks of which we are aware. If any of the events or developments described actually occurs, our business, financial condition or results of operations would likely suffer.
Accordingly, you should carefully consider:
| ● | the information contained in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus; | |
| ● | the information contained in or incorporated by reference into any prospectus supplement relating to specific offerings of securities; | |
| ● | the risks described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on March 31, 2025, or any updates in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, which are incorporated by reference into this prospectus; and | |
| ● | other risks and other information that may be contained in, or incorporated by reference from, other filings we make with the SEC, including in any prospectus supplement relating to specific offerings of securities, as well as the following matters: |
Risks Related to Our Toy and Souvenir Business
We expect the results of operations of our toy and souvenir business to fluctuate on a quarterly and annual basis, which could cause our stock price to fluctuate or decline.
Our results of operations are difficult to predict and may fluctuate substantially from quarter-to-quarter or year-to-year for a variety of reasons, many of which are beyond our control. If our actual results were to fall below our estimates or the expectations of public market analysts or investors, our quarterly and annual results would be negatively impacted and the price of our stock could decline. Other factors that could affect our quarterly and annual operating results include, but are not limited to:
● changes in the pricing policies of, or the introduction of new products by, us or our competitors;
● introductions of new technologies and changes in consumer preferences that result in either unanticipated or unexpectedly rapid product category shifts;
● slow or negative growth in the toy, souvenir, theme park, and related markets;
● seasonal shifts in end-market demand for our products;
● delays in the introduction of new products by us or market acceptance of these products;
● unanticipated decreases or delays in purchases of our products by our significant retailers, distributors and other channel partners;
● supply constraints from our vendors;
● unanticipated increases in costs, including air freight, associated with shipping and delivery of our products;
● the inability to maintain stable operations by our suppliers and other parties with whom we have commercial relationships;
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● discovery of security vulnerabilities in our products, services or systems, leading to negative publicity, decreased demand or potential liability;
● foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations in the jurisdictions where we transact sales and expenditures in local currency;
● excess levels of inventory and low turns;
● changes in or consolidation of our sales channels and wholesale distributor relationships or failure to manage our sales channel inventory and warehousing requirements;
● delay or failure to fulfill orders for our products on a timely basis;
● delay or failure of our retailers, distributors and other channel partners to purchase at their historic volumes or at the volumes that they or we forecast;
● changes in tax rates or adverse changes in tax laws that expose us to additional income tax liabilities;
● changes in U.S. and international tax policy, including changes that adversely affect customs, tax or duty rates, as well as income tax legislation and regulations that affect the countries where we conduct business;
● operational disruptions, such as transportation delays or failure of our order processing system, particularly if they occur at the end of a fiscal quarter;
● disruptions or delays related to our financial and enterprise resource planning systems;
● our inability to accurately forecast product demand, resulting in increased inventory exposure;
● allowance for doubtful accounts exposure with our existing retailers, distributors and other channel partners and new retailers, distributors and other channel partners, particularly as we expand into new international markets;
● geopolitical disruption, including sudden changes in immigration policies, leading to disruption in our workforce or delay or even stoppage of our operations in manufacturing, transportation, technical support and research and development;
● terms of our contracts with channel partners or suppliers that cause us to incur additional expenses or assume additional liabilities;
● an increase in price protection claims, redemptions of marketing rebates, product warranty and stock rotation returns or allowance for doubtful accounts;
● litigation involving alleged patent infringement;
● epidemic or widespread product failure, or unanticipated safety issues, in one or more of our products;
● failure to effectively manage our third-party customer support partners, which may result in customer complaints and/or harm to the Company’s brand;
● our inability to monitor and ensure compliance with our code of ethics, our anti-corruption compliance program and domestic and international anti-corruption laws and regulations, whether in relation to our employees or with our suppliers or retailers, distributors or other channel partners;
● labor unrest at facilities managed by our third-party manufacturers;
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● workplace or human rights violations in certain countries in which our third-party manufacturers or suppliers operate, which may affect the Company’s brand and negatively affect our products’ acceptance by consumers;
● unanticipated shifts or declines in profit by geographical region that would adversely impact our tax rate;
● failure to implement and maintain the appropriate internal controls over financial reporting, which may result in restatements of our financial statements; and
● any changes in accounting rules.
As a result, period-to-period comparisons of our results of operations may not be meaningful, and you should not rely on them as an indication of our future performance.
Our use of third-party manufacturers to produce our products presents risks to our toy and souvenir business.
We use third-party manufacturers to manufacture all of our products and have historically concentrated production with a small number of manufacturers and factories. As a result, the loss or unavailability of one of our manufacturers or one of the factories in which our products are produced, even on a temporary basis, could have a negative impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations. This risk is exacerbated by the fact that we do not have long-term contracts with our manufacturers. While we believe our external sources of manufacturing could be shifted, if necessary, to alternative sources of supply, we would require a significant period of time to make such a shift. We may also be required to seek out additional manufacturers in response to increased demand for our products, as our current manufacturers may not have the capacity to increase production. If we were prevented from or delayed in obtaining a material portion of the products produced by our manufacturers, or if we were required to shift manufacturers (assuming we would be able to do so), our sales and profitability could be significantly reduced.
In addition, while we require that our products supplied by third-party manufacturers be produced in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, and we have the right to monitor compliance by our third-party manufacturers with our manufacturing requirements and to oversee the quality control process at our manufacturers’ factories, there is always a risk that one or more of our third-party manufacturers will not comply with our requirements, and that we will not immediately discover such non-compliance. Any failure of our third-party manufacturers to comply with such requirements in manufacturing products for us could result in damage to our reputation, harm our brand image and sales of our products and potentially create liability for us.
Monitoring compliance by independent manufacturers is complicated by the fact that expectations of ethical business practices continually evolve, may be substantially more demanding than applicable legal requirements and are driven in part by legal developments and by diverse groups active in publicizing and organizing public responses to perceived ethical shortcomings. Accordingly, we cannot predict how such expectations might develop in the future and cannot be certain that our manufacturing requirements, even if complied with, would satisfy all parties who are active in monitoring and publicizing perceived shortcomings in labor and other business practices worldwide.
Additionally, the third-party manufacturers that produce most of our products are located in China. As a result, we are subject to various risks resulting from our international operations.
Our toy and souvenir business may be harmed by the imposition or threat of tariffs, including reciprocal or retaliatory tariffs, in markets in which we operate which could increase our product costs and other costs of doing business, impact consumer spending, or lower our revenues and earnings.
The current global tariff environment is uncertain. For products manufactured outside the U.S., tariffs increase the cost of our products. Most of our products are produced in China, and tariffs may impact our sales and reduce our profitability as a result. Tariffs may also impact consumer spending if products become more expensive, or consumers have less discretionary income or consumer spending power. The current tariff environment, particularly the imposition or threat of tariffs on products manufactured in China for import into the U.S. as well the potential for retaliatory and reciprocal tariffs in other countries in which we do business, may negatively impact our business, sales and profitability. While our contracts currently require our customers to cover tariffs and other fees, further increases in tariffs may increase the costs of our products. We cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully implement actions to lessen the impact of tariffs imposed on our products, including any changes to our supply chain, logistics capabilities, sales policies or pricing of our products.
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High levels of competition and low barriers to entry make it difficult to achieve, maintain, or build upon the success of the Company’s brands, products, and product lines.
The Company faces competitors who are also constantly monitoring and attempting to anticipate consumer tastes, seeking ideas which will appeal to consumers, and introducing new products that compete with the Company’s products. In addition, competition for access to entertainment properties has and may continue to lessen the Company’s ability to secure, maintain, and renew popular licenses to entertainment products developed by other parties and licensed to the Company, or require the Company to pay licensors higher royalties and higher minimum guaranteed payments to obtain or retain these licenses. As a licensee of entertainment properties, the Company has no guarantee that a particular property or brand will translate into a successful toy, game, or other product. In addition, the barriers to entry for new participants in the toy products industry and entertainment industry are low. In a very short period of time, new market participants with a popular product idea or entertainment property can become a significant source of competition for the Company and its products. Reduced demand for the Company’s brands, products, and product lines as a result of these factors may adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations. Some of our competitors may have greater resources than the Company. In order to compete successfully, the Company may have to lower prices and increase marketing expenses which could result in reduced margins.
The Company is not always able to successfully identify and/or satisfy consumer preferences, which could cause its business, financial condition, and results of operations to be adversely affected.
The Company’s business and operating results in the toy and souvenir segment depend largely upon the appeal of its products, driven by both innovation and marketing. Consumer preferences are continuously changing. The Company is not always able to identify trends in consumer preferences or identify and satisfy consumer preferences in a timely manner. Significant, sudden shifts in demand are caused by popular toys which steer trends, which are often unpredictable. the Company offers a diverse range of products for all ages and families that includes, among others, toys for toddlers and preschoolers, toys for school-aged children, toys for all ages, and media-driven products. The Company competes domestically and internationally with a wide range of large and small manufacturers, marketers, and sellers of toys, and consumer goods, as well as retailers, which means that the Company’s market position is always at risk. The Company’s ability to maintain its current product sales and increase its product sales or establish product sales with new, innovative toys, depends on the Company’s ability to satisfy play preferences, enhance existing products, develop and introduce new products, and achieve market acceptance of these products. These challenges are intensifying due to trends towards shorter life cycles for individual toy products, the phenomenon of children outgrowing traditional toys at younger ages, an increasing use of more sophisticated technology in toys, and an evolving path to purchase.
General economic conditions may have an adverse impact on our toy and souvenir business, financial condition or results of operations.
Our results can be impacted by a number of macroeconomic factors, including but not limited to consumer confidence and spending levels, tax rates, unemployment, consumer credit availability, raw materials costs, pandemics (such as the COVID-19 pandemic) and natural disasters, fuel and energy costs (including oil prices), and credit market conditions. A general economic slowdown or recession resulting in a decrease in discretionary spending could adversely affect the frequency with which guests choose to visit our parks and the amount that our guests spend when they visit.
Additionally, difficult economic conditions throughout the world, including global supply chain issues, could impact our ability to obtain supplies, services and credit as well as the ability of third parties to meet their obligations to us, including, for example, manufacturers’ ability to supply rides, payment of claims by our insurance carriers, funding of our lines of credit, or payment by our international agreement partner. Changes in exchange rates for foreign currencies could increase our labor and supply costs or reduce the U.S. dollar value of revenue we earn in other markets, including, but not limited to, Beijing, Japan, and Europe.
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In addition, availability of our products from third-party manufacturers and our ability to distribute our products into non-U.S. jurisdictions may be impacted by factors such as an increase in duties, tariffs or other restrictions on trade; raw material shortages, work stoppages, strikes and political unrest; economic crises and international disputes or conflicts; changes in leadership and the political climate in countries from which we import products; and failure of the United States to maintain normal trade relations with China and other countries. While China currently enjoys “most favored nation” trading status with the United States, the ability of the United States to revoke that status and to impose higher tariffs on products imported from China, could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Failure to successfully implement new initiatives or meet product introduction schedules can have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
The Company has in the past announced, and in the future may announce, initiatives to reduce its costs, optimize its manufacturing footprint, increase its efficiency, improve the execution of its core business, globalize and extend the Company’s brands, catch new trends, create new brands, offer new innovative products and improve existing products, enhance product safety, develop people, improve productivity, simplify processes, and maintain customer service levels, as well as initiatives designed to drive sales growth, capitalize on the Company’s scale advantage, and improve its supply chain. These initiatives involve investment of capital and complex decision-making as well as extensive and intensive execution, and the success of these initiatives is not assured. Failure to achieve any of these initiatives could harm the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
From time to time, the Company anticipates introducing new products, product lines, or brands at a certain time in the future. There is no guarantee that the Company will be able to manufacture, source, ship, and distribute new or continuing products in a timely manner and on a cost-effective basis. Unforeseen delays or difficulties in the development process or significant increases in the planned cost of development for new products of the Company may cause the introduction date for products to be later than anticipated or, in some situations, may cause a product or new product introduction to be discontinued. Failure to successfully implement any of these initiatives or launches, or the failure of any of these initiatives or launches to produce the results anticipated by management, could have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Bad or extreme weather conditions and forecasts of bad or mixed weather conditions, which may be due to climate change, can adversely impact attendance at parks where our products are sold.
Because most of our products are sold at parks, and attendance at parks may be adversely affected by bad or extreme weather conditions and forecasts that may be a result of climate change, such bad or extreme weather conditions and forecasts may negatively affect our revenues. The effects of bad weather on attendance can be more pronounced at waterparks. We believe our operating results in certain years were adversely affected by abnormally hot, cold and/or wet weather in a number of our major U.S. markets. In addition, since a number of products are featured in parks geographically concentrated in portions of the United States, a weather pattern that affects those respective areas could adversely affect a number of our parks and disproportionately impact our results of operations. Bad weather and forecasts of bad weather on weekends, holidays or other peak periods will typically have a greater negative impact on our revenues and could disproportionately impact our results of operations.
The Company’s toy and souvenir business is highly seasonal, and its operating results depend, in large part, on sales during the relatively brief traditional holiday season. Events that disrupt the Company’s business during its peak demand times can adversely and disproportionately affect the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
The Company’s toy and souvenir business is subject to risks associated with the underproduction of popular toys and the overproduction of toys that are less popular with consumers. The Company attempts to manage their inventories tightly, which requires the Company to ship products closer to the expected date the Company sells the products to consumers. This in turn results in shorter lead times for production. These factors may decrease sales or increase the risks that the Company may not be able to meet demand for certain products at peak demand times or that the Company’s own inventory levels may be adversely impacted by the need to pre-build products before orders are placed.
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In addition, as a result of the seasonal nature of the Company’s business, the Company may be adversely affected, in a manner disproportionate to the impact on a company with sales spread more evenly throughout the year, by unforeseen events, such as public health crises and pandemics, terrorist attacks, economic shocks, severe weather due to climate change or otherwise, earthquakes or other catastrophic events, that harm the retail environment or consumer buying patterns during its key selling season, or by events, such as strikes, disruptions in transportation, or port delays, that interfere with the manufacture or shipment of goods during the critical months leading up to the purchasing season.
We could be subject to future product liability suits or product recalls which could have a significant adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
As a company that designs and sells consumer products, we may be subject to product liability suits or involuntary product recalls, or may choose to voluntarily conduct a product recall. While costs associated with product liability claims and product recalls have generally not been material to our business, the costs associated with future product liability claims or product recalls in any given fiscal year, individually or in the aggregate, could be significant. In addition, any product recall, regardless of the direct costs of the recall, could harm consumer perceptions of our products, subject us to additional government scrutiny, divert development and management resources, adversely affect our business operations and otherwise put us at a competitive disadvantage compared to other companies in our industry, any of which could have a significant adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
The Company’s toy and souvenir business depends in large part on the success of its vendors and outsourcers, and the Company’s brands and reputation are subject to harm from actions taken by third parties that are outside the Company’s control. In addition, any significant failure, inadequacy, or interruption from such vendors or outsourcers could harm the Company’s ability to effectively operate this business.
As a part of its efforts to cut costs, achieve better efficiencies, and increase productivity and service quality, the Company relies significantly on vendor and outsourcing relationships with third parties for services and systems including manufacturing, transportation, logistics, and information technology. Any shortcoming of a vendor or outsourcer of the Company, particularly an issue affecting the quality of these services or systems, results in risk of damage to the Company’s reputation and brand value, and potentially adverse effects to the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations. In addition, problems with transitioning these services and systems to, or operating failures with, these vendors and outsourcers cause delays in product sales and reduce the efficiency of the Company’s operations, and significant capital investments could be required to remediate the problem.
The Company depends on key personnel and may not be able to hire, retain, and integrate sufficient qualified personnel to maintain and expand its toy and souvenir business.
The Company’s future success depends partly on the continued contribution of key executives, designers, and technical, sales, marketing, manufacturing, entertainment, and other personnel. The loss of services of any of the Company’s key personnel could harm the Company’s business. Recruiting and retaining skilled personnel is costly and highly competitive. In addition, changes to the Company’s current and future work environments may not meet the needs or expectations of its employees or be perceived as less favorable compared to other companies’ policies, which could negatively impact the Company’s ability to hire and retain qualified personnel. If the Company fails to retain, hire, train, and integrate qualified employees and contractors, the Company may not be able to maintain or expand its business.
The loss of any member of our senior management team, or of any other key employees, or the inability to successfully complete planned management transitions, could impair our ability to execute our business plan and could therefore have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. We do not currently maintain key man life insurance policies on any member of our senior management team or on our other key employees.
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Failure to keep pace with developments in technology could adversely affect our operations or competitive position.
The theme park and waterpark industry demands the use of sophisticated technology and systems for operation of our parks, ticket, membership and season pass sales and management, and labor and inventory management. Information technology systems continue to evolve and, in order to remain competitive, we must implement new technologies and systems in a timely and efficient manner. The development and maintenance of these technologies may require significant investment by us and we may not achieve the anticipated benefits from such new developments or upgrades.
Increases in labor costs and employee health and welfare benefits could have a negative impact on our cash flows, financial condition, and results of operations.
Labor is a primary component in the cost of operating our business. We devote significant resources to recruiting and training our employees in order to meet our guests’ high expectations for service. Wage and benefit increases to attract and retain employees in a tight labor market have driven-up labor costs. These increased costs pressure our margins and could have a negative impact on our financial results. Our ability to control labor costs is subject to numerous external factors, including market pressures with respect to prevailing wage rates, unemployment levels, and health and other insurance costs, as well as the impact of legislation or regulations governing labor relations, minimum wage, and healthcare benefits. Further legislative changes or competitive wage rates could continue to increase these expenses in the future.
Disruptions in the Company’s manufacturing operations or supply chain due to political instability, civil unrest, or disease could adversely affect the Company’s toy and souvenir business, financial position, sales, and results of operations.
The Company primarily utilizes third-party manufacturers and suppliers throughout Asia. The risk of political instability and civil unrest exists in certain of these countries, which could temporarily or permanently damage the manufacturing operations of the Company and/or its third-party manufacturers located there. Outbreaks of communicable diseases have also been known to occur in these countries. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic began in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China and has caused supply chain disruption for the Company, its suppliers, and its customers that contributed to lower net sales in the first half of 2020 and may cause lower net sales to the extent they remain issues in the future. Other disruptions from public health crises such as these result from, among other things, workers contracting diseases, restrictions on factory openings, restrictions on travel, restrictions on shipping, and the closure of critical infrastructure. The design, development, and manufacture of the Company’s products could suffer if the Company’s employees or the employees of its third-party manufacturers or their suppliers contract communicable diseases, or if the Company, the Company’s third-party manufacturers, or their suppliers are adversely affected by other impacts of such diseases. In addition, the contingency plans the Company has developed to help mitigate the impact of disruptions in its manufacturing operations and supply chain may not prevent its business, financial position, sales, and results of operations from being adversely affected by a significant disruption to its manufacturing operations or suppliers.
Disruptions in our supply chain for materials and components and the resulting increase in equipment and logistics costs could adversely affect our financial performance.
We are subject to risk from fluctuating manufacturing costs of our products based on surging consumer demand. Prices of these manufacturing costs, including the components and materials of our products may be affected by supply restrictions or other market factors from time to time.
Political, social or economic instability in regions where these components and materials are made could cause future disruptions in trade. For example, concerns about forced labor in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (“XUAR”), where certain components and materials are manufactured, have led to legislation in countries such as the United States restricting imports from such region. Specifically, on December 23, 2021, the United States enacted the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”), which presumptively prohibits imports of any goods made either wholly or in part in the XUAR. The law, which went into effect on June 21, 2022, creates a rebuttable presumption against “the importation of goods made, manufactured, or mined in the XUAR (and certain other categories of persons in China)” unless the importer meets certain due diligence standards, responds to all inquiries from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) related to forced labor and the CBP determines, based on “clear and convincing evidence,” that the goods in question were not produced wholly or in part by forced labor. We do not believe that our suppliers source materials for our supply chain from the XUAR, but we cannot guarantee that our suppliers and partners will always comply with our policies. Enforcement of the UFPLA against us or our suppliers could lead to our products being held for inspection by CBP and delayed or rejected for entry into the United States, resulting in other supply chain disruptions, or cause us to be subject to penalties, fines or sanctions. Broader policy uncertainty, including actions in various countries, such as China, have created uncertainty with respect to tariff impacts on the costs of some of these components and materials. Even if we were not subject to penalties, fines or sanctions or supply chain disruption, if products we source are linked in any way to forced labor in the XUAR, our reputation could be harmed. In the future, these trade restrictions may extend beyond the United States.
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We cannot predict whether the countries in which the components and materials are sourced, or may be sourced in the future, will be subject to new or additional trade restrictions imposed by the governments of countries in which our projects are located, including the likelihood, type or effect of any such restrictions. Trade restrictions, including embargoes, safeguards and customs restrictions against certain components and materials, as well as labor strikes and work stoppages or boycotts, could increase the cost or reduce or delay the supply of components and materials available to us and our vendors, which could delay or adversely affect the scope of our projects under development or construction and adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations.
We depend on large, recurring purchases from certain significant retailers, distributors and other channel partners, and a loss, cancellation or delay in purchases by these channel partners could negatively affect our revenue.
The loss of recurring orders from any of our more significant retailers, distributors and other channel partners could cause our revenue and profitability to suffer. Our ability to attract new retailers, distributors and other channel partners will depend on a variety of factors, including the cost-effectiveness, reliability, scalability, breadth and depth of our products. In addition, a change in the mix of our retailers, distributors and other channel partners, or a change in the mix of direct and indirect sales, could adversely affect our revenue and gross margin.
Although our financial performance may depend on large, recurring orders from certain retailers, distributors and other channel partners, we do not generally have binding commitments from them. For example:
● our channel partner agreements generally do not require minimum purchases;
● our retailers, distributors and other channel partners can stop purchasing and stop marketing our products at any time; and
● our channel partner agreements generally are not exclusive.
Because our expenses are based on our revenue forecasts, a substantial reduction or delay in sales of our products to, or unexpected returns from, channel partners, or the loss of any significant channel partners, could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Although our largest channel partners may vary from period to period, we anticipate that our results of operations for any given period will continue to depend on large orders from a small number of channel partners.
The Company relies extensively on information technology in its operations, and any material failure, inadequacy, interruption, or security breach of that technology could have an adverse effect on its business, financial condition, and results of operations.
The Company relies extensively on information technology systems across its operations, including for management of its supply chain, sale and delivery of its products and services, reporting its results and various other processes and transactions. Many of these systems are managed by third-party service providers. The Company uses third-party technology and systems for a variety of reasons, including, without limitation, encryption and authentication technology, employee email, content delivery to customers, back-office support, and other functions. A small and growing volume of the Company’s consumer products and services are web-based, and some are offered in conjunction with business partners or such third-party service providers. The Company’s ability to effectively manage its business and coordinate the production, distribution, and sale of its products and services depends significantly on the reliability and capacity of these systems and third-party service providers.
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The Company faces risks related to protecting its proprietary intellectual property and information and is subject to third-party claims that the Company is infringing on their intellectual property rights, either of which could adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
The value of the Company’s business depends on its ability to protect its intellectual property and information, including its trademarks, trade names, copyrights, patents, trade secrets, and rights under intellectual property license agreements and other agreements with third parties, in the United States and around the world, as well as its customer, employee, and consumer data. From time to time, third parties may in the future try to challenge, the Company’s ownership of its intellectual property in the United States and around the world. Responding to any infringement claim, regardless of its validity, may be costly and time-consuming and may divert management and key personnel from business operations. Findings of infringement on the intellectual property rights of any third party by the Company, its distributors, its licensors, or its manufacturers may require obtaining a license to use those rights, which may not be obtainable on reasonable terms, if at all.
In addition, the Company’s business is subject to the risk of third parties counterfeiting its products or infringing on its intellectual property rights. The steps the Company has taken may not prevent unauthorized use of its intellectual property, particularly in foreign countries where the laws may not protect its intellectual property as fully as in the United States. The Company may resort to litigation to protect its intellectual property rights, which could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources. The Company’s failure to protect its proprietary intellectual property and information, including with respect to any successful challenge to the Company’s ownership of its intellectual property or significant infringements of its intellectual property, could have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark, patent and trade secret laws, nondisclosure agreements with employees, consultants and suppliers and other contractual provisions to establish, maintain and protect our intellectual property and technology. Despite efforts to protect our intellectual property, unauthorized third parties may attempt to design around, copy aspects of our product design or obtain and use technology or other intellectual property associated with our products. Furthermore, our competitors may independently develop similar technology or design around our intellectual property. Our inability to secure and protect our intellectual property rights could materially adversely affect our brand and business, results of operations and financial condition.
If disruptions in our transportation network occur or our shipping costs substantially increase, we may be unable to sell or timely deliver our products, and our operating expenses could increase.
We are highly dependent upon the transportation systems we use to ship our products, including surface and air freight. Our attempts to closely match our inventory levels to our product demand intensify the need for our transportation systems to function effectively and without delay. On a quarterly basis, our shipping volume also tends to steadily increase as the quarter progresses, which means that any disruption in our transportation network in the latter half of a quarter will likely have a more material effect on our business than at the beginning of a quarter.
The transportation network is subject to disruption or congestion from a variety of causes, including labor disputes or port strikes, acts of war or terrorism, natural disasters and congestion resulting from higher shipping volumes. Labor disputes among freight carriers and at ports of entry are common, particularly in Europe, and we expect labor unrest and its effects on shipping our products to be a continuing challenge for us. A port worker strike, work slow-down or other transportation disruption in Asia and the United States, where we import our products to fulfill our orders, could significantly disrupt our business. Our international freight is regularly subjected to inspection by governmental entities. If our delivery times increase unexpectedly for these or any other reasons, our ability to deliver products on time would be materially adversely affected and result in delayed or lost revenue as well as customer imposed penalties. In addition, if increases in fuel prices occur, our transportation costs would likely increase. Moreover, the cost of shipping our products by air freight is greater than other methods. From time to time in the past, we have shipped products using extensive air freight to meet unexpected spikes in demand and shifts in demand between product categories, to bring new product introductions to market quickly and to timely ship products previously ordered. If we rely more heavily upon air freight to deliver our products, our overall shipping costs will increase. A prolonged transportation disruption or a significant increase in the cost of freight could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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As part of growing our business, we may make acquisitions. If we fail to successfully select, execute or integrate our acquisitions, then our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected and our stock price could decline.
From time to time, we may undertake acquisitions to add new product and service lines and technologies, acquire talent, gain new sales channels or enter into new sales territories. Acquisitions involve numerous risks and challenges, including relating to the successful integration of the acquired business, entering into new territories or markets with which we have limited or no prior experience, establishing or maintaining business relationships with new retailers, distributors or other channel partners, vendors and suppliers and potential post-closing disputes.
We cannot ensure that we will be successful in selecting, executing and integrating acquisitions. Failure to manage and successfully integrate acquisitions could materially harm our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, if stock market analysts or our stockholders do not support or believe in the value of the acquisitions that we choose to undertake, our stock price may decline.
If we do not effectively manage our sales channel inventory and product mix, we may incur costs associated with excess inventory, or lose sales from having too few products.
If we are unable to properly monitor, control and manage our sales channel inventory and maintain an appropriate level and mix of products with our distributors and within our sales channels, we may incur increased and unexpected costs associated with this inventory. If our wholesale distributors and retailers are unable to sell their inventory in a timely manner, we might lower the price of the products, or these parties may exchange the products for newer products. Also, during the transition from an existing product to a new replacement product, we must accurately predict the demand for the existing and the new product.
We determine production levels based on our forecasts of demand for our products. Actual demand for our products depends on many factors, which makes it difficult to forecast. We have experienced differences between our actual and our forecasted demand in the past and expect differences to arise in the future. If we improperly forecast demand for our products, we could end up with too many products and be unable to sell the excess inventory in a timely manner, if at all, or, alternatively, we could end up with too few products and not be able to satisfy demand. This problem is exacerbated because we attempt to closely match inventory levels with product demand, leaving limited margin for error. If these events occur, we could incur increased expenses associated with writing off excessive or obsolete inventory, lose sales, incur penalties for late delivery or have to ship products by air freight to meet immediate demand, thereby incurring incremental freight costs above the sea freight costs, a preferred method, and suffering a corresponding decline in gross margin.
Changes in tax laws or exposure to additional income tax liabilities could affect our future profitability.
Factors that could materially affect our future effective tax rates include but are not limited to:
| ● | changes in tax laws or the regulatory environment; |
| ● | changes in accounting and tax standards or practices; |
| ● | changes in the composition of operating income by tax jurisdiction; and |
| ● | our operating results before taxes. |
We are subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Because we do not have a long history of operating as a separate company and we have significant expansion plans, our effective tax rate may fluctuate in the future. Future effective tax rates could be affected by operating losses in jurisdictions where no tax benefit can be recorded under GAAP, changes in the composition of earnings in countries with differing tax rates, changes in deferred tax assets and liabilities, or changes in tax laws.
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On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Act”) was signed into law making significant changes to the Code. In particular, sweeping changes were made to the U.S. taxation of foreign operations. Changes include, but are not limited to, a corporate tax rate decrease from 35% to 21% effective for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017, the transition of U.S. international taxation from a worldwide tax system to a quasi-territorial system, and a one-time transition tax on the mandatory deemed repatriation of cumulative foreign earnings. Additionally, new provisions were added to mitigate the potential erosion of the U.S. tax base and to discourage use of low tax jurisdictions to own intellectual property and other valuable intangible assets. While these provisions were intended to prevent specific perceived taxpayer abuse, they may have adverse, unexpected consequences. At this time, Treasury has not yet issued Regulations on how these new rules should be applied and how the relevant calculations are to be prepared. As there exists only limited guidance at this time, significant estimates and judgment are required in assessing the consequences. The amounts for adjusting the deferred tax assets and liabilities for the new effective tax rate and the transition tax are provisional based on the guidance provided by the SEC in Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (“SAB 118”), which provides for a measurement period of one year from the enactment date to finalize the accounting for effects of the 2017 Tax Act. As a result of continued regulations and interpretations of the Tax Act, we are still quantifying the effects of the tax law change. The amounts reported as of December 31, 2024 are provisional based on the uncertainty discussed above. As we complete our analysis and prepare necessary data, and interpret any additional guidance, we will adjust our calculations and provisional amounts that we have recorded in our tax provision. Any such adjustments may materially impact our provision for income taxes in our financial statements.
In addition to the impact of the Tax Act on our federal taxes, the Tax Act may impact our taxation in other jurisdictions, including with respect to state income taxes. State legislatures have not had sufficient time to respond to the Tax Act. Accordingly, there is uncertainty as to how the laws will apply in the various state jurisdictions. Additionally, other foreign governing bodies may enact changes to their tax laws in reaction to the Tax Act that could result in changes to our global tax position and materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Additionally, the IRS and several foreign tax authorities have increasingly focused attention on intercompany transfer pricing with respect to sales of products and services and the use of intangibles. Tax authorities could disagree with our intercompany charges, cross-jurisdictional transfer pricing or other matters and assess additional taxes. If we do not prevail in any such disagreements, our profitability may be affected.
We must comply with indirect tax laws in multiple jurisdictions, as well as complex customs duty regimes worldwide. Audits of our compliance with these rules may result in additional liabilities for taxes, duties, interest and penalties related to our international operations which would reduce our profitability.
Our operations are routinely subject to audit by tax authorities in various countries. Many countries have indirect tax systems where the sale and purchase of goods and services are subject to tax based on the transaction value. These taxes are commonly referred to as value-added tax (“VAT”) or goods and services tax (“GST”). In addition, the distribution of our products subjects us to numerous complex customs regulations, which frequently change over time. Failure to comply with these systems and regulations can result in the assessment of additional taxes, duties, interest and penalties. While we believe we are in compliance with local laws, we cannot assure that tax and customs authorities agree with our reporting positions and upon audit may assess us additional taxes, duties, interest and penalties.
Additionally, some of our products are subject to U.S. export controls, including the Export Administration Regulations and economic sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. We also incorporate encryption technology into certain of our solutions. These encryption solutions and underlying technology may be exported outside of the United States only with the required export authorizations or exceptions, including by license, a license exception, and appropriate classification notification requirement and encryption authorization.
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Furthermore, our activities are subject to U.S. economic sanctions laws and regulations that prohibit the shipment of certain products and services without the required export authorizations, including to countries, governments and persons targeted by U.S. embargoes or sanctions. Obtaining the necessary export license or other authorization for a particular sale may be time consuming, and may result in delay or loss of sales opportunities even if the export license ultimately is granted. While we take precautions to prevent t our solutions from being exported in violation of these laws, including using authorizations or exceptions for our encryption products and implementing IP address blocking and screenings against U.S. government and international lists of restricted and prohibited persons and countries, we cannot guarantee that the precautions we take will prevent all violations of export control and sanctions laws. Violations of U.S. sanctions or export control laws can result in significant fines or penalties and incarceration could be imposed on employees and managers for criminal violations of these laws.
Also, various countries, in addition to the United States, regulate the import and export of certain encryption and other technology, including import and export licensing requirements, and have enacted laws that could limit our ability to distribute our products and services or our end-users’ ability to utilize our solutions in their countries. Changes in our products and services or changes in import and export regulations may create delays in the introduction of our products in international markets. Adverse action by any government agencies related to indirect tax laws could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act and other existing or future government regulation could harm our business or may cause us to incur additional costs associated with compliance.
We are subject to various federal, state and local laws and regulations, including but not limited to, laws and regulations relating to labor and employment, U.S. customs and consumer product safety, including the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, or the “CPSIA.” The CPSIA created more stringent safety requirements related to lead and phthalates content in children’s products. The CPSIA regulates the future manufacture of these items and existing inventories and may cause us to incur losses if we offer for sale or sell any non-compliant items. Failure to comply with the various regulations applicable to us may result in damage to our reputation, civil and criminal liability, fines and penalties and increased cost of regulatory compliance. These current and any future laws and regulations could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We may be subject to anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, economic sanctions and other similar laws and regulations, and non-compliance with such laws and regulations could subject the Company to civil, criminal and administrative penalties, remedial measures and legal expenses, all of which could adversely affect the Company’s business, prospects, results of operations, financial condition and reputation.
The Company is or will be subject to laws with respect to anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, financial and economic sanctions and other similar laws and regulations in various jurisdictions in which the Company conducts, or in the future may conduct, activities, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) and other anti-corruption laws and regulations. The FCPA prohibits the Company and its officers, directors, employees and business partners acting on its behalf, including agents, from offering, promising, authorizing or providing anything of value to a “foreign official” for the purposes of influencing official decisions or obtaining or retaining business or otherwise obtaining favorable treatment. The FCPA also requires companies to make and keep books, records and accounts that accurately reflect transactions and dispositions of assets and to maintain a system of adequate internal accounting controls. A violation of these laws or regulations could adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations, financial condition and reputation.
If one or more of our major customers were to experience difficulties in fulfilling their obligations to us, cease doing business with us, significantly reduce the amount of their purchases from us or return substantial amounts of our products, it could have a materially adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
A substantial reduction in or termination of orders from any of our largest customers would adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, pressure by large customers seeking price reductions, financial incentives and changes in other terms of sale or for us to bear the risks and the cost of carrying inventory could also adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
If one or more of our major customers were to experience difficulties in fulfilling their obligations to us resulting from bankruptcy or other deterioration in their financial condition or ability to meet their obligations, cease doing business with us, significantly reduce the amount of their purchases from us, or return substantial amounts of our products, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. The COVID-19 pandemic has left many customers outside of our largest customers under varying degrees of financial distress, and it seems some of our largest customers are facing increases in their operating costs. Customers may request extended payment terms which may require us to take on increased credit risk or to reduce or forgo sales entirely in an attempt to mitigate financial risk associated with customer bankruptcy risk.
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Customer complaints regarding our products and services could hurt our business.
From time to time, we may receive complaints from customers regarding the quality of goods purchased from us. We may in the future receive correspondence from customers requesting reimbursement. Certain dissatisfied customers may threaten legal action against us if no reimbursement is made. We may become subject to product liability lawsuits from customers alleging injury because of a purported defect in our products or services, claiming substantial damages and demanding payments from us. We are in the chain of title when we supply or distribute products, and therefore are subject to the risk of being held legally responsible for them. These claims may not be covered by our insurance policies. Any resulting litigation could be costly for us, divert management attention, and could result in increased costs of doing business, or otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Any negative publicity generated as a result of customer frustration with our products or services, or with our websites, could damage our reputation and diminish the value of our brand name, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
Risks Related to Our Securities and Other Risks
We are an “emerging growth company” and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our common stock less attractive to investors.
We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act, and, for as long as we continue to be an emerging growth company, we may choose to take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies including, but (i) not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, (ii) not being required to comply with any new requirements adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the “PCAOB”), requiring mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report in which the auditor would be required to provide additional information about the audit and the financial statements of the issuer, (iii) not being required to comply with any new audit rules adopted by the PCAOB after April 5, 2012 unless the SEC determines otherwise, (iv) reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and (v) exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.
We could remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of: (i) the last day of the fiscal year in which we have total annual gross revenues of $1.24 billion or more; (ii) the last day of our fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the date of our first sale of common equity securities pursuant to an effective registration statement; (iii) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in nonconvertible debt during the previous three years; or (iv) the date on which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer. We cannot predict if investors will find our securities less attractive if we choose to rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of any choices to reduce future disclosure, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and our stock price may be more volatile. Further, as a result of these scaled regulatory requirements, our disclosure may be more limited than that of other public companies and you may not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of such companies.
Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a) (2)(B) of the Securities Act, for complying with new or revised accounting standards. We have opted for taking advantage of the extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards pursuant to Section 107(b) of the Jobs Act.
● We are required to comply with various regulatory and reporting requirements, including those required by the SEC. Complying with these reporting and other regulatory requirements is time-consuming and results in increased costs to us and could have a negative effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business.
● Certain of our stockholders hold a significant percentage of our outstanding voting securities, which could reduce the ability of minority stockholders to effect certain corporate actions.
The Investor holds Preferred Stock Shares and June PIPE Warrants. If the Investor converts its Preferred Stock Shares and exercises its June PIPE Warrants, such Investor will have majority voting power and may take actions that may not be in the best interests of our other stockholders.
As of the date of this prospectus, the Investor holds Preferred Stock Shares and June PIPE Warrants. If the Investor converts its Preferred Stock Shares and exercises its June PIPE Warrants, such Investor will hold significantly more than 50% of our Common Stock. In that scenario, the Investor will be able to control the management and affairs of Tron Inc. and matters requiring stockholder approval, including the election of directors and approval of significant corporate transactions. The interests of the Investor may not be the same as or may even conflict with your interests. For example, the Investor could attempt to delay or prevent a change in control of us, even if such change in control would benefit our other stockholders, which could deprive our stockholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their Common Stock as part of a sale of us or our assets, and might affect the prevailing market price of our Common Stock due to investors’ perceptions that conflicts of interest may exist or arise. As a result, this concentration of ownership may not be in the best interests of our other stockholders.
We may regularly encounter potential conflicts of interest, and our failure to identify and address such conflicts of interest could adversely affect our business.
We face the possibility of actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest in the ordinary course of our business operations.
Conflicts of interest may exist between (i) our different businesses; (ii) us and our stakeholders; or (iii) us and our affiliates. As we expand the scope of our business it is critical for us to be able to timely address potential conflicts of interest, including situations where two or more interests within our businesses naturally exist but are in competition or conflict. We have put in place internal control and risk management procedures that are designed to identify and address conflicts of interest, including a procedure for presenting potential conflicts of interest to the audit committee of our Board. However, appropriately identifying and managing actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest is complex and difficult, and our reputation and our stakeholders’ confidence in us could be damaged if we fail, or appear to fail, to deal appropriately with one or more actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest. It is possible that actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest could also give rise to client dissatisfaction, litigation, or regulatory enforcement actions. Regulatory scrutiny of, or litigation in connection with, conflicts of interest could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, which could materially and adversely affect our business in a number of ways, including a reluctance of some potential counterparties to do business with us. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect our reputation, business, financial condition, and results of operations.
A conflict of interest occurs when an individual’s private interest (or the interest of a member of his or her family or close friend(s) or business associate(s)) interferes, or even appears to interfere, with the interests of our company as a whole. A conflict of interest can arise when an employee, officer or director (or a member of his or her family or a close friend(s) or business associate(s)) takes actions or has interests that may make it difficult to perform his or her work for our company objectively and effectively. Conflicts of interest also arise when an employee, officer or director (or a member of his or her family or close friend(s) or business associate(s)) receives improper personal benefits as a result of his or her position in our company.
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Specific potential conflicts of interest may arise from the following relationships:
| ● | we engaged BiT Global, a licensed Trust or Company Service Provider and registered trust company in Hong Kong, to set up the Treasury Wallet. Our director, Mr. Liu, is one of the directors of BiT Global. | |
| ● | some of our directors have certain ties with the TRON blockchain ecosystem. For example, Weike Sun is the father of Justin Sun, the founder of TRON. Mr. Liu has been the senior advisor to Tron DAO since 2021. Mr. Yang holds senior positions for Tronscan, the official blockchain explorer for Tron protocol. |
Directors and executive officers must seek determinations and prior authorizations or approvals of potential conflicts of interest exclusively from our audit committee. All other employees are required to approach our Chief Executive Officer or our Chief Financial Officer if they have any questions about reporting a suspected conflict of interest.
Risks Related to Our TRX Token Strategy and Holdings
The TRX token is a highly volatile asset, and fluctuations in the price of the TRX token are likely to affect our financial results and the market price of our listed securities.
The TRX token is a highly volatile asset, and fluctuations in the price of the TRX token are likely to continue to affect our financial results and the market price of our listed securities. Our financial results and the market price of our listed securities would be adversely affected, and our business and financial condition would be negatively impacted, if the price of TRX tokens decreased substantially, including as a result of:
| ● | decreased user and investor confidence in the TRX token, including due to the various factors described herein; | |
| ● | investment and trading activities, such as (i) trading activities of highly active retail and institutional users and investors; and (ii) actual or expected significant dispositions of TRX tokens by large holders, including the expected liquidation of digital assets associated with entities that have filed for bankruptcy protection and the transfer and sale of TRX tokens associated with significant hacks, seizures, or forfeitures; | |
| ● | negative publicity, media or social media coverage, or sentiment due to events in or relating to, or perception of, TRON blockchain, TRX tokens or the broader digital assets industry, for example, (i) public perception that blockchains can be used as a platform to circumvent sanctions, including sanctions imposed on Russia or certain regions related to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, or to fund criminal or terrorist activities, such as the purported use of digital assets by Hamas to fund its terrorist attack against Israel in October 2023; (ii) expected or pending civil, criminal, regulatory enforcement or other high profile actions against major participants in the TRON ecosystem, if any; and (iii) additional filings for bankruptcy protection or bankruptcy proceedings of major digital asset industry participants, such as the bankruptcy proceeding of FTX Trading and its affiliates; | |
| ● | changes in consumer preferences and the perceived value or prospects of the TRX token; | |
| ● | competition from other digital assets that exhibit better speed, security, scalability, or energy efficiency, that feature other more favored characteristics, that are backed by governments, including the U.S. government, or reserves of fiat currencies, or that represent ownership or security interests in physical assets; | |
| ● | a decrease in the price of other digital assets, including stablecoins, or the crash or unavailability of stablecoins that are used as a medium of exchange for TRX token purchase and sale transactions, such as the crash of the stablecoin Terra USD in 2022, to the extent the decrease in the price of such other digital assets or the unavailability of such stablecoins may cause a decrease in the price of TRX tokens or adversely affect investor confidence in digital assets generally; | |
| ● | developments relating to the TRON protocol, including (i) changes to the TRON protocol that impact its security, speed, scalability, usability, or value, such as changes to the cryptographic security protocol underpinning the TRON blockchain, changes to the maximum number of TRX tokens outstanding, changes to the mutability of transactions, changes relating to the size of blockchain blocks, and similar changes, (ii) failures to make upgrades to the TRON protocol to adapt to security, technological, legal or other challenges, and (iii) changes to the TRON protocol that introduce software bugs, security risks or other elements that adversely affect TRX tokens; | |
| ● | disruptions, failures, unavailability, or interruptions in service of trading venues for TRX tokens, such as, for example, the announcement by the digital asset exchange FTX Trading that it would freeze withdrawals and transfers from its accounts and subsequent filing for bankruptcy protection and the SEC enforcement action brought against Binance Holdings Ltd., which initially sought to freeze all of its assets during the pendency of the enforcement action and has since resulted in Binance discontinuing all fiat deposits and withdrawals in the U.S.; |
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| ● | the filing for bankruptcy protection by, liquidation of, or market concerns about the financial viability of digital asset custodians, trading venues, lending platforms, investment funds, or other digital asset industry participants, such as the filing for bankruptcy protection by digital asset trading venues FTX Trading and BlockFi and digital asset lending platforms Celsius Network and Voyager Digital Holdings in 2022, the ordered liquidation of the digital asset investment fund Three Arrows Capital in 2022, the announced liquidation of Silvergate Bank in 2023, the government-mandated closure and sale of Signature Bank in 2023, the placement of Prime Trust, LLC into receivership following a cease-and-desist order issued by the Nevada Department of Business and Industry in 2023, and the exit of Binance from the U.S. market as part of its settlement with the Department of Justice and other federal regulatory agencies; | |
| ● | regulatory, legislative, enforcement and judicial actions that adversely affect the price, ownership, transferability, trading volumes, legality or public perception of TRX tokens, or that adversely affect the operations of or otherwise prevent digital asset custodians, trading venues, lending platforms or other digital assets industry participants from operating in a manner that allows them to continue to deliver services to the digital assets industry; | |
| ● | the ultimate resolution of a March 2023 civil enforcement action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and currently pending in the Southern District of New York (the “SEC Action”). Among other claims, the SEC Action alleges that certain contests, giveaways, and secondary market trading involving TRX tokens in 2018 and 2019 constituted unregistered securities offerings under the law. Since February 2025, the SEC Action has been stayed by the Court at the request of the parties. There is no claim in the SEC Action that TRX token is itself a security and the Court has not yet weighed any of the allegations, which were pending a motion to dismiss at the time of the stay; | |
| ● | transaction congestion and fees associated with processing transactions on the TRON network; | |
| ● | macroeconomic changes, such as changes in the level of interest rates and inflation, fiscal and monetary policies of governments, trade restrictions, and fiat currency devaluations; | |
| ● | developments in mathematics or technology, including in digital computing, algebraic geometry and quantum computing, that could result in the cryptography used by the TRON blockchain becoming insecure or ineffective; and | |
| ● | changes in national and international economic and political conditions, including, without limitation, federal government policies, trade tariffs and trade disputes, the adverse impacts attributable to the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the economic sanctions adopted in response to the conflict, and the broadening of the Israel-Hamas conflict to other countries in the Middle East. |
Most importantly, our TRX token strategy has not been tested over an extended period of time or under different market conditions. Although we are and will be continually examining the risks and rewards of our TRX token strategy, if TRX token prices were to decrease or our TRX token strategy otherwise proves unsuccessful, the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, and the market price of our listed securities would be materially adversely impacted.
The TRX token and other digital assets are novel assets, and are subject to significant legal, commercial, regulatory and technical uncertainty
The TRX token and other digital assets are relatively novel and are subject to significant uncertainty, which could adversely impact their price. The application of state and federal securities laws and other laws and regulations to digital assets is unclear in certain respects, and it is possible that regulators in the United States or foreign countries may interpret or apply existing laws and regulations in a manner that adversely affects the price of the TRX token or the ability of individuals or institutions (including the Company) to own or transfer TRX tokens.
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The U.S. federal government, states, regulatory agencies, and foreign countries may also enact new laws and regulations, or pursue regulatory, legislative, enforcement or judicial actions, that could materially impact the price of the TRX token or the ability of individuals or institutions (including the Company) to own or transfer TRX tokens. For example, within the past several years:
| ● | President Trump signed an executive order instructing a working group comprised of representatives from key federal agencies to evaluate measures that can be taken to provide regulatory clarity and certainty built on technology-neutral regulations for individuals and firms involved in digital assets, including through well-defined jurisdictional regulatory boundaries; | |
| ● | the European Union adopted Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (“MiCA”), a comprehensive digital asset regulatory framework for the issuance and use of digital assets; | |
| ● | in June 2023, the SEC filed complaints against Binance Holdings Ltd. and Coinbase, Inc., and their respective affiliated entities, relating to, among other claims, that each party was operating as an unregistered securities exchange, broker, dealer, and clearing agency; | |
| ● | in November 2023, the SEC filed a complaint against Payward Inc. and Payward Ventures Inc., together known as Kraken, alleging, among other claims, that Kraken’s crypto trading platform was operating as an unregistered securities exchange, broker, dealer, and clearing agency; | |
| ● | in June 2023, the United Kingdom adopted and implemented the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (“FSMA 2023”), which regulates market activities in “cryptoassets;” | |
| ● | in November 2023, Binance Holdings Ltd. and its then chief executive officer reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, CFTC, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control, and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to resolve a multi-year investigation by the agencies and a civil suit brought by the CFTC, pursuant to which Binance Holdings Ltd. agreed to, among other things, pay $4.3 billion in penalties across the four agencies and to discontinue its operations in the United States; and | |
| ● | in China, the People’s Bank of China and the National Development and Reform Commission have outlawed cryptocurrency mining and declared all cryptocurrency transactions illegal within the country. |
It is not possible to predict whether, or when, new laws will be enacted that change the legal framework governing digital assets or provide additional authorities to the SEC or other regulators, or whether, or when, any other federal, state or foreign legislative bodies will take any similar actions. It is also not possible to predict the nature of any such additional laws or authorities, how additional legislation or regulatory oversight might impact the ability of digital asset markets to function, the willingness of financial and other institutions to continue to provide services to the digital assets industry, or how any new laws or regulations, or changes to existing laws or regulations, might impact the value of digital assets generally and TRX tokens specifically. The consequences of any new law or regulation relating to digital assets and digital asset activities could adversely affect the market price of TRX tokens, as well as our ability to hold or transact in TRX tokens, and in turn adversely affect the market price of our listed securities.
Moreover, the risks of engaging in a TRX token strategy are relatively novel and have created, and could continue to create, complications due to the lack of experience that third parties have with companies engaging in such a strategy, such as increased costs of director and officer liability insurance or the potential inability to obtain such coverage on acceptable terms in the future.
The growth of the digital assets industry in general, and the use and acceptance of the TRX token in particular, may also impact the price of the TRX token and is subject to a high degree of uncertainty. The pace of worldwide growth in the adoption and use of TRX tokens may depend, for instance, on public familiarity with digital assets, ease of buying, accessing or gaining exposure to TRX tokens, institutional demand for TRX tokens as an investment asset, the participation of traditional financial institutions in the digital assets industry, consumer demand for TRX tokens as means of payment, and the availability and popularity of alternatives to the TRX token. Even if growth in TRX token adoption occurs in the near or medium-term, there is no assurance that TRX token usage will continue to grow over the long-term.
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Because the TRX token has no physical existence beyond the record of transactions on the TRON blockchain, a variety of technical factors related to the TRON blockchain could also impact the price of the TRX token. For example, malicious attacks by hackers, hard “forks” of the TRX token blockchain into multiple blockchains, and advances in digital computing, algebraic geometry, and quantum computing could undercut the integrity of the TRON blockchain and negatively affect the price of the TRX token. The liquidity of the TRX token may also be reduced and damage to the public perception of the TRX token may occur, if financial institutions were to deny or limit banking services to businesses that hold TRX tokens, provide TRX token-related services or accept the TRX token as payment, which could also decrease the price of the TRX token. Actions by U.S. banking regulators, such as the issuance in February 2023 by Federal banking agencies of the “Interagency Liquidity Risk Statement,” which cautioned banks on contagion risks posed by providing services to digital assets customers, and similar actions, have in the past resulted in or contributed to reductions in access to banking services for cryptocurrency-related customers and service providers, or the willingness of traditional financial institution to participate in markets for digital assets. The liquidity of the TRX token may also be impacted to the extent that changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements negatively impact the ability of exchanges and trading venues to provide services for TRX tokens and other digital assets.
A significant decrease in the market value of our TRX token holdings could adversely affect our ability to satisfy our financial obligations.
For the year ended December 31, 2024, our toys and souvenir business did not generate positive cash flow from operations. If our toys and souvenir business does not generate cash flow in future periods sufficient to satisfy our financial obligations, including our debt and cash dividend obligations, we intend to fund our obligations using cash flow generated by equity or debt financings. Our ability to achieve the objectives of our TRX token strategy depends in significant part on our ability to obtain equity and debt financing. If we are unable to obtain equity or debt financing on favorable terms or at all, we may not be able to successfully execute on our TRX token strategy.
Our ability to obtain equity or debt financing may in turn depend on, among other factors, the value of our TRX token holdings, investor sentiment and the general public perception of TRX tokens, our strategy and our value proposition. Accordingly, a significant decline in the market value of our TRX token holdings or a negative shift in these other factors may create liquidity and credit risks, as such a decline or such shifts may adversely impact our ability to secure sufficient equity or debt financing to satisfy our financial obligations, including our debt and cash dividend obligations. These risks could materialize at times when the TRX token is trading below its carrying value on our most recent balance sheet or our cost basis. As TRX tokens constitute the vast bulk of assets on our balance sheet, if we are unable to secure equity or debt financing in a timely manner, on favorable terms, or at all, we may be required to sell TRX tokens to satisfy these obligations. Any such sale of TRX token may have a material adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition, and could impair our ability to secure additional equity or debt financing in the future. Our inability to secure additional equity or debt financing in a timely manner, on favorable terms or at all, or to sell our TRX tokens in amounts and at prices sufficient to satisfy our financial obligations, including our debt service and cash dividend obligations, could cause us to default under such obligations. Any default on our current or future indebtedness or preferred stock may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.
Our historical financial statements do not reflect the potential variability in earnings that we may experience in the future relating to our TRX token holdings.
Given that we have only started adopting the TRON (TRX) treasury strategy since June 2025, our historical financial statements do not reflect the potential variability in earnings that we may experience in the future from holding or selling significant amounts of TRX tokens. The price of the TRX token has historically been subject to dramatic price fluctuations and is highly volatile. Our TRX token holdings are expected to significantly affect our financial results and if we continue to increase our overall holdings of TRX tokens in the future, they will have an even greater impact on our financial results and the market price of our listed securities. Going forward, we will evaluate and adopt appropriate accounting standards and policies for the preparation of our financial statements, in particular to areas relating to our TRX token holdings.
Our TRX token strategy subjects us to enhanced regulatory oversight.
There has been increasing focus on the extent to which digital assets can be used to launder the proceeds of illegal activities, fund criminal or terrorist activities, or circumvent sanctions regimes, including those sanctions imposed in response to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. While we have implemented and maintain policies and procedures reasonably designed to promote compliance with applicable anti-money laundering and sanctions laws and regulations and take care to only acquire our TRX tokens through entities subject to anti-money laundering regulation and related compliance rules in the United States, if we are found to have purchased any of our TRX tokens from bad actors that have used TRX tokens to launder money or persons subject to sanctions, we may be subject to regulatory proceedings and any further transactions or dealings in TRX tokens by us may be restricted or prohibited.
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We may incur indebtedness or enter into other financial instruments in the future that may be collateralized by our TRX token holdings. We may also consider pursuing strategies to create income streams or otherwise generate funds using our TRX token holdings. These types of TRX token-related transactions are the subject of enhanced regulatory oversight. These and any other TRX token-related transactions we may enter into, beyond simply acquiring and holding TRX tokens, may subject us to additional regulatory compliance requirements and scrutiny, including under federal and state money services regulations, money transmitter licensing requirements and various commodity and securities laws and regulations.
Additional laws, guidance and policies may be issued by domestic and foreign regulators following the filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by FTX, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, in November 2022. While the financial and regulatory fallout from FTX’s collapse did not directly impact our business, financial condition or corporate assets, the FTX collapse may have increased regulatory focus on the digital assets industry. Increased enforcement activity and changes in the regulatory environment, including changing interpretations and the implementation of new or varying regulatory requirements by the government or any new legislation affecting TRX tokens, as well as enforcement actions involving or impacting our trading venues, counterparties and custodians, may impose significant costs or significantly limit our ability to hold and transact in TRX tokens.
In addition, private actors that are wary of the TRX token or the regulatory concerns associated with the TRX token have in the past taken and may in the future take further actions that may have an adverse effect on our business or the market price of our listed securities.
Due to the unregulated nature and lack of transparency surrounding the operations of many TRX token trading venues, TRX token trading venues may experience greater fraud, security failures or regulatory or operational problems than trading venues for more established asset classes, which may result in a loss of confidence in TRX token trading venues and adversely affect the value of our TRX token.
TRX token trading venues are relatively new and, in many cases, unregulated. Furthermore, there are many TRX token trading venues which do not provide the public with significant information regarding their ownership structure, management teams, corporate practices and regulatory compliance. As a result, the marketplace may lose confidence in TRX token trading venues, including prominent exchanges that handle a significant volume of TRX token trading and/or are subject to regulatory oversight, in the event one or more TRX token trading venues cease or pause for a prolonged period the trading of TRX token or other digital assets, or experience fraud, significant volumes of withdrawal, security failures or operational problems.
The concentration of our TRX token holdings enhances the risks inherent in our TRX token strategy.
The vast majority of our assets are concentrated in our TRX token holdings. As of July 24, 2025, we held approximately 365,096,845 TRX tokens and we intend to purchase additional TRX tokens and increase our overall holdings of TRX tokens in the future. The concentration of our TRX token holdings limits the risk mitigation that we could achieve if we were to purchase a more diversified portfolio of treasury assets, and the absence of diversification enhances the risks inherent in our TRX token strategy.
The emergence or growth of other digital assets, including those with significant private or public sector backing, could have a negative impact on the price of TRX tokens and adversely affect our business.
As a result of our TRX token strategy, our assets are concentrated in our TRX token holdings. Accordingly, the emergence or growth of digital assets other than the TRX token (such as Bitcoin and Ethereum) may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.
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Other alternative digital assets that compete with the TRX token in certain ways include “stablecoins,” which are designed to maintain a constant price because of, for instance, their issuers’ promise to hold high-quality liquid assets (such as U.S. dollar deposits and short-term U.S. treasury securities) equal to the total value of stablecoins in circulation. Stablecoins have grown rapidly as a medium of exchange and store of value, particularly on digital asset trading platforms. As of December 31, 2024, two of the eight largest digital assets by market capitalization were U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoins.
Additionally, the introduction of a government-issued digital currency could eliminate or reduce the need or demand for private-sector issued cryptocurrencies, or significantly limit their utility. National governments around the world could introduce central bank digital currencies, which could in turn limit the size of the market opportunity for cryptocurrencies, including TRX tokens.
Our TRX token holdings are less liquid than our existing cash and cash equivalents and may not be able to serve as a source of liquidity for us to the same extent as cash and cash equivalents.
The TRX tokens are mainly traded on centralized and decentralized cryptocurrency exchange platforms. During times of market instability, we may not be able to sell our TRX tokens at favorable prices or at all. As a result, our TRX token holdings may not be able to serve as a source of liquidity for us to the same extent as cash and cash equivalents. Further, TRX tokens we hold and transact with our trade execution partners does not enjoy the same protections as are available to cash or securities deposited with or transacted by institutions subject to regulation by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.
Moreover, TRX tokens may be “staked” on various platforms, including centralized cryptocurrency exchanges, or directly on decentralized platforms. “Staking” is a crypto-related process that allows network participants to earn rewards by locking their tokens in wallets. The TRX tokens in the Treasury Wallet are currently “staked” on JustLend, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, in exchange for Staked TRX (sTRX) tokens. sTRX token is a derivative token that represents the “staked” TRX tokens, which can automatically generate yield for the token holders. While “staking” can generate yields and rewards, there are inherent risks such as (i) smart contract risk – any vulnerabilities of the smart contract may potentially lead to loss of funds, and the redemption of “staked” tokens which is governed by smart contract may be modified by the operator; (ii) interest rate fluctuations – rates can change rapidly based on market conditions, and therefore the amount of yields or rewards is not guaranteed; and (iii) liquidity risk – it may take days or even weeks to release TRX tokens from “staking”. Other than yields and rewards generated from “staking” of the TRX tokens, the TRX token itself does not pay interest or other returns and we can only generate cash from our TRX token holdings if we sell our TRX tokens or implement strategies to create income streams or otherwise generate cash by using our TRX token holdings. Even if we pursue any such strategies, we may be unable to create income streams or otherwise generate cash from our TRX token holdings, and any such strategies may subject us to additional risks.
Additionally, we may be unable to enter into term loans or other capital raising transactions collateralized by our unencumbered TRX tokens or otherwise generate funds using our TRX token holdings, including in particular during times of market instability or when the price of TRX tokens has declined significantly. If we are unable to sell our TRX tokens, enter into additional capital raising transactions, including capital raising transactions using TRX tokens as collateral, or otherwise generate funds using our TRX token holdings, or if we are forced to sell our TRX tokens at a significant loss, in order to meet our working capital requirements, our business and financial condition could be negatively impacted.
We face risks relating to the security of the wallets holding our TRX tokens, including the loss or destruction of private keys required to access our TRX tokens and cyberattacks or other data loss relating to our TRX tokens.
TRX tokens are controllable only by the possessor of both the unique public key and private key(s) relating to the local or online digital wallet in which a TRX token is held. While the TRON blockchain ledger requires a public key relating to a digital wallet to be published when used in a transaction, private keys must be safeguarded and kept private in order to prevent a third party from accessing the TRX tokens held in such wallet. To the extent the private key(s) for a digital wallet are lost, destroyed, or otherwise compromised and no backup of the private key(s) is accessible, we will not be able to access the TRX tokens held in the related digital wallet. Furthermore, we cannot provide assurance that our digital wallets will not be compromised as a result of a cyberattack.
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TRON blockchain and TRX token, as well as other digital assets and blockchain technologies, have been, and may in the future be, subject to security breaches, cyberattacks, or other malicious activities. For example, in November 2022, hackers exploited weaknesses in the security architecture of the FTX Trading digital asset exchange and reportedly stole over $400 million in digital assets from customers. A successful security breach or cyberattack could result in:
| ● | a partial or total loss of our TRX tokens; | |
| ● | harm to our reputation and brand; | |
| ● | improper disclosure of data and violations of applicable data privacy and other laws; or | |
| ● | significant regulatory scrutiny, investigations, fines, penalties, and other legal, regulatory, contractual and financial exposure. |
Further, any actual or perceived data security breach or cybersecurity attack directed at other companies with digital assets or companies that operate digital asset networks, regardless of whether we are directly impacted, could lead to a general loss of confidence in the broader TRON blockchain ecosystem or in the use of the TRON network to conduct financial transactions, which could negatively impact us.
Attacks upon systems across a variety of industries are increasing in frequency, persistence, and sophistication, and, in many cases, are being conducted by sophisticated, well-funded and organized groups and individuals, including state actors. The techniques used to obtain unauthorized, improper or illegal access to systems and information (including personal data and digital assets), disable or degrade services, or sabotage systems are constantly evolving, may be difficult to detect quickly, and often are not recognized or detected until after they have been launched against a target. These attacks may occur on our systems or those of our third-party service providers or partners. We may experience breaches of our security measures due to human error, malfeasance, insider threats, system errors or vulnerabilities or other irregularities. In particular, unauthorized parties have attempted, and we expect that they will continue to attempt, to gain access to our systems and facilities, as well as those of our partners and third-party service providers, through various means, such as hacking, social engineering, phishing and fraud. In the past, hackers have successfully employed a social engineering attack against one of our service providers and misappropriated our digital assets, although, to date, such events have not been material to our financial condition or operating results. Threats can come from a variety of sources, including criminal hackers, hacktivists, state-sponsored intrusions, industrial espionage, and insiders. In addition, certain types of attacks could harm us even if our systems are left undisturbed. For example, certain threats are designed to remain dormant or undetectable, sometimes for extended periods of time, or until launched against a target and we may not be able to implement adequate preventative measures. Further, there has been an increase in such activities due to the increase in work-from-home arrangements since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The risk of cyberattacks could also be increased by cyberwarfare in connection with the ongoing Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas conflicts, or other future conflicts, including potential proliferation of malware into systems unrelated to such conflicts. Any future breach of our operations or those of others in the digital asset industry, including third-party services on which we rely, could materially and adversely affect our business.
Absent federal regulations, there is a possibility that TRX token may be classified as a “security.” Any classification of TRX token as a “security” would subject us to additional regulation and could materially impact the operation of our business.
Our assets are concentrated in our TRX token holdings. While neither the SEC nor any other U.S. federal or state regulator has publicly stated whether they agree that the TRX token is a “security”, if the TRX token is determined to be a “security” in the future, it could lead to our classification as an “investment company” under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), which would subject us to significant additional regulatory controls that could have a material adverse effect on our ability to execute on our TRX token strategy, and our business and operations and may also require us to substantially change the manner in which we conduct our business.
While (for the reasons discussed below) we believe that TRX token is not a “security” within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws, and registration of the Company under the Investment Company Act is therefore not required under the applicable securities laws, we acknowledge that a regulatory body or federal court may determine otherwise. Our belief, even if reasonable under the circumstances, would not preclude legal or regulatory action based on such a finding that TRX token is a “security” which would require us to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act.
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We have also adapted our process for analyzing the U.S. federal securities law status of the TRX token and other cryptocurrencies over time, as guidance and case law have evolved. As part of our U.S. federal securities law analytical process, we take into account a number of factors, including the various definitions of “security” under U.S. federal securities laws and federal court decisions interpreting the elements of these definitions, such as the U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions in the Howey and Reves cases, as well as court rulings, reports, orders, press releases, public statements, and speeches by the SEC Commissioners and SEC Staff providing guidance on when a digital asset or a transaction to which a digital asset may relate may be a security for purposes of U.S. federal securities laws. Our position that TRX token is not a “security” is premised, among other reasons, on our conclusion that the TRX token does not meet the elements of the Howey test. Among the reasons for our conclusion that the TRX token is not a security is that holders of TRX tokens do not have a reasonable expectation of profits from our efforts in respect of their holding of TRX tokens. Also, TRX token ownership does not convey the right to receive any interest, rewards, or other returns.
We acknowledge, however, that the SEC, a federal court or another relevant entity could take a different view. Application of securities laws to the specific facts and circumstances of digital assets is complex and subject to change. Our conclusion, even if reasonable under the circumstances, would not preclude legal or regulatory action based on a finding that the TRX token, or any other digital asset we might hold, is a “security.” As such, we are at risk of enforcement proceedings against us, which could result in potential injunctions, cease-and-desist orders, fines, and penalties if the TRX token was determined to be a security by a regulatory body or a court. Such developments could subject us to fines, penalties, and other damages, and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition, and prospects.
Under Sections 3(a)(1)(A) and (C) of the Investment Company Act, a company generally will be deemed to be an “investment company” if (i) it is, or holds itself out as being, engaged primarily, or proposes to engage primarily, in the business of investing, reinvesting, or trading in securities or (ii) it engages, or proposes to engage, in the business of investing, reinvesting, owning, holding, or trading in securities and it owns or proposes to acquire investment securities having a value exceeding 40% of the value of its total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities, shares of registered money market funds under Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Rule 3a-1 under the Investment Company Act generally provides that notwithstanding the Section 3(a)(1)(C) test described in clause (ii) above, an entity will not be deemed to be an “investment company” for purposes of the Investment Company Act if no more than 45% of the value of its assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities, shares of registered money market funds under Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, and cash items) consists of, and no more than 45% of its net income after taxes (for the past four fiscal quarters combined) is derived from, securities other than U.S. government securities, shares of registered money market funds under Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, securities issued by employees’ securities companies, securities issued by qualifying majority owned subsidiaries of such entity, and securities issued by qualifying companies that are controlled primarily by such entity. We do not believe that we are an “investment company” as such term is defined in either Section 3(a)(1)(A) or Section 3(a)(1)(C) of the Investment Company Act.
With respect to Section 3(a)(1)(A), following the June PIPE Offering, our ownership or holding of TRX tokens is in excess of 40% of our total assets. Since we believe that the TRX token is not an investment security, we do not hold ourselves out as being engaged primarily, or propose to engage primarily, in the business of investing, reinvesting, or trading in securities within the meaning of Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act.
With respect to Section 3(a)(1)(C), we believe we satisfy the elements of Rule 3a-1 and therefore are deemed not to be an investment company under, and we intend to conduct our operations such that we will not be deemed an investment company under, Section 3(a)(1)(C). We believe that we are not an investment company pursuant to Rule 3a-1 under the Investment Company Act because, on a consolidated basis with respect to wholly-owned subsidiaries but otherwise on an unconsolidated basis, no more than 45% of the value of the Company’s total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities, shares of registered money market funds under Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, and cash items) consists of, and no more than 45% of the Company’s net income after taxes (for the last four fiscal quarters combined) is derived from, securities other than U.S. government securities, shares of registered money market funds under Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, securities issued by employees’ securities companies, securities issued by qualifying majority owned subsidiaries of the Company, and securities issued by qualifying companies that are controlled primarily by the Company.
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TRX tokens and other digital assets, as well as new business models and transactions enabled by blockchain technologies, present novel interpretive questions under the Investment Company Act. There is a risk that assets or arrangements that we have concluded are not securities could be deemed to be securities by the SEC or another authority for purposes of the Investment Company Act, which would increase the percentage of securities held by us for Investment Company Act purposes. The SEC has requested information from a number of participants in the digital assets’ ecosystem, regarding the potential application of the Investment Company Act to their businesses. For example, in an action unrelated to the Company, in February 2022, the SEC issued a cease-and-desist order under the Investment Company Act to BlockFi Lending LLC, in which the SEC alleged that BlockFi was operating as an unregistered investment company because it issued securities and also held more than 40% of its total assets, excluding cash, in investment securities, including the loans of digital assets made by BlockFi to institutional borrowers.
If we were deemed to be an investment company, Rule 3a-2 under the Investment Company Act is a safe harbor that provides a one-year grace period for transient investment companies that have a bona fide intent to be engaged primarily, as soon as is reasonably possible (in any event by the termination of such one-year period), in a business other than that of investing, reinvesting, owning, holding, or trading in securities, with such intent evidenced by the company’s business activities and an appropriate resolution of its board of directors. The grace period is available not more than once every three years and runs from the earlier of (i) the date on which the issuer owns securities and/or cash having a value exceeding 50% of the issuer’s total assets on either a consolidated or unconsolidated basis or (ii) the date on which the issuer owns or proposes to acquire investment securities having a value exceeding 40% of the value of such issuer’s total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Accordingly, the grace period may not be available at the time that we seek to rely on Rule 3a-2; however, Rule 3a-2 is a safe harbor and we may rely on any exemption or exclusion from investment company status available to us under the Investment Company Act at any given time. Furthermore, reliance on Rule 3a-2, Section 3(a)(1)(C), or Rule 3a-1 could require us to take actions to dispose of securities, limit our ability to make certain investments or enter into joint ventures, or otherwise limit or change our service offerings and operations. If we were to be deemed an investment company in the future, restrictions imposed by the Investment Company Act — including limitations on our ability to issue different classes of stock and equity compensation to directors, officers, and employees and restrictions on management, operations, and transactions with affiliated persons — likely would make it impractical for us to continue our business as contemplated, and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, and prospects.
We are not subject to legal and regulatory obligations that apply to investment companies such as mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, or to obligations applicable to investment advisers.
Mutual funds, ETFs and their directors and management are subject to extensive regulation as “investment companies” and “investment advisers” under U.S. federal and state law; this regulation is intended for the benefit and protection of investors. We are not subject to, and do not otherwise voluntarily comply with, these laws and regulations. This means, among other things, that the execution of or changes to our Treasury Reserve Policy or our TRX token strategy, our use of leverage, the manner in which our TRX tokens are custodied, our ability to engage in transactions with affiliated parties and our operating and investment activities generally are not subject to the extensive legal and regulatory requirements and prohibitions that apply to investment companies and investment advisers. For example, although a significant change to our Treasury Reserve Policy would require the approval of our Board, no shareholder or regulatory approval would be necessary. Consequently, our Board has broad discretion over the investment, leverage and cash management policies it authorizes, whether in respect of our TRX token holdings or other activities we may pursue, and has the power to change our current policies, including our strategy of acquiring and holding TRX tokens.
Our TRX token strategy exposes us to risk of non-performance by counterparties.
Our TRX token strategy exposes us to the risk of non-performance by counterparties, whether contractual or otherwise. Risk of non-performance includes inability or refusal of a counterparty to perform because of a deterioration in the counterparty’s financial condition and liquidity or for any other reason. For example, our execution partners, or other counterparties might fail to perform in accordance with the terms of our agreements with them, which could result in a loss of TRX tokens, a loss of the opportunity to generate funds, or other losses.
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If we pursue any strategies to create income streams or otherwise generate funds using our TRX token holdings, we would become subject to additional counterparty risks. Any significant non-performance by counterparties could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition, and operating results.
Further, the broader digital assets industry is subject to counterparty risks, which could adversely impact the adoption rate, price, and use of TRX tokens. A series of recent high-profile bankruptcies, closures, liquidations, regulatory enforcement actions and other events relating to companies operating in the digital asset industry have highlighted the counterparty risks applicable to owning and transacting in digital assets. Although these bankruptcies, closures, liquidations and other events have not resulted in any loss or misappropriation of our TRX tokens, nor have such events adversely impacted our access to our TRX tokens, they have, in the short-term, likely negatively impacted the adoption rate and use of the TRX tokens. Additional bankruptcies, closures, liquidations, regulatory enforcement actions or other events involving participants in the digital assets industry in the future may further negatively impact the adoption rate, price, and use of the TRX token, limit the availability to us of financing collateralized by TRX tokens, or create or expose additional counterparty risks. Changes in the accounting treatment of our TRX token holdings could have significant accounting impacts, including increasing the volatility of our results.
The broader digital assets industry, including the technology associated with digital assets, the rate of adoption and development of, and use cases for, digital assets, market perception of digital assets, and the legal, regulatory, and accounting treatment of digital assets are constantly developing and changing, and there may be additional risks in the future that are not possible to predict.
Except as described in any prospectus supplement and any free writing prospectus in connection with a specific offering, we currently intend to use the net proceeds from the sale of the securities offered under this prospectus to fund the growth of our business, primarily acquiring additional TRX tokens, working capital, and for general corporate purposes. We may also use a portion (to be determined in our discretion) of the net proceeds to acquire or invest in technologies, products and/or businesses that we believe will enhance the value of our Company, although we have no current commitments or agreements with respect to any such transactions as of the date of this prospectus. We have not determined the amount of net proceeds to be used specifically for the foregoing purposes. As a result, our management will have broad discretion in the allocation of the net proceeds and investors will be relying on the judgment of our management regarding the application of the proceeds of any sale of the securities. If a material part of the net proceeds is to be used to repay indebtedness, we will set forth the interest rate and maturity of such indebtedness in a prospectus supplement. Pending use of the net proceeds, we intend to invest the proceeds in investment-grade, interest-bearing securities.
RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES
Not applicable to smaller reporting companies.
If required, we will set forth in a prospectus supplement the following information regarding any material dilution of the equity interests of investors purchasing securities in an offering under this prospectus:
| ● | the net tangible book value per share of our equity securities before and after the offering; | |
| ● | the amount of the increase in such net tangible book value per share attributable to the cash payments made by purchasers in the offering; and | |
| ● | the amount of the immediate dilution from the public offering price which will be absorbed by such purchasers. |
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DESCRIPTION OF COMMON STOCK AND PREFERRED STOCK
The following description of our common stock and preferred stock, together with any additional information we include in any applicable prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus, summarizes the material terms and provisions of our common stock and the preferred stock that we may offer under this prospectus. While the terms we have summarized below will apply generally to any future common stock or preferred stock that we may offer, we will describe the particular terms of any class or series of these securities in more detail in the applicable prospectus supplement. For the complete terms of our common stock and preferred stock, please refer to our articles of incorporation and our bylaws, as amended, that are incorporated by reference into the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part or may be incorporated by reference in this prospectus or any applicable prospectus supplement. The terms of these securities may also be affected by Nevada law. The summary below and that contained in any applicable prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus are qualified in their entirety by reference to our articles of incorporation and bylaws, as in effect at the time of any offering of securities under this prospectus. For information on how to obtain copies of our articles of incorporation and bylaws, see “Where You Can Find More Information.”
Our authorized capital stock consists of 1,000,000,000 shares of Common Stock, and 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Preferred Stock”), of which 1,000,000 shares are designated as Series A Preferred Stock and 5,000 shares of the Series A Preferred Stock are designated as convertible, and 100,000 shares are designated as Series B Preferred Stock. As of July 24, 2025, there were 31,718,011 shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding, no shares of Series A Preferred Stock issued and outstanding and 100,000 shares of Series B Preferred Stock issued and outstanding.
Common Stock
Dividend Rights
Subject to preferences that may apply to any shares of Preferred Stock outstanding at the time, the holders of our Common Stock may receive dividends out of funds legally available if our Board, in its discretion, determines to issue dividends and then only at the times and in the amounts that our Board may determine. The Company did not declare or pay any dividends for the year ended December 31, 2024.
Voting Rights
Each stockholder is entitled to one vote for each share of Common Stock held by such stockholder. The Common Stock shares do not contain cumulative voting rights.
No Preemptive or Similar Rights
Our Common Stock is not entitled to preemptive or conversion rights or other subscription rights, and is not subject to redemption or sinking fund provisions.
Right to Receive Liquidation Distributions
Holders of common stock are entitled to dividends when, and if, declared by the Board out of funds legally available therefore; and then, only after all preferential dividends have been paid on any outstanding Preferred Stock.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
The Company’s transfer agent is ClearTrust, LLC with an address of 16540 Pointe Village Drive, Suite 210, Lutz, FL 33558 and a phone number of (813) 235-4490.
The Common Stock is listed on The Nasdaq Capital Market under the trading symbol “TRON.”
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Description of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock
Stated Value
The stated value of the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock shall be $1,000 per share.
Dividend Rights
Holders shall be entitled to receive, and the Corporation shall pay, dividends on shares of Series A Preferred Stock equal (on an as-if-converted-to-Common-Stock basis) to and in the same form as dividends actually paid on shares of the Common Stock when, as and if such dividends are paid on shares of the Common Stock. No other dividends shall be paid on shares of Series A Preferred Stock.
Voting Rights
Holders of Series A Preferred Stock shall be entitled to cast the number of votes equal to the number of whole shares of Common Stock into which the shares of Series A Preferred Stock are convertible on the basis of a conversion price of $0.56. The Holders shall vote together with the holders of shares of Common Stock as a single class.
Description of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock
Stated Value
The stated value of the Series B Convertible Preferred Stock shall be $1,000 per share.
Voting Rights
Holders of the Series B Convertible Preferred Stock are entitled to cast the number of votes equal to the number of whole shares of Common Stock into which the shares of Series B Preferred Stock are convertible on the basis of a conversion price of $0.50. The Holders shall vote together with the holders of shares of Common Stock as a single class. The Series B Convertible Preferred Stock cannot be voted on an “as converted basis” of more than 19.99% of the currently outstanding shares of Common Stock until shareholder approval of such voting rights is obtained and becomes effective.
Dividend Rights
Holders shall be entitled to receive, and the Company shall pay, dividends on Series B Convertible Preferred Stock equal (on an as-if-converted-to-Common-Stock basis) to and in the same form as dividends actually paid on shares of the Common Stock when, as and if such dividends are paid on shares of the Common Stock.
Upon any liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of the Company, the holders of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock have a preference for the distribution of the entire remaining assets and funds of the Company legally available for distribution over any holders of other series of preferred stock or of the Common Stock.
If, as of December 31, 2025, a Triggering Event (as defined in the Series B Certificate of Designation) has occurred, the holder of the Series B Convertible Preferred Stock shall have the right to request the Company redeem all or any of portion of the Series B Convertible Preferred Stock then held by the holder for a redemption price equal to the full (for fully redemption) or pro rata (for portion redemption) Triggering Redemption Amount as specified in the Series B Certificate of Designation.
Anti-takeover Effects of Our Articles of Incorporation and By-laws
The holders of our Common Stock do not have cumulative voting rights in the election of our directors, which makes it more difficult for minority stockholders to be represented on the Board. Our articles of incorporation allow our Board to issue additional shares of our Common Stock and new series of preferred stock without further approval of our stockholders. The existence of authorized but unissued shares of Common Stock and preferred stock could render more difficult or discourage an attempt to obtain control of our company by means of a proxy contest, tender offer, merger, or otherwise.
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Anti-Takeover Provisions
Business Combinations
The “business combination” provisions of Sections 78.411 to 78.444, inclusive, of the Nevada Revised Statutes, or NRS, generally prohibit a Nevada corporation with at least 200 stockholders of record, a “resident domestic corporation,” from engaging in various “combination” transactions with any “interested stockholder” unless certain conditions are met or the corporation has elected in its articles of incorporation to not be subject to these provisions. We have not elected to opt out of these provisions and if we meet the definition of resident domestic corporation, now or in the future, our company will be subject to these provisions.
A “combination” is generally defined to include (a) a merger or consolidation of the resident domestic corporation or any subsidiary of the resident domestic corporation with the interested stockholder or affiliate or associate of the interested stockholder; (b) any sale, lease, exchange, mortgage, pledge, transfer, or other disposition, in one transaction or a series of transactions, by the resident domestic corporation or any subsidiary of the resident domestic corporation to or with the interested stockholder or affiliate or associate of the interested stockholder having: (i) an aggregate market value equal to 5% or more of the aggregate market value of the assets of the resident domestic corporation, (ii) an aggregate market value equal to 5% or more of the aggregate market value of all outstanding shares of the resident domestic corporation, or (iii) 10% or more of the earning power or net income of the resident domestic corporation; (c) the issuance or transfer in one transaction or series of transactions of shares of the resident domestic corporation or any subsidiary of the resident domestic corporation having an aggregate market value equal to 5% or more of the resident domestic corporation to the interested stockholder or affiliate or associate of the interested stockholder; and (d) certain other transactions with an interested stockholder or affiliate or associate of the interested stockholder.
An “interested stockholder” is generally defined as a person who, together with affiliates and associates, owns (or within two years, did own) 10% or more of a corporation’s voting stock. An “affiliate” of the interested stockholder is any person that directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries is controlled by or is under common control with the interested stockholder. An “associate” of an interested stockholder is any (a) corporation or organization of which the interested stockholder is an officer or partner or is directly or indirectly the beneficial owner of 10% or more of any class of voting shares of such corporation or organization; (b) trust or other estate in which the interested stockholder has a substantial beneficial interest or as to which the interested stockholder serves as trustee or in a similar fiduciary capacity; or (c) relative or spouse of the interested stockholder, or any relative of the spouse of the interested stockholder, who has the same home as the interested stockholder.
If applicable, the prohibition is for a period of two years after the date of the transaction in which the person became an interested stockholder, unless such transaction is approved by the board of directors prior to the date the interested stockholder obtained such status; or the combination is approved by the board of directors and thereafter is approved at a meeting of the stockholders by the affirmative vote of stockholders representing at least 60% of the outstanding voting power held by disinterested stockholders; and extends beyond the expiration of the two-year period, unless (a) the combination was approved by the board of directors prior to the person becoming an interested stockholder; (b) the transaction by which the person first became an interested stockholder was approved by the board of directors before the person became an interested stockholder; (c) the transaction is approved by the affirmative vote of a majority of the voting power held by disinterested stockholders at a meeting called for that purpose no earlier than two years after the date the person first became an interested stockholder; or (d) if the consideration to be paid to all stockholders other than the interested stockholder is, generally, at least equal to the highest of: (i) the highest price per share paid by the interested stockholder within the three years immediately preceding the date of the announcement of the combination or in the transaction in which it became an interested stockholder, whichever is higher, plus compounded interest and less dividends paid, (ii) the market value per share of common shares on the date of announcement of the combination and the date the interested stockholder acquired the shares, whichever is higher, plus compounded interest and less dividends paid, or (iii) for holders of preferred stock, the highest liquidation value of the preferred stock, plus accrued dividends, if not included in the liquidation value. With respect to (i) and (ii) above, the interest is compounded at the rate for one-year United States Treasury obligations from time to time in effect.
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Applicability of the Nevada business combination statute would discourage parties interested in taking control of our company if they cannot obtain the approval of our Board. These provisions could prohibit or delay a merger or other takeover or change in control attempt and, accordingly, may discourage attempts to acquire our company even though such a transaction may offer our stockholders the opportunity to sell their stock at a price above the prevailing market price.
Control Share Acquisitions
The “control share” provisions of Sections 78.378 to 78.3793, inclusive, of the NRS, apply to “issuing corporations” that are Nevada corporations with at least 200 stockholders of record, including at least 100 stockholders of record who are Nevada residents, and that conduct business directly or indirectly in Nevada, unless the corporation has elected to not be subject to these provisions.
The control share statute prohibits an acquirer of shares of an issuing corporation, under certain circumstances, from voting its shares of a corporation’s stock after crossing certain ownership threshold percentages, unless the acquirer obtains approval of the target corporation’s disinterested stockholders. The statute specifies three thresholds: (a) one-fifth or more but less than one-third, (b) one-third but less than a majority, and (c) a majority or more, of the outstanding voting power. Generally, once a person acquires shares in excess of any of the thresholds, those shares and any additional shares acquired within 90 days thereof become “control shares” and such control shares are deprived of the right to vote until disinterested stockholders restore the right. These provisions also provide that if control shares are accorded full voting rights and the acquiring person has acquired a majority or more of all voting power, all other stockholders who do not vote in favor of authorizing voting rights to the control shares are entitled to demand payment for the fair value of their shares in accordance with statutory procedures established for dissenters’ rights.
A corporation may elect to not be governed by, or “opt out” of, the control shares provisions by making an election in its articles of incorporation or bylaws, provided that the opt-out election must be in place on the 10th day following the date an acquiring person has acquired a controlling interest, that is, crossing any of the three thresholds described above. We have not opted out of these provisions and will be subject to the control share provisions of the NRS if we meet the definition of an issuing corporation upon an acquiring person acquiring a controlling interest unless we later opt out of these provisions and the opt out is in effect on the 10th day following such occurrence.
The effect of the Nevada control share statute is that the acquiring person, and those acting in association with the acquiring person, will obtain only such voting rights in the control shares as are conferred by a resolution of the stockholders at an annual or special meeting. The Nevada control share law, if applicable, could have the effect of discouraging takeovers of our company.
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DESCRIPTION OF DEBT SECURITIES
As used in this prospectus, the term “debt securities” means the debentures, notes, bonds and other evidences of indebtedness that we may issue from time to time. The debt securities will either be senior debt securities, senior subordinated debt or subordinated debt securities. We may also issue convertible debt securities. Debt securities issued under an indenture (which we refer to herein as an Indenture) will be entered into between us and a trustee to be named therein. It is likely that convertible debt securities will not be issued under an Indenture.
The Indenture or forms of Indentures, if any, will be filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.
As you read this section, please remember that for each series of debt securities, the specific terms of your debt security as described in the applicable prospectus supplement will supplement and, if applicable, may modify or replace the general terms described in the summary below. The statement we make in this section may not apply to your debt security.
Events of Default under the Indenture
Unless we provide otherwise in the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus applicable to a particular series of debt securities, the following are events of default under the indentures with respect to any series of debt securities that we may issue:
| ● | if we fail to pay the principal or premium, if any, when due and payable at maturity, upon redemption or repurchase or otherwise; | |
| ● | if we fail to pay interest when due and payable and our failure continues for certain days; | |
| ● | if we fail to observe or perform any other covenant contained in the Securities of a Series or in this Indenture, and our failure continues for certain days after we receive written notice from the trustee or holders of at least certain percentage in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of the applicable series. The written notice must specify the Default, demand that it be remedied and state that the notice is a “Notice of Default”; | |
| ● | if specified events of bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization occur; and | |
| ● | if any other event of default provided with respect to securities of that series, which is specified in a Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture hereto or an Officers’ Certificate as defined in the Form of Indenture. |
We covenant in the Form of Indenture to deliver a certificate to the trustee annually, within certain days after the close of the fiscal year, to show that we are in compliance with the terms of the indenture and that we have not defaulted under the indenture.
Nonetheless, if we issue debt securities, the terms of the debt securities and the final form of indenture will be provided in a prospectus supplement. Please refer to the prospectus supplement and the form of indenture attached thereto for the terms and conditions of the offered debt securities. The terms and conditions may or may not include whether or not we must furnish periodic evidence showing that an event of default does not exist or that we are in compliance with the terms of the indenture.
The statements and descriptions in this prospectus or in any prospectus supplement regarding provisions of the Indentures and debt securities are summaries thereof, do not purport to be complete and are subject to, and are qualified in their entirety by reference to, all of the provisions of the Indentures (and any amendments or supplements we may enter into from time to time which are permitted under each Indenture) and the debt securities, including the definitions therein of certain terms.
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General
Unless otherwise specified in a prospectus supplement, the debt securities will be direct secured or unsecured obligations of our company. The senior debt securities will rank equally with any of our other unsecured senior and unsubordinated debt. The subordinated debt securities will be subordinate and junior in right of payment to any senior indebtedness.
We may issue debt securities from time to time in one or more series, in each case with the same or various maturities, at par or at a discount. Unless indicated in a prospectus supplement, we may issue additional debt securities of a particular series without the consent of the holders of the debt securities of such series outstanding at the time of the issuance. Any such additional debt securities, together with all other outstanding debt securities of that series, will constitute a single series of debt securities under the applicable Indenture and will be equal in ranking.
Should an indenture relate to unsecured indebtedness, in the event of a bankruptcy or other liquidation event involving a distribution of assets to satisfy our outstanding indebtedness or an event of default under a loan agreement relating to secured indebtedness of our company or its subsidiaries, the holders of such secured indebtedness, if any, would be entitled to receive payment of principal and interest prior to payments on the senior indebtedness issued under an Indenture.
Prospectus Supplement
Each prospectus supplement will describe the terms relating to the specific series of debt securities being offered. These terms will include some or all of the following:
| ● | the title of debt securities and whether they are subordinated, senior subordinated or senior debt securities; | |
| ● | any limit on the aggregate principal amount of debt securities of such series; | |
| ● | the percentage of the principal amount at which the debt securities of any series will be issued; | |
| ● | the ability to issue additional debt securities of the same series; | |
| ● | the purchase price for the debt securities and the denominations of the debt securities; | |
| ● | the specific designation of the series of debt securities being offered; | |
| ● | the maturity date or dates of the debt securities and the date or dates upon which the debt securities are payable and the rate or rates at which the debt securities of the series shall bear interest, if any, which may be fixed or variable, or the method by which such rate shall be determined; | |
| ● | the basis for calculating interest if other than 360-day year or twelve 30-day months; | |
| ● | the date or dates from which any interest will accrue or the method by which such date or dates will be determined; | |
| ● | the duration of any deferral period, including the maximum consecutive period during which interest payment periods may be extended; | |
| ● | whether the amount of payments of principal of (and premium, if any) or interest on the debt securities may be determined with reference to any index, formula or other method, such as one or more currencies, commodities, equity indices or other indices, and the manner of determining the amount of such payments; | |
| ● | the dates on which we will pay interest on the debt securities and the regular record date for determining who is entitled to the interest payable on any interest payment date; |
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| ● | the place or places where the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest on the debt securities will be payable, where any securities may be surrendered for registration of transfer, exchange or conversion, as applicable, and notices and demands may be delivered to or upon us pursuant to the applicable Indenture; | |
| ● | the rate or rates of amortization of the debt securities; | |
| ● | if we possess the option to do so, the periods within which and the prices at which we may redeem the debt securities, in whole or in part, pursuant to optional redemption provisions, and the other terms and conditions of any such provisions; | |
| ● | our obligation or discretion, if any, to redeem, repay or purchase debt securities by making periodic payments to a sinking fund or through an analogous provision or at the option of holders of the debt securities, and the period or periods within which and the price or prices at which we will redeem, repay or purchase the debt securities, in whole or in part, pursuant to such obligation, and the other terms and conditions of such obligation; | |
| ● | the terms and conditions, if any, regarding the option or mandatory conversion or exchange of debt securities; | |
| ● | the period or periods within which, the price or prices at which and the terms and conditions upon which any debt securities of the series may be redeemed, in whole or in part at our option and, if other than by a board resolution, the manner in which any election by us to redeem the debt securities shall be evidenced; | |
| ● | any restriction or condition on the transferability of the debt securities of a particular series; | |
| ● | the portion, or methods of determining the portion, of the principal amount of the debt securities which we must pay upon the acceleration of the maturity of the debt securities in connection with any event of default if other than the full principal amount; | |
| ● | the currency or currencies in which the debt securities will be denominated and in which principal, any premium and any interest will or may be payable or a description of any units based on or relating to a currency or currencies in which the debt securities will be denominated; | |
| ● | provisions, if any, granting special rights to holders of the debt securities upon the occurrence of specified events; | |
| ● | any deletions from, modifications of or additions to the events of default or our covenants with respect to the applicable series of debt securities, and whether or not such events of default or covenants are consistent with those contained in the applicable Indenture; | |
| ● | any limitation on our ability to incur debt, redeem shares, sell our assets or other restrictions; | |
| ● | the application, if any, of the terms of the applicable Indenture relating to defeasance and covenant defeasance (which terms are described below) to the debt securities; | |
| ● | what subordination provisions will apply to the debt securities; | |
| ● | the terms, if any, upon which the holders may convert or exchange the debt securities into or for our common stock or preferred stock or other securities or property; | |
| ● | whether we are issuing the debt securities in whole or in part in global form; | |
| ● | any change in the right of the trustee or the requisite holders of debt securities to declare the principal amount thereof due and payable because of an event of default; |
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| ● | the depositary for global or certificated debt securities, if any; | |
| ● | any material federal income tax consequences applicable to the debt securities, including any debt securities denominated and made payable, as described in the prospectus supplements, in foreign currencies, or units based on or related to foreign currencies; | |
| ● | any right we may have to satisfy, discharge and defease our obligations under the debt securities, or terminate or eliminate restrictive covenants or events of default in the Indentures, by depositing money or U.S. government obligations with the trustee of the Indentures; | |
| ● | the names of any trustees, depositories, authenticating or paying agents, transfer agents or registrars or other agents with respect to the debt securities; | |
| ● | to whom any interest on any debt security shall be payable, if other than the person in whose name the security is registered, on the record date for such interest, the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a temporary global debt security will be paid if other than in the manner provided in the applicable Indenture; | |
| ● | if the principal of or any premium or interest on any debt securities is to be payable in one or more currencies or currency units other than as stated, the currency, currencies or currency units in which it shall be paid and the periods within and terms and conditions upon which such election is to be made and the amounts payable (or the manner in which such amount shall be determined); | |
| ● | the portion of the principal amount of any debt securities which shall be payable upon declaration of acceleration of the maturity of the debt securities pursuant to the applicable Indenture if other than the entire principal amount; | |
| ● | if the principal amount payable at the stated maturity of any debt security of the series will not be determinable as of any one or more dates prior to the stated maturity, the amount which shall be deemed to be the principal amount of such debt securities as of any such date for any purpose, including the principal amount thereof which shall be due and payable upon any maturity other than the stated maturity or which shall be deemed to be outstanding as of any date prior to the stated maturity (or, in any such case, the manner in which such amount deemed to be the principal amount shall be determined); and | |
| ● | any other specific terms of the debt securities, including any modifications to the events of default under the debt securities and any other terms which may be required by or advisable under applicable laws or regulations. |
Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, the debt securities will not be listed on any securities exchange. Holders of the debt securities may present registered debt securities for exchange or transfer in the manner described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Except as limited by the applicable Indenture, we will provide these services without charge, other than any tax or other governmental charge payable in connection with the exchange or transfer.
Debt securities may bear interest at a fixed rate or a variable rate as specified in the prospectus supplement. In addition, if specified in the prospectus supplement, we may sell debt securities bearing no interest or interest at a rate that at the time of issuance is below the prevailing market rate, or at a discount below their stated principal amount. We will describe in the applicable prospectus supplement any special federal income tax considerations applicable to these discounted debt securities.
We may issue debt securities with the principal amount payable on any principal payment date, or the amount of interest payable on any interest payment date, to be determined by referring to one or more currency exchange rates, commodity prices, equity indices or other factors. Holders of such debt securities may receive a principal amount on any principal payment date, or interest payments on any interest payment date, that are greater or less than the amount of principal or interest otherwise payable on such dates, depending upon the value on such dates of applicable currency, commodity, equity index or other factors. The applicable prospectus supplement will contain information as to how we will determine the amount of principal or interest payable on any date, as well as the currencies, commodities, equity indices or other factors to which the amount payable on that date relates and certain additional tax considerations.
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DESCRIPTION OF WARRANTS
General
We may issue warrants for the purchase of common stock or preferred stock. Warrants may be offered independently or together with common stock or preferred stock offered by any prospectus supplement and may be attached to or separate from those securities. While the terms we have summarized below will apply generally to any warrants that we may offer under this prospectus, we will describe in particular the terms of any series of warrants that we may offer in more detail in the applicable prospectus supplement and any applicable free writing prospectus. The terms of any warrants offered under a prospectus supplement may differ from the terms described below.
We will file as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from another report that we file with the SEC, the form of warrant and/or warrant agreement, which may include a form of warrant certificate, as applicable, that describes the terms of the particular series of warrants we may offer before the issuance of the related series of warrants. We may issue the warrants under a warrant agreement that we will enter into with a warrant agent to be selected by us. The warrant agent will act solely as our agent in connection with the warrants and will not assume any obligation or relationship of agency or trust for or with any registered holders of warrants or beneficial owners of warrants. The following summary of material provisions of the warrants and warrant agreements is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, all the provisions of the form of warrant and/or warrant agreement and warrant certificate applicable to a particular series of warrants. We urge you to read the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, as well as the complete form of warrant and/or the warrant agreement and warrant certificate, as applicable, that contain the terms of the warrants.
The particular terms of any issue of warrants will be described in the prospectus supplement relating to the issue. Those terms may include:
| ● | the title of such warrants; | |
| ● | the aggregate number of such warrants; | |
| ● | the price or prices at which such warrants will be issued; | |
| ● | the currency or currencies (including composite currencies) in which the price of such warrants may be payable; | |
| ● | the terms of the securities purchasable upon exercise of such warrants and the procedures and conditions relating to the exercise of such warrants; | |
| ● | the price at which the securities purchasable upon exercise of such warrants may be purchased; | |
| ● | the date on which the right to exercise such warrants will commence and the date on which such right shall expire; | |
| ● | any provisions for adjustment of the number or amount of securities receivable upon exercise of the warrants or the exercise price of the warrants; | |
| ● | if applicable, the minimum or maximum amount of such warrants that may be exercised at any one time; |
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| ● | if applicable, the designation and terms of the securities with which such warrants are issued and the number of such warrants issued with each such security; | |
| ● | if applicable, the date on and after which such warrants and the related securities will be separately transferable; | |
| ● | information with respect to book-entry procedures, if any; | |
| ● | the terms of any rights to redeem or call the warrants; | |
| ● | United States federal income tax consequences of holding or exercising the warrants, if material; and | |
| ● | any other terms of such warrants, including terms, procedures and limitations relating to the exchange or exercise of such warrants. |
Each warrant will entitle its holder to purchase the number of shares of common stock or preferred stock at the exercise price set forth in, or calculable as set forth in, the applicable prospectus supplement. The warrants may be exercised as set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to the warrants offered. Unless we otherwise specify in the applicable prospectus supplement, warrants may be exercised at any time up to the close of business on the expiration date set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to the warrants offered thereby. After the close of business on the expiration date, unexercised warrants will become void.
We will specify the place or places where, and the manner in which, warrants may be exercised in the form of warrant, warrant agreement or warrant certificate and applicable prospectus supplement. Upon receipt of payment and the warrant or warrant certificate, as applicable, properly completed and duly executed at the corporate trust office of the warrant agent, if any, or any other office, including ours, indicated in the prospectus supplement, we will, as soon as practicable, issue and deliver the securities purchasable upon such exercise. If less than all of the warrants (or the warrants represented by such warrant certificate) are exercised, a new warrant or a new warrant certificate, as applicable, will be issued for the remaining amount of warrants. If we so indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement, holders of the warrants may surrender securities as all or part of the exercise price for warrants.
Prior to the exercise of any warrants to purchase common stock or preferred stock, holders of the warrants will not have any of the rights of holders of the common stock or preferred stock purchasable upon exercise, including the right to vote or to receive any payments of dividends or payments upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up on the common stock or preferred stock purchasable upon exercise, if any.
Outstanding Warrants
As of the date of this prospectus, there were (i) 7,500 warrants to purchase shares of our common stock issued and outstanding with an exercise price of $6.00 per share; (ii) 4,700,571 warrants to purchase shares of our common stock issued and outstanding with an exercise price of $0.65 per share; (iii) 535,714 warrants to purchase shares of our common stock issued and outstanding with an exercise price of $0.65 per share; (iv) 5,360,000 warrants to purchase shares of our common stock issued and outstanding with an exercise price of $0.50 per share; and (v) 220,000,000 warrants to purchase shares of our common stock issued and outstanding with an exercise price of $0.50 per share.
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DESCRIPTION OF RIGHTS
We may issue rights to purchase our securities. The rights may or may not be transferable by the persons purchasing or receiving the rights. In connection with any rights offering, we may enter into a standby underwriting or other arrangement with one or more underwriters or other persons pursuant to which such underwriters or other persons would purchase any offered securities remaining unsubscribed for after such rights offering. Each series of rights will be issued under a separate rights agent agreement to be entered into between us and one or more banks, trust companies or other financial institutions, as rights agent, that we will name in the applicable prospectus supplement. The rights agent will act solely as our agent in connection with the rights and will not assume any obligation or relationship of agency or trust for or with any holders of rights certificates or beneficial owners of rights.
The prospectus supplement relating to any rights that we offer will include specific terms relating to the offering, including, among other matters:
| ● | the date of determining the security holders entitled to the rights distribution; | |
| ● | the aggregate number of rights issued and the aggregate amount of securities purchasable upon exercise of the rights; | |
| ● | the exercise price; | |
| ● | the conditions to completion of the rights offering; | |
| ● | the date on which the right to exercise the rights will commence and the date on which the rights will expire; and | |
| ● | any applicable federal income tax considerations. |
Each right would entitle the holder of the rights to purchase for cash the principal amount of securities at the exercise price set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. Rights may be exercised at any time up to the close of business on the expiration date for the rights provided in the applicable prospectus supplement. After the close of business on the expiration date, all unexercised rights will become void.
If less than all of the rights issued in any rights offering are exercised, we may offer any unsubscribed securities directly to persons other than our security holders, to or through agents, underwriters or dealers or through a combination of such methods, including pursuant to standby arrangements, as described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
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The following description, together with the additional information we may include in any applicable prospectus supplement, summarizes the material terms and provisions of the units that we may offer under this prospectus. While the terms we have summarized below will apply generally to any units that we may offer under this prospectus, we will describe the particular terms of any series of units in more detail in the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus. The terms of any units offered under a prospectus supplement may differ from the terms described below. However, no prospectus supplement will fundamentally change the terms that are set forth in this prospectus or offer a security that is not registered and described in this prospectus at the time of its effectiveness.
We will file as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, the form of unit agreement that describes the terms of the series of units we may offer under this prospectus, and any supplemental agreements, before the issuance of the related series of units. The following summaries of material terms and provisions of the units are subject to, and qualified in their entirety by reference to, all the provisions of the unit agreement and any supplemental agreements applicable to a particular series of units. We urge you to read the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, as well as the complete unit agreement and any supplemental agreements that contain the terms of the units.
General
We may issue units comprised of shares of common stock or preferred stock and warrants in any combination. Each unit will be issued so that the holder of the unit is also the holder of each security included in the unit. Thus, the holder of a unit will have the rights and obligations of a holder of each included security. The unit agreement under which a unit is issued may provide that the securities included in the unit may not be held or transferred separately, at any time or at any time before a specified date.
We will describe in the applicable prospectus supplement the terms of the series of units, including, but not limited to:
| ● | the designation and terms of the units and of the securities comprising the units, including whether and under what circumstances those securities may be held or transferred separately; | |
| ● | any provisions of the governing unit agreement that differ from those described below; and | |
| ● | any provisions for the issuance, payment, settlement, transfer or exchange of the units or of the securities comprising the units. |
The provisions described in this section, as well as those described under “Description of Common Stock and Preferred Stock” and “Description of Warrants” will apply to each unit and to any common stock, preferred stock or warrant included in each unit, respectively.
Issuance in Series
We may issue units in such amounts and in numerous distinct series as we determine.
Enforceability of Rights by Holders of Units
We may enter into unit agreements with a unit agent. Each unit agent will act solely as our agent under the applicable unit agreement and will not assume any obligation or relationship of agency or trust with any holder of any unit. A single bank or trust company may act as unit agent for more than one series of units. A unit agent will have no duty or responsibility in case of any default by us under the applicable unit agreement or unit, including any duty or responsibility to initiate any proceedings at law or otherwise, or to make any demand upon us. Any holder of a unit may, without the consent of the related unit agent or the holder of any other unit, enforce by appropriate legal action its rights as holder under any security included in the unit.
We, the unit agents and any of their agents may treat the registered holder of any unit certificate as an absolute owner of the units evidenced by that certificate for any purpose and as the person entitled to exercise the rights attaching to the units so requested, despite any notice to the contrary.
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We may sell our securities in any one or more of the following ways from time to time:
| ● | through agents; | |
| ● | to or through underwriters; | |
| ● | through brokers or dealers; | |
| ● | in “at the market offerings” within the meaning of Rule 415(a)(4) under the Securities Act, to or through a market maker or into an existing trading market, on an exchange or otherwise; | |
| ● | directly by us to purchasers, including through a specific bidding, auction or other process; or | |
| ● | through a combination of any of these methods of sale. |
The applicable prospectus supplement will contain the terms of the transaction, the name or names of any underwriters, dealers, agents and the respective amounts of securities underwritten or purchased by them, the initial public offering price of the securities, and the applicable agent’s commission, dealer’s purchase price or underwriter’s discount. Any dealers and agents participating in the distribution of the securities may be deemed to be underwriters, and compensation received by them on resale of the securities may be deemed to be underwriting discounts.
Any initial offering price, dealer purchase price, discount or commission may be changed from time to time.
The securities may be distributed from time to time in one or more transactions, at negotiated prices, at a fixed price or fixed prices (that may be subject to change), at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at various prices determined at the time of sale or at prices related to prevailing market prices.
Offers to purchase securities may be solicited directly by us or by agents designated by us from time to time. Unless otherwise indicated in the prospectus supplement, any such agent will use its commercially reasonable efforts to solicit purchases for the period of its appointment or to sell securities on a continuing basis. Agents may receive compensation in the form of commissions, discounts or concessions from us. Agents may also receive compensation from the purchasers of the securities for whom they sell as principals. Each particular agent will receive compensation in amounts negotiated in connection with the sale, which might be in excess of customary commissions. Any such agent may be deemed to be an underwriter, as that term is defined in the Securities Act, of the securities so offered and sold. Accordingly, any commission, discount or concession received by them and any profit on the resale of the securities purchased by them may be deemed to be underwriting discounts or commissions under the Securities Act. We have not entered into any agreements, understandings or arrangements with any underwriters or broker-dealers regarding the sale of their securities. As of the date of this prospectus, there are no special selling arrangements between any broker-dealer or other person and us. No period of time has been fixed within which the securities will be offered and sold.
If underwriters are utilized in the sale of any securities in respect of which this prospectus is being delivered, such securities will be acquired by the underwriters for their own account and may be resold from time to time in one or more transactions, including negotiated transactions, at fixed public offering prices or at varying prices determined by the underwriters at the time of sale. Securities may be offered to the public either through underwriting syndicates represented by managing underwriters or directly by one or more underwriters. If any underwriter or underwriters are utilized in the sale of securities, unless otherwise indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, the obligations of the underwriters are subject to certain conditions precedent, and the underwriters will be obligated to purchase all such securities if they purchase any of them.
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If a dealer is utilized in the sale of the securities in respect of which this prospectus is delivered, we will sell such securities to the dealer as principal. The dealer may then resell such securities to the public at varying prices to be determined by such dealer at the time of resale. Transactions through brokers or dealers may include block trades in which brokers or dealers will attempt to sell shares as agent but may position and resell as principal to facilitate the transaction or in cross trades, in which the same broker or dealer acts as agent on both sides of the trade. Any such dealer may be deemed to be an underwriter, as such term is defined in the Securities Act, of the securities so offered and sold.
Offers to purchase securities may be solicited directly by us, and the sale thereof may be made by us, directly to institutional investors or others who may be deemed to be underwriters within the meaning of the Securities Act with respect to any resale thereof.
Agents, underwriters and dealers may be entitled under relevant agreements with us to indemnification by us against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribution with respect to payments which such agents, underwriters and dealers may be required to make in respect thereof. The terms and conditions of any indemnification or contribution will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
Underwriters, broker-dealers or agents may receive compensation in the form of commissions, discounts or concessions from us. Underwriters, broker-dealers or agents may also receive compensation from the purchasers of shares for whom they act as agents or to whom they sell as principals, or both. Compensation as to a particular underwriter, broker-dealer or agent will be in amounts to be negotiated in connection with transactions involving shares and might be in excess of customary commissions. In effecting sales, broker-dealers engaged by us may arrange for other broker-dealers to participate in the resales.
Any securities offered other than common stock will be a new issue and, other than the common stock, which is listed on The Nasdaq Capital Market, will have no established trading market. We may elect to list any series of securities on an exchange, and in the case of the common stock, on any additional exchange, but, unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement and/or other offering material, we shall not be obligated to do so. It is possible that one or more underwriters may make a market in a class or series of securities, but the underwriters will not be obligated to do so and may discontinue any market making at any time without notice. No assurance can be given as to the liquidity of, or the trading market for, any of the securities.
Agents, underwriters and dealers may engage in transactions with, or perform services for, us or our subsidiaries in the ordinary course of business.
Any underwriter may engage in overallotment, stabilizing transactions, short covering transactions and penalty bids in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Overallotment involves sales in excess of the offering size, which create a short position. Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase the underlying security so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum. Short covering transactions involve purchases of the securities in the open market after the distribution is completed to cover short positions. Penalty bids permit the underwriters to reclaim a selling concession from a dealer when the securities originally sold by the dealer are purchased in a covering transaction to cover short positions. Those activities may cause the price of the securities to be higher than it would otherwise be. If commenced, the underwriters may discontinue any of the activities at any time. An underwriter may carry out these transactions on The Nasdaq Capital Market, in the over-the-counter market or otherwise.
The place and time of delivery for securities will be set forth in the accompanying prospectus supplement.
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The validity of the warrants, rights and units and legal matters as to United States and New York law will be passed upon for us by Loeb & Loeb LLP. Certain legal matters with respect to the validity of the common stock and preferred stock has been passed upon for us by Lucosky Brookman LLP.
Our consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, and the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ equity (deficit), and cash flows for each of those two years have been audited by M&K CPAS, PLLC, an independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in its report incorporated by reference and are included in reliance upon such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.
INFORMATION INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” into this prospectus the information we file with the SEC. This means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those documents. Any statement contained in a document incorporated by reference in this prospectus shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this prospectus to the extent that a statement contained herein, or in any subsequently filed document, which also is incorporated by reference herein, modifies or supersedes such earlier statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this prospectus.
We hereby incorporate by reference into this prospectus the following documents that we have filed with the SEC under the Exchange Act (File No. 001-41768):
| ● | the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on March 31, 2025; | |
| ● | the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2025, filed with the SEC on May 9, 2025; | |
| ● | the preliminary Information Statement Pursuant to Section 14(c) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 filed with the SEC on July 7, 2025 | |
| ● | the Company’s Current Reports on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 13, 2025, January 28, 2025 May 28, 2025, June 16, 2025, June 20, 2025, June 30, 2025, July 16, 2025, July 17, 2025; and | |
| ● | the Company’s Registration Statement on Form 8-A12B filed with the SEC on August 2, 2023, pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, together with any amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description. |
All documents that we file with the SEC pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act (other than Current Reports on Form 8-K, or portions thereof, furnished under Item 2.02 or 7.01 of Form 8-K) (i) after the initial filing date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and prior to the effectiveness of such registration statement and (ii) after the date of this prospectus and prior to the termination of the offering shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this prospectus from the date of filing of the documents, unless we specifically provide otherwise. Information that we file with the SEC will automatically update and may replace information previously filed with the SEC. To the extent that any information contained in any Current Report on Form 8-K or any exhibit thereto, was or is furnished to, rather than filed with the SEC, such information or exhibit is specifically not incorporated by reference.
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
As permitted by SEC rules, this prospectus omits certain information and exhibits that are included in the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Since this prospectus may not contain all of the information that you may find important, you should review the full text of these documents. If we have filed a contract, agreement or other document as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part, you should read the exhibit for a more complete understanding of the document or matter involved. Each statement in this prospectus, including statements incorporated by reference as discussed above, regarding a contract, agreement or other document is qualified in its entirety by reference to the actual document.
We are subject to the information reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, and, in accordance with these requirements, we file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements, and other information with the SEC. The SEC maintains an internet website at www.sec.gov that contains our filed reports, proxy and information statements, and other information that we file electronically with the SEC. You may inspect, read and copy the reports and other information we file with the SEC at the aforesaid SEC’s website.
We will provide to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom a prospectus is delivered, a copy of any or all of the information that has been incorporated by reference in the prospectus but not delivered with the prospectus. We will provide this information upon oral or written request, free of charge. Any requests for this information should be made by calling or sending a letter to the Secretary of the Company, c/o Tron Inc., at the Company’s office located at 941 W. Morse Blvd. Suite 100, Winter Park, FL 32789. Our telephone number at this address is 407-230-8100.
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Tron Inc.
$1,000,000,000
Common
Stock
Preferred Stock
Debt Securities
Warrants
Rights
Units
PROSPECTUS
, 2025
We have not authorized any dealer, salesperson or other person to give any information or represent anything not contained in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus. You must not rely on any unauthorized information. If anyone provides you with different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. This prospectus does not offer to sell any shares in any jurisdiction where it is unlawful. Neither the delivery of this prospectus, nor any sale made hereunder, shall create any implication that the information in this prospectus is correct after the date hereof.
PART II
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
Item 14. Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution
The expenses in connection with the issuance and distribution of the securities being registered are set forth in the following table (all amounts other than the registration fee are estimated):
| Amount to be Paid | ||||
| Registration fee – Securities and Exchange Commission | $ | |||
| Accountants’ fees and expenses | ** | |||
| Legal fees and expenses | ** | |||
| Stock exchange listing fees | ** | |||
| Printing expenses | ** | |||
| Miscellaneous | ** | |||
| Total | $ | ** | ||
| ** | These fees and expenses are calculated based on the securities offered and the number of issuances and, accordingly, cannot be estimated at this time. They will be provided as applicable by amendment or in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and incorporated herein by reference or reflected in the applicable prospectus supplement. |
Item 15. Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Our bylaws implement the indemnification provisions permitted by Chapter 78 of the NRS by providing that we shall indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by the NRS against expense, liability, and loss reasonably incurred or suffered by them in connection with their service as an officer or director. Our bylaws provide shall advance costs and expenses incurred with respect to any proceeding to which a person is made a party as a result of being a director or officer in advance of final disposition of such proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the director or officer to repay such amount if it is ultimately determined that such person is not entitled to indemnification. We may purchase and maintain liability insurance, or make other arrangements for such obligations or otherwise, to the extent permitted by the NRS.
At the present time, there is no pending litigation or proceeding involving a director, officer, employee, or other agent of ours in which indemnification would be required or permitted. We are not aware of any threatened litigation or proceeding that may result in a claim for such indemnification. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, the registrant has been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is therefore unenforceable.
Item 16. Exhibits
The list of exhibits in the Exhibit Index to this registration statement is incorporated herein by reference.
Item 17. Undertakings
(a) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:
(i) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;
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(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement.
(iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement.
provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i), (a)(1)(ii) and (a)(1)(iii) of this section do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the SEC by the registrant pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement, or is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b).
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.
(4) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act to any purchaser:
(i) Each prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and
(ii) Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii), or (x) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which that prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date.
(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability of the registrant under the Securities Act to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities: The undersigned registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser:
(i) Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424;
| II-2 |
(ii) Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned registrant;
(iii) The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant; and
(iv) Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned registrant to the purchaser.
(b) That, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the registrant’s annual report pursuant to section 13(a) or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
| II-3 |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-3 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, on August 22, 2025.
| TRON INC. | ||
| By: | /s/ Richard Miller | |
| Name: | Richard Miller | |
| Title: | Chief Executive Officer | |
Pursuant to the requirements of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Form S-3 registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the date indicated.
| Date: August 22, 2025 | /s/ Richard Miller |
| Richard Miller | |
| Chief Executive Officer and Director | |
| (Principal Executive Officer) | |
| Date: August 22, 2025 | /s/ Weike Sun |
| Weike Sun | |
| Chairman of the Board | |
| Date: August 22, 2025 | /s/ Douglas O. McKinnon |
| Douglas O. McKinnon | |
| Chief Financial Officer | |
| (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | |
| Date: August 22, 2025 | /s/Christopher Marc Melton |
| Christopher Marc Melton | |
| Director | |
| Date: August 22, 2025 | /s/ Zhihong Liu |
| Zhihong Liu | |
| Director | |
| Date: August 22, 2025 | /s/ Zi Yang |
| Zi Yang | |
| Director |
| II-4 |
EXHIBIT INDEX
| * | To be filed by amendment or as an exhibit to a filing with the SEC under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and incorporated by reference in connection with the offering of securities to the extent required for any such offering. |
| ** | Previously filed. |
| *** | Portions of this exhibit have been omitted in compliance with Regulation S-K Item 601(b)(10)(iv) because the registrant has determined that the information is not material and is the type that the registrant treats as private or confidential. |
| II-5 |
Exhibit 4.3
TRON INC.
And
, as Trustee
INDENTURE
Dated as of ,
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| ARTICLE 1 DEFINITIONS AND INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE | 1 | ||
| 1.1 DEFINITIONS. | 1 | ||
| 1.2 OTHER DEFINITIONS. | 4 | ||
| 1.3 INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE OF TRUST INDENTURE ACT. | 4 | ||
| 1.4 RULES OF CONSTRUCTION. | 5 | ||
| ARTICLE 2 THE SECURITIES | 5 | ||
| 2.1 ISSUABLE IN SERIES. | 5 | ||
| 2.2 ESTABLISHMENT OF TERMS OF SERIES OF SECURITIES. | 5 | ||
| 2.3 EXECUTION AND AUTHENTICATION. | 7 | ||
| 2.4 REGISTRAR AND PAYING AGENT. | 8 | ||
| 2.5 PAYING AGENT TO HOLD ASSETS IN TRUST. | 9 | ||
| 2.6 SECURITYHOLDER LISTS. | 9 | ||
| 2.7 TRANSFER AND EXCHANGE. | 9 | ||
| 2.8 REPLACEMENT SECURITIES. | 10 | ||
| 2.9 OUTSTANDING SECURITIES. | 10 | ||
| 2.10 WHEN TREASURY SECURITIES DISREGARDED; DETERMINATION OF HOLDERS’ ACTION. | 10 | ||
| 2.11 TEMPORARY SECURITIES. | 10 | ||
| 2.12 CANCELLATION. | 11 | ||
| 2.13 PAYMENT OF INTEREST; DEFAULTED INTEREST; COMPUTATION OF INTEREST. | 11 | ||
| 2.14 CUSIP NUMBER. | 11 | ||
| 2.15 PROVISIONS FOR GLOBAL SECURITIES. | 11 | ||
| 2.16 PERSONS DEEMED OWNERS. | 12 | ||
| ARTICLE 3 REDEMPTION | 12 | ||
| 3.1 NOTICES TO TRUSTEE. | 12 | ||
| 3.2 SELECTION BY TRUSTEE OF SECURITIES TO BE REDEEMED. | 13 | ||
| 3.3 NOTICE OF REDEMPTION. | 13 | ||
| 3.4 EFFECT OF NOTICE OF REDEMPTION. | 14 | ||
| 3.5 DEPOSIT OF REDEMPTION PRICE. | 14 | ||
| 3.6 SECURITIES REDEEMED IN PART. | 14 | ||
| ARTICLE 4 COVENANTS | 14 | ||
| 4.1 PAYMENT OF SECURITIES. | 14 | ||
| 4.2 SEC REPORTS. | 15 | ||
| 4.3 WAIVER OF STAY, EXTENSION OR USURY LAWS. | 15 | ||
| 4.4 COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE. | 15 | ||
| 4.5 CORPORATE EXISTENCE. | 16 | ||
| ARTICLE 5 SUCCESSOR CORPORATION | 16 | ||
| 5.1 LIMITATION ON CONSOLIDATION, MERGER AND SALE OF ASSETS. | 16 | ||
| 5.2 SUCCESSOR PERSON SUBSTITUTED. | 16 | ||
| ARTICLE 6 DEFAULTS AND REMEDIES | 17 | ||
| 6.1 EVENTS OF DEFAULT. | 17 | ||
| 6.2 ACCELERATION. | 17 | ||
| 6.3 REMEDIES. | 18 | ||
| 6.4 WAIVER OF PAST DEFAULTS AND EVENTS OF DEFAULT. | 18 | ||
| 6.5 CONTROL BY MAJORITY. | 18 | ||
| 6.6 LIMITATION ON SUITS. | 18 | ||
| 6.7 RIGHTS OF HOLDERS TO RECEIVE PAYMENT. | 19 | ||
| 6.8 COLLECTION SUIT BY TRUSTEE. | 19 | ||
| 6.9 TRUSTEE MAY FILE PROOFS OF CLAIM. | 19 | ||
| 6.10 PRIORITIES. | 20 | ||
| 6.11 UNDERTAKING FOR COSTS. | 20 | ||
| ARTICLE 7 TRUSTEE | 20 | ||
| 7.1 DUTIES OF TRUSTEE. | 20 | ||
| 7.2 RIGHTS OF TRUSTEE. | 21 | ||
| 7.3 INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS OF TRUSTEE. | 21 | ||
| 7.4 TRUSTEE’S DISCLAIMER. | 21 | ||
| 7.5 NOTICE OF DEFAULT. | 22 | ||
| 7.6 REPORTS BY TRUSTEE TO HOLDERS. | 22 | ||
| 7.7 COMPENSATION AND INDEMNITY. | 22 | ||
| 7.8 REPLACEMENT OF TRUSTEE. | 23 | ||
| 7.9 SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE BY CONSOLIDATION, MERGER OR CONVERSION. | 23 | ||
| 7.10 ELIGIBILITY; DISQUALIFICATION. | 23 | ||
| 7.11 PREFERENTIAL COLLECTION OF CLAIMS AGAINST COMPANY. | 24 | ||
| 7.12 PAYING AGENTS. | 24 | ||
| ARTICLE 8 AMENDMENTS, SUPPLEMENTS AND WAIVERS | 24 | ||
| 8.1 WITHOUT CONSENT OF HOLDERS. | 24 | ||
| 8.2 WITH CONSENT OF HOLDERS. | 25 | ||
| 8.3 COMPLIANCE WITH TRUST INDENTURE ACT. | 25 | ||
| 8.4 REVOCATION AND EFFECT OF CONSENTS. | 26 | ||
| 8.5 NOTATION ON OR EXCHANGE OF SECURITIES. | 26 | ||
| 8.6 TRUSTEE TO SIGN AMENDMENTS, ETC. | 26 | ||
| ARTICLE 9 DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; DEFEASANCE | 26 | ||
| 9.1 DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE. | 26 | ||
| 9.2 LEGAL DEFEASANCE. | 27 | ||
| 9.3 COVENANT DEFEASANCE. | 27 | ||
| 9.4 CONDITIONS TO LEGAL DEFEASANCE OR COVENANT DEFEASANCE. | 27 | ||
| 9.5 DEPOSITED MONEY AND U.S. AND FOREIGN GOVERNMENT OBLIGATIONS TO BE HELD IN TRUST; OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. | 28 | ||
| 9.6 REINSTATEMENT. | 29 | ||
| 9.7 MONEYS HELD BY PAYING AGENT. | 29 | ||
| 9.8 MONEYS HELD BY TRUSTEE. | 29 | ||
| ARTICLE 10 MISCELLANEOUS | 30 | ||
| 10.1 TRUST INDENTURE ACT CONTROLS. | 30 | ||
| 10.2 NOTICES. | 30 | ||
| 10.3 COMMUNICATIONS BY HOLDERS WITH OTHER HOLDERS. | 31 | ||
| 10.4 CERTIFICATE AND OPINION AS TO CONDITIONS PRECEDENT. | 31 | ||
| 10.5 STATEMENT REQUIRED IN CERTIFICATE AND OPINION. | 31 | ||
| 10.6 RULES BY TRUSTEE AND AGENTS. | 31 | ||
| 10.7 BUSINESS DAYS; LEGAL HOLIDAYS; PLACE OF PAYMENT. | 31 | ||
| 10.8 GOVERNING LAW. | 32 | ||
| 10.9 NO ADVERSE INTERPRETATION OF OTHER AGREEMENTS. | 32 | ||
| 10.10 NO RECOURSE AGAINST OTHERS. | 32 | ||
| 10.11 SUCCESSORS. | 32 | ||
| 10.12 MULTIPLE COUNTERPARTS. | 32 | ||
| 10.13 TABLE OF CONTENTS, HEADINGS, ETC. | 32 | ||
| 10.14 SEVERABILITY. | 32 | ||
| 10.15 SECURITIES IN A FOREIGN CURRENCY OR IN EUROS. | 33 | ||
| 10.16 JUDGMENT CURRENCY. | 33 | ||
CROSS-REFERENCE TABLE
| TIA SECTION | INDENTURE SECTION | |
| 310(a)(1)(2)(5) | 7.10 | |
| 310(a)(3)(4) | Inapplicable | |
| 310(b) | 7.8; 7.10 | |
| 310(c) | Inapplicable | |
| 311(a)(b) | 7.11 | |
| 311(c) | Inapplicable | |
| 312(a) | 2.6 | |
| 312(b)(c) | 10.3 | |
| 313(a)(b) | 7.6 | |
| 313(c) | 7.6; 10.2 | |
| 313(d) | 7.6 | |
| 314(a) | 4.2; 4.4; 10.2 | |
| 314(b) | N/A | |
| 314(c)(1)(2) | 10.4; 10.5 | |
| 314(c)(3) | Inapplicable | |
| 314(d) | Inapplicable | |
| 314(e) | 10.5 | |
| 314(f) | Inapplicable | |
| 315(a) | 7.1, 7.2 | |
| 315(b) | 7.5; 10.2 | |
| 315(c) | 7.1 | |
| 315(d) | 7.1; 7.2 | |
| 315(e) | 6.11 | |
| 316(a)(last sentence) | 2.10 | |
| 316(a)(1)(A) | 6.5 | |
| 316(a)(1)(B) | 6.4 | |
| 316(a)(2) | 8.2 | |
| 316(b) | 6.7 | |
| 316(c) | 8.4 | |
| 317(a)(1) | 6.8 | |
| 317(a)(2) | 6.9 | |
| 317(b) | 2.5; 7.12 | |
| 318(a) | 10.1 |
Note: This Cross-Reference Table shall not, for any purpose, be deemed to be a part of the Indenture.
INDENTURE, dated as of , , by and between TRON INC., a Nevada corporation, as Issuer (the “Company”) and , organized under the laws of , as Trustee (the “Trustee”).
RECITALS OF THE COMPANY
The Company has duly authorized the execution and delivery of this Indenture to provide for the issuance from time to time of its debentures, notes or other evidences of indebtedness to be issued in one or more series (the “Securities”), as herein provided, up to such principal amount as may from time to time be authorized in or pursuant to one or more resolutions of the Board of Directors or by supplemental indenture.
All things necessary to make this Indenture a valid agreement of the Company in accordance with its terms have been done, and the execution and delivery thereof have been in all respects duly authorized by the parties hereto.
NOW, THEREFORE, THIS INDENTURE WITNESSETH:
For and in consideration of the premises and the purchase of the Securities by the Holders thereof, it is mutually agreed, for the equal and proportionate benefit of all Holders of the Securities of a Series thereof, as follows:
ARTICLE 1
DEFINITIONS AND INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
1.1 DEFINITIONS.
“Affiliate” of any specified Person means any other Person which, directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by or is under common control with, such specified Person. For the purposes of this definition, “control” (including, with correlative meanings, the terms “controlling,” “controlled by” and “under common control with”), as used with respect to any Person, means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of such Person, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by agreement or otherwise.
“Agent” means any Registrar, Paying Agent, co-registrar or agent for service of notices and demands.
“Board of Directors” means the Board of Directors of the Company or any committee duly authorized to act therefor.
“Board Resolution” means a copy of a resolution certified pursuant to an Officers’ Certificate to have been duly adopted by the Board of Directors of the Company and to be in full force and effect on the date of such certification which has been delivered to the Trustee.
“Capital Stock” means, with respect to any Person, any and all shares or other equivalents (however designated) of capital stock, partnership interests or any other participation, right or other interest in the nature of an equity interest in such Person or any option, warrant or other security convertible into any of the foregoing.
“Company” means the party named as such in the first paragraph of this Indenture until a successor replaces such party pursuant to Article 5 of this Indenture, and thereafter means the successor and any other primary obligor on the Securities.
“Company Order” means a written order signed in the name of the Company by two Officers, one of whom must be its Chief Executive Officer or its Chief Financial Officer.
“Company Request” means any written request signed in the name of the Company by its Chief Executive Officer, its President, any Vice President, its Chief Financial Officer or its Treasurer and attested to by its Secretary or any Assistant Secretary.
“Corporate Trust Office” means the office of the Trustee at which at any particular time its corporate trust business shall be principally administered.
“Default” means any event that is, or that with the passing of time or giving of notice or both would be, an Event of Default.
“Depository” means, with respect to the Securities of any Series issuable or issued in whole or in part in the form of one or more Global Securities, the Person designated as Depository for such Series by the Company, which Depository shall be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act, until a successor Depository shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter “Depository” shall mean each Person who is then a Depository hereunder, and if at any time there is more than one such Person, such Persons.
“Dollars” means the currency of the United States of America.
“Euro” means the single currency of participating member states of the economic and monetary union as contemplated in the Treaty on European Union.
“Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
“Foreign Currency” means any currency or currency unit issued by a government other than the government of the United States of America.
“Foreign Government Obligations” means, with respect to Securities that are denominated in a Foreign Currency, (i) direct obligations of the government that issued or caused to be issued such currency for the payment of which obligations its full faith and credit is pledged or (ii) obligations of a Person controlled or supervised by, or acting as an agency or instrumentality of, such government, the timely payment of which is unconditionally guaranteed as a full faith and credit obligation by such government, which, in either case under clauses (i) and (ii), are not callable or redeemable at the option of the issuer thereof.
“GAAP” means generally accepted accounting principles consistently applied as in effect in the United States of America from time to time.
“Global Security” or “Global Securities” means a Security or Securities, as the case may be, in the form established pursuant to Section 2.2, evidencing all or part of a Series of Securities issued to the Depository for such Series or its nominee, and registered in the name of such Depository or nominee, and bearing the legend set forth in Section 2.15(c) (or such other legend(s) as may be applied to such Securities in accordance with Section 2.2(24)).
“Holder” or “Securityholder” means the Person in whose name a Security is registered on the Registrar’s books.
“Indebtedness” means (without duplication), with respect to any Person, any indebtedness at any time outstanding, secured or unsecured, contingent or otherwise, which is for borrowed money (whether or not the recourse of the lender is to the whole of the assets of such Person or only to a portion thereof), or evidenced by bonds, notes, debentures or similar instruments, or representing the balance deferred and unpaid of the purchase price of any property (excluding any balances that constitute accounts payable or trade payables, and other accrued liabilities arising in the ordinary course of business), if and to the extent any of the foregoing indebtedness would appear as a liability upon a balance sheet of such Person prepared in accordance with GAAP.
“Indenture” means this Indenture as amended, restated or supplemented from time to time.
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“Interest Payment Date,” when used with respect to any Security, means the Stated Maturity of an installment of interest on such Security.
“Lien” means, with respect to any property or assets of any Person, any mortgage or deed of trust, pledge, hypothecation, assignment, deposit arrangement, security interest, lien, charge, easement, encumbrance, preference, priority or other security agreement or preferential arrangement of any kind or nature whatsoever on or with respect to such property or assets (including, without limitation, any capitalized lease obligation, conditional sales or other title retention agreement having substantially the same economic effect as any of the foregoing).
“Maturity,” when used with respect to any Security, means the date on which the principal of such Security, or an installment of principal, becomes due and payable as therein or herein provided, whether at the Stated Maturity or by declaration of acceleration, call for redemption, notice of option to elect payment or otherwise.
“Officer” means the Chief Executive Officer, the President, any Vice President, the Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer or the Secretary of the Company, or any other officer designated by the Board of Directors, as the case may be.
“Officers’ Certificate” means, with respect to any Person, a certificate signed by the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, President or any Senior or Executive Vice President and the Chief Financial Officer or any Treasurer of such Person, that shall comply with applicable provisions of this Indenture.
“Opinion of Counsel” means a written opinion from legal counsel, which counsel is reasonably acceptable to the Trustee. The counsel may be an employee of or counsel to the Company.
“Person” means any individual, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, association, joint-stock company, trust, unincorporated organization or government (including any agency or political subdivision thereof).
“Redemption Date,” when used with respect to any Security to be redeemed, means the date fixed for such redemption pursuant to this Indenture.
“Responsible Officer,” when used with respect to the Trustee, means any officer within the corporate trust department or division of the Trustee (or any successor group of the Trustee) or any other officer of the Trustee customarily performing functions similar to those performed by any of the above designated officers, and also means, with respect to a particular corporate trust matter, any other officer to whom such matter is referred because of his knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject.
“SEC” means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission as constituted from time to time, or any successor performing substantially the same functions.
“Securities” means the securities that are issued under this Indenture, as amended or supplemented from time to time pursuant to this Indenture.
“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
“Series” or “Series of Securities” means each series of debentures, notes or other debt instruments of the Company created pursuant to Sections 2.1 and 2.2.
“Significant Subsidiary” means (i) any direct or indirect Subsidiary of the Company that would be a “significant subsidiary” as defined in Article 1, Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X, promulgated pursuant to the Securities Act, as such regulation is in effect on the date hereof, or (ii) any group of direct or indirect Subsidiaries of the Company that, taken together as a group, would be a “significant subsidiary” as defined in Article 1, Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X, promulgated pursuant to the Securities Act, as such regulation is in effect on the date hereof.
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“Stated Maturity,” when used with respect to any Security or any installment of principal thereof or interest thereon, means the date specified in such Security as the fixed date on which the principal of such Security, or such installment of principal or interest, is due and payable, and when used with respect to any other Indebtedness, means the date specified in the instrument governing such Indebtedness as the fixed date on which the principal of such Indebtedness, or any installment of interest thereon, is due and payable.
“Subsidiary” of any specified Person means any corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, association or other business entity, whether now existing or hereafter organized or acquired, (i) in the case of a corporation, of which more than 50% of the total voting power of the Capital Stock entitled (without regard to the occurrence of any contingency) to vote in the election of directors thereof is held, directly or indirectly, by such Person or any of its Subsidiaries; or (ii) in the case of a partnership, joint venture, association or other business entity, with respect to which such Person or any of its Subsidiaries has the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of such entity by contract or otherwise, or if in accordance with GAAP such entity is consolidated with such Person for financial statement purposes.
“TIA” means the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 (15 U.S. Code Section 77aaa-77bbbb) as in effect on the date of this Indenture (except as provided in Section 8.3).
“Trustee” means the party named as such in this Indenture until a successor replaces it pursuant to this Indenture, and thereafter means the successor, and if at any time there is more than one such Person, “Trustee” as used with respect to the Securities of any Series shall mean the Trustee with respect to Securities of that Series.
“U.S. Government Obligations” means direct non-callable obligations of, or non-callable obligations guaranteed by, the United States of America for the payment of which obligation or guarantee the full faith and credit of the United States of America is pledged.
1.2 OTHER DEFINITIONS.
The definitions of the following terms may be found in the sections indicated as follows:
| TERM | DEFINED IN SECTION | |
| “Bankruptcy Law” | 6.1 | |
| “Business Day” | 10.7 | |
| “Covenant Defeasance” | 9.3 | |
| “Custodian” | 6.1 | |
| “Event of Default” | 6.1 | |
| “Journal” | 10.15 | |
| “Judgment Currency” | 10.16 | |
| “Legal Defeasance” | 9.2 | |
| “Legal Holiday” | 10.7 | |
| “Market Exchange Rate” | 10.15 | |
| “New York Paying Agent” | 2.4 | |
| “Paying Agent” | 2.4 | |
| “Place of Payment” | 10.7 | |
| “Registrar” | 2.4 | |
| “Required Currency” | 10.16 | |
| “Service Agent” | 2.4 |
1.3 INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE OF TRUST INDENTURE ACT.
Whenever this Indenture refers to a provision of the TIA, the portion of such provision required to be incorporated herein in order for this Indenture to be qualified under the TIA is incorporated by reference in and made a part of this Indenture. The following TIA terms used in this Indenture have the following meanings:
“Commission” means the SEC.
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“Indenture securities” means the Securities.
“Indenture securityholder” means a Holder or Securityholder.
“Indenture to be qualified” means this Indenture.
“Indenture trustee” or “institutional trustee” means the Trustee.
“Obligor on the indenture securities” means the Company.
All other terms used in this Indenture that are defined by the TIA, defined in the TIA by reference to another statute or defined by SEC rule have the meanings therein assigned to them.
1.4 RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.
Unless the context otherwise requires:
| 1) | a term has the meaning assigned to it herein, whether defined expressly or by reference; | |
| 2) | an accounting term not otherwise defined has the meaning assigned to it in accordance with GAAP; | |
| 3) | “or” is not exclusive; | |
| 4) | words in the singular include the plural, and in the plural include the singular; | |
| 5) | words used herein implying any gender shall apply to each gender; and | |
| 6) | the words “herein”, “hereof” and “hereunder” and other words of similar import refer to this Indenture as a whole and not to any particular Article, Section or other subdivision. |
ARTICLE 2
THE SECURITIES
2.1 ISSUABLE IN SERIES.
The aggregate principal amount of Securities that may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture is $ , , . The Securities may be issued in one or more Series. All Securities of a Series shall be identical except as may be set forth in a Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture or an Officers’ Certificate detailing the adoption of the terms thereof pursuant to the authority granted under a Board Resolution. In the case of Securities of a Series to be issued from time to time, the Board Resolution, Officers’ Certificate or supplemental indenture may provide for the method by which specified terms (such as interest rate, Stated Maturity, record date or date from which interest shall accrue) are to be determined. Securities may differ between Series in respect of any matters, PROVIDED, that all Series of Securities shall be equally and ratably entitled to the benefits of the Indenture.
2.2 ESTABLISHMENT OF TERMS OF SERIES OF SECURITIES.
At or prior to the issuance of any Securities within a Series, the following shall be established (as to the Series generally, in the case of Subsection 2.2(1) and either as to such Securities within the Series or as to the Series generally in the case of Subsections 2.2(2) through 2.2(24)) by a Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture or an Officers’ Certificate, in each case, pursuant to authority granted under a Board Resolution:
(1) the title of the Series (which shall distinguish the Securities of that particular Series from the Securities of any other Series);
(2) any limit upon the aggregate principal amount of the Securities of the Series which may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture (except for Securities authenticated and delivered upon registration of transfer of, or in exchange for, or in lieu of, other Securities of the Series pursuant to Section 2.7, 2.8, 2.11, 3.6 or 8.5);
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(3) the price or prices (expressed as a percentage of the principal amount thereof) at which the Securities of the Series will be issued;
(4) the date or dates on which the principal of the Securities of the Series is payable;
(5) the rate or rates (which may be fixed or variable) per annum or, if applicable, the method used to determine such rate or rates (including, but not limited to, any commodity, commodity index, stock exchange index or financial index) at which the Securities of the Series shall bear interest, if any, the date or dates from which such interest, if any, shall accrue, the date or dates on which such interest, if any, shall commence and be payable and any regular record date for the interest payable on any Interest Payment Date;
(6) the place or places where the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities of the Series shall be payable, or the method of such payment, if by wire transfer, mail or other means;
(7) if applicable, the period or periods within which, the price or prices at which and the terms and conditions upon which the Securities of the Series may be redeemed, in whole or in part, at the option of the Company;
(8) the obligation, if any, of the Company to redeem or purchase the Securities of the Series pursuant to any sinking fund or analogous provisions or at the option of a Holder thereof, and the period or periods within which, the price or prices at which and the terms and conditions upon which Securities of the Series shall be redeemed or purchased, in whole or in part, pursuant to such obligation;
(9) the dates, if any, on which and the price or prices at which the Securities of the Series will be repurchased by the Company at the option of the Holders thereof, and other detailed terms and provisions of such repurchase obligations;
(10) if other than denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof, the denominations in which the Securities of the Series shall be issuable;
(11) the forms of the Securities of the Series in bearer (if to be issued outside of the United States of America) or fully registered form (and, if in fully registered form, whether the Securities will be issuable as Global Securities);
(12) if other than the principal amount thereof, the portion of the principal amount of the Securities of the Series that shall be payable upon declaration of acceleration of the Maturity thereof pursuant to Section 6.2;
(13) the currency of denomination of the Securities of the Series, which may be Dollars or any Foreign Currency, including, but not limited to, the Euro, and, if such currency of denomination is a composite currency other than the Euro, the agency or organization, if any, responsible for overseeing such composite currency;
(14) the designation of the currency, currencies or currency units in which payment of the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities of the Series will be made;
(15) if payments of principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, the Securities of the Series are to be made in one or more currencies or currency units other than that or those in which such Securities are denominated, the manner in which the exchange rate with respect to such payments will be determined;
(16) the manner in which the amounts of payment of principal of, or interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities of the Series will be determined, if such amounts may be determined by reference to an index based on a currency or currencies or by reference to a commodity, commodity index, stock exchange index or financial index;
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(17) the provisions, if any, relating to any collateral provided for the Securities of the Series;
(18) any addition to or change in the covenants set forth in Articles 4 or 5 that applies to Securities of the Series;
(19) any addition to or change in the Events of Default which applies to any Securities of the Series, any provision for the payment of additional interest or liquidated damages in connection with any Event of Default, and any change in the right of the Trustee or the requisite Holders of such Securities to declare the principal amount thereof due and payable pursuant to Section 6.2;
(20) the terms and conditions, if any, for conversion of the Securities into or exchange of the Securities for shares of common stock, preferred stock, other debt securities or warrants for common stock, preferred stock or other securities of any kind of the Company that apply to Securities of the Series;
(21) any Trustees, depositories, interest rate calculation agents, exchange rate calculation agents or other agents with respect to Securities of such Series if other than those appointed herein;
(22) the terms and conditions, if any, upon which the Securities shall be subordinated in right of payment to other Indebtedness of the Company;
(23) if applicable, that the Securities of the Series, in whole or any specified part, shall be defeasible pursuant to Article 9; and
(24) any other terms of the Securities of the Series (which terms shall not be inconsistent with the provisions of this Indenture, except as permitted by Section 8.1, but which may modify or delete any provision of this Indenture insofar as it applies to such Series).
All Securities of any one Series need not be issued at the same time, and may be issued from time to time, consistent with the terms of this Indenture, if so provided by or pursuant to the Board Resolution, supplemental indenture or Officers’ Certificate referred to above, however, the authorized principal amount of any Series may not be increased to provide for issuances of additional Securities of such Series, unless otherwise provided in such Board Resolution, supplemental indenture or Officers’ Certificate.
2.3 EXECUTION AND AUTHENTICATION.
The Securities shall be executed on behalf of the Company by two Officers of the Company or an Officer and an Assistant Secretary of the Company. Each such signature may be either manual or facsimile. The Company’s seal may be impressed, affixed, imprinted or reproduced on the Securities and may be in facsimile form.
If an Officer whose signature is on a Security no longer holds that office at the time the Security is authenticated, the Security shall nevertheless be valid.
A Security shall not be valid until authenticated by the manual signature of the Trustee or an authenticating agent. The signature shall be conclusive evidence that the Security has been authenticated under this Indenture. The Trustee shall at any time, and from time to time, authenticate Securities for original issue in the principal amount provided in the Board Resolution, supplemental indenture hereto or Officers’ Certificate, upon receipt by the Trustee of a Company Order. Such Company Order may authorize authentication and delivery pursuant to oral or electronic instructions from the Company or its duly authorized agent or agents, which oral instructions shall be promptly confirmed in writing. Each Security shall be dated the date of its authentication.
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The aggregate principal amount of Securities of any Series outstanding at any time may not exceed any limit upon the maximum principal amount for such Series set forth in the Board Resolution, supplemental indenture hereto or Officers’ Certificate delivered pursuant to Section 2.2, except as provided in Section 2.8.
Prior to the issuance of Securities of any Series, the Trustee shall have received and (subject to Section 7.1) shall be fully protected in relying on: (a) the Board Resolution, supplemental indenture hereto or Officers’ Certificate establishing the form of the Securities of that Series or of Securities within that Series and the terms of the Securities of that Series or of Securities within that Series, (b) an Officers’ Certificate complying with Section 10.4, and (c) an Opinion of Counsel complying with Section 10.4.
The Trustee shall have the right to decline to authenticate and deliver any Securities of any Series: (a) if the Trustee, being advised in writing by outside counsel, determines that such action may not lawfully be taken; or (b) if the Trustee in good faith by its board of directors or trustees, executive committee or a trust committee of directors and/or vice-presidents shall reasonably determine that such action would expose the Trustee to personal liability, or cause it to have a conflict of interest with respect to Holders of any then outstanding Series of Securities.
The Trustee may appoint an authenticating agent acceptable to the Company to authenticate Securities. An authenticating agent may authenticate Securities whenever the Trustee may do so. Any appointment shall be evidenced by an instrument signed by an authorized officer of the Trustee, a copy of which shall be furnished to the Company. Each reference in this Indenture to authentication by the Trustee includes authentication by such agent. An authenticating agent has the same rights as an Agent to deal with the Company or an Affiliate of the Company.
2.4 REGISTRAR AND PAYING AGENT.
The Company shall maintain in each Place of Payment for any Series of Securities (i) an office or agency where such Securities may be presented for registration of transfer or for exchange (“Registrar”), (ii) an office or agency where such Securities may be presented for payment (“Paying Agent”) (PROVIDED that the Company shall at all times maintain a Paying Agent in the Borough of Manhattan, City of New York, State of New York (the “New York Paying Agent”), and PROVIDED, FURTHER, that at the option of the Company payment of interest may be made by check mailed to the address of the Person entitled thereto as such address shall appear in the register for the Securities maintained by the Registrar), and (iii) an office or agency where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities and this Indenture may be served (“Service Agent”). The Registrar shall keep a register of the Securities and of their transfer and exchange. The Company may have one or more co-registrars and one or more additional paying agents. The Company shall give prompt written notice to the Trustee of the location, and any change in the location, of such office or agency. If at any time the Company shall fail to maintain any such required office, or to furnish the Trustee with the address thereof, such presentations, surrenders, notices and demands may be made or served at the address of the Trustee as set forth in Section 10.2. If the Company acts as Paying Agent, it shall segregate the money held by it for the payment of principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities and hold it as a separate trust fund. The Company may change any Paying Agent, Registrar, co-registrar or any other Agent without notice to any Securityholder.
The Company may also from time to time designate one or more other offices or agencies where the Securities may be presented or surrendered for any or all such purposes, and may from time to time rescind such designations; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that no such designation or rescission shall in any manner relieve the Company of its obligation to maintain an office or agency in each Place of Payment for Securities of any Series for such purposes. The Company hereby initially designates the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee as such office of the Company. The Company shall give prompt written notice to the Trustee of such designation or rescission, and of any change in the location of any such other office or agency.
The Company shall enter into an appropriate agency agreement with any Registrar or Paying Agent not a party to this Indenture. The agreement shall implement the provisions of this Indenture that relate to such Agent. The Company shall notify the Trustee of the name and address of any such Agent. If the Company fails to maintain a Registrar or Paying Agent, or agent for service of notices and demands, or fails to give the foregoing notice, the Trustee shall act as such. The Company hereby appoints the Trustee as the initial Registrar, Paying Agent and Service Agent for each Series unless another Registrar, Paying Agent or Service Agent, as the case may be, is appointed prior to the time Securities of that Series are first issued. The Company designates , as the New York Paying Agent, with offices at .
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2.5 PAYING AGENT TO HOLD ASSETS IN TRUST.
The Trustee as Paying Agent shall, and the Company shall require each Paying Agent other than the Trustee to agree in writing that each Paying Agent shall, hold in trust for the benefit of the Holders of any Series of Securities or the Trustee all assets held by the Paying Agent for the payment of principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, such Series of Securities (whether such assets have been distributed to it by the Company or any other obligor on such Series of Securities), and the Company and the Paying Agent shall notify the Trustee in writing of any Default by the Company (or any other obligor on such Series of Securities) in making any such payment. The Company at any time may require a Paying Agent to distribute all assets held by it to the Trustee and account for any assets disbursed, and the Trustee may, at any time during the continuance of any payment default with respect to any Series of Securities, upon written request to a Paying Agent, require such Paying Agent to distribute all assets held by it to the Trustee and to account for any assets distributed. Upon distribution to the Trustee of all assets that shall have been delivered by the Company to the Paying Agent, the Paying Agent shall have no further liability for such assets.
2.6 SECURITYHOLDER LISTS.
The Trustee shall preserve in as current a form as is reasonably practicable the most recent list available to it of the names and addresses of Securityholders of each Series of Securities. If the Trustee is not the Registrar, the Company shall furnish to the Trustee as of each regular record date for the payment of interest on the Securities of a Series and before each related Interest Payment Date, and at such other times as the Trustee may request in writing, a list in such form and as of such date as the Trustee may reasonably require of the names and addresses of Securityholders of each Series of Securities.
2.7 TRANSFER AND EXCHANGE.
When Securities of a Series are presented to the Registrar with a request to register the transfer thereof, the Registrar shall register the transfer as requested if the requirements of applicable law are met, and when such Securities of a Series are presented to the Registrar with a request to exchange them for an equal principal amount of other authorized denominations of Securities of the same Series, the Registrar shall make the exchange as requested. To permit transfers and exchanges, upon surrender of any Security for registration of transfer at the office or agency maintained pursuant to Section 2.4, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate Securities at the Registrar’s request.
If Securities are issued as Global Securities, the provisions of Section 2.15 shall apply.
All Securities issued upon any registration of transfer or exchange of Securities shall be the valid obligations of the Company, evidencing the same debt, and entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture, as the Securities surrendered upon such registration of transfer or exchange.
Every Security presented or surrendered for registration of transfer or for exchange shall (if so required by the Company or the Registrar or a co-registrar) be duly endorsed, or be accompanied by a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Registrar or a co-registrar, duly executed by the Holder thereof or his attorney duly authorized in writing.
Any exchange or transfer shall be without charge, except that the Company may require payment by the Holder of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation to a transfer or exchange, but this provision shall not apply to any exchange pursuant to Section 2.11, 3.6 or 8.5. The Trustee shall not be required to register transfers of Securities of any Series, or to exchange Securities of any Series, for a period of 15 days before the record date for selection for redemption of such Securities. The Trustee shall not be required to exchange or register transfers of Securities of any Series called or being called for redemption in whole or in part, except the unredeemed portion of such Security being redeemed in part.
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2.8 REPLACEMENT SECURITIES.
If a mutilated Security is surrendered to the Trustee, or if the Holder of a Security presents evidence to the satisfaction of the Company and the Trustee that the Security has been lost, destroyed or wrongfully taken, the Company shall issue and the Trustee shall authenticate a replacement Security of the same Series and of like tenor and principal amount and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding. An indemnity bond may be required by the Company or the Trustee that is sufficient in the reasonable judgment of the Company or the Trustee, as the case may be, to protect the Company, the Trustee or any Agent from any loss which any of them may suffer if a Security is replaced. The Company may charge such Holder for the Company’s out-of-pocket expenses in replacing a Security, including the fees and expenses of the Trustee. Every replacement Security shall constitute an original additional obligation of the Company, whether or not the destroyed, lost or stolen Security shall be at any time enforceable by anyone, and shall be entitled to all the benefits of this Indenture equally and proportionately with any and all other Securities of that Series duly issued hereunder.
2.9 OUTSTANDING SECURITIES.
Securities outstanding at any time are all Securities authenticated by the Trustee, except for those canceled by it, those delivered to it for cancellation and those described in this Section 2.9 as not outstanding.
If a Security is replaced pursuant to Section 2.8 (other than a mutilated Security surrendered for replacement), it ceases to be outstanding until the Company and the Trustee receive proof satisfactory to each of them that the replaced Security is held by a bona fide purchaser. A mutilated Security ceases to be outstanding upon surrender of such Security and replacement thereof pursuant to Section 2.8.
If a Paying Agent holds on a Redemption Date or the Stated Maturity money sufficient to pay the principal of, premium, if any, and accrued interest on, Securities payable on that date, and is not prohibited from paying such money to the Holders thereof pursuant to the terms of this Indenture (PROVIDED, that if such Securities are to be redeemed, notice of such redemption has been duly given pursuant to this Indenture or provision therefor satisfactory to the Trustee has been made), then on and after that date such Securities cease to be outstanding and interest on them ceases to accrue.
A Security does not cease to be outstanding solely because the Company or an Affiliate holds the Security.
2.10 WHEN TREASURY SECURITIES DISREGARDED; DETERMINATION OF HOLDERS’ ACTION.
In determining whether the Holders of the required aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any Series have concurred in any direction, waiver or consent, the Securities of any Series owned by the Company or any other obligor on such Securities, or by any Affiliate of any of them, shall be disregarded, except that for the purposes of determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in relying on any such direction, waiver or consent, only Securities of such Series which the Trustee actually knows are so owned shall be so disregarded. Securities of such Series so owned which have been pledged in good faith shall not be disregarded if the pledgee establishes to the satisfaction of the Trustee the pledgee’s right so to act with respect to the Securities of such Series and that the pledgee is not the Company or any other obligor on the Securities of such Series, or an Affiliate of any of them.
2.11 TEMPORARY SECURITIES.
Until definitive Securities are ready for delivery, the Company may prepare and execute, and the Trustee shall authenticate, temporary Securities. Temporary Securities shall be substantially in the form, and shall carry all rights, of definitive Securities, but may have variations that the Company considers appropriate for temporary Securities. Without unreasonable delay, the Company shall prepare and execute, and the Trustee shall authenticate, definitive Securities in exchange for temporary Securities without charge to the Holder.
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2.12 CANCELLATION.
All Securities surrendered for payment, redemption or registration of transfer or exchange, or for credit against any sinking fund payment, shall, if surrendered to any Person other than the Trustee, be delivered to the Trustee for cancellation. The Company may at any time deliver to the Trustee for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated and delivered hereunder which the Company may have acquired in any manner whatsoever, and may deliver to the Trustee (or to any other Person for delivery to the Trustee) for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated hereunder which the Company has not issued and sold. The Registrar and the Paying Agent shall forward to the Trustee any Securities surrendered to them for transfer, exchange or payment. The Trustee or, at the direction of the Trustee, the Registrar or the Paying Agent, and no one else, shall cancel, and at the written request of the Company shall dispose of, all Securities surrendered for transfer, exchange, payment or cancellation. If the Company shall acquire any of the Securities, such acquisition shall not operate as a redemption or satisfaction of the Indebtedness represented by such Securities unless and until the same are surrendered to the Trustee for cancellation pursuant to this Section 2.12. No Securities shall be authenticated in lieu of or in exchange for any Securities cancelled as provided in this Section 2.12, except as expressly permitted by this Indenture.
2.13 PAYMENT OF INTEREST; DEFAULTED INTEREST; COMPUTATION OF INTEREST.
Except as otherwise provided as contemplated by Section 2.2 with respect to any Series of Securities, interest on any Security which is payable, and is punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date shall be paid to the Person in whose name that Security is registered at the close of business on the regular record date for such interest, as provided in the Board Resolution, supplemental indenture hereto or Officers’ Certificate establishing the terms of such Series.
If the Company defaults in a payment of interest on the Securities, it shall pay the defaulted amounts, plus any interest payable on defaulted amounts pursuant to Section 4.1, to the Persons who are Securityholders on a subsequent special record date, which date shall be the 15th day next preceding the date fixed by the Company for the payment of defaulted interest, or the next succeeding Business Day if such date is not a Business Day. At least 15 days before the special record date, the Company shall mail or cause to be mailed to each Securityholder, with a copy to the Trustee, a notice that states the special record date, the payment date and the amount of defaulted interest, and interest payable on such defaulted interest, if any, to be paid.
Except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.2 for Securities of any Series, interest on the Securities of each Series shall be computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months.
2.14 CUSIP NUMBER.
The Company in issuing the Securities may use one or more “CUSIP” numbers, and, if the Company does so, the Trustee shall use the CUSIP number(s) in notices of redemption or exchange as a convenience to Holders, PROVIDED, that any such notice may state that no representation is made as to the correctness or accuracy of the CUSIP number(s) printed in the notice or on the Securities, and that reliance may be placed only on the other identification numbers printed on the Securities, and that any such redemption or exchange shall not be affected by any defect in or omission of any such numbers.
2.15 PROVISIONS FOR GLOBAL SECURITIES.
(1) A Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture hereto or an Officers’ Certificate shall establish whether the Securities of a Series shall be issued in whole or in part in the form of one or more Global Securities, and the Depository for such Global Securities or Securities.
(2) Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary contained in Section 2.7 and in addition thereto, if, and only if the Depository (i) at any time is unwilling or unable to continue as Depository for such Global Security or ceases to be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act and (ii) a successor Depository is not appointed by the Company within 90 days after the date the Company is so informed in writing or becomes aware of the same, the Company promptly will execute and deliver to the Trustee definitive Securities, and the Trustee, upon receipt of a Company Request for the authentication and delivery of such definitive Securities (which the Company will promptly execute and deliver to the Trustee) and an Officers’ Certificate to the effect that such Global Security shall be so exchangeable, will authenticate and deliver definitive Securities, without charge, registered in such names and in such authorized denominations as the Depository shall direct in writing (pursuant to instructions from its direct and indirect participants or otherwise) in an aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of the Global Security with like tenor and terms. Upon the exchange of a Global Security for definitive Securities, such Global Security shall be canceled by the Trustee. Unless and until it is exchanged in whole or in part for definitive Securities, as provided in this Section 2.15(b), a Global Security may not be transferred except as a whole by the Depository with respect to such Global Security to a nominee of such Depository, by a nominee of such Depository to such Depository or another nominee of such Depository or by the Depository or any such nominee to a successor Depository or a nominee of such a successor Depository.
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(3) Any Global Security issued hereunder shall bear a legend in substantially the following form:
“This Security is a Global Security within the meaning of the Indenture hereinafter referred to, and is registered in the name of the Depository or a nominee of the Depository. This Security is exchangeable for Securities registered in the name of a Person other than the Depository or its nominee only in the limited circumstances described in the Indenture, and may not be transferred except as a whole by the Depository to a nominee of the Depository, by a nominee of the Depository to the Depository or another nominee of the Depository or by the Depository or any such nominee to a successor Depository or a nominee of such a successor Depository.”
(4) The Depository, as a Holder, may appoint agents and otherwise authorize participants to give or take any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action which a Holder is entitled to give or take under the Indenture.
(5) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Indenture, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.2, payment of the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, any Global Security shall be made to the Depository or its nominee in its capacity as the Holder thereof.
(6) Except as provided in Section 2.15(5) above, the Company, the Trustee and any Agent shall treat a Person as the Holder of such principal amount of outstanding Securities of any Series represented by a Global Security as shall be specified in a written statement of the Depository (which may be in the form of a participants’ list for such Series) with respect to such Global Security, for purposes of obtaining any consents, declarations, waivers or directions required to be given by the Holders pursuant to this Indenture, PROVIDED, that until the Trustee is so provided with a written statement, it may treat the Depository or any other Person in whose name a Global Security is registered as the owner of such Global Security for the purpose of receiving payment of the principal of, and any premium and (subject to Section 2.13) any interest on, such Global Security and for all other purposes whatsoever, and none of the Company, the Trustee or any agent of the Company or the Trustee shall be affected by notice to the contrary.
2.16 PERSONS DEEMED OWNERS.
Prior to due presentment of a Security for registration of transfer, the Company, the Trustee, the Registrar and any agent of the Company, the Registrar or the Trustee may treat the Person in whose name such Security is registered as the owner of such Security for the purpose of receiving payment of the principal of, and any premium and (subject to Section 2.13) any interest on, such Security and for all other purposes whatsoever, and none of the Company, the Trustee, the Registrar or any agent of the Company, the Trustee or the Registrar shall be affected by notice to the contrary.
ARTICLE 3
REDEMPTION
3.1 NOTICES TO TRUSTEE.
The Company may, with respect to any Series of Securities, reserve the right to redeem and pay the Series of Securities, or may covenant to redeem and pay the Series of Securities or any part thereof, prior to the Stated Maturity thereof at such time and on such terms as provided for in such Securities or the related Board Resolution, supplemental indenture or Officers’ Certificate. If a Series of Securities is redeemable and the Company elects to redeem all or part of such Series of Securities, it shall notify the Trustee of the Redemption Date and the principal amount of Securities to be redeemed at least 45 days (unless a shorter notice shall be satisfactory to the Trustee) before the Redemption Date. Any such notice may be canceled at any time prior to notice of such redemption being mailed to any Holder, and shall thereby be void and of no effect.
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3.2 SELECTION BY TRUSTEE OF SECURITIES TO BE REDEEMED.
Unless otherwise indicated for a particular Series of Securities by a Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture or an Officers’ Certificate, if fewer than all of the Securities of a Series are to be redeemed, the Trustee shall select the Securities of a Series to be redeemed pro rata, by lot or by any other method that the Trustee considers fair and appropriate (unless the Company specifically directs the Trustee otherwise) and, if such Securities are listed on any securities exchange, by a method that complies with the requirements of such exchange.
The Trustee shall make the selection from Securities of a Series outstanding and not previously called for redemption, and shall promptly notify the Company in writing of the Securities selected for redemption and, in the case of any Security selected for partial redemption, the principal amount thereof to be redeemed at least 35 but not more than 60 days before the Redemption Date. Securities of a Series in denominations of $1,000 may be redeemed only in whole. The Trustee may select for redemption portions of the principal of Securities of a Series that have denominations larger than $1,000. Securities of a Series and portions of them it selects shall be in amounts of $1,000 or, with respect to Securities of any Series issuable in other denominations pursuant to Section 2.2(10), the minimum principal denomination for each Series and integral multiples thereof. Provisions of this Indenture that apply to Securities called for redemption also apply to portions of Securities called for redemption.
3.3 NOTICE OF REDEMPTION.
Unless otherwise indicated for a particular Series by Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture hereto or an Officers’ Certificate, at least 30 days, and no more than 60 days, before a Redemption Date, the Company shall mail, or cause to be mailed, a notice of redemption by first-class mail to each Holder of Securities to be redeemed at his or her last address as the same appears on the registry books maintained by the Registrar. The notice shall identify the Securities to be redeemed and shall state:
(1) the Redemption Date;
(2) the redemption price, and that such redemption price shall become due and payable on the Redemption Date;
(3) if any Security of a Series is being redeemed in part, the portion of the principal amount of such Security of a Series to be redeemed and that, after the Redemption Date and upon surrender of such Security of a Series, a new Security or Securities in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion will be issued;
(4) the name and address of the Paying Agent;
(5) that Securities of a Series called for redemption must be surrendered to the Paying Agent to collect the redemption price, and the place or places where each such Security is to be surrendered for such payment;
(6) that, unless the Company defaults in making the redemption payment, interest on the Securities of a Series called for redemption ceases to accrue on the Redemption Date, and the only remaining right of the Holders of such Securities is to receive payment of the redemption price upon surrender to the Paying Agent of the Securities redeemed;
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(7) if fewer than all of the Securities of a Series are to be redeemed, the identification of the particular Securities of a Series (or portion thereof) to be redeemed, as well as the aggregate principal amount of Securities of a Series to be redeemed and the aggregate principal amount of Securities of a Series to be outstanding after such partial redemption.
(8) the CUSIP number, if any, printed on the Securities being redeemed; and
(9) that no representation is made as to the correctness or accuracy of the CUSIP number, if any, listed in such notice or printed on the Securities.
At the Company’s request, the Trustee shall give the notice of redemption in the Company’s name and at the Company’s sole expense.
3.4 EFFECT OF NOTICE OF REDEMPTION.
Once the notice of redemption described in Section 3.3 is mailed, Securities of a Series called for redemption become due and payable on the Redemption Date and at the redemption price, plus interest, if any, accrued to the Redemption Date. Upon surrender to the Trustee or Paying Agent, such Securities of a Series shall be paid at the redemption price, plus accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date; PROVIDED, that if the Redemption Date is after a regular interest payment record date and on or prior to the next Interest Payment Date, the accrued interest shall be payable to the Holder of the redeemed Securities registered on the relevant record date, as specified by the Company in the notice to the Trustee pursuant to Section 3.1.
3.5 DEPOSIT OF REDEMPTION PRICE.
On or prior to the Redemption Date (but no later than 11:00 A.M. Eastern Time on such date), the Company shall deposit with the Paying Agent money sufficient to pay the redemption price of and accrued interest, if any, on all Securities to be redeemed on that date other than Securities or portions thereof called for redemption on that date which have been delivered by the Company to the Trustee for cancellation.
On and after any Redemption Date, if money sufficient to pay the redemption price of, and accrued interest on, Securities called for redemption shall have been made available in accordance with the preceding paragraph and the Company and the Paying Agent are not prohibited from paying such moneys to Holders, the Securities called for redemption will cease to accrue interest and the only right of the Holders of such Securities will be to receive payment of the redemption price of and, subject to the proviso in Section 3.4, accrued and unpaid interest on such Securities to the Redemption Date. If any Security called for redemption shall not be so paid, interest will be paid, from the Redemption Date until such redemption payment is made, on the unpaid principal of the Security and any interest or premium, if any, not paid on such unpaid principal, in each case, at the rate and in the manner provided in the Securities.
3.6 SECURITIES REDEEMED IN PART.
Upon surrender of a Security of a Series that is redeemed in part, the Company shall execute, and the Trustee shall authenticate, for a Holder a new Security of the same Series equal in principal amount to the unredeemed portion of the Security surrendered.
ARTICLE 4
COVENANTS
4.1 PAYMENT OF SECURITIES.
The Company shall pay the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, each Series of Securities on the dates and in the manner provided in such Securities and this Indenture.
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An installment of principal or interest shall be considered paid on the date it is due if the Trustee or Paying Agent holds on that date money designated for and sufficient to pay such installment and is not prohibited from paying such money to the Holders pursuant to the terms of this Indenture or otherwise.
The Company shall pay interest on overdue principal, and overdue interest, to the extent lawful, at the rate specified in the Series of Securities.
4.2 SEC REPORTS.
The Company will deliver to the Trustee within 15 days after the filing of the same with the SEC, copies of the quarterly and annual reports and of the information, documents and other reports, if any, which the Company is required to file with the SEC pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that each such report or document will be deemed to be so delivered to the Trustee if the Company files such report or document with the SEC through the SEC’s EDGAR database no later than the time such report or document is required to be filed with the SEC pursuant to the Exchange Act. Notwithstanding that the Company may not be subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, the Company will file with the SEC, to the extent permitted, and provide the Trustee with, such quarterly and annual reports and such information, documents and other reports specified in Sections 13 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act. The Company will also comply with the other provisions of TIA Section 314(a).
4.3 WAIVER OF STAY, EXTENSION OR USURY LAWS.
The Company covenants (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) that it will not at any time insist upon, or plead (as a defense or otherwise) or in any manner whatsoever claim or take the benefit or advantage of, any stay, extension, usury or other law which would prohibit or forgive the Company from paying all or any portion of the principal of, and/or interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities as contemplated herein, wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, or which may affect the covenants or the performance of this Indenture; and the Company hereby expressly waives (to the extent that they may lawfully do so) all benefit or advantage of any such law, and covenants that it will not hinder, delay or impede the execution of any power herein granted to the Trustee, but will suffer and permit the execution of every such power as though no such law had been enacted.
4.4 COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE.
(1) The Company shall deliver to the Trustee, within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Company, an Officers’ Certificate which complies with TIA Section 314(a)(4) stating that a review of the activities of the Company and its Subsidiaries during such fiscal year has been made under the supervision of the signing Officers with a view to determining whether the Company has kept, observed, performed and fulfilled its obligations under this Indenture, and further stating, as to each such Officer signing such certificate, that to the best of his or her knowledge the Company has kept, observed, performed and fulfilled each and every covenant contained in this Indenture and that there is no default in the performance or observance of any of the terms, provisions and conditions hereof (or, if a Default or Event of Default shall have occurred, describing all such Defaults or Events of Default of which he or she may have knowledge and what action the Company is taking or proposes to take with respect thereto) and that to the best of his or her knowledge no event has occurred and remains in existence by reason of which payments on account of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, the Securities is prohibited, or if such event has occurred, a description of the event and what action the Company is taking or proposes to take with respect thereto.
(2) (i) If any Default or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing or (ii) if any Holder seeks to exercise any remedy hereunder with respect to a claimed Default under this Indenture or the Securities, within five Business Days after the Company becoming aware of such occurrence the Company shall deliver to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate specifying such event, notice or other action and what action the Company is taking or proposes to take with respect thereto.
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4.5 CORPORATE EXISTENCE.
Subject to Article 5, the Company shall do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve and keep in full force and effect its corporate existence, in accordance with the organizational documents (as the same may be amended from time to time) of the Company and the rights (charter and statutory), licenses and franchises of the Company; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that the Company shall not be required to preserve any such right, license or franchise, or its corporate existence, if the Board of Directors shall determine that the preservation thereof is no longer desirable in the conduct of the business of the Company and that the loss thereof is not adverse in any material respect to the Holders.
ARTICLE 5
SUCCESSOR CORPORATION
5.1 LIMITATION ON CONSOLIDATION, MERGER AND SALE OF ASSETS.
(1) The Company will not, in any transaction or series of transactions, merge or consolidate with or into, or sell, assign, convey, transfer, lease or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of its properties and assets (as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in one transaction or a series of related transactions), to any Person or Persons, unless at the time of and after giving effect thereto (i) either (A) if the transaction or series of transactions is a merger or consolidation, the Company shall be the surviving Person of such merger or consolidation, or (B) the Person formed by such consolidation or into which the Company is merged or to which the properties and assets of the Company are transferred (any such surviving Person or transferee Person being the “Surviving Entity”) shall be a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the United States of America, any state thereof or the District of Columbia, or a corporation or comparable legal entity organized under the laws of a foreign jurisdiction and shall expressly assume by a supplemental indenture executed and delivered to the Trustee, in form reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, all of the obligations of the Company (including, without limitation, the obligation to pay the principal of, and premium and interest, if any, on, the Securities and the performance of the other covenants) under the Securities of each Series and this Indenture, and in each case, this Indenture shall remain in full force and effect; and (ii) immediately before and immediately after giving effect to such transaction or series of transactions on a pro forma basis (including, without limitation, any Indebtedness incurred or anticipated to be incurred in connection with or in respect of such transaction or series of transactions), no Default or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing.
(2) In connection with any consolidation, merger or transfer of assets contemplated by this Section 5.1, the Company shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, to the Trustee, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that such consolidation, merger or transfer, and the supplemental indenture in respect thereto, comply with this Section 5.1, and that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to such transaction or transactions have been complied with.
5.2 SUCCESSOR PERSON SUBSTITUTED.
Upon any consolidation, merger or transfer of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company in accordance with Section 5.1 above, the successor corporation formed by such consolidation, or into which the Company is merged or to which such transfer is made, shall succeed to, and be substituted for, and may exercise every right and power of, the Company under this Indenture with the same effect as if such successor corporation had been named as the Company herein, and thereafter (except with respect to any such transfer which is a lease) the predecessor corporation shall be relieved of all obligations and covenants under this Indenture and the Securities.
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ARTICLE 6
DEFAULTS AND REMEDIES
6.1 EVENTS OF DEFAULT.
“Events of Default,” wherever used herein with respect to Securities of any Series, means any one of the following events, unless in the establishing Board Resolution, supplemental indenture or Officers’ Certificate, it is provided that such Series shall not have the benefit of said Event of Default:
(1) there is a default in the payment of any principal of, or premium, if any, on, the Securities when the same becomes due and payable at Maturity, upon acceleration, redemption or otherwise;
(2) there is a default in the payment of any interest on any Security of a Series when the same becomes due and payable, and the Default continues for a period of 30 days;
(3) the Company defaults in the observance or performance of any other covenant in the Securities of a Series or in this Indenture for 60 days after written notice from the Trustee or the Holders of not less than 25% in the aggregate principal amount of the Securities of such Series then outstanding, which notice must specify the Default, demand that it be remedied and state that the notice is a “Notice of Default”;
(4) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary pursuant to or within the meaning of any Bankruptcy Law:
| (A) | commences a voluntary case, | |
| (B) | consents to the entry of an order for relief against it in an involuntary case, | |
| (C) | consents to the appointment of a Custodian of it or for all or substantially all of its property, | |
| (D) | makes a general assignment for the benefit of its creditors, or | |
| (E) | generally is not paying its debts as they become due; |
(5) a court of competent jurisdiction enters an order or decree under any Bankruptcy Law that:
| (A) | is for relief against the Company or any Significant Subsidiary in an involuntary case; | |
| (B) | appoints a Custodian of the Company or any Significant Subsidiary, or for all or substantially all of the property of the Company or any Significant Subsidiary; or | |
| (C) | orders the liquidation of the Company or any Significant Subsidiary, and the order or decree remains unstayed and in effect for 90 consecutive days; or |
(6) any other Event of Default provided with respect to Securities of that Series, which is specified in a Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture hereto or an Officers’ Certificate, in accordance with Section 2.2(19).
The term “Bankruptcy Law” means Title 11, U.S. Code, or any similar federal or state law for the relief of debtors. The term “Custodian” means any receiver, trustee, assignee, liquidator or similar official under any Bankruptcy Law.
The Trustee may withhold notice of any Default (except in the payment of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, the Securities) to the Holders of the Securities of any Series in accordance with Section 7.5. When a Default is cured, it ceases to exist.
6.2 ACCELERATION.
If an Event of Default with respect to Securities of any Series at the time outstanding (other than an Event of Default arising under Section 6.1(4) or (5)) occurs and is continuing, the Trustee by written notice to the Company, or the Holders of not less than 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of that Series then outstanding by written notice to the Company and the Trustee, may declare that the entire principal amount of all the Securities of that Series then outstanding plus accrued and unpaid interest to the date of acceleration are immediately due and payable, in which case such amounts shall become immediately due and payable; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that after such acceleration but before a judgment or decree based on such acceleration is obtained by the Trustee, the Holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Securities of that Series may rescind and annul such acceleration and its consequences if (i) all existing Events of Default, other than the nonpayment of accelerated principal, interest or premium, if any, that has become due solely because of the acceleration, have been cured or waived, (ii) to the extent the payment of such interest is lawful, interest on overdue installments of interest and overdue principal, which has become due otherwise than by such declaration of acceleration, has been paid and (iii) the rescission would not conflict with any judgment or decree. No such rescission shall affect any subsequent Default or impair any right consequent thereto. In case an Event of Default specified in Section 6.1(4) or (5) with respect to the Company occurs, such principal, premium, if any, and interest amount with respect to all of the Securities of that Series shall be due and payable immediately without any declaration or other act on the part of the Trustee or the Holders of the Securities of that Series.
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6.3 REMEDIES.
If an Event of Default with respect to Securities of any Series at the time outstanding occurs and is continuing, the Trustee may pursue any available remedy by proceeding at law or in equity to collect the payment of the principal of, or interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities of that Series, or to enforce the performance of any provision of the Securities of that Series or this Indenture.
The Trustee may maintain a proceeding even if it does not possess any of the Securities of that Series or does not produce any of them in the proceeding. A delay or omission by the Trustee or any Securityholder in exercising any right or remedy accruing upon an Event of Default shall not impair the right or remedy or constitute a waiver of or acquiescence in the Event of Default. No remedy is exclusive of any other remedy. All available remedies are cumulative to the extent permitted by law.
6.4 WAIVER OF PAST DEFAULTS AND EVENTS OF DEFAULT.
Subject to Sections 6.2, 6.7 and 8.2, the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of any Series then outstanding have the right to waive any existing Default or Event of Default with respect to such Series or compliance with any provision of this Indenture (with respect to such Series) or the Securities of such Series. Upon any such waiver, such Default with respect to such Series shall cease to exist, and any Event of Default with respect to such Series arising therefrom shall be deemed to have been cured for every purpose of this Indenture; but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other Default or Event of Default or impair any right consequent thereto. This Section 6.4 shall be in lieu of TIA Section 316(a)(1)(B), and TIA Section 316(a)(1)(B) is hereby expressly excluded from this Indenture and Section as permitted by the TIA.
6.5 CONTROL BY MAJORITY.
Subject to Sections 6.2, 6.7 and 8.2, the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of any Series then outstanding may direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee or exercising any trust or power conferred on the Trustee by this Indenture with respect to such Series. The Trustee, however, may refuse to follow any direction that conflicts with law or this Indenture, or that the Trustee determines may be unduly prejudicial to the rights of another Securityholder, or that may involve the Trustee in personal liability; PROVIDED, that the Trustee may take any other action deemed proper by the Trustee which is not inconsistent with such direction. This Section 6.5 shall be in lieu of TIA Section 316(a)(1)(A), and TIA Section 316(a)(1)(A) is hereby expressly excluded from this Indenture and Section as permitted by the TIA.
6.6 LIMITATION ON SUITS.
Subject to Section 6.7, a Securityholder may not institute any proceeding or pursue any remedy with respect to this Indenture or the Securities of a Series unless:
(1) the Holder gives to the Trustee written notice of a continuing Event of Default with respect to the Securities of that Series;
(2) the Holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of such Series then outstanding make a written request to the Trustee to pursue the remedy;
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(3) such Holder or Holders offer to the Trustee indemnity reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee against any loss, liability or expense to be incurred in compliance with such request;
(4) the Trustee does not comply with the request within 60 days after receipt of the request and the offer of indemnity; and
(5) no direction inconsistent with such written request has been given to the Trustee during such 60-day period by the Holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of such Series then outstanding.
A Securityholder may not use this Indenture to prejudice the rights of another Securityholder, or to obtain a preference or priority over another Securityholder.
6.7 RIGHTS OF HOLDERS TO RECEIVE PAYMENT.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Indenture, the right of any Holder of a Security of a Series to receive payment of the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Security of such Series on or after the respective due dates expressed in the Security of such Series, or to bring suit for the enforcement of any such payment on or after such respective dates, is absolute and unconditional, and shall not be impaired or affected without the consent of the Holder.
6.8 COLLECTION SUIT BY TRUSTEE.
If an Event of Default in payment of principal, interest or premium, if any, specified in Section 6.1(1) or (2) with respect to Securities of any Series at the time outstanding occurs and is continuing, the Trustee may recover judgment in its own name and as trustee of an express trust against the Company (or any other obligor on the Securities of that Series) for the whole amount of unpaid principal and premium, if any, and accrued interest remaining unpaid, together with interest on overdue principal and premium, if any, and, to the extent that payment of such interest is lawful, interest on overdue installments of interest, in each case at the rate then borne by the Securities of that Series, and such further amounts as shall be sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of collection, including the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, as set forth in Section 7.7.
6.9 TRUSTEE MAY FILE PROOFS OF CLAIM.
The Trustee may file such proofs of claim and other papers or documents, and take other actions (including sitting on a committee of creditors), as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Trustee (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel) and the Securityholders allowed in any judicial proceedings relative to the Company (or any other obligor on the Securities), any of their respective creditors or any of their respective property, and the Trustee shall be entitled and empowered to collect and receive any monies or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims, and to distribute the same after deduction of its charges and expenses to the extent that any such charges and expenses are not paid out of the estate in any such proceedings, and any custodian in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each Securityholder to make such payments to the Trustee, and in the event that the Trustee shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the Securityholders, to pay to the Trustee any amount due to it for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Trustee under Section 7.7.
Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to authorize the Trustee to authorize or consent to, or accept or adopt on behalf of any Securityholder, any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Securities of a Series or the rights of any Holder thereof, or to authorize the Trustee to vote in respect of the claim of any Securityholder in any such proceedings.
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6.10 PRIORITIES.
If the Trustee collects any money pursuant to this Article 6, it shall pay out the money in the following order:
FIRST: to the Trustee for amounts due under Section 7.7;
SECOND: to Securityholders for amounts then due and unpaid for the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities in respect of which, or for the benefit of which, such money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the amounts due and payable on such Securities; for principal and any premium and interest, respectively; and
THIRD: to the Company.
The Trustee may fix a record date and payment date for any payment to Securityholders pursuant to this Section 6.10. At least 15 days before such record date, the Trustee shall mail to each Securityholder a notice that states the record date, the payment date and amount to be paid.
6.11 UNDERTAKING FOR COSTS.
In any suit for the enforcement of any right or remedy under this Indenture, or in any suit against the Trustee for any action taken or omitted by it as Trustee, a court in its discretion may require the filing by any party litigant in the suit of an undertaking to pay the costs of the suit, and the court in its discretion may assess reasonable costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, against any party litigant in the suit, having due regard to the merits and good faith of the claims or defenses made by the party litigant. This Section 6.11 does not apply to a suit by the Trustee, a suit by a Holder pursuant to Section 6.7 or a suit by Holders of more than 10% in principal amount of the Securities of a Series then outstanding.
ARTICLE 7
TRUSTEE
7.1 DUTIES OF TRUSTEE.
(1) If an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the Trustee shall exercise such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise as a prudent Person would exercise or use under the same circumstances in the conduct of his own affairs.
(2) Except during the continuance of an Event of Default:
(A) The Trustee need perform only those duties that are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no covenants or obligations shall be implied in this Indenture against the Trustee.
(B) In the absence of bad faith on its part, the Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon certificates or opinions furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture, but, in the case of any such certificates or opinions which by any provision hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not they conform to the requirements of this Indenture.
(3) The Trustee may not be relieved from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act or its own willful misconduct, except that:
(A) This paragraph does not limit the effect of paragraph (2) of this Section 7.1.
(B) The Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer, unless it is proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts.
(C) The Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action it takes or omits to take in good faith in accordance with a direction received by it pursuant to Sections 6.2 and 6.5.
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(4) No provision of this Indenture shall require the Trustee to expend or risk its own funds, or otherwise incur any financial liability, in the performance of any of its rights or powers if it shall have reasonable grounds for believing that repayment of such funds or adequate indemnity satisfactory to it against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it.
(5) Whether or not therein expressly so provided, paragraphs (1), (2), (3) and (4) of this Section 7.1 shall govern every provision of this Indenture that in any way relates to the Trustee.
(6) The Trustee and Paying Agent shall not be liable for interest on any money received by either of them, except as the Trustee and Paying Agent may agree in writing with the Company. Money held in trust by the Trustee need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by the law.
(7) The Paying Agent, the Registrar and any authenticating agent shall be entitled to the protections, immunities and standard of care set forth in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4) and (6) of this Section 7.1 and in Section 7.2 with respect to the Trustee.
7.2 RIGHTS OF TRUSTEE.
(1) Subject to Section 7.1:
(A) The Trustee may rely on, and shall be protected in acting or refraining from acting upon, any document reasonably believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper Person. The Trustee need not investigate any fact or matter stated in the document.
(B) Before the Trustee acts or refrains from acting, it may require an Officers’ Certificate or an Opinion of Counsel, or both, which shall conform to the provisions of Section 10.5. The Trustee shall be protected and shall not be liable for any action it takes or omits to take in good faith in reliance on such certificate or opinion.
(C) The Trustee may act through agents and attorneys, and shall not be responsible for the misconduct or negligence of any agent appointed by it with due care.
(D) The Trustee shall not be liable for any action it takes or omits to take in good faith which it reasonably believes to be authorized or within its rights or powers.
(E) The Trustee may consult with counsel reasonably acceptable to the Trustee, which may be counsel to the Company, and the advice or opinion of such counsel as to matters of law shall be full and complete authorization and protection from liability in respect of any action taken, omitted or suffered by it hereunder in good faith and in accordance with the advice or opinion of such counsel.
(F) The Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Indenture at the request, order or direction of any of the Holders pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture, unless such Holders shall have offered to the Trustee reasonable security or indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities which may be incurred therein or thereby.
(G) The Trustee shall not be deemed to have knowledge of any fact or matter (including, without limitation, a Default or Event of Default) unless such fact or matter is known to a Responsible Officer of the Trustee.
(H) Unless otherwise expressly provided herein or in the Securities of a Series or the related Board Resolution, supplemental indenture or Officers’ Certificate, the Trustee shall not have any responsibility with respect to reports, notices, certificates or other documents filed with it hereunder, except to make them available for inspection, at reasonable times, by Securityholders, it being understood that delivery of such reports, information and documents to the Trustee is for informational purposes only and the Trustee’s receipt of such shall not constitute constructive notice of any information contained therein or determinable from information contained therein, including the Company’s compliance with any of its covenants hereunder (except as set forth in Section 4.4).
7.3 INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS OF TRUSTEE.
The Trustee in its individual or any other capacity may become the owner or pledgee of Securities, and may make loans to, accept deposits from, perform services for or otherwise deal with the Company, or any Affiliate thereof, with the same rights it would have if it were not Trustee. Any Agent may do the same with like rights. The Trustee, however, shall be subject to Sections 7.10 and 7.11.
7.4 TRUSTEE’S DISCLAIMER.
The Trustee makes no representation as to the validity or adequacy of this Indenture or the Securities (except that the Trustee represents that it is duly authorized to execute and deliver this Indenture and authenticate the Securities and perform its obligations hereunder), and the Trustee shall not be accountable for the Company’s use of the proceeds from the sale of Securities or any money paid to the Company pursuant to the terms of this Indenture, and the Trustee shall not be responsible for any statement in the Securities other than its certificates of authentication.
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7.5 NOTICE OF DEFAULT.
If a Default or an Event of Default occurs and is continuing with respect to the Securities of any Series, and if it is known to the Trustee, the Trustee shall mail to each Securityholder of the Securities of that Series notice of the Default or the Event of Default, as the case may be, within 90 days after it occurs or, if later, after a Responsible Officer of the Trustee has knowledge of such Default or Event of Default (except if such Default or Event of Default has been validly cured or waived before the giving of such notice). Except in the case of a Default or an Event of Default in payment of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, any Security of any Series, the Trustee may withhold the notice if and so long as the Board of Directors of the Trustee, the executive committee or any trust committee of such board and/or its Responsible Officers in good faith determine(s) that withholding the notice is in the interests of the Securityholders of that Series.
7.6 REPORTS BY TRUSTEE TO HOLDERS.
If and to the extent required by the TIA, within 60 days after April 1 of each year, commencing the April 1 following the date of this Indenture, the Trustee shall mail to each Securityholder a brief report dated as of such April 1 that complies with TIA Section 313(a). The Trustee also shall comply with TIA Sections 313(b) and 313(c).
A copy of each report at the time of its mailing to Securityholders shall be filed with the SEC and any stock exchange on which the Securities of that Series are listed. The Company shall promptly notify the Trustee when the Securities of any Series are listed on any stock exchange or any delisting thereof, and the Trustee shall comply with TIA Section 313(d).
7.7 COMPENSATION AND INDEMNITY.
The Company shall pay to the Trustee from time to time reasonable compensation for its services. The Trustee’s compensation shall not be limited by any provision of law on compensation of a trustee of an express trust. The Company shall reimburse the Trustee within 45 days after receipt of request for all reasonable out-of-pocket disbursements and expenses incurred or made by it in connection with its duties under this Indenture, including the reasonable compensation, disbursements and expenses of the Trustee’s agents and counsel.
The Company shall indemnify the Trustee for, and hold it harmless against, any and all loss or liability incurred by it in connection with the acceptance or performance of its duties under this Indenture including the reasonable costs and expenses of defending itself against any claim or liability in connection with the exercise or performance of any of its powers or duties hereunder. The Trustee shall notify the Company promptly of any claim asserted against the Trustee for which it may seek indemnity.
The failure by the Trustee to so notify the Company shall not however relieve the Company of its obligations. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company need not reimburse the Trustee for any expense or indemnify it against any loss or liability incurred by the Trustee through its negligence or bad faith. To secure the payment obligations of the Company in this Section 7.7, the Trustee shall have a lien prior to the Securities of any Series on all money or property held or collected by the Trustee except such money or property held in trust to pay the principal of, interest and premium, if any, on particular Securities of that Series.
When the Trustee incurs expenses or renders services after an Event of Default specified in Section 6.1(4) or (5) occurs, the expenses and the compensation for the services are intended to constitute expenses of administration under any Bankruptcy Law.
For purposes of this Section 7.7, the term “Trustee” shall include any trustee appointed pursuant to this Article 7.
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7.8 REPLACEMENT OF TRUSTEE.
The Trustee may resign with respect to the Securities of one or more Series by so notifying the Company in writing at least 90 days in advance of such resignation.
The Holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of any Series may remove the Trustee with respect to that Series by notifying the removed Trustee in writing and may appoint a successor Trustee with respect to that Series with the consent of the Company, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. The Company may remove the Trustee with respect to that Series at its election if:
(1) the Trustee fails to comply with, or ceases to be eligible under, Section 7.10;
(2) the Trustee is adjudged a bankrupt or an insolvent, or an order for relief is entered with respect to the Trustee, under any Bankruptcy Law;
(3) a Custodian or other public officer takes charge of the Trustee or its property; or
(4) the Trustee otherwise becomes incapable of acting.
If the Trustee resigns or is removed, or if a vacancy exists in the office of Trustee, with respect to any Series of Securities for any reason, the Company shall promptly appoint, by Board Resolution, a successor Trustee.
If a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more Series does not take office within 60 days after the retiring Trustee resigns or is removed, the retiring Trustee, the Company or the Holders of at least 10% in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of the applicable Series may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Trustee.
If the Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more Series fails to comply with Section 7.10, any Securityholder of the applicable Series may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the removal of the Trustee and the appointment of a successor Trustee.
A successor Trustee shall deliver a written acceptance of its appointment to the retiring Trustee and to the Company. Immediately following such delivery, (i) the retiring Trustee with respect to one or more Series shall, subject to its rights under Section 7.7, transfer all property held by it as Trustee with respect to such Series to the successor Trustee, (ii) the resignation or removal of the retiring Trustee shall become effective and (iii) the successor Trustee with respect to such Series shall have all the rights, powers and duties of the Trustee under this Indenture. A successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more Series shall mail notice of its succession to each Securityholder of such Series.
7.9 SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE BY CONSOLIDATION, MERGER OR CONVERSION.
If the Trustee, or any Agent, consolidates with, merges or converts into, or transfers all or substantially all of its corporate trust assets to, another corporation, subject to Section 7.10, the successor corporation without any further act shall be the successor Trustee or Agent, as the case may be.
7.10 ELIGIBILITY; DISQUALIFICATION.
This Indenture shall always have a Trustee who satisfies the requirements of TIA Sections 310(a)(1), (2) and (5) in every respect. The Trustee (or in the case of a Trustee that is a Person included in a bank holding company system, the related bank holding company) shall have a combined capital and surplus of at least $100,000,000 as set forth in its most recent published annual report of condition. The Trustee shall comply with TIA Section 310(b), including the provision in Section 310(b)(1). In addition, if the Trustee is a Person included in a bank holding company system, the Trustee, independently of such bank holding company, shall meet the capital requirements of TIA Section 310(a)(2). If at any time the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section 7.10, it shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in this Article 7.
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7.11 PREFERENTIAL COLLECTION OF CLAIMS AGAINST COMPANY.
The Trustee shall comply with TIA Section 311(a), excluding any creditor relationship listed in TIA Section 311(b). A Trustee who has resigned or been removed shall be subject to TIA Section 311(a) to the extent indicated therein.
7.12 PAYING AGENTS.
The Company shall cause each Paying Agent other than the Trustee to execute and deliver to it and the Trustee an instrument in which such agent shall agree with the Trustee, subject to the provisions of this Section 7.12:
(1) that it will hold all sums held by it as agent for the payment of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, the Securities (whether such sums have been paid to it by the Company or by any obligor on the Securities) in trust for the benefit of Holders of the Securities or the Trustee;
(2) that it will at any time during the continuance of any Event of Default, upon written request from the Trustee, deliver to the Trustee all sums so held in trust by it together with a full accounting thereof; and
(3) that it will give the Trustee written notice within three Business Days after any failure of the Company (or by any obligor on the Securities) in the payment of any installment of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, the Securities when the same shall be due and payable.
ARTICLE 8
AMENDMENTS, SUPPLEMENTS AND WAIVERS
8.1 WITHOUT CONSENT OF HOLDERS.
The Company, when authorized by a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may amend or supplement this Indenture or the Securities of one or more Series without notice to or consent of any Securityholder:
(1) to comply with Section 5.1;
(2) to provide for certificated Securities in addition to uncertificated Securities;
(3) to comply with any requirements of the SEC under the TIA;
(4) to cure any ambiguity, defect or inconsistency, or to make any other change herein or in the Securities that does not materially and adversely affect the rights of any Securityholder;
(5) to provide for the issuance of, and establish the form and terms and conditions of, Securities of any Series as permitted by this Indenture; or
(6) to evidence and provide for the acceptance of appointment hereunder by a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more Series, and to add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one Trustee.
The Trustee is hereby authorized to join with the Company in the execution of any supplemental indenture authorized or permitted by the terms of this Indenture, and to make any further appropriate agreements and stipulations which may be therein contained, but the Trustee shall not be obligated to enter into any such supplemental indenture which adversely affects its own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture.
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8.2 WITH CONSENT OF HOLDERS.
(1) The Company, when authorized by a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may amend or supplement this Indenture or the Securities of one or more Series with the written consent of the Holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Securities of such Series affected by such amendment or supplement without notice to any Securityholder. The Holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Securities of each such Series affected by such amendment or supplement may waive compliance by the Company in a particular instance with any provision of this Indenture or the Securities of such Series without notice to any Securityholder. Subject to Section 8.4, without the consent of each Securityholder affected, however, an amendment, supplement or waiver may not:
| (A) | reduce the amount of Securities whose Holders must consent to an amendment, supplement or waiver to this Indenture or the Securities; | |
| (B) | reduce the rate of, or change the time for payment of, interest on any Security; | |
| (C) | reduce the principal, or change the Stated Maturity, of any Security, or reduce the amount of, or postpone the date fixed for, the payment of any sinking fund or analogous obligation; | |
| (D) | make any Security payable in money other than that stated in the Security; | |
| (E) | change the amount or time of any payment required by the Securities, or reduce the premium payable upon any redemption of the Securities, or change the time before which no such redemption may be made; | |
| (F) | waive a Default or Event of Default in the payment of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, any Security (except a rescission of acceleration of the Securities of any Series by the Holders of at least a majority in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of such Series and a waiver of the payment default that resulted from such acceleration); | |
| (G) | waive a redemption payment with respect to any Security, or change any of the provisions with respect to the redemption of any Securities; | |
| (H) | make any changes in Section 6.6 or this Section 8.2, except to increase any percentage of Securities the Holders of which must consent to any matter; or | |
| (I) | take any other action otherwise prohibited by this Indenture to be taken without the consent of each Holder affected thereby. |
(2) Upon the request of the Company, accompanied by a Board Resolution authorizing the execution of any such supplemental indenture, and upon the receipt by the Trustee of evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee of the consent of the Securityholders as aforesaid and of the documents described in Section 8.6, the Trustee shall join with the Company in the execution of such supplemental indenture, unless such supplemental indenture affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture, in which case the Trustee may in its discretion, but shall not be obligated to, enter into such supplemental indenture.
(3) It shall not be necessary for the consent of the Holders under this section to approve the particular form of any proposed amendment, supplement or waiver, but it shall be sufficient if such consent approves the substance thereof.
After an amendment or supplement under this Section becomes effective, the Company shall mail to Securityholders a notice briefly describing the amendment or supplement. Any failure of the Company to mail any such notice, or any defect therein, shall not, however, in any way impair or affect the validity of any supplemental indenture.
8.3 COMPLIANCE WITH TRUST INDENTURE ACT.
Every amendment to, or supplement of, this Indenture or the Securities shall comply with the TIA as then in effect.
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8.4 REVOCATION AND EFFECT OF CONSENTS.
Until an amendment, supplement, waiver or other action becomes effective, a consent to it by a Holder of a Security is a continuing consent conclusive and binding upon such Holder and every subsequent Holder of the same Security or portion thereof, and of any Security issued upon the transfer thereof or in exchange therefor or in place thereof, even if notation of the consent is not made on any such Security. Any such Holder or subsequent Holder, however, may revoke the consent as to his Security or portion of a Security, if the Trustee receives the notice of revocation before the date the amendment, supplement, waiver or other action becomes effective.
The Company may, but shall not be obligated to, fix a record date for the purpose of determining the Holders entitled to consent to any amendment, supplement or waiver, which record date shall be at least 30 days prior to the first solicitation of such consent. If a record date is fixed, then, notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, those Persons who were Holders at such record date (or their duly designated proxies), and only such Persons, shall be entitled to consent to such amendment, supplement or waiver, or to revoke any consent previously given, whether or not such Persons continue to be Holders after such record date.
After an amendment, supplement, waiver or other action becomes effective, it shall bind every Securityholder, unless it makes a change described in any of clauses (1) through (9) of Section 8.2. In that case, the amendment, supplement, waiver or other action shall bind each Holder of a Security who has consented to it and every subsequent Holder of a Security or portion of a Security that evidences the same debt as the consenting Holder’s Security; PROVIDED, that any such waiver shall not impair or affect the right of any Holder to receive payment of the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, a Security, on or after the respective due dates expressed in such Security, or to bring suit for the enforcement of any such payment on or after such respective dates without the consent of such Holder.
8.5 NOTATION ON OR EXCHANGE OF SECURITIES.
If an amendment, supplement or waiver changes the terms of a Security of any Series, the Trustee may request the Holder of such Security to deliver it to the Trustee. In such case, the Trustee shall place an appropriate notation on such Security about the changed terms and return it to the Holder. Alternatively, the Company, in exchange for such Security, may issue, and the Trustee shall authenticate, a new security that reflects the changed terms. Failure to make the appropriate notation or issue a new Security shall not affect the validity and effect of such amendment, supplement or waiver.
8.6 TRUSTEE TO SIGN AMENDMENTS, ETC.
The Trustee shall sign any amendment, supplement or waiver authorized pursuant to this Article 8 if the amendment, supplement or waiver does not adversely affect the rights, duties, liabilities or immunities of the Trustee. If it does, the Trustee may, but need not, sign it. In signing or refusing to sign such amendment, supplement or waiver the Trustee shall be entitled to receive and, subject to Section 7.1, shall be fully protected in relying upon an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel stating that such amendment, supplement or waiver is authorized or permitted by this Indenture. The Company may not sign an amendment or supplement until the Board of Directors of the Company approves it.
ARTICLE 9
DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; DEFEASANCE
9.1 DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE.
The Company may terminate its obligations under the Securities of any Series and this Indenture with respect to such Series, except the obligations referred to in the last paragraph of this Section 9.1, if there shall have been canceled by the Trustee, or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation, all Securities of such Series theretofore authenticated and delivered (other than any Securities of such Series that are asserted to have been destroyed, lost or stolen and that shall have been replaced as provided in Section 2.8) and the Company has paid all sums payable by it hereunder or deposited all required sums with the Trustee.
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After such delivery the Trustee upon request shall acknowledge in a writing prepared by or on behalf of the Company the discharge of the Company’s obligations under the Securities of such Series and this Indenture, except for those surviving obligations specified below.
Notwithstanding the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture, the obligations of the Company in Sections 7.7, 9.5 and 9.6 shall survive.
9.2 LEGAL DEFEASANCE.
The Company may at its option, by Board Resolution, be discharged from its obligations with respect to the Securities of any Series on the date upon which the conditions set forth in Section 9.4 below are satisfied (hereinafter, “Legal Defeasance”). For this purpose, such Legal Defeasance means that the Company shall be deemed to have paid and discharged the entire indebtedness represented by the Securities of such Series and to have satisfied all its other obligations under such Securities and this Indenture insofar as such Securities are concerned (and the Trustee, at the expense of the Company, shall, subject to Section 9.6, execute proper instruments acknowledging the same, as are delivered to it by the Company), except for the following, which shall survive until otherwise terminated or discharged hereunder: (A) the rights of Holders of outstanding Securities of such Series to receive solely from the trust funds described in Section 9.4 and as more fully set forth in such section, payments in respect of the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities of such Series when such payments are due, (B) the Company’s obligations with respect to the Securities of such Series under Sections 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8 and 2.9, (C) the rights, powers, trusts, duties and immunities of the Trustee hereunder (including claims of, or payments to, the Trustee under or pursuant to Section 7.7) and (D) this Article 9. Subject to compliance with this Article 9, the Company may exercise its option under this Section 9.2 with respect to the Securities of any Series notwithstanding the prior exercise of its option under Section 9.3 below with respect to the Securities of such Series.
9.3 COVENANT DEFEASANCE.
At the option of the Company, pursuant to a Board Resolution, the Company shall be released from its obligations with respect to the outstanding Securities of any Series under Sections 4.2 through 4.5, inclusive, and Section 5.1, with respect to the outstanding Securities of such Series, on and after the date the conditions set forth in Section 9.4 are satisfied (hereinafter, “Covenant Defeasance”). For this purpose, such Covenant Defeasance means that the Company may omit to comply with and shall have no liability in respect of any term, condition or limitation set forth in any such specified section or portion thereof, whether directly or indirectly by reason of any reference elsewhere herein to any such specified Section or portion thereof or by reason of any reference in any such specified section or portion thereof to any other provision herein or in any other document, but the remainder of this Indenture and the Securities of any Series shall be unaffected thereby.
9.4 CONDITIONS TO LEGAL DEFEASANCE OR COVENANT DEFEASANCE.
The following shall be the conditions to application of Section 9.2 or Section 9.3 to the outstanding Securities of a Series:
(1) the Company shall irrevocably have deposited or caused to be deposited with the Trustee (or another trustee satisfying the requirements of Section 7.10 who shall agree to comply with the provisions of this Article 9 applicable to it) as funds in trust for the purpose of making the following payments, specifically pledged as security for, and dedicated solely to, the benefit of the Holders of the Securities, (A) money in an amount, or (B) U.S. Government Obligations or Foreign Government Obligations which through the scheduled payment of principal and interest in respect thereof in accordance with their terms will provide, not later than the due date of any payment, money in an amount, or (C) a combination thereof, sufficient, in the opinion of a nationally recognized firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, to pay and discharge, and which shall be applied by the Trustee (or other qualifying trustee) to pay and discharge, the principal of, and accrued interest and premium, if any, on, the outstanding Securities of such Series at the Stated Maturity of such principal, interest or premium, if any, or on dates for payment and redemption of such principal, interest and premium, if any, selected in accordance with the terms of this Indenture and of the Securities of such Series;
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(2) no Event of Default or Default with respect to the Securities of such Series shall have occurred and be continuing on the date of such deposit, or shall have occurred and be continuing at any time during the period ending on the 91st day after the date of such deposit or, if longer, ending on the day following the expiration of the longest preference period under any Bankruptcy Law applicable to the Company in respect of such deposit as specified in the Opinion of Counsel identified in paragraph (8) below (it being understood that this condition shall not be deemed satisfied until the expiration of such period);
(3) such Legal Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance shall not cause the Trustee to have a conflicting interest for purposes of the TIA with respect to any securities of the Company;
(4) such Legal Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance shall not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute default under, any other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which it is bound;
(5) the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel stating that, as a result of such Legal Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance, neither the trust nor the Trustee will be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended;
(6) in the case of an election under Section 9.2, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel stating that (i) the Company has received from, or there has been published by, the Internal Revenue Service a ruling to the effect that or (ii) there has been a change in any applicable Federal income tax law with the effect that, and such opinion shall confirm that, the Holders of the outstanding Securities of such Series or Persons in their positions will not recognize income, gain or loss for Federal income tax purposes solely as a result of such Legal Defeasance and will be subject to Federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner, including as a result of prepayment, and at the same times as would have been the case if such Legal Defeasance had not occurred;
(7) in the case of an election under Section 9.3, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel to the effect that the Holders of the outstanding Securities of such Series will not recognize income, gain or loss for Federal income tax purposes as a result of such Covenant Defeasance, and will be subject to Federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such Covenant Defeasance had not occurred;
(8) the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent provided for in this Article 9 relating to either the Legal Defeasance under Section 9.2 or the Covenant Defeasance under Section 9.3 (as the case may be) have been complied with;
(9) the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate stating that the deposit under clause (1) was not made by the Company with the intent of defeating, hindering, delaying or defrauding any creditors of the Company or others; and
(10) the Company shall have paid, or duly provided for payment under terms mutually satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee, all amounts then due to the Trustee pursuant to Section 7.7.
9.5 DEPOSITED MONEY AND U.S. AND FOREIGN GOVERNMENT OBLIGATIONS TO BE HELD IN TRUST; OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.
All money, U.S. Government Obligations and Foreign Government Obligations (including the proceeds thereof) deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 9.4 in respect of the outstanding Securities shall be held in trust and applied by the Trustee, in accordance with the provisions of such Securities and this Indenture, to the payment, either directly or through any Paying Agent as the Trustee may determine, to the Holders of such Securities, of all sums due and to become due thereon in respect of principal, accrued interest and premium, if any, but such money need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law.
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The Company shall pay and indemnify the Trustee against any tax, fee or other charge imposed on or assessed against the U.S. Government Obligations and Foreign Government Obligations deposited pursuant to Section 9.4 or the principal, interest and premium, if any, received in respect thereof other than any such tax, fee or other charge which by law is for the account of the Holders of the outstanding Securities.
Anything in this Article 9 to the contrary notwithstanding, but subject to payment of any of its outstanding fees and expenses, the Trustee shall deliver or pay to the Company from time to time upon Company Request any money, U.S. Government Obligations or Foreign Government Obligations held by the Trustee as provided in Section 9.4 which, in the opinion of a nationally-recognized firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, are in excess of the amount thereof which would then be required to be deposited to effect an equivalent Legal Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance.
9.6 REINSTATEMENT.
If the Trustee or Paying Agent is unable to apply any money, U.S. Government Obligations or Foreign Government Obligations in accordance with Section 9.1, 9.2, 9.3 or 9.4 by reason of any legal proceeding or by reason of any order or judgment of any court or governmental authority enjoining, restraining or otherwise prohibiting such application, the Company’s obligations under this Indenture and the Securities shall be revived and reinstated as though no deposit had occurred pursuant to this Article 9 until such time as the Trustee or Paying Agent is permitted to apply all such money, U.S. Government Obligations or Foreign Government Obligations, as the case may be, in accordance with Section 9.1, 9.2, 9.3 or 9.4; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that if the Company has made any payment of principal of, or accrued interest or premium, if any, on, any Securities because of the reinstatement of its obligations, the Company shall be subrogated to the rights of the Holders of such Securities to receive such payment from the money, U.S. Government Obligations or Foreign Government Obligations held by the Trustee or Paying Agent.
9.7 MONEYS HELD BY PAYING AGENT.
In connection with the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture, all moneys then held by any Paying Agent under the provisions of this Indenture shall, upon demand of the Company, be paid to the Trustee, or, if sufficient moneys have been deposited pursuant to Section 9.1, to the Company, and thereupon such Paying Agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such moneys.
9.8 MONEYS HELD BY TRUSTEE.
Any moneys deposited with the Trustee or any Paying Agent or then held by the Company in trust for the payment of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, any Security that are not applied but remain unclaimed by the Holder of such Security for two years after the date upon which the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on, such Security shall have respectively become due and payable shall be repaid to the Company upon Company Request, or if such moneys are then held by the Company in trust, such moneys shall be released from such trust; and the Holder of such Security entitled to receive such payment shall thereafter, as an unsecured general creditor, look only to the Company for the payment thereof, and all liability of the Trustee or such Paying Agent with respect to such trust money shall thereupon cease; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that the Trustee or any such Paying Agent, before being required to make any such repayment, may, at the expense of the Company, either mail to each Securityholder affected, at the address shown in the register of the Securities maintained by the Registrar, or cause to be published once a week for two successive weeks, in a newspaper published in the English language, customarily published each Business Day and of general circulation in the City of New York, New York, a notice that such money remains unclaimed and that, after a date specified therein, which shall not be less than 30 days from the date of such mailing or publication, any unclaimed balance of such moneys then remaining will be repaid to the Company. After payment to the Company or the release of any money held in trust by the Company, Securityholders entitled to the money must look only to the Company for payment as general creditors, unless applicable abandoned property law designates another Person.
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ARTICLE 10
MISCELLANEOUS
10.1 TRUST INDENTURE ACT CONTROLS.
If any provision of this Indenture limits, qualifies or conflicts with another provision which is required to be included in this Indenture by the TIA, the required provision shall control. If any provision of this Indenture modifies or excludes any provision of the TIA which may be so modified or excluded, the latter provision shall be deemed to apply to this Indenture as so modified or to be excluded, as the case may be.
10.2 NOTICES.
Any notice or communication shall be given in writing and delivered in Person, sent by facsimile (and receipt confirmed by telephone or electronic transmission report), delivered by commercial courier service or mailed by first-class mail, postage prepaid, addressed as follows:
If to the Company:
TRON INC.
941 W. Morse Blvd. Suite 100
Winter Park, FL 32789 Attention:
Fax: [ ]
Copy to:
If to the Trustee:
The Company or the Trustee by written notice to the other may designate additional or different addresses for subsequent notices or communications. Any notice or communication to the Company or the Trustee shall be deemed to have been given or made as of the date so delivered if personally delivered; on the next business day if mailed via an overnight courier, when receipt is confirmed by telephone or electronic transmission report if sent by facsimile; and three Business Days after mailing if sent by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid (except that a notice of change of address shall not be deemed to have been given until actually received by the addressee).
Any notice or communication mailed to a Securityholder shall be mailed to such Securityholder by first-class mail, postage prepaid, at such Securityholder’s address shown on the register kept by the Registrar.
Failure to mail, or any defect in, a notice or communication to a Securityholder shall not affect its sufficiency with respect to other Securityholders. If a notice or communication to a Securityholder is mailed in the manner provided above, it shall be deemed duly given, three Business Days after such mailing, whether or not the addressee receives it.
In case by reason of the suspension of regular mail service, or by reason of any other cause, it shall be impossible to mail any notice as required by this Indenture, then such method of notification as shall be made with the approval of the Trustee shall constitute a sufficient mailing of such notice.
In the case of Global Securities, notices or communications to be given to Securityholders shall be given to the Depository, in accordance with its applicable policies as in effect from time to time.
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In addition to the manner provided for in the foregoing provisions, notices or communications to Securityholders shall be given by the Company by release made to Reuters Economic Services and Bloomberg Business News.
10.3 COMMUNICATIONS BY HOLDERS WITH OTHER HOLDERS.
Securityholders of any Series may communicate pursuant to TIA Section 312(b) with other Securityholders of that Series or any other Series with respect to their rights under this Indenture or the Securities of that Series or any other Series. The Company, the Trustee, the Registrar and any other Person shall have the protection of TIA Section 312(c).
10.4 CERTIFICATE AND OPINION AS TO CONDITIONS PRECEDENT.
Upon any request or application by the Company to the Trustee to take any action under this Indenture, the Company shall furnish to the Trustee:
(1) an Officers’ Certificate (which shall include the statements set forth in Section 10.5 below) stating that, in the opinion of the signers, all conditions precedent, if any, provided for in this Indenture relating to the proposed action have been complied with; and
(2) an Opinion of Counsel (which shall include the statements set forth in Section 10.5 below) stating that, in the opinion of such counsel, all such conditions precedent have been complied with.
10.5 STATEMENT REQUIRED IN CERTIFICATE AND OPINION.
Each certificate and opinion with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Indenture (other than pursuant to Section 4.4) shall include:
(1) a statement that the Person making such certificate or opinion has read such covenant or condition;
(2) a brief statement as to the nature and scope of the examination or investigation upon which the statements or opinions contained in such certificate or opinion are based;
(3) a statement that, in the opinion of such Person, it or he has made such examination or investigation as is necessary to enable it or him to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such covenant or condition has been complied with; and
(4) a statement as to whether or not, in the opinion of such Person, such covenant or condition has been complied with.
10.6 RULES BY TRUSTEE AND AGENTS.
The Trustee may make reasonable rules for action by or at meetings of Securityholders. The Registrar and Paying Agent may make reasonable rules for their functions.
10.7 BUSINESS DAYS; LEGAL HOLIDAYS; PLACE OF PAYMENT.
A “Business Day” is a day that is not a Legal Holiday. A “Legal Holiday” is a Saturday, a Sunday, a federally-recognized holiday or a day on which banking institutions are not authorized or required by law, regulation or executive order to be open in the State of New York.
If a payment date is a Legal Holiday at a Place of Payment, payment may be made at that place on the next succeeding day that is not a Legal Holiday, and no interest shall accrue for the intervening period. “Place of Payment” means the place or places where the principal of, and interest and premium, if any, on, the Securities of a Series are payable as specified as contemplated by Section 2.2. If the regular record date is a Legal Holiday, the record date shall not be affected.
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10.8 GOVERNING LAW.
THIS INDENTURE AND THE SECURITIES SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, AS APPLIED TO CONTRACTS MADE AND PERFORMED WITHIN THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT REGARD TO PRINCIPLES OF CONFLICTS OF LAW.
10.9 NO ADVERSE INTERPRETATION OF OTHER AGREEMENTS.
This Indenture may not be used to interpret another indenture, loan, security or debt agreement of the Company or any Subsidiary thereof. No such indenture, loan, security or debt agreement may be used to interpret this Indenture.
10.10 NO RECOURSE AGAINST OTHERS.
A director, officer, employee, stockholder or incorporator, as such, of the Company shall not have any liability for any obligations of the Company under the Securities or the Indenture. Each Securityholder by accepting a Security waives and releases all such liability. Such waiver and release are part of the consideration for the issuance of the Securities.
10.11 SUCCESSORS.
All covenants and agreements of the Company in this Indenture and the Securities shall bind the Company’s successors and assigns, whether so expressed or not. All agreements of the Trustee, any additional trustee and any Paying Agents in this Indenture shall bind their respective successors and assigns.
10.12 MULTIPLE COUNTERPARTS.
The parties may sign multiple counterparts of this Indenture. Each signed counterpart shall be deemed an original, but all of them together represent one and the same agreement.
10.13 TABLE OF CONTENTS, HEADINGS, ETC.
been inserted for convenience of reference only, are not to be considered a part hereof, and shall in no way modify or restrict any of the terms or provisions hereof.
10.14 SEVERABILITY.
Each provision of this Indenture shall be considered separable, and if for any reason any provision which is not essential to the effectuation of the basic purpose of this Indenture or the Securities shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby, and a Holder shall have no claim therefor against any party hereto.
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10.15 SECURITIES IN A FOREIGN CURRENCY OR IN EUROS.
Unless otherwise specified in a Board Resolution, a supplemental indenture hereto or an Officers’ Certificate delivered pursuant to Section 2.2 with respect to a particular Series of Securities, whenever for purposes of this Indenture any action may be taken by the Holders of a specified percentage in aggregate principal amount of Securities of all Series or all Series affected by a particular action at the time outstanding and, at such time, there are outstanding Securities of any Series which are denominated in a coin or currency other than Dollars (including Euros), then the principal amount of Securities of such Series which shall be deemed to be outstanding for the purpose of taking such action shall be that amount of Dollars that could be obtained for such amount at the Market Exchange Rate at such time. For purposes of this Section 10.15, “Market Exchange Rate” shall mean the noon Dollar buying rate in New York City for cable transfers of that currency as published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, in the case of Euros, Market Exchange Rate shall mean the rate of exchange determined by the Commission of the European Union (or any successor thereto) as published in the Official Journal of the European Union (such publication or any successor publication, the “Journal”). If such Market Exchange Rate is not available for any reason with respect to such currency, the Trustee shall use, in its sole discretion and without liability on its part, such quotation of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York or, in the case of Euros, the rate of exchange as published in the Journal, as of the most recent available date, or quotations or, in the case of Euros, rates of exchange from one or more major banks in New York City or in the country of issue of the currency in question or, in the case of Euros, in Luxembourg or such other quotations or, in the case of Euros, rates of exchange as the Trustee, upon consultation with the Company, shall deem appropriate. The provisions of this paragraph shall apply in determining the equivalent principal amount in respect of Securities of a Series denominated in currency other than Dollars in connection with any action taken by Holders of Securities pursuant to the terms of this Indenture.
All decisions and determinations of the Trustee regarding the Market Exchange Rate or any alternative determination provided for in the preceding paragraph shall be in the Trustee’s sole discretion, and shall, in the absence of manifest error, be conclusive to the extent permitted by law for all purposes and irrevocably binding upon the Company and all Holders.
10.16 JUDGMENT CURRENCY.
The Company agrees, to the fullest extent that it may effectively do so under applicable law, that (a) if for the purpose of obtaining judgment in any court it is necessary to convert the sum due in respect of the principal of, or interest or premium, if any, or other amount on, the Securities of any Series (the “Required Currency”) into a currency in which a judgment will be rendered (the “Judgment Currency”), the rate of exchange used shall be the rate at which, in accordance with normal banking procedures, the Trustee could purchase in The City of New York the Required Currency with the Judgment Currency on the day on which final unappealable judgment is entered, unless such day is not a Business Day, in which instance, the rate of exchange used shall be the rate at which, in accordance with normal banking procedures, the Trustee could purchase in The City of New York the Required Currency with the Judgment Currency on the Business Day preceding the day on which final unappealable judgment is entered and (b) its obligations under this Indenture to make payments in the Required Currency (i) shall not be discharged or satisfied by any tender or any recovery pursuant to any judgment (whether or not entered in accordance with subsection (a)) in any currency other than the Required Currency, except to the extent that such tender or recovery shall result in the actual receipt, by the payee, of the full amount of the Required Currency expressed to be payable in respect of such payments, (ii) shall be enforceable as an alternative or additional cause of action for the purpose of recovering in the Required Currency the amount, if any, by which such actual receipt shall fall short of the full amount of the Required Currency so expressed to be payable and (iii) shall not be affected by judgment being obtained for any other sum due under this Indenture.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Indenture to be duly executed, and their respective corporate seals to be hereunto affixed and attested, all as of the day and year first above written.
| TRON INC. | ||
| By: | ||
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
| [Name of Trustee] | ||
| By: | ||
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
| By: | ||
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
Exhibit 10.1
