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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 8-K

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

 

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 5, 2023

 

SOCIETY PASS INCORPORATED

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Nevada   001-41037   83-1019155
(State or other jurisdiction
of incorporation)
  (Commission File Number)   (IRS Employer
Identification Number)

 

701 S. Carson Street, Suite 200 Carson City, Nevada 89701

(Address of principal executive offices)

 

(+65) 6518-9385

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 

N/A

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

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

 

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

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

 

Title of each class   Trading Symbol   Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share   SOPA   The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

 

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

 

Emerging growth company ☒

 

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

 

 

 

 


 

Item 1.01 Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement

 

On October 5, 2023, Society Pass Incorporated (the “Company”) entered into a structured financing agreement (the “Agreement”) with Strattners FZCO (“Strattners”). Pursuant to the Agreement, the Company shall have the right, but not the obligation, to offer and sell to Strattners up to $40,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share of the Company (the “Common Stock”), at the Company’s request any time during the commitment period commencing on October 5, 2023 (the “Effective Date”) and terminating on the first day of the month next following the 36-month anniversary of the Effective Date. Each issuance and sale by the Company to Strattners under the Agreement (an “Advance”) is subject to a maximum limit equal to $2,000,000. Further, subject to Instruction I.B.6 to Form S-3, which is referred to as the “baby shelf rules”, for so long as the Company’s public float is less than $75,000,000, it may not sell more than the equivalent of one-third of its public float during any twelve consecutive months pursuant to the baby shelf rules.

 

The shares will be issued and sold to Strattners at a per share price equal to 96% of the Market Price (as defined below). The Advances are subject to certain limitations, including that Strattners cannot purchase any shares that would result in it beneficially owning more than 4.99% of the Company’s outstanding Common Stock at the time of an Advance (the “Ownership Limitation”) or acquiring since the Effective Date under the Purchase Agreement more than 19.99% of the Company’s outstanding Common Stock, as of the date of the Purchase Agreement, unless shareholder approval was obtained allowing for issuances in excess of such amount (the “Exchange Cap”).

 

In connection with the execution of the Agreement, the Company agreed to issue to the Investor an aggregate of 500,000 shares of Common Stock as commitment fee (the “Commitment Shares”). The issuance of the Commitment Shares have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) in reliance on the exemption from registration provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. The Company will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission a prospectus supplement to the Company’s prospectus, dated April 20, 2023, filed as part of the Company’s effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3, File No. 333-271030, registering the shares of Common Stock that are to be offered and sold to Strattners pursuant to the Agreement.

 

The foregoing is a summary description of certain terms of the Agreement. For a full description of all terms, please refer to the copy of the Agreement that is filed herewith as Exhibit 10.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

Item 3.02 Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities.

 

The applicable information set forth in Item 1.01 of this Form 8-K is incorporated by reference in this Item 3.02.

 

Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangement of Certain Officers

 

On October 5, 2023, Raynauld Liang was appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Concurrent with his appointment, Mr. Liang resigned from his position as Chief Financial Officer of the Company simultaneously.

 

Mr. Liang began his career as a Finance Manager at IBM Global Services/IBM Asia Pacific Software Group based in Singapore. Mr. Liang then worked at a Singapore mainboard listed company Hyflux Limited as a finance manager from 2005 to 2007. Mr. Liang worked at a China based Singapore listed company Sino Environment Technology Group Limited as Chief Financial Officer from 2007 to 2010. Mr. Liang later joined Primeforth Capital Limited a Singapore-based boutique corporate advisory firm as an investment director to work on startup companies and pre-IPO fund raising activities from 2010 to 2012. He later founded Connex Capital Limited in 2012, a corporate advisory firm with a focus on advising companies with IPOs in Singapore and Hong Kong. He headed the investment function of a family office, L K Ang Corporate Pte Ltd from 2014 to 2019. Mr. Liang earned a Bachelor of Commerce from The University of Queensland in Australia majoring in accounting.

 

There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Liang and any other person pursuant to which Mr. Liang was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the Company. On October 5, 2023, the Company entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Liang (the “CEO Employment Agreement”), which provides that Mr. Liang’s employment will be five years after the date thereof. Under the CEO Employment Agreement, Mr. Liang will be entitled to an annual base salary of $600,000 and will be eligible to participate in the Company bonus plan. Mr. Liang will receive 250,000 incentive stock options as equity award.

 

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In conjunction with Mr. Liang’s resignation, Yee Siong Tan was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer of the Company. Mr. Liang’s appointment was concurrent with the resignation of Dennis Nguyen, on October 5, 2023, as a director of the Company, and as the Chairman and the Chief Executive Officer of the Company, and all the positions that he held in the Company and each subsidiary of the Company, effective immediately. Mr. Nguyen’s resignation did not result from any disagreement with the Company. Mr. Nguyen entered into a Transition, Release and Consulting Agreement with the Company that will require Mr. Nguyen to provide consulting services through December 31, 2025. The Company will not appoint a new director to replace Mr. Nguyen and the Company’s Board of Directors will remain at four members. Peter DiChiara, the Company’s Secretary, will serve as Chairman of Board meetings.

 

Mr. Tan, 40, has been the Company’s controller since November 2021, Mr. Tan engaged in financial operation management, mergers and acquisitions, financial planning and analysis, audit and regulatory compliance and legal functions for the company. Responsible for all SEC filing matters, Mr. Tan possesses more than 15 years of audit, internal control, tax , merger & acquisition and risk mitigation experience. Previously from 2014 to 2021, Mr. Tan was financial controller at ISOTeam Ltd, a construction engineering company and Finance manager at Hoe Leong Corporation Ltd, a shipping and heavy equipment supplier. Mr. Tan obtained a Bachelor of commerce, Tunku Adbul Rahman University in Malaysia and is also a Member of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants as well as the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the United Kingdom.

 

There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Tan and any other person pursuant to which Mr. Tan was appointed as Chief Financial Officer of the Company. There are no family relationships between Mr. Tan and any director or executive officer of the Company. There are no transactions since the beginning of the Company’s last fiscal year, or any currently proposed transaction, in which the Company is a participant, the amount involved exceeds $120,000, and in which Mr. Tan had, or will have, a direct or indirect material interest.

 

On October 5, 2023, the Company entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Tan (the “CFO Employment Agreement”), which provides that Mr. Tan’s employment will be five years after the date thereof. Under the CFO Employment Agreement, Mr. Tan will be entitled to an annual base salary of $150,000 and will be eligible to participate in the Company bonus plan. Mr. Tan will receive 50,000 incentive stock options as equity award.

 

The foregoing is a summary description of certain terms of the CEO Employment Agreement, the CFO Employment Agreement and the Transition, Release and Consulting Agreement. For a full description of all terms, please refer to the copy of the agreements that are filed herewith as Exhibits 10.2, 10.3, and 10.4 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

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Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d) Exhibits

 

The following documents are filed as exhibits to this report:

 

Exhibit
Number
  Description of Exhibit
10.1   Form of Structured Financing Agreement
10.2   Form of Employment Agreement by and between the Company and Raynauld Liang
10.3   Form of Employment Agreement by and between the Company and Yee Siong Tan
10.4   Form of Transition, Release and Consulting Agreement
104   Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

 

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SIGNATURES

 

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

 

  Society Pass Incorporated
   
  By: /s/ Raynauld Liang
  Name:  Raynauld Liang
  Title: Chief Executive Officer
     
Date: October 6, 2023    

 

 

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EX-10.1 2 ea186434ex10-1_society.htm FORM OF STRUCTURED FINANCING AGREEMENT

Exhibit 10.1

 

STRUCTURED EQUITY FINANCING AGREEMENT

 

THIS STRUCTURED EQUITY FINANCING AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) dated as of October 5, 2023 is made by and between Strattners FZCO, a financial institution (the “Investor”), and Society Pass Incorporated, a company incorporated under the laws of Nevada (the “Company”).

 

WHEREAS, the parties desire that, upon the terms and subject to the conditions contained herein, the Company shall have the right to issue and sell to the Investor, from time to time as provided herein, and the Investor shall purchase from the Company, up to $40 million of the Company’s ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Shares”); and

 

WHEREAS, the Common Shares are listed for trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “SOPA;” and

 

WHEREAS, the offer and sale of the Common Shares issuable hereunder shall be registered on the Company’s registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-271030 ) under Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder (the “Securities Act”).

 

NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

Article I. Certain Definitions

 

Section 1.01 “Additional Shares” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.01(d)(ii).

 

Section 1.02 “Adjusted Advance Amount” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.01(d)(i).

 

Section 1.03 “Advance” shall mean any issuance and sale of Advance Shares from the Company to the Investor pursuant to Article II hereof.

 

Section 1.04 “Advance Date” shall mean the 1st Trading Day after expiration of the applicable Pricing Period for each Advance.

 

Section 1.05 “Advance Notice” shall mean a written notice in the form of Exhibit A attached hereto to the Investor executed by an officer of the Company and setting forth the amount of an Advance that the Company desires to issue and sell to the Investor.

 

Section 1.06 “Advance Notice Date” shall mean each date the Company is deemed to have delivered (in accordance with Section 2.01(b) of this Agreement) to the Investor an Advance Notice to the Investor, subject to the terms of this Agreement.

 

Section 1.07 “Advance Shares” shall mean the Common Shares that the Company shall issue and sell to the Investor.

 

Section 1.08 “Affiliate” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 3.06.

 

Section 1.09 “Agreement” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.

 

Section 1.10 “Applicable Laws” shall mean all applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, orders, executive orders, directives, policies, guidelines and codes having the force of law, whether local, national, or international, as amended from time to time, including without limitation (i) all applicable laws that relate to money laundering, terrorist financing, financial record keeping and reporting, (ii) all applicable laws that relate to anti-bribery, anti-corruption, books and records and internal controls, including the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, and (iii) any Sanctions laws.

 

Section 1.11 “Base Prospectus” shall mean the Company’s prospectus dated April 20, 2023, accompanying the Registration Statement.

 

Section 1.12 “Black Out Period” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.02(a).

 

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Section 1.13 “Closing” shall have meaning set forth in Section 2.02.

 

Section 1.14 “Commitment Amount” shall mean $40,000,000 of Common Shares.

 

Section 1.15 “Commitment Shares” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 13.04.

 

Section 1.16 “Commitment Period” shall mean the period commencing on the date hereof and expiring upon the date of termination of this Agreement in accordance with Section 11.02.

 

Section 1.17 “Common Shares” shall have the meaning set forth in the recitals of this Agreement.

 

Section 1.18 “Company” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.

 

Section 1.19 “Company Indemnitees” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.02.

 

Section 1.20 “Condition Satisfaction Date” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 7.01.

 

Section 1.21 “Environmental Laws” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.13.

 

Section 1.22 “Exchange Act” shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

Section 1.23 “Excluded Day” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.01(d)(i).

 

Section 1.24 “Hazardous Materials” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.13.

 

Section 1.25 “Indemnified Liabilities” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.01.

 

Section 1.26 “Initial Disclosure” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.01(b).

 

Section 1.27 “Initial Registration Statement” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.01(a).

 

Section 1.28 “Investor” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.

 

Section 1.29 “Investor Indemnitees” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.01.

 

Section 1.30 “Market Price” shall mean the lowest daily VWAP of the Common Shares during the relevant Pricing Period, other than the daily VWAP on any Excluded Days.

 

Section 1.31 “Material Adverse Effect” shall mean any event, occurrence or condition that has had or would reasonably be expected to have (i) a material adverse effect on the legality, validity or enforceability of this Agreement or the transactions contemplated herein, (ii) a material adverse effect on the results of operations, assets, business or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or (iii) a material adverse effect on the Company’s ability to perform in any material respect on a timely basis its obligations under this Agreement.

 

Section 1.32 “Material Outside Event” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.08.

 

Section 1.33 “Maximum Advance Amount” in respect of each Advance Notice means $2,000,000.

 

Section 1.34 “Minimum Acceptable Price” shall mean the minimum price notified by the Company to the Investor in each Advance Notice, if applicable.

 

Section 1.35 “OFAC” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.30.

 

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Section 1.36 “Ownership Limitation” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.01(c)(i).

 

Section 1.37 “Person” shall mean an individual, a corporation, a partnership, a limited liability company, a trust or other entity or organization, including a government or political subdivision or an agency or instrumentality thereof.

 

Section 1.38 “Plan of Distribution” shall mean the section of a Registration Statement disclosing the plan of distribution of the Shares.

 

Section 1.39 “Pricing Period” shall mean the 3 consecutive Trading Days commencing on the Advance Notice Date.

 

Section 1.40 “Principal Market” shall mean the Nasdaq Capital Market; provided however, that in the event the Company’s Common Shares are ever listed or traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the NYSE American, or the Nasdaq Global Market then the “Principal Market” shall mean such other market or exchange on which the Company’s Common Shares are then listed or traded to the extent such other market or exchange is the principal trading market or exchange for the Common Shares.

 

Section 1.41 “Prospectus” means any prospectus (including, without limitation, all amendments and supplements thereto) used in connection with a Registration Statement.

 

Section 1.42 “Prospectus Supplement” shall mean any prospectus supplement to a Prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, including, without limitation, the Prospectus Supplement to be filed in accordance with Section 6.01 hereof.

 

Section 1.43 “Purchase Price” shall mean the price per Share obtained by multiplying the Market Price by 96%.

 

Section 1.44 “Registration Limitation” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.01(c)(ii).

 

Section 1.45 “Registration Statement” shall mean the Initial Registration Statement or another registration statement on a form promulgated by the SEC for which the Company then qualifies for the registration of the offer and sale of the Shares to be offered and sold by the Company to the Investor and the resale of such Shares by the Investor, as the same may be amended and supplemented from time to time and including any information deemed to be a part thereof pursuant to Rule 430B under the Securities Act and any successor registration statement filed by the Company with the SEC under the Securities Act on a form promulgated by the SEC for which the Company then qualifies and which form shall be available for the registration of the transactions contemplated hereunder.

 

Section 1.46 “Regulation D” shall mean the provisions of Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act.

 

Section 1.47 “Sanctions” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.30.

 

Section 1.48 “Sanctioned Countries” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.30.

 

Section 1.49 “SEC” shall mean the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

Section 1.50 “SEC Documents” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.05.

 

Section 1.51 “Securities Act” shall have the meaning set forth in the recitals of this Agreement.

 

Section 1.52 “Settlement Document” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.02(a).

 

Section 1.53 “Shares” shall mean the Commitment Shares and the Common Shares to be issued from time to time hereunder pursuant to Advances.

 

Section 1.54 “Subsidiaries” shall mean any Person in which the Company, directly or indirectly, (x) owns a majority of the outstanding capital stock or holds a majority of the equity or similar interest of such Person or (y) controls or operates all or substantially all of the business, operations or administration of such Person, and the foregoing are collectively referred to herein as “Subsidiaries.”

 

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Section 1.55 “Trading Day” shall mean any day during which the Principal Market shall be open for business.

 

Section 1.56 “Transaction Documents” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.02.

 

Section 1.57 “VWAP” means, for any Trading Day, the daily volume weighted average price of the Common Shares for such Trading Day on the Principal Market during regular trading hours as reported by Bloomberg L.P.

 

Article II. Advances

 

Section 2.01 Advances Mechanics. Upon the terms, and subject to the conditions of this Agreement, during the Commitment Period, the Company, at its sole and exclusive discretion, shall have the right, but not the obligation to issue and sell to the Investor, and the Investor shall purchase from the Company, Advance Shares by the delivery to the Investor of Advance Notices on the following terms:

 

(a) Advance Notice. At any time during the Commitment Period the Company may require the Investor to purchase Shares by delivering an Advance Notice to the Investor, subject to the conditions set forth in Section 7.01, and in accordance with the following provisions:

 

(i) The Company shall, in its sole discretion, select the amount of the Advance, not to exceed the Maximum Advance Amount, it desires to issue and sell to the Investor in each Advance Notice and the time it desires to deliver each Advance Notice.

 

(ii) There shall be no mandatory minimum Advances and no non-usages fee for not utilizing the Commitment Amount or any part thereof.

 

(b) Date of Delivery of Advance Notice. Advance Notices shall be delivered in accordance with the instructions set forth on the bottom of Exhibit A. An Advance Notice shall be deemed delivered on (i) the day it is received by the Investor if such notice is received by email prior on or before 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (or later if waived by the Investor in its sole discretion), or (ii) the immediately succeeding day if it is received by email after 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, in each case in accordance with the instructions set forth on the bottom of Exhibit A.

 

(c) Advance Limitations. Regardless of the amount of an Advance requested by the Company in the Advance Notice, the final number of Shares to be issued and sold pursuant to an Advance Notice shall be reduced in accordance with each of the following limitations:

 

(i) Ownership Limitation; Commitment Amount. In no event shall the number of Common Shares issuable to the Investor pursuant to an Advance cause the aggregate number of Common Shares beneficially owned (as calculated pursuant to Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act) by the Investor and its Affiliates (on an aggregated basis) to exceed 4.99% of the then outstanding Common Shares (the “Ownership Limitation”). Upon the written request of the Investor, the Company shall promptly (but no later than the next business day on which the transfer agent for the Common Shares is open for business) confirm orally or in writing to the Investor the number of Common Shares then outstanding. In connection with each Advance Notice delivered by the Company, any portion of the Advance that would (i) cause the Investor to exceed the Ownership Limitation or (ii) cause the aggregate number of Shares issued and sold to the Investor hereunder to exceed the Commitment Amount shall automatically be withdrawn with no further action required by the Company, and such Advance Notice shall be deemed automatically modified to reduce the amount of the Advance requested by an amount equal to such withdrawn portion; provided that in the event of any such automatic withdrawal and automatic modification, Investor will promptly notify the Company of such event.

 

(ii) Registration Limitation. In no event shall an Advance exceed the amount registered under the Registration Statement then in effect (the “Registration Limitation”), to the extent applicable. In connection with each Advance Notice, any portion of an Advance that would exceed the Registration Limitation shall automatically be withdrawn with no further action required by the Company and such Advance Notice shall be deemed automatically modified to reduce the aggregate amount of the requested Advance by an amount equal to such withdrawn portion in respect of each Advance Notice; provided that in the event of any such automatic withdrawal and automatic modification, Investor will promptly notify the Company of such event.

 

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(iii) Compliance with Rules of Principal Market. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the Company shall not effect any sales under this Agreement and the Investor shall not have the obligation to purchase Common Shares under this Agreement to the extent (but only to the extent) that after giving effect to such purchase and sale the aggregate number of Common Shares issued under this Agreement would exceed 19.99% of the aggregate amount of Common Shares issued and outstanding as of the date of this Agreement, calculated in accordance with the rules of the Principal Market, which number shall be reduced, on a share-for-share basis, by the number of Common Shares issued or issuable pursuant to any transaction or series of transactions that may be aggregated with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement under the applicable rules of the Principal Market (such maximum number of shares, the “Exchange Cap”) provided that, the Exchange Cap will not apply if the Company’s stockholders have approved issuances in excess of the Exchange Cap in accordance with the rules of the Principal Market. In connection with each Advance Notice, any portion of an Advance that would exceed the Exchange Cap shall automatically be withdrawn with no further action required by the Company and such Advance Notice shall be deemed automatically modified to reduce the aggregate amount of the requested Advance by an amount equal to such withdrawn portion in respect of each Advance Notice.

 

(d) Minimum Acceptable Price.

 

(i) With respect to each Advance Notice, the Company may notify the Investor of the Minimum Acceptable Price with respect to such Advance by indicating a Minimum Acceptable Price on such Advance Notice. If no Minimum Acceptable Price is specified in an Advance Notice, then no Minimum Acceptable Price shall be in effect in connection with such Advance. Each Trading Day during a Pricing Period for which (A) with respect to each Advance Notice with a Minimum Acceptable Price, the VWAP of the Common Shares is below the Minimum Acceptable Price in effect with respect to such Advance Notice, or (B) there is no VWAP (each such day, an “Excluded Day”), shall result in an automatic reduction to the amount of the Advance set forth in such Advance Notice by 35% (the resulting amount of each Advance being the “Adjusted Advance Amount”), and each Excluded Day shall be excluded from the Pricing Period for purposes of determining the Market.

 

(ii) The total Shares in respect of each Advance (after reductions have been made to arrive at the Adjusted Advance Amount) shall be increased at the option of the Investor by such number of Common Shares (the “Additional Shares”) equal to the number of Common Shares sold by the Investor on such Excluded Day, if any, and the price paid per share for each Additional Share shall be equal to the Minimum Acceptable Price in effect with respect to such Advance Notice (without any further discount), provided that this increase shall not cause the total Advance Shares to exceed the amount set forth in the original Advance Notice or any limitations set forth in Section 2.01(c).

 

(e) Unconditional Contract. Notwithstanding any other provision in this Agreement, the Company and the Investor acknowledge and agree that upon the Investor’s receipt of a valid Advance Notice the parties shall be deemed to have entered into an unconditional contract binding on both parties for the purchase and sale of Shares pursuant to such Advance Notice in accordance with the terms of this Agreement and (i) subject to Applicable Law and (ii) subject to Section 3.08 (Trading Activities), the Investor may sell Common Shares during the Pricing Period.

 

Section 2.02 Closings. The closing of each Advance and each sale and purchase of Advance Shares (each, a “Closing”) shall take place as soon as practicable on or after each Advance Date in accordance with the procedures set forth below. The parties acknowledge that the Purchase Price is not known at the time the Advance Notice is delivered (at which time the Investor is irrevocably bound) but shall be determined on each Closing based on the daily prices of the Common Shares that are the inputs to the determination of the Purchase Price as set forth further below. In connection with each Closing, the Company and the Investor shall fulfill each of its obligations as set forth below:

 

(a) On each Advance Date, the Investor shall deliver to the Company a written document, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit B (each a “Settlement Document”), setting forth the final number of Shares to be purchased by the Investor (taking into account any adjustments pursuant to Section 2.01), the Market Price, the Purchase Price, the aggregate proceeds to be paid by the Investor to the Company, and a report by Bloomberg, L.P. indicating the VWAP for each of the Trading Days during the Pricing Period (or, if not reported on Bloomberg, L.P., another reporting service reasonably agreed to by the parties), in each case in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement.

 

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(b) Promptly after receipt of the Settlement Document with respect to each Advance (and, in any event, not later than one Trading Day after such receipt), the Company will, or will cause its transfer agent to, electronically transfer such number of Shares to be purchased by the Investor (as set forth in the Settlement Document) by crediting the Investor’s account or its designee’s account at the Depository Trust Company through its Deposit Withdrawal at Custodian System or by such other means of delivery as may be mutually agreed upon by the parties hereto, and transmit notification to the Investor that such share transfer has been requested. Promptly upon receipt of such notification, the Investor shall pay to the Company the aggregate purchase price of the Shares (as set forth in the Closing Statement) in cash in immediately available funds to an account designated by the Company in writing and transmit notification to the Company that such funds transfer has been requested. No fractional shares shall be issued, and any fractional amounts shall be rounded to the next higher whole number of shares. To facilitate the transfer of the Common Shares by the Investor, the Common Shares will not bear any restrictive legends so long as there is an effective Registration Statement covering such Common Shares (it being understood and agreed by the Investor that notwithstanding the lack of restrictive legends, the Investor may only sell such Common Shares pursuant to the Plan of Distribution set forth in the prospectus included in the Registration Statement and otherwise in compliance with the requirements of the Securities Act (including any applicable prospectus delivery requirements) or pursuant to an available exemption).

 

(c) On or prior to the Advance Date, each of the Company and the Investor shall deliver to the other all documents, instruments and writings expressly required to be delivered by either of them pursuant to this Agreement in order to implement and effect the transactions contemplated herein.

 

(d) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, if on any day during the Pricing Period (i) the Company notifies Investor that a Material Outside Event has occurred, or (ii) the Company notifies the Investor of a Black Out Period, the parties agree that the pending Advance shall end and the final number of Shares to be purchased by the Investor at the Closing for such Advance shall be equal to the number of Common Shares sold by the Investor during the applicable Pricing Period prior to the notification from the Company of a Material Outside Event or Black Out Period.

 

Section 2.03 Hardship.

 

(a) In the event the Investor sells Common Shares of the Company after receipt of an Advance Notice and the Company fails to perform its obligations as mandated in Section 2.02, the Company agrees that in addition to and in no way limiting the rights and obligations set forth in Article V hereto and in addition to any other remedy to which the Investor is entitled at law or in equity, including, without limitation, specific performance, it will hold the Investor harmless against any loss, claim, damage, or expense (including reasonable legal fees and expenses), as incurred, arising out of or in connection with such default by the Company and acknowledges that irreparable damage may occur in the event of any such default. It is accordingly agreed that the Investor shall be entitled to an injunction or injunctions to prevent such breaches of this Agreement and to specifically enforce (subject to Applicable Laws and other rules of the SEC and of the Principal Market), without the posting of a bond or other security, the terms and provisions of this Agreement.

 

Article III. Representations and Warranties of Investor

 

The Investor represents and warrants to the Company, as of the date hereof, the Pre-Advance Date, each Advance Notice Date and each Advance Date that:

 

Section 3.01 Organization and Authorization. The Investor is an entity duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the Cayman Islands and has all requisite power and authority to execute, deliver and perform its obligations under the Transaction Documents to which it is a party, including all transactions contemplated hereby and thereby. The decision to invest and the execution and delivery of the Transaction Documents to which it is a party by the Investor, the performance by the Investor of its obligations hereunder and thereunder and the consummation by the Investor of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby have been duly authorized and require no other proceedings on the part of the Investor. The undersigned has the right, power and authority to execute and deliver the Transaction Documents to which it is a party and all other instruments on behalf of the Investor or its shareholders. This Agreement and the other Transaction Documents to which the Investor is a party have been duly executed and delivered by the Investor and, assuming the execution and delivery hereof and acceptance thereof by the Company, will constitute the legal, valid and binding obligations of the Investor, enforceable against the Investor in accordance with its terms.

 

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Section 3.02 Evaluation of Risks. The Investor has such knowledge and experience in financial, tax and business matters as to be capable of evaluating the merits and risks of, and bearing the economic risks entailed by, an investment in the Common Shares of the Company and of protecting its interests in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby. The Investor acknowledges and agrees that its investment in the Company involves a high degree of risk, and that the Investor may lose all or a part of its investment.

 

Section 3.03 No Legal, Investment or Tax Advice from the Company. The Investor acknowledges that it had the opportunity to review the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents with its own legal counsel and investment and tax advisors. The Investor is relying solely on such counsel and advisors and not on any statements or representations of the Company or any of the Company’s representatives or agents for legal, tax, investment or other advice with respect to the Investor’s acquisition of Common Shares hereunder, the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or the laws of any jurisdiction, and the Investor acknowledges that the Investor may lose all or a part of its investment.

 

Section 3.04 Investment Purpose. The Investor acknowledges that it may be disclosed as an “underwriter” and a “selling stockholder” in each Registration Statement and in any prospectus contained therein.

 

Section 3.05 Accredited Investor. The Investor is an “Accredited Investor” as that term is defined in Rule 501(a)(3) of Regulation D.

 

Section 3.06 Information. The Investor and its advisors (and its counsel), if any, have been furnished with all materials relating to the business, finances and operations of the Company and information the Investor deemed material to making an informed investment decision. The Investor and its advisors (and its counsel), if any, have been afforded the opportunity to ask questions of the Company and its management and have received answers to such questions. Neither such inquiries nor any other due diligence investigations conducted by such Investor or its advisors (and its counsel), if any, or its representatives shall modify, amend or affect the Investor’s right to rely on the Company’s representations and warranties contained in this Agreement. The Investor acknowledges and agrees that the Company has not made to the Investor, and the Investor acknowledges and agrees it has not relied upon, any representations and warranties of the Company, its employees or any third party other than the representations and warranties of the Company contained in this Agreement. The Investor understands that its investment involves a high degree of risk. The Investor has sought such accounting, legal and tax advice, as it has considered necessary to make an informed investment decision with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby.

 

Section 3.07 Not an Affiliate. The Investor is not an officer, director or a person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is controlled by, or is under common control with the Company or any “affiliate” of the Company (as that term is defined in Rule 405 promulgated under the Securities Act).

 

Section 3.08 No Prior Short Sales. At no time prior to the date of this Agreement has the Investor, its sole member, any of their respective officers or any entity managed or controlled by the Investor or its sole member engaged in or effected, in any manner whatsoever, directly or indirectly, for its own principal account, any (i) “short sale” (as such term is defined in Rule 200 of Regulation SHO of the Exchange Act) of the Common Shares or (ii) hedging transaction, which establishes a net short position with respect to the Common Shares that remains in effect as of the date of this Agreement.

 

Section 3.09 General Solicitation. Neither the Investor, nor any of its affiliates, nor any person acting on its or their behalf, has engaged or will engage in any form of general solicitation or general advertising (within the meaning of Regulation D) in connection with any offer or sale of the Common Shares by the Investor.

 

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Article IV. Representations and Warranties of the Company

 

Except as set forth in the SEC Documents, the Company represents and warrants to the Investor, as of the date hereof, the Pre-Advance Date, each Advance Notice Date and each Advance Date (other than representations and warranties that address matters only as of a certain date, which shall be true and correct as written as of such certain date), that:

 

Section 4.01 Organization and Qualification. Each of the Company and its Subsidiaries (as defined below) is an entity duly organized and validly existing under the laws of their respective jurisdictions of organization or incorporation, and has the requisite power and authority to own its properties and to carry on its business as now being conducted. Each of the Company and its Subsidiaries is duly qualified to do business and is in good standing (to the extent applicable) in every jurisdiction in which the nature of the business conducted by it makes such qualification necessary, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or be in good standing would not have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

Section 4.02 Authorization, Enforcement, Compliance with Other Instruments. The Company has the requisite corporate power and authority to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents and to issue the Shares in accordance with the terms hereof and thereof. The execution and delivery by the Company of this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents, and the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby (including, without limitation, the issuance of the Common Shares) have been or (with respect to consummation) will be duly authorized by the Company’s board of directors and no further consent or authorization will be required by the Company, its board of directors or its shareholders. This Agreement and the other Transaction Documents to which it is a party have been (or, when executed and delivered, will be) duly executed and delivered by the Company and, assuming the execution and delivery thereof and acceptance by the Investor, constitute (or, when duly executed and delivered, will be) the legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their respective terms, except as such enforceability may be limited by general principles of equity or applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, liquidation or other laws relating to, or affecting generally, the enforcement of applicable creditors’ rights and remedies and except as rights to indemnification and to contribution may be limited by federal or state securities law. “Transaction Documents” means, collectively, this Agreement and each of the other agreements and instruments entered into or delivered by any of the parties hereto in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby, as may be amended from time to time.

 

Section 4.03 Authorization of the Shares. The Shares to be issued under this Agreement have been, or with respect to Shares to be purchased by the Investor pursuant to an Advance Notice, will be, when issued and delivered pursuant to the terms approved by the board of directors of the Company or a duly authorized committee thereof, or a duly authorized executive committee, against payment therefor as provided herein, duly and validly authorized and issued and fully paid and nonassessable, free and clear of any pledge, lien, encumbrance, security interest or other claim, including any statutory or contractual preemptive rights, resale rights, rights of first refusal or other similar rights, and will be registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act. The Shares, when issued, will conform to the description thereof set forth in or incorporated into the Prospectus.

 

Section 4.04 No Conflict. The execution, delivery and performance of the Transaction Documents by the Company and the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby (including, without limitation, the issuance of the Common Shares) will not (i) result in a violation of the articles of incorporation or other organizational documents of the Company or its Subsidiaries (with respect to consummation, as the same may be amended prior to the date on which any of the transactions contemplated hereby are consummated), (ii) conflict with, or constitute a default (or an event which with notice or lapse of time or both would become a default) under, or give to others any rights of termination, amendment, acceleration or cancellation of, any agreement, indenture or instrument to which the Company or its Subsidiaries is a party, or (iii) result in a violation of any law, rule, regulation, order, judgment or decree (including federal and state securities laws and regulations) applicable to the Company or its Subsidiaries or by which any property or asset of the Company or its Subsidiaries is bound or affected except, in the case of clause (ii) or (iii) above, to the extent such violations that would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

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Section 4.05 SEC Documents; Financial Statements. The Company has timely filed (giving effect to permissible extensions in accordance with Rule 12b-25 under the Exchange Act) all reports, schedules, forms, statements and other documents required to be filed by it with the SEC pursuant to the Exchange Act for the twelve (12) months prior to the date hereof (or such shorter period as the Company was required by law or regulation to file such material) (all of the foregoing filed within two years preceding the date hereof or amended after the date hereof, or filed after the date hereof, and all exhibits included therein and financial statements and schedules thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein, and all registration statements filed by the Company under the Securities Act (including any Registration statements filed hereunder), being hereinafter referred to as the “SEC Documents”). The Company has delivered or made available to the Investor through the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov, true and complete copies of the SEC Documents. As of their respective dates (or, with respect to any filing that has been amended or superseded, the date of such amendment or superseding filing), the SEC Documents complied in all material respects with the requirements of the Exchange Act or the Securities Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder applicable to the SEC Documents, and did not contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

 

Section 4.06 Financial Statements. The consolidated financial statements of the Company included or incorporated by reference in SEC Documents, together with the related notes and schedules, present fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries as of the dates indicated and the consolidated results of operations, cash flows and changes in stockholders’ equity of the Company for the periods specified and have been prepared in compliance with the requirements of the Securities Act and Exchange Act and in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis (except for (i) such adjustments to accounting standards and practices as are noted therein, (ii) in the case of unaudited interim financial statements, to the extent such financial statements may not include footnotes required by GAAP or may be condensed or summary statements and (iii) such adjustments which will not be material, either individually or in the aggregate) during the periods involved; the other financial and statistical data with respect to the Company and the Subsidiaries (as defined below) contained or incorporated by reference in the SEC Documents are accurately and fairly presented and prepared on a basis consistent with the financial statements and books and records of the Company; there are no financial statements (historical or pro forma) that are required to be included or incorporated by reference in the SEC Documents that are not included or incorporated by reference as required; the Company and the Subsidiaries (as defined below) do not have any material liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent (including any off-balance sheet obligations), not described in the SEC Documents (excluding the exhibits thereto); and all disclosures contained or incorporated by reference in the SEC Documents regarding “non-GAAP financial measures” (as such term is defined by the rules and regulations of the Commission) comply in all material respects with Regulation G of the Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act, to the extent applicable. The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the SEC Documents fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the SEC’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.

 

Section 4.07 Registration Statement; Form S-3 Eligibility. The Company and the transactions contemplated by this Agreement meet the requirements for the use of Form S-3 under the Securities Act, including, without limitation, the eligibility requirements for Form S-3 (including Instruction I.B.6. thereof). Each of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto has been declared effective by the SEC under the Securities Act. No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto has been issued under the Securities Act, no order preventing or suspending the use of any base prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement, the Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for any of those purposes or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act have been instituted or are pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, are threatened by the Commission, and, to the knowledge of the Company, the Company has complied to the SEC’s satisfaction with any request on the part of the SEC for additional information.

 

Section 4.08 At each Advance Date, the Registration Statement, and the Prospectus, as of such date, will conform in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act. Each Registration Statement, when it became or becomes effective, did not, and will not, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading. Each Prospectus did not, or will not, include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. The documents incorporated by reference in a Prospectus or any Prospectus Supplement did not, and any further documents filed and incorporated by reference therein will not, when filed with the Commission, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated in such document or necessary to make the statements in such document, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. The foregoing shall not apply to statements in, or omissions from, any such document made in reliance upon, and in conformity with, information furnished to the Company by the Investor specifically for use in the preparation thereof.

 

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Section 4.09 Conformity with Securities Act and Exchange Act. Each Registration Statement, each Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, and the documents incorporated by reference in each Registration Statement, Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, when such documents were or are filed with the SEC under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act or became or become effective under the Securities Act, as the case may be, conformed or will conform in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, as applicable.

 

Section 4.10 Equity Capitalization. As of the date of this prospectus, we are authorized to issue 95,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share. As of the date of this prospectus, 30,610,300 shares of common stock were issued and outstanding. The Common Shares are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act and is currently listed on a Principal Market under the trading symbol “SOPA”. The Company has taken no action designed to, or likely to have the effect of, terminating the registration of the Common Shares under the Exchange Act, delisting the Common Shares from the Principal Market, nor has the Company received any notification that the Commission or the Principal Market is contemplating terminating such registration or listing. To the Company’s knowledge, it is in compliance with all applicable listing requirements of the Principal Market.

 

Section 4.11 Intellectual Property Rights. The Company and its Subsidiaries own or possess adequate rights or licenses to use all material trademarks, trade names, service marks, service mark registrations, service names, patents, patent rights, copyrights, inventions, licenses, approvals, governmental authorizations, trade secrets and rights, if any, necessary to conduct their respective businesses as now conducted, except as would not cause a Material Adverse Effect. The Company and its Subsidiaries have not received written notice of any infringement by the Company or its Subsidiaries of trademark, trade name rights, patents, patent rights, copyrights, inventions, licenses, service names, service marks, service mark registrations, or trade secrets, except as would not cause a Material Adverse Effect. To the knowledge of the Company, there is no claim, action or proceeding being made or brought against, or to the Company’s knowledge, being threatened against the Company or its Subsidiaries regarding trademark, trade name, patents, patent rights, invention, copyright, license, service names, service marks, service mark registrations, trade secret or other infringement; and, except as would not cause a Material Adverse Effect, the Company is not aware of any facts or circumstances which might give rise to any of the foregoing.

 

Section 4.12 Employee Relations. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is involved in any labor dispute nor, to the knowledge of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, is any such dispute threatened, in each case which is reasonably likely to cause a Material Adverse Effect.

 

Section 4.13 Environmental Laws. The Company and its Subsidiaries (i) have not received written notice alleging any failure to comply in all material respects with all Environmental Laws (as defined below), (ii) have received all permits, licenses or other approvals required of them under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct their respective businesses and (iii) have not received written notice alleging any failure to comply with all terms and conditions of any such permit, license or approval where, in each of the foregoing clauses (i), (ii) and (iii), the failure to so comply would be reasonably expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect. The term “Environmental Laws” means all applicable federal, state and local laws relating to pollution or protection of human health or the environment (including, without limitation, ambient air, surface water, groundwater, land surface or subsurface strata), including, without limitation, laws relating to emissions, discharges, releases or threatened releases of chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, or toxic or hazardous substances or wastes (collectively, “Hazardous Materials”) into the environment, or otherwise relating to the manufacture, processing, distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or handling of Hazardous Materials, as well as all authorizations, codes, decrees, demands or demand letters, injunctions, judgments, licenses, notices or notice letters, orders, permits, plans or regulations issued, entered, promulgated or approved thereunder.

 

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Section 4.14 Title. Except as would not cause a Material Adverse Effect, the Company (or its Subsidiaries) have indefeasible fee simple or leasehold title to its properties and material assets owned by it, free and clear of any pledge, lien, security interest, encumbrance, claim or equitable interest other than such as are not material to the business of the Company. Any real property and facilities held under lease by the Company and its Subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company and its Subsidiaries.

 

Section 4.15 Insurance. The Company and each of its Subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as management of the Company believes to be prudent and customary in the businesses in which the Company and its Subsidiaries are engaged. The Company has no reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

Section 4.16 Regulatory Permits. Except as would not cause a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and its Subsidiaries possess all material certificates, authorizations and permits issued by the appropriate federal, state or foreign regulatory authorities necessary to own their respective businesses, and neither the Company nor any such Subsidiary has received any written notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any such certificate, authorization or permits.

 

Section 4.17 Internal Accounting Controls. The Company maintains a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations, (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and to maintain asset accountability, (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences, and management is not aware of any material weaknesses that are not disclosed in the SEC Documents as and when required.

 

Section 4.18 Absence of Litigation. Except as disclosed on the Company’s periodic filings with the SEC, there is no action, suit, proceeding, inquiry or investigation before or by any court, public board, government agency, self-regulatory organization or body pending against or affecting the Company, the Common Shares or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries, wherein an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding would have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

Section 4.19 Subsidiaries. Except as disclosed on the Company’s periodic filings with the SEC, the Company does not presently own or control, directly or indirectly, any interest in any other corporation, partnership, association or other business entity.

 

Section 4.20 Tax Status. Each of the Company and its Subsidiaries (i) has timely made or filed all foreign, federal and state income and all other tax returns, reports and declarations required by any jurisdiction to which it is subject, (ii) has timely paid all taxes and other governmental assessments and charges that are material in amount, shown or determined to be due on such returns, reports and declarations, except those being contested in good faith and (iii) has set aside on its books provision reasonably adequate for the payment of all taxes for periods subsequent to the periods to which such returns, reports or declarations apply. The Company has not received written notification any unpaid taxes in any material amount claimed to be due by the taxing authority of any jurisdiction, and the officers of the Company and its Subsidiaries know of no basis for any such claim where failure to pay would cause a Material Adverse Effect.

 

Section 4.21 Certain Transactions. Except as not required to be disclosed pursuant to Applicable Law, none of the officers or directors of the Company is presently a party to any transaction with the Company (other than for services as employees, officers and directors), including any contract, agreement or other arrangement providing for the furnishing of services to or by, providing for rental of real or personal property to or from, or otherwise requiring payments to or from any officer or director, or to the knowledge of the Company, any corporation, partnership, trust or other entity in which any officer or director has a substantial interest or is an officer, director, trustee or partner.

 

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Section 4.22 Rights of First Refusal. The Company is not obligated to offer the Common Shares offered hereunder on a right of first refusal basis or otherwise to any third parties including, but not limited to, current or former shareholders of the Company, underwriters, brokers, agents or other third parties.

 

Section 4.23 Dilution. The Company is aware and acknowledges that issuance of Common Shares hereunder could cause dilution to existing shareholders and could significantly increase the outstanding number of Common Shares.

 

Section 4.24 Acknowledgment Regarding Investor’s Purchase of Shares. The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Investor is acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length investor with respect to this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereunder. The Company further acknowledges that the Investor is not acting as a financial advisor or fiduciary of the Company (or in any similar capacity) with respect to this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereunder and any advice given by the Investor or any of its representatives or agents in connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereunder is merely incidental to the Investor’s purchase of the Shares hereunder. The Company is aware and acknowledges that it shall not be able to request Advances under this Agreement if the Registration Statement is not effective or if any issuances of Common Shares pursuant to any Advances would violate any rules of the Principal Market. The Company acknowledged and agrees that it is capable of evaluating and understanding, and understands and accepts, the terms, risks and conditions of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

 

Section 4.25 Relationship of the Parties. Neither the Company, nor any of its subsidiaries, affiliates, nor any person acting on its or their behalf is a client or customer of the Investor or any of its affiliates and neither the Investor nor any of its affiliates has provided, or will provide, any services to the Company or any of its affiliates, its subsidiaries, or any person acting on its or their behalf. The Investor’s relationship to Company is solely as investor as provided for in the Transaction Documents.

 

Section 4.26 Operations. The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with and neither the Company nor the Subsidiaries, nor any director, officer, or employee of the Company or any Subsidiary nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiary has, not complied with Applicable Law; and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any governmental authority involving the Company or any of its Subsidiaries with respect to Applicable Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.

 

Section 4.27 Compliance with Laws. The Company and each of its Subsidiaries are in compliance with Applicable Laws; the Company has not received a notice of non-compliance, nor knows of, nor has reasonable grounds to know of, any facts that any director, officer, or employee of the Company or any Subsidiary nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiary has, has not complied with Applicable Laws, or could give rise to a notice of non-compliance with Applicable Laws, and is not aware of any pending change or contemplated change to any applicable law or regulation or governmental position; in each case that would materially adversely affect the business of the Company or the business or legal environment under which the Company operates.

 

Section 4.28 Sanctions Matters. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries or, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer or controlled affiliate of the Company or any director or officer of any Subsidiary, is a Person that is, or is owned or controlled by a Person that is (i) the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (“OFAC”), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, Her Majesty’s Treasury, or other relevant sanctions authorities, including, without limitation, designation on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List or OFAC’s Foreign Sanctions Evaders List or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”), or (ii) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of Sanctions that broadly prohibit dealings with that country or territory (including, without limitation, the Crimea region, the Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic in Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria (the “Sanctioned Countries”)). Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries will, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds from the sale of Advance Shares, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other Person (a) for the purpose of funding or facilitating any activities or business of or with any Person or in any country or territory that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is the subject of Sanctions or is a Sanctioned Country, or (b) in any other manner that will result in a violation of Sanctions or Applicable Laws by any Person (including any Person participating in the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise). For the past five years, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has engaged in, and is now not engaged in, any dealings or transactions with any Person, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject of Sanctions or was a Sanctioned Country.

 

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Article V. Indemnification

 

The Investor and the Company represent to the other the following with respect to itself:

 

Section 5.01 Indemnification by the Company. In consideration of the Investor’s execution and delivery of this Agreement, and in addition to all of the Company’s other obligations under this Agreement, the Company shall defend, protect, indemnify and hold harmless the Investor and its investment manager, directors, managers, members, partners, and each person who controls the Investor within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act (collectively, the “Investor Indemnitees”) from and against any and all actions, causes of action, suits, claims, losses, costs, penalties, fees, liabilities and damages, and reasonable and documented expenses in connection therewith (irrespective of whether any such Investor Indemnitee is a party to the action for which indemnification hereunder is sought), and including reasonable attorneys’ fees and disbursements (the “Indemnified Liabilities”), incurred by the Investor Indemnitees or any of them as a result of, or arising out of, or relating to (a) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement for the registration of the Shares as originally filed or in any amendment thereof, or in any related prospectus, or in any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage or liability arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made therein in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of the Investor specifically for inclusion therein; (b) any material misrepresentation or breach of any material representation or material warranty made by the Company in this Agreement or any other certificate, instrument or document contemplated hereby or thereby; or (c) any material breach of any material covenant, material agreement or material obligation of the Company contained in this Agreement or any other certificate, instrument or document contemplated hereby or thereby. To the extent that the foregoing undertaking by the Company may be unenforceable under Applicable Law, the Company shall make the maximum contribution to the payment and satisfaction of each of the Indemnified Liabilities, which is permissible under Applicable Law.

 

Section 5.02 Indemnification by the Investor. In consideration of the Company’s execution and delivery of this Agreement, and in addition to all of the Investor’s other obligations under this Agreement, the Investor shall defend, protect, indemnify and hold harmless the Company and all of its directors, managers, members, partners, and each person who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act (collectively, the “Company Indemnitees”) from and against any and all Indemnified Liabilities incurred by the Company Indemnitees or any of them as a result of, or arising out of, or relating to (a) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement for the registration of the Shares as originally filed or in any amendment thereof, or in any related prospectus, or in any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided, however, that the Investor will only be liable for written information relating to the Investor furnished to the Company by or on behalf of the Investor specifically for inclusion in the documents referred to in the foregoing indemnity; (b) any misrepresentation or breach of any representation or warranty made by the Investor in this Agreement or any instrument or document contemplated hereby or thereby executed by the Investor; or (c) any breach of any covenant, agreement or obligation of the Investor(s) contained in this Agreement or any other certificate, instrument or document contemplated hereby or thereby executed by the Investor. To the extent that the foregoing undertaking by the Investor may be unenforceable under Applicable Law, the Investor shall make the maximum contribution to the payment and satisfaction of each of the Indemnified Liabilities, which is permissible under Applicable Law.

 

Section 5.03 Notice of Claim. Promptly after receipt by an Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee of notice of the commencement of any action or proceeding (including any governmental action or proceeding) involving an Indemnified Liability, such Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee, as applicable, shall, if a claim for an Indemnified Liability in respect thereof is to be made against any indemnifying party under this Article V, deliver to the indemnifying party a written notice of the commencement thereof; but the failure to so notify the indemnifying party will not relieve it of liability under this Article V except to the extent the indemnifying party is prejudiced by such failure. The indemnifying party shall have the right to participate in, and, to the extent the indemnifying party so desires, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly noticed, to assume control of the defense thereof with counsel mutually reasonably satisfactory to the indemnifying party and the Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee, as the case may be; provided, however, that an Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee shall have the right to retain its own counsel with the actual and reasonable third party fees and expenses of not more than one counsel for such Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee to be paid by the indemnifying party, if, in the reasonable opinion of counsel retained by the indemnifying party, the representation by such counsel of the Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee and the indemnifying party would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between such Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee and any other party represented by such counsel in such proceeding. The Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee shall cooperate fully with the indemnifying party in connection with any negotiation or defense of any such action or claim by the indemnifying party and shall furnish to the indemnifying party all information reasonably available to the Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee which relates to such action or claim. The indemnifying party shall keep the Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee reasonably apprised as to the status of the defense or any settlement negotiations with respect thereto. No indemnifying party shall be liable for any settlement of any action, claim or proceeding effected without its prior written consent, provided, however, that the indemnifying party shall not unreasonably withhold, delay or condition its consent. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee, consent to entry of any judgment or enter into any settlement or other compromise which does not include as an unconditional term thereof the giving by the claimant or plaintiff to such Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee of a release from all liability in respect to such claim or litigation. Following indemnification as provided for hereunder, the indemnifying party shall be subrogated to all rights of the Investor Indemnitee or Company Indemnitee with respect to all third parties, firms or corporations relating to the matter for which indemnification has been made. The indemnification required by this Article V shall be made by periodic payments of the amount thereof during the course of the investigation or defense, as and when bills are received and payment therefor is due.

 

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Section 5.04 Remedies. The remedies provided for in this Article V are not exclusive and shall not limit any right or remedy which may be available to any indemnified person at law or equity. The obligations of the parties to indemnify or make contribution under this Article V shall survive expiration or termination of this Agreement.

 

Section 5.05 Limitation of liability. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no party shall be entitled to recover from the other party for punitive, indirect, incidental or consequential damages.

 

Article VI.
Covenants of the Company

 

Section 6.01 Registration Statement.

 

(a) The Company has filed, in accordance with the provisions of the Securities Act and the rules and regulations thereunder, with the SEC a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File Number 333-271030) (the “Initial Registration Statement”) including a base prospectus, with respect to the issuance and sale of securities by the Company, including Common Shares, which contains, among other things a Plan of Distribution section disclosing the methods by which the Company may sell the Common Shares. The Initial Registration Statement was declared effective on April 20, 2023 and remains in effect on the date hereof. Except where the context otherwise requires, the Initial Registration Statement, as amended when it became effective, including all documents filed as part thereof or incorporated by reference therein, and including any information contained in a Prospectus subsequently filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act or deemed to be a part of the Initial Registration Statement pursuant to Rule 430B of the Securities Act, is herein called the “Registration Statement.”

 

(b) Promptly after the date hereof (and prior to the Company delivering an Advance Notice to the Investor hereunder), the Company shall file with the SEC a report on Form 8-K or such other appropriate form as determined by counsel to the Company, relating to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and a preliminary Prospectus Supplement pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Securities Act disclosing all information relating to the transaction contemplated hereby required to be disclosed therein and an updated Plan of Distribution, including, without limitation, the name of the Investor, the number or amount of Shares being offered hereunder, the terms of the offering, the purchase price of the Shares, and other material terms of the offering, and any other information or disclosure necessary to register the transactions contemplated herein (collectively, the “Initial Disclosure”) and shall provide the Investor with 24 hours to review the Initial Disclosure prior to its filing. Promptly, and in any event no later than five days after each Advance Date, the Company shall file with the SEC a Prospectus Supplement pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Securities Act disclosing all information relating to the particular Advance to be disclosed therein, including, without limitation, the number of Advance Shares offered and the purchase price of the Shares, and other material terms of the particular offering, and any other information or disclosure necessary to register the Advance Shares issued pursuant to such Advance.

 

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(c) Maintaining a Registration Statement. The Company shall use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the effectiveness of any Registration Statement with respect to the Common Shares at all times during the Commitment Period (the “Registration Period”). During the Commitment Period, the Company shall notify the Investor promptly if (i) the Registration Statement shall cease to be effective under the Securities Act, (ii) the Common Shares shall cease to be authorized for listing on the Principal Market, (iii) the Common Shares cease to be registered under Section 12(b) or Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act or (iv) the Company fails to file in a timely manner all reports and other documents required of it as a reporting company under the Exchange Act.

 

(d) Filing Procedures. Not less than one business days prior to the filing of a Registration Statement and not less than one business day prior to the filing of any related amendments and supplements to any Registration Statements (except for any amendments or supplements caused by the filing of any annual reports on Form 20-F, periodic reports and current reports on Form 6-K, and any similar or successor reports), the Company shall furnish to the Investor copies of all such documents proposed to be filed, which documents (other than those filed pursuant to Rule 424 promulgated under the Securities Act) will be subject to the reasonable and prompt review of the Investor (in each of which cases, if such document contains material non-public information as consented to by the Investor pursuant to Section 6.12, the information provided to Investor will be kept strictly confidential until filed and treated as subject to Section 6.08). The Investor shall furnish comments on a Registration Statement and any related amendment and supplement to a Registration Statement to the Company within 24 hours of the receipt thereof. If the Investor fails to provide comments to the Company within such 24-hour period, then the Registration Statement, related amendment or related supplement, as applicable, shall be deemed accepted by the Investor in the form originally delivered by the Company to the Investor.

 

(e) Delivery of Final Documents. The Company shall furnish to the Investor without charge, (i) at least one copy of each Registration Statement as declared effective by the SEC and any amendment(s) thereto, including financial statements and schedules, all documents incorporated therein by reference, all exhibits and each preliminary prospectus, (ii) at the request of the Investor, at least one copy of the final prospectus included in such Registration Statement and all amendments and supplements thereto (or such other number of copies as the Investor may reasonably request) and (iii) such other documents as the Investor may reasonably request from time to time in order to facilitate the disposition of the Common Shares owned by the Investor pursuant to a Registration Statement. Filing of the forgoing with the SEC via its EDGAR system shall satisfy the requirements of this section.

 

(f) Amendments and Other Filings. The Company agrees that on such dates as the Securities Act shall require, the Company will file a Prospectus Supplement or other appropriate form as determined by counsel with the SEC under the applicable paragraph of Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, which Prospectus Supplement will set forth, within the relevant period, the amount of Shares sold to the Investor, the net proceeds to the Company and the discount paid by the Investor with respect to such Shares. The Company shall provide the Investor at least 12 hours to comment on a draft of each such Prospectus Supplement (and shall give due consideration to all such comments) and shall deliver or make available to the Investor, without charge, an electronic copy of each form of Prospectus Supplement, together with the Base Prospectus.

 

(g) Blue-Sky. The Company shall use its commercially reasonable efforts to, if required by Applicable Law, (i) register and qualify the Common Shares covered by a Registration Statement under such other securities or “blue sky” laws of such jurisdictions in the United States as the Investor reasonably requests, (ii) prepare and file in those jurisdictions, such amendments (including post-effective amendments) and supplements to such registrations and qualifications as may be necessary to maintain the effectiveness thereof during the Commitment Period, (iii) take such other actions as may be necessary to maintain such registrations and qualifications in effect at all times during the Commitment Period, and (iv) take all other actions reasonably necessary or advisable to qualify the Common Shares for sale in such jurisdictions; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required in connection therewith or as a condition thereto to (w) make any change to its Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws, (x) qualify to do business in any jurisdiction where it would not otherwise be required to qualify but for this Section 6.01(f), (y) subject itself to general taxation in any such jurisdiction, or (z) file a general consent to service of process in any such jurisdiction. The Company shall promptly notify the Investor of the receipt by the Company of any notification with respect to the suspension of the registration or qualification of any of the Common Shares for sale under the securities or “blue sky” laws of any jurisdiction in the United States or its receipt of actual notice of the initiation or threat of any proceeding for such purpose.

 

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Section 6.02 Suspension of Registration Statement.

 

(a) Establishment of a Black Out Period. During the Commitment Period, the Company from time to time may suspend the use of the Registration Statement by written notice to the Investor in the event that the Company determines in its sole discretion in good faith that such suspension is necessary to (A) delay the disclosure of material nonpublic information concerning the Company, the disclosure of which at the time is not, in the good faith opinion of the Company, in the best interests of the Company or (B) amend or supplement the Registration Statement or prospectus so that such Registration Statement or prospectus shall not include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading (a “Black Out Period”).

 

(b) No Sales by Investor During the Black Out Period. During such Black Out Period, the Investor agrees not to sell any Common Shares of the Company.

 

(c) Limitations on the Black Out Period. The Company shall not impose any Black Out Period that is longer than 30 days or in a manner that is more restrictive (including, without limitation, as to duration) than the comparable restrictions that the Company may impose on transfers of the Company’s equity securities by its directors and senior executive officers. In addition, the Company shall not deliver any Advance Notice during any Black Out Period. If the public announcement of such material, nonpublic information is made during a Black Out Period, the Black Out Period shall terminate immediately after such announcement, and the Company shall immediately notify the Investor of the termination of the Black Out Period.

 

Section 6.03 Listing of Common Shares. As of each Advance Date, the Shares to be sold by the Company from time to time hereunder will have been registered under Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act and approved for listing on the Principal Market, subject to official notice of issuance.

 

Section 6.04 Opinion of Counsel. Prior to the date of the delivery by the Company of the first Advance Notice, the Investor shall have received an opinion letter from counsel to the Company in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Investor.

 

Section 6.05 Exchange Act Registration. The Company will file in a timely manner all reports and other documents required of it as a reporting company under the Exchange Act and will not take any action or file any document (whether or not permitted by Exchange Act or the rules thereunder) to terminate or suspend its reporting and filing obligations under the Exchange Act.

 

Section 6.06 Transfer Agent Instructions. For any time while there is a Registration Statement in effect for this transaction, the Company shall (if required by the transfer agent for the Common Shares) cause legal counsel for the Company to deliver to the transfer agent for the Common Shares (with a copy to the Investor) instructions to issue Common Shares to the Investor free of restrictive legends upon each Advance if the delivery of such instructions are consistent with Applicable Law.

 

Section 6.07 Corporate Existence. The Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to preserve and continue the corporate existence of the Company during the Commitment Period.

 

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Section 6.08 Notice of Certain Events Affecting Registration; Suspension of Right to Make an Advance. The Company will promptly notify the Investor, and confirm in writing, upon its becoming aware of the occurrence of any of the following events in respect of a Registration Statement or related prospectus relating to an offering of Common Shares (in each of which cases the information provided to Investor will be kept strictly confidential): (i) receipt of any request for additional information by the SEC or any other Federal or state governmental authority during the period of effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any request for amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement or related prospectus; (ii) the issuance by the SEC or any other Federal governmental authority of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or the initiation of any proceedings for that purpose; (iii) receipt of any notification with respect to the suspension of the qualification or exemption from qualification of any of the Common Shares for sale in any jurisdiction or the initiation or written threat of any proceeding for such purpose; (iv) the happening of any event that makes any statement made in the Registration Statement or related prospectus or any document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated therein by reference untrue in any material respect or that requires the making of any changes in the Registration Statement, related prospectus or documents so that, in the case of the Registration Statement, it will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and that in the case of the related prospectus, it will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, or of the necessity to amend the Registration Statement or supplement a related prospectus to comply with the Securities Act or any other law; and (v) the Company’s reasonable determination that a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement would be appropriate; and the Company will promptly make available to the Investor any such supplement or amendment to the related prospectus. The Company shall not deliver to the Investor any Advance Notice, and the Company shall not sell any Shares pursuant to any pending Advance Notice (other than as required pursuant to Section 2.02(d)), during the continuation of any of the foregoing events (each of the events described in the immediately preceding clauses (i) through (v), inclusive, a “Material Outside Event”).

 

Section 6.09 Consolidation. If an Advance Notice has been delivered to the Investor, then the Company shall not effect any consolidation of the Company with or into, or a transfer of all or substantially all the assets of the Company to another entity before the transaction contemplated in such Advance Notice has been closed in accordance with Section 2.02 hereof, and all Shares in connection with such Advance have been received by the Investor.

 

Section 6.10 Market Activities. The Company will not, directly or indirectly, take any action designed to cause or result in, or that constitutes or might reasonably be expected to constitute, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company under Regulation M of the Exchange Act.

 

Section 6.11 Expenses. The Company, whether or not the transactions contemplated hereunder are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, will pay all expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder, including but not limited to (i) the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement and each amendment and supplement thereto, of each prospectus and of each amendment and supplement thereto; (ii) the preparation, issuance and delivery of any Shares issued pursuant to this Agreement, (iii) all fees and disbursements of the Company’s counsel, accountants and other advisors (but not, for the avoidance doubt, the fees and disbursements of Investor’s counsel, accountants and other advisors), (iv) the qualification of the Shares under securities laws in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, including filing fees in connection therewith, (v) the printing and delivery of copies of any prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto, (vi) the fees and expenses incurred in connection with the listing or qualification of the Shares for trading on the Principal Market, or (vii) filing fees of the SEC and the Principal Market.

 

Section 6.12 Current Report. The Company shall not, and the Company shall cause each of its Subsidiaries and each of its and their respective officers, directors, employees and agents not to, provide the Investor with any material, non-public information regarding the Company or any of its Subsidiaries without the express prior written consent of the Investor (which may be granted or withheld in the Investor’s sole discretion and if granted must include an agreement to keep such information confidential until publicly disclosed or 45 days have passed); it being understood that the mere notification of Investor required pursuant to Section 6.08(iv) hereof shall not in and of itself be deemed to be material non-public information. Notwithstanding anything contained in this Agreement to the contrary, the Company expressly agrees that it shall publicly disclose, no later than four (4) Business Days following the date hereof, but in any event prior to delivering the first Advance Notice hereunder, any information communicated to the Investor by or, to the knowledge of the Company, on behalf of the Company in connection with the transactions contemplated herein, which, following the date hereof would, if not so disclosed, constitute material, non-public information regarding the Company or its Subsidiaries.

 

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Section 6.13 Advance Notice Limitation. The Company shall not deliver an Advance Notice if a shareholder meeting or corporate action date, or the record date for any shareholder meeting or any corporate action, would fall during the period beginning two Trading Days prior to the date of delivery of such Advance Notice and ending two Trading Days following the Closing of such Advance.

 

Section 6.14 Use of Proceeds. The Company will use the proceeds from the sale of the Common Shares hereunder for working capital and other general corporate purposes or, if different, in a manner consistent with the application thereof described in the Registration Statement. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary will, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of the transactions contemplated herein, or lend, contribute, facilitate or otherwise make available such proceeds to any Person (i) to fund, either directly or indirectly, any activities or business of or with any Person that is identified on the list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocker Persons maintained by OFAC, or in any country or territory, that, at the time of such funding, is, or whose government is, the subject of Sanctions or Sanctions Programs, or (ii) in any other manner that will result in a violation of Sanctions or Applicable Laws.

 

Section 6.15 Compliance with Laws. The Company shall comply in all material respects with all Applicable Laws.

 

Section 6.16 Market Activities. Neither the Company, nor any Subsidiary, nor any of their respective officers, directors or controlling persons will, directly or indirectly, (i) take any action designed to cause or result in, or that constitutes or might reasonably be expected to constitute or result, in the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of Common Shares or (ii) sell, bid for, or purchase Common Shares in violation of Regulation M, or pay anyone any compensation for soliciting purchases of the Shares.

 

Section 6.17 Trading Information. Upon the Company’s request, the Investor agrees to provide the Company with trading reports setting forth the number and average sales prices of shares of Common Stock sold by the Investor during the prior trading week.

 

Section 6.18 Selling Restrictions. (i) Except as expressly set forth below, the Investor covenants that from and after the date hereof through and including the first Trading Day following the expiration or termination of this Agreement as provided in Section 11.01 (the “Restricted Period”), none of the Investor, any of its officers or any entity managed or controlled by the Investor (collectively, the “Restricted Persons” and each of the foregoing is referred to herein as a “Restricted Person”) shall, directly or indirectly, engage in any “short sale” (as such term is defined in Rule 200 of Regulation SHO of the Exchange Act) of the Common Shares, either for its own principal account or for the principal account of any other Restricted Person. Notwithstanding the foregoing, it is expressly understood and agreed that nothing contained herein shall (without implication that the contrary would otherwise be true) prohibit any Restricted Person during the Restricted Period from: (1) selling “long” (as defined under Rule 200 promulgated under Regulation SHO) the Shares; or (2) selling a number of shares of Class A Common equal to the number of Shares that such Restricted Person is unconditionally obligated to purchase under a pending Advance Notice but has not yet received from the Company or the transfer agent pursuant to this Agreement.

 

Article VII.
Conditions for Delivery of Advance Notice

 

Section 7.01 Conditions Precedent to the Right of the Company to Deliver an Advance Notice. The right of the Company to deliver an Advance Notice and the obligations of the Investor hereunder with respect to an Advance is subject to the satisfaction by the Company, on each Advance Notice Date (a “Condition Satisfaction Date”), of each of the following conditions:

 

(a) Accuracy of the Company’s Representations and Warranties. The representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement shall be true and correct in all material respects.

 

(b) Registration of the Common Shares with the SEC. The Registration Statement shall be effective pursuant to which the Company is permitted to utilize the prospectus thereunder to sell to the Investor all of the Common Shares issuable pursuant to such Advance Notice. The Company shall have filed with the SEC in a timely manner all reports, notices and other documents required under the Exchange Act and applicable SEC regulations during the twelve-month period immediately preceding the applicable Condition Satisfaction Date.

 

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(c) Authority. The Company shall have obtained all permits and qualifications required by any applicable state for the offer and sale of all the Common Shares issuable pursuant to such Advance Notice, or shall have the availability of exemptions therefrom. The sale and issuance of such Common Shares shall be legally permitted by all laws and regulations to which the Company is subject.

 

(d) No Material Outside Event. No Material Outside Event shall have occurred and be continuing.

 

(e) Performance by the Company. The Company shall have performed, satisfied and complied in all material respects with all covenants, agreements and conditions required by this Agreement to be performed, satisfied or complied with by the Company at or prior the applicable Condition Satisfaction Date.

 

(f) No Injunction. No statute, rule, regulation, executive order, decree, ruling or injunction shall have been enacted, entered, promulgated or endorsed by any court or governmental authority of competent jurisdiction that prohibits or directly, materially and adversely affects any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

 

(g) No Suspension of Trading in or Delisting of Common Shares. The Common Shares are quoted for trading on the Principal Market and all of the Shares issuable pursuant to such Advance Notice will be listed or quoted for trading on the Principal Market. The issuance of Common Shares with respect to the applicable Advance Notice will not violate the shareholder approval requirements of the Principal Market. The Company shall not have received any written notice that is then still pending threatening the continued quotation of the Common Shares on the Principal Market.

 

(h) Authorized. There shall be a sufficient number of authorized but unissued and otherwise unreserved Common Shares for the issuance of all of the Shares issuable pursuant to such Advance Notice.

 

(i) Executed Advance Notice. The representations contained in the applicable Advance Notice shall be true and correct in all material respects as of the applicable Condition Satisfaction Date.

 

(j) Consecutive Advance Notices. Except with respect to the first Advance Notice, the applicable Pricing Period for all prior Advances shall have been completed and the Company shall have delivered all Shares relating to all prior Advances.

 

Article VIII.
Non-Disclosure of Non-Public Information

 

The Company covenants and agrees that, other than as expressly required by Section 6.08 hereof, or, with the Investor’s consent pursuant to Section 6.01(d) and Section 6.12, it shall refrain from disclosing, and shall cause its officers, directors, employees and agents to refrain from disclosing, any material non-public information (as determined under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act, or the rules and regulations of the SEC) to the Investor without also disseminating such information to the public, unless prior to disclosure of such information the Company identifies such information as being material non-public information and provides the Investor with the opportunity to accept or refuse to accept such material non-public information for review. Unless specifically agreed to in writing, in no event shall the Investor have a duty of confidentiality, or be deemed to have agreed to maintain information in confidence, with respect to the delivery of any Advance Notices.

 

Article IX.
Non Exclusive Agreement

 

Notwithstanding anything contained herein, this Agreement and the rights awarded to the Investor hereunder are non-exclusive, and the Company may, at any time throughout the term of this Agreement and thereafter, issue and allot, or undertake to issue and allot, any shares and/or securities and/or convertible notes, bonds, debentures, options, and warrants to acquire shares or other securities and/or other facilities which may be converted into or replaced by Common Shares or other securities of the Company, and to extend, renew and/or recycle any bonds and/or debentures, and/or grant any rights with respect to its existing and/or future share capital.

 

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Article X.
Choice of Law/Jurisdiction

 

This Agreement shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of New York without regard to the principles of conflict of laws. The parties further agree that any action between them shall be heard in New York County, New York, and expressly consent to the jurisdiction and venue of the Supreme Court of New York, sitting in New York County, New York and the United States District Court of the Southern District of New York, sitting in New York, New York, for the adjudication of any civil action asserted pursuant to this Agreement.

 

Article XI. Assignment; Termination

 

Section 11.01 Assignment. Neither this Agreement nor any rights or obligations of the parties hereto may be assigned to any other Person.

 

Section 11.02 Termination.

 

(a) Unless earlier terminated as provided hereunder, this Agreement shall terminate automatically on the earliest of (i) the first day of the month next following the 36-month anniversary of the date hereof or (ii) the date on which the Investor shall have made payment of Advances pursuant to this Agreement for Common Shares equal to the Commitment Amount.

 

(b) The Company may terminate this Agreement effective upon five (5) Trading Days’ prior written notice to the Investor; provided that (i) there are no outstanding Advance Notices, the Common Shares under which have yet to be issued, and (ii) the Company has paid all amounts owed to the Investor pursuant to this Agreement. This Agreement may be terminated at any time by the mutual written consent of the parties, effective as of the date of such mutual written consent unless otherwise provided in such written consent.

 

(c) Nothing in this Section 11.02 shall be deemed to release the Company or the Investor from any liability for any breach under this Agreement, or to impair the rights of the Company and the Investor to compel specific performance by the other party of its obligations under this Agreement. The indemnification provisions contained in Article V shall survive termination hereunder.

 

 

Article XII. Notices

 

Other than with respect to Advance Notices, which must be in writing and will be deemed delivered on the day set forth in Section 2.01(b), any notices, consents, waivers, or other communications required or permitted to be given under the terms of this Agreement must be in writing and will be deemed to have been delivered (i) upon receipt, when delivered personally; (ii) upon receipt, when sent by facsimile or e-mail if sent on a Trading Day, or, if not sent on a Trading Day, on the immediately following Trading Day; (iii) 5 days after being sent by U.S. certified mail, return receipt requested, (iv) 1 day after deposit with a nationally recognized overnight delivery service, in each case properly addressed to the party to receive the same. The addresses and facsimile numbers for such communications (except for Advance Notices which shall be delivered in accordance with Exhibit A hereof) shall be:

 

If to the Company, to: Society Pass Incorporated
  701 S. Carson Street, Suite 200 Carson City, Nevada 89701
  Attention: CEO
  Telephone: (+65) 6518-9385

 

With a copy to (which shall not constitute notice or delivery of process) to: XXXXX

 

  Loeb & Loeb LLP
  2206-19 Jardine House

 

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  1 Connaught Road Central
  Hong Kong SAR
  Telephone: +852-3923-1111
  Facsimile: +852-3923-1100

 

If to the Investor(s): Strattners FZCO
   
  United Arab Emirates
  Attention: Timo Strattner
    CEO
  Telephone: +971 54 888 7091
  Email: timo@strattners.com

 

With a copy (which shall not constitute notice or delivery of process) to:

  Telephone:
  Email:

 

or at such other address and/or e-mail and/or to the attention of such other person as the recipient party has specified by written notice given to each other party three Business Days prior to the effectiveness of such change. Written confirmation of receipt (i) given by the recipient of such notice, consent, waiver or other communication, (ii) electronically generated by the sender’s email service provider containing the time, date, recipient email address or (iii) provided by a nationally recognized overnight delivery service shall be rebuttable evidence of personal service, receipt by facsimile or receipt from a nationally recognized overnight delivery service in accordance with clause (i), (ii) or (iii) above, respectively.

 

Article XIII. Miscellaneous

 

Section 13.01 Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in identical counterparts, both which shall be considered one and the same agreement and shall become effective when counterparts have been signed by each party and delivered to the other party. Facsimile or other electronically scanned and delivered signatures (including any electronic signature covered by the U.S. federal ESIGN Act of 2000, Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, the Electronic Signatures and Records Act or other applicable law, e.g., www.docusign.com), including by e-mail attachment, shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes of this Agreement.

 

Section 13.02 Entire Agreement; Amendments. This Agreement supersedes all other prior oral or written agreements between the Investor, the Company, their respective affiliates and persons acting on their behalf with respect to the matters discussed herein, and this Agreement contains the entire understanding of the parties with respect to the matters covered herein and, except as specifically set forth herein, neither the Company nor the Investor makes any representation, warranty, covenant or undertaking with respect to such matters. No provision of this Agreement may be waived or amended other than by an instrument in writing signed by the parties to this Agreement.

 

Section 13.03 Reporting Entity for the Common Shares. The reporting entity relied upon for the determination of the trading price or trading volume of the Common Shares on any given Trading Day for the purposes of this Agreement shall be Bloomberg, L.P. or any successor thereto. The written mutual consent of the Investor and the Company shall be required to employ any other reporting entity.

 

Section 13.04 Commitment Fee. Each of the parties shall pay its own fees and expenses (including the fees of any attorneys, accountants, appraisers or others engaged by such party) in connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby, except that the Company shall issue to the Investor an aggregate of 500,000 Common Shares (the “Commitment Shares”) as a commitment fee on the date hereof.

 

Section 13.05 Brokerage. Each of the parties hereto represents that it has had no dealings in connection with this transaction with any finder or broker who will demand payment of any fee or commission from the other party. The Company on the one hand, and the Investor, on the other hand, agree to indemnify the other against and hold the other harmless from any and all liabilities to any person claiming brokerage commissions or finder’s fees on account of services purported to have been rendered on behalf of the indemnifying party in connection with this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.

  

[REMAINDER OF PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this STRUCTURED EQUITY FINANCING AGREEMENT to be executed by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, as of the date first set forth above.

 

COMPANY:  
Society Pass Incorporated  
     
By:    
Name: CEO  
Title: Chief Executive Officer  

 

INVESTOR:  
Strattners FZCO  
   
   
By:    
  Name: Timo Strattner  
  Title: CEO  

 

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EXHIBIT A
ADVANCE NOTICE

 

SAMPLE

 

 

The undersigned, _______________________, hereby certifies, with respect to the sale of Common Shares of Society Pass Incorporated (the “Company”) issuable in connection with this Advance Notice, delivered pursuant to that certain STRUCTURED EQUITY FINANCING AGREEMENT, dated as of September 11, 2023 (the “Agreement”), as follows:

 

1. The undersigned is the duly elected ______________ of the Company.

 

2. There are no fundamental changes to the information set forth in the Registration Statement which would require the Company to file a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement.

 

3. The Company has performed in all material respects all covenants and agreements to be performed by the Company contained in this Agreement on or prior to the Advance Notice Date. All conditions to the delivery of this Advance Notice are satisfied as of the date hereof.

 

4. The amount of the Advance the Company is requesting is _____________________.

 

5. The Minimum Acceptable Price with respect to this Advance Notice is _________ (if left blank then no Minimum Acceptable Price will be applicable to this Advance).

 

6. The number of Common Shares of the Company outstanding as of the date hereof is ___________.

 

The undersigned has executed this Advance Notice as of the date first set forth above.

 

  Society Pass Incorporated
   
  By:  

 

Please deliver this Advance Notice by email to:

Email: backoffice@strattners.com

Attention: Compliance Team

Confirmation Telephone Number: +97154 8887091

 

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EXHIBIT B

FORM OF SETTLEMENT DOCUMENT

VIA EMAIL

 

Society Pass Incorporated

Attn:

Email:

 

Below please find the settlement information with respect to the Advance Notice Date of:

 

1. Advance requested in the Advance Notice  
2. Minimum Acceptable Price for this Advance (if any)  
3. Number of Excluded Days (if any)  
4. Adjusted Advance Amount (after taking into account any adjustments pursuant to Section 2.01):  
5. Market Price  
6. Purchase Price (Market Price x 96%) per share  
7. Number of Shares due to Investor  

 

If there were any Excluded Days then add the following (see Section 2.01(d)):

 

 
8. Number of Additional Shares to be issued to Investor  
9. Additional amount to be paid to the Company by the Investor (Additional Shares in number 8 x Minimum Acceptable Price)  
10. Total Amount to be paid to Company (Purchase Price in number 6 + Additional amount in number 8):  
11. Total Shares to be issued to Investor (Shares due to Investor in number 7 + Additional Shares in number 8):  

 

Please issue the number of Advance Shares due to the Investor to the account of the Investor as follows:

 

INVESTOR’S DTC PARTICIPANT #:

 

ACCOUNT NAME:

ACCOUNT NUMBER:

ADDRESS:

CITY:

COUNTRY:

CONTACT PERSON:

NUMBER AND/OR EMAIL:

 

Agreed and approved By Society Pass Incorporated :________________________________________

  

Name:

Title:

 

 

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EX-10.2 3 ea186434ex10-2_society.htm FORM OF EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT BY AND BETWEEN THE COMPANY AND RAYNAULD LIANG

Exhibit 10.2

 

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

 

This Employment Agreement, dated as of October [*], 2023 (this “Agreement”), is made and entered into by and between Society Pass Incorporated, a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), and Raynauld Liang, an adult individual (the “Executive”). Terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in Section 11.

 

RECITALS

 

WHEREAS, subject to the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth, Company wishes to enter into an employment agreement with the Executive as its Chief Executive Officer and Executive wishes to enter into an employment contract with the Company for further employment by Company as its Chief Executive Officer.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing premises and the mutual promises, terms, provisions, and conditions set forth in this Agreement, the adequacy and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as follows:

 

AGREEMENT

 

1. Employment. Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, Company hereby offers, and Executive hereby accepts continued employment with Company, as of the date first above written (the “Start Date”).

 

2. Term. Subject to Section 5, Executive’s employment under the terms of this Agreement be for a period (the “Term”) commencing on the Start Date and continuing until the fifth (5th) anniversary of the Start Date (the “Term End Date”), provided, however, that unless a party has given the other party written notice at least ninety (90) days prior to the Term End Date (or any anniversary of the Term End Date) that such party does not agree to renew this Agreement, the term of this Agreement and the Term shall be deemed renewed for a term ending one (1) year subsequent to the Term End Date (or anniversary of the Term End Date). The parties may terminate this Agreement and Executive’s employment hereunder during the Term in accordance with, and subject to the provisions of, Section 5.

 

3. Capacity and Performance.

 

(a) During the Term, the Executive shall be employed by Company as its Chief Executive Officer. Executive shall perform such duties and responsibilities as directed by the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”), consistent with Executive’s position on behalf of Company.

 

(b) Executive shall devote all of his necessary and required attention, skill, and best efforts to the performance of his duties under this Agreement during the Term of Employment, and shall not perform any activity that (x) conflicts with the interests of the Company or any other member of the Company Group, (y) interferes with the proper and efficient performance of Executive’s duties for the Company, or (z) interferes with Executive’s exercise of judgment in the Company’s best interests. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing herein shall preclude Executive from (i) serving, with the prior written consent of the Board, as a member of the board of directors or advisory board (or the equivalent in the case of a non-corporate entity) of a noncompeting for-profit business and one or more charitable organizations, (ii) engaging in charitable activities and community affairs, and (iii) managing Executive’s personal investments and affairs; provided, however, that the activities set out in clauses (i), (ii), and (iii) shall be limited by Executive so as not to materially interfere, individually or in the aggregate, with the performance of his duties and responsibilities hereunder.

 

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(c) Executive’s employment with Company shall be exclusive with respect to the Business of Company. Accordingly, during the Term, Executive shall devote Executive’s necessary business time and Executive’s best efforts, business judgment, skill and knowledge to the advancement of the business and interests of Company and the discharge of Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder, except for permitted vacation (and other paid time off) periods, reasonable periods of illness or incapacity, and reasonable and customary time spent on civic, charitable and religious activities, in each case such activities shall not interfere in any material respect with Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder.

 

(d) During the Term, the Executive will report directly to the Board.

 

(e) Executive shall be employed to perform his duties under this Agreement at any location or locations as may be mutually agreeable between the Executive and Company (including reasonable provisions during the COVID-19 national public health emergency).

 

4. Compensation and Benefits.

 

(a) Base Salary. For services performed by Executive under this Agreement, Company shall pay Executive an annual base salary during the Term at the rate of $600,000 per year, minus applicable withholdings and deductions, payable at the same times as salaries are payable to other executives of Company (the “Base Salary”). During the Term, the Base Salary shall be reviewed by the Remuneration Committee and/or the Board each year, and the Board may, from time to time, increase such Base Salary and any reference to “Base Salary” herein shall refer to such Base Salary, as increased.

 

(b) Annual Cash Bonus. For each fiscal year of the Company during the Term and at the discretion of the Board and/or Remuneration Committee, the Company shall afford Executive the opportunity to earn an incentive bonus (“Bonus”) as described in this Section 4(b). The aggregate target Bonus payable to Executive under such program(s) shall equal a minimum of twenty five percent (25%) of the Base Salary for such fiscal year and shall be payable to the extent the applicable performance goals are achieved (which goals and payment matrices shall be set by the Remuneration Committee of the Board in its discretion). The amount of the Bonus will be determined by certification by the Board that the applicable goals have been achieved, and the Board shall promptly provide such certification following achievement of the applicable goals. The amount payable under this Section 4(b) shall be paid by the seventh (7th) day following the approval of the annual audited financial statements by the Board or its audit committee, as applicable, for the calendar year in which the Bonus is earned or if later, the fifteenth day of the third month following the end of the Company’s fiscal year in which the Bonus is earned.

 

(c) Equity Award. The Executive shall be issued 250,000 incentive stock options with an exercise price equal to the closing market price of the Company’s common stock as of the date of this Agreement.

 

(d) Annual Equity Awards. In addition to Section 4(c), for each fiscal year of the Company during the Term, Executive shall be entitled to participate in all long-term incentive plans (including any equity incentive plan) sponsored by the Company either now or in the future, on terms and conditions similar to those applicable to other executive officers of the Company generally. The amount and terms of the long-term incentive awards awarded to the Executive shall be set by the Remuneration Committee in its discretion after consultation with a compensation consultant, if any, retained by the Remuneration Committee.

 

(e) Other Executive Benefits. During the Term, the Executive shall be entitled to participate in all Executive benefit plans, including health and 401(k) plans, from time to time generally in effect for Company’s Executives (collectively, “Benefit Plans”). Such participation and receipt of benefits under any such Benefit Plans shall be on the same terms (including cost-sharing between Company and Executive) as are applicable to other Company Executives and shall be subject to the terms of the applicable plan documents and generally applicable Company policies. Company may alter, modify, add to or delete the Benefit Plans in a manner nondiscriminatory to Executive at any time in accordance with applicable plan rules (h) Change in Control Transaction Bonus.

 

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(f) Vacation. The Executive shall be entitled to an annual vacation of twenty (20) days per full calendar year of his employment with the Company hereunder plus all national holidays in Singapore. The Executive shall not be paid for any unused vacation.

 

(g) Business and Travel Expenses. Company shall pay or reimburse Executive for all reasonable, customary and necessary business expenses (including cell phone, travel, lodging, and entertainment expenses) which are correctly documented and incurred or paid by Executive in the performance of Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder, subject to the rules, regulations, and procedures of Company and in effect from time to time.

 

During Executive’s employment, if (i) a Change in Control has occurred, and (ii) as of such Change in Control, the price per share of Company’s common stock is two (2) times or more the price per share of the common stock sold in the Offering under the Registration Statement, Executive shall be paid a bonus (the “Change in Control Transaction Bonus”), in cash, equal to three (3) times the Base Salary as in effect immediately before such Change in Control. If applicable, the Change in Control Transaction Bonus shall be paid in a lump sum within fifteen (15) days after the consummation of such Change in Control and the following certification by the Board of the occurrence of clauses (i) and (ii) above.

 

5. Termination of Employment; Severance Benefits. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2, the Executive’s employment hereunder shall terminate under the following circumstances:

 

(a) Death. If Executive’s dies during the Term, Executive’s employment hereunder shall immediately and automatically terminate.

 

(b) Disability.

 

(i) Company may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder due to Executive’s Disability during the Term by giving Executive thirty (30) days’ written notice of its intent to terminate, but in no event shall such termination be effective prior to the expiration of the time periods in the definition of “Disability.”

 

(ii) In the event of such termination for Disability, Executive will receive Executive’s Final Compensation. Company shall have no further obligation hereunder to Executive upon termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(b), including, specifically, that the provisions of Section 5(d) shall not apply.

 

(iii) If any question arises as to whether during any period Executive has a Disability as defined herein, Executive may, and at the request of Company shall, submit to a medical examination by a qualified, unbiased physician selected by Company and reasonably acceptable to Executive or Executive’s duly appointed guardian, if any, to determine whether Executive has a Disability, and such determination shall for the purposes of this Agreement be conclusive of the issue.

 

(c) By Company for Cause. Company may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, as defined in Section 11, at any time upon notice to Executive setting forth in reasonable detail the nature of such Cause. Upon the giving of notice of termination of Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, Executive will receive Executive’s Final Compensation. Except as provided herein, Company will have no further obligation to Executive upon termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(c). Any notice of termination of Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, or any notice to Executive regarding any event, condition or circumstance that, if not cured, if applicable, in accordance with the above, could give rise to a termination of Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, shall set forth in detail the applicable event(s), condition(s) or circumstance(s) constituting reason(s) or potential reason(s) for such termination hereunder.

 

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(d) By Company Other than for Cause or by Executive for Good Reason. Company may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder other than for Cause at any time upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to Executive and Executive may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder for Good Reason at any time upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to Company. In the event of a termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(d), in addition to the Final Compensation, Executive shall receivecontinuation of Executive’s Base Salary, at the rate in effect as of the date immediately preceding the date of termination, until the earlier of (x) the Term End Date and (y) the first anniversary of the date of termination (provided, however if the date of termination is after the first anniversary of the Start Date, the period pursuant to this subsection (y) shall be eighteen (18) months after the date of termination), payable in accordance with the Company’s regular payroll practices, less applicable withholdings, commencing at the conclusion of the period set forth in this Section 5(d), provided that the first installment of such payments shall include all amounts which would have been paid during the period between Executive’s date of termination and the date of such first installment.

 

(e) By Executive Other than for Good Reason. Executive may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder other than for Good Reason upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to Company; provided, that Company may, in its sole and absolute discretion, by written notice accelerate such date of termination. In the event of a termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(e), Executive will receive the Final Compensation. Company shall have no further obligation hereunder to Executive upon termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(e).

 

6. Effect of Termination.

 

(a) Upon termination of Executive’s employment hereunder and subject to the provisions of Section 5, Company’s entire obligation to Executive shall be payment of Final Compensation.

 

(b) In connection with cessation of Executive’s service as Chief Executive Officer of Company for any reason, except as may otherwise be requested by the Company in writing and agreed upon in writing by Executive, Executive shall be deemed to have resigned from any and all directorships, committee memberships, and any other positions Executive holds with the Company or any other member of the Group. Executive hereby agrees that no further action is required by Executive or any of the preceding to make the transitions and resignations provided for in this paragraph effective, but Executive nonetheless agrees to execute any documentation Company reasonably requests at the time to confirm it and to not reassume any such service or position without the written consent of Company.

 

(c) The provisions of this Section 6 shall apply to any termination of employment. Provisions of this Agreement will survive any termination if so provided herein or if necessary or desirable to accomplish the purposes of other surviving provisions, including, without limitation, the obligations of Executive under Sections 7, 9 and 10.

 

(e) Any termination of Executive’s employment with Company under this Agreement shall automatically be deemed to be simultaneous resignation of all other positions and titles (including any director positions) that Executive holds with Company and any Affiliate or subsidiary thereof. This Section 6(e) shall constitute a resignation notice for such purposes.

 

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(f) Upon termination of the Executive’s employment or upon the Company’s request at any other time, the Executive will deliver to the Company all of the Company’s property, equipment, and documents, together with all copies thereof, and any other material containing or disclosing any Intellectual Property or Confidential Information and certify in writing that the Executive has fully complied with the foregoing obligation. The Executive agrees that the Executive will not copy, delete, or alter any information contained upon any Company computer or Company equipment before the Executive returns it to the Company. In addition, if the Executive has used any personal computer, server, or email system to receive, store, review, prepare or transmit any Company information, including but not limited to, Confidential Information, the Executive agrees to provide the Company with a computer-usable copy of all such Confidential Information and then permanently delete and expunge such Confidential Information from those systems; and the Executive agrees to provide the Company access to the Executive’s system as reasonably requested to verify that the necessary copying and/or deletion is completed.

 

7. Confidential Information.

 

(a) Executive acknowledges that Company continually develops Confidential Information, that Executive may develop Confidential Information for Company and that Executive may learn of Confidential Information during the course of employment with Company. Executive will comply with the policies and procedures of Company for protecting Confidential Information and shall not disclose to any Person or use, other than as required by applicable law, regulation or process or for the proper performance of Executive’s duties and responsibilities to Company, any Confidential Information obtained by Executive incident to Executive’s employment or other association with Company. Executive understands that this restriction shall continue to apply after Executive’s employment terminates, regardless of the reason for such termination.

 

(b) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Section 7 to the contrary, nothing contained herein shall prevent Executive from disclosing any Confidential Information required by law, subpoena, court order or other legal process to be disclosed; provided, that, Executive shall give prompt written notice to Company of such requirement, disclose no more information than is so required and cooperate, at Company’s cost and expense, with any attempt by Company to obtain a protective order or similar treatment with respect to such information.

 

(c) Pursuant to the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016, Executive understands that:

 

(i) Executive may not be held criminally or civilly liable under any federal or state trade secret law for the disclosure of a trade secret that is made in confidence to a federal, state, or local government official, either directly or indirectly, or to an attorney and solely for the purpose of reporting or investigating a suspected violation of law; or is made in a complaint or other document that is filed under seal in a lawsuit or other proceeding; and

 

(ii) if Executive files a lawsuit for retaliation by Company for reporting a suspected violation of law Executive may disclose the employer’s trade secrets to Executive’s attorney and use the trade secret information in the court proceeding if Executive files any document containing the trade secret under seal and does not disclose the trade secret, except pursuant to court order.

 

8. Assignment of Rights to Intellectual Property. Executive shall promptly and fully disclose to Company all Intellectual Property developed for the benefit of Company in the course of Executive’s employment by Company. Executive hereby assigns and agrees to assign to Company (or as otherwise directed by Company) Executive’s full right, title and interest in and to all such Intellectual Property. Executive agrees to execute any and all applications for domestic and foreign patents, copyrights or other proprietary rights and to do such other acts (including without limitation the execution and delivery of instruments of further assurance or confirmation) requested by Company (at Company’s expense) to assign to Company the Intellectual Property developed for the benefit of Company in the course of Executive’s employment by Company and to permit Company to enforce any patents, copyrights or other proprietary rights to the Intellectual Property. Executive will not charge Company for time spent in complying with these obligations. All copyrightable works that Executive creates developed for the benefit of Company in the course of Executive’s employment by Company shall be considered “work made for hire.”

 

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9. Restricted Activities. Executive agrees that the restrictions on Executive’s activities during and after Executive’s employment set forth below are necessary to protect the goodwill, Confidential Information and other legitimate interests of Company and its successors and assigns:

 

(a) During the term of this Agreement and during the Restricted Period following termination of employment, Executive will not, without the prior written consent of Company, directly or indirectly, and whether as principal or investor or as an Executive, officer, director, manager, partner, consultant, agent, or otherwise, alone or in association with any other Person, firm, corporation, or other business organization, engage or otherwise become involved in a Competing Business (as defined below) in any country in which the Company conducted business during the Term; provided, however, that the provisions of this Section 9 shall apply solely to those activities of a Competing Business which are congruent with those activities with which Executive was personally involved or for which Executive was responsible while employed by Company or its subsidiaries during the twelve (12) month period preceding termination of Executive’s employment. This Section 9 will not be violated, however, by Executive’s investment of up to $100,000 in the aggregate in one or more publicly-traded companies that engage in a Competing Business. “Competing Business” means a business or enterprise (other than Company or its subsidiaries) engaged in online commerce or advertising in Southeast Asia and any other business directly competing with the business of the Company as currently conducted or otherwise conducted by the Company during the Term. “Restricted Period” means twelve (12) months.

 

(b) During the Term of this Agreement and during the Restricted Period (as defined above), Executive will not engage in any Wrongful Solicitation. A “Wrongful Solicitation” shall be deemed to occur when Executive directly or indirectly (except in the course of Executive’s employment with Company), for the purpose of conducting or engaging in a Competing Business, calls upon, solicits, advises or otherwise does, or attempts to do, business with any Person who is, or was, during the then most recent 12-month period, a customer of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or takes away or interferes or attempts to take away or interfere with any custom, trade, business, patronage or affairs of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or hires or attempts to hire any Person who is, or was during the most recent 12-month period, an Executive, officer, representative or agent of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or solicits, induces, or attempts to solicit or induce any Person who is an Executive, officer, representative or agent of Company or any of its subsidiaries to leave the employ of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or violate the terms of their contract, or any employment agreement, with it.

 

(c) It is expressly understood and agreed that although Executive and Company consider the restrictions contained in this Section 9 to be reasonable, if a final judicial determination is made by a court of competent jurisdiction that the time or territory or any other restriction contained in this Agreement is an unenforceable restriction against Executive, the provisions of this Agreement shall not be rendered void but shall be deemed amended to apply as to such maximum time and territory and to such maximum extent as the court may judicially determine or indicate to be enforceable. Alternatively, if any court of competent jurisdiction finds that any restriction contained in this Agreement is unenforceable, and such restriction cannot be amended so as to make it enforceable, such finding shall not affect the enforceability of any of the other restrictions contained herein.

 

(d) It is expressly understood by Executive that in the event of a violation of any period specified in this Section 9, such period shall be extended by a period of time equal to that period beginning with the commencement of any such violation and ending when such violation shall have been finally terminated in good faith.

 

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(e) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Section 9, Executive’s service pursuant to Section 3(f) shall not constitute a breach of this Section 9.

 

10. Enforcement of Covenants. Executive acknowledges that Executive has carefully read and considered all the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including the restraints imposed upon Executive pursuant to Sections 7, 8 and 9. Executive agrees that these restraints are necessary for the reasonable and proper protection of Company and its successors and assigns and that each and every one of the restraints is reasonable in respect to subject matter, length of time and geographic area. Executive further acknowledges that, were Executive to breach any of the covenants contained in Sections 7, 8 and 9, the damage to Company would be irreparable. Executive therefore agrees that Company, in addition to any other remedies available to it, shall be entitled to preliminary and permanent injunctive relief against any breach or threatened breach by Executive of any of the covenants herein, without any requirement to post a bond or similar security. The parties further agree that, in the event that any provision of Sections 7, 8 or 9 shall be determined by any court of competent jurisdiction to be unenforceable by reason of its being extended over too great a time, too large a geographic area or too great a range of activities, such provision shall be deemed to be modified to permit its enforcement to the maximum extent permitted by law.

 

11. Definitions. Words or phrases which are initially capitalized or are within quotation marks shall have the meanings provided in this Section and as provided elsewhere herein. For purposes of this Agreement, the following definitions apply:

 

(a) “$” refers to U.S. Dollars.

 

(b) “Affiliate” means, with respect to any specified Person, 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 either (i) direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of such Person, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by agreement or otherwise or (ii) vote at least fifty percent (50%) or more of the securities having voting power for the election of a majority of the directors (or Persons performing similar functions) of such Person.

 

(c) “Cause” means if Executive is discharged by Company on account of the occurrence of one or more of the following events:

 

(i) Executive’s continued refusal or failure to perform (other than by reason of Disability) Executive’s material duties and responsibilities to Company if such refusal or failure is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice of such refusal or failure by Company to Executive, or Executive’s continued refusal or failure to follow any reasonable lawful direction of the Board if such refusal or failure is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice of such refusal or failure by Company to Executive;

 

(ii) a material breach of this Agreement (other than Sections 7, 8 and 9) by Executive that, if capable of being cured, is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice of such breach by Company to Executive;

 

(iii) an intentional and material breach of Sections 7, 8 and 9 hereof by Executive;

 

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(iv) willful, grossly negligent or unlawful misconduct by Executive which causes material harm to Company or its reputation;

 

(v) any conduct engaged in by Executive that is materially detrimental to the business or reputation of Company as determined by the Board in good faith using its reasonable business judgment that is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice from Company to Executive;

 

(vi) Company is directed in writing by regulatory or governmental authorities to terminate the employment of Executive or Executive engages in activities that (i) are not approved or authorized by the Board, and (ii) cause actions to be taken by regulatory or governmental authorities that have a material adverse effect on Company; or

 

(vii) a conviction, plea of guilty, or plea of nolo contendere by Executive, of or with respect to a criminal offense which is a felony or other crime involving dishonesty, disloyalty, fraud, embezzlement, theft or similar action(s) (including, without limitation, acceptance of bribes, kickbacks or self-dealing), or the material breach of Executive’s fiduciary duties with respect to Company.

 

(d) “Change in Control” means the occurrence, in a single transaction or in a series of related transactions, of any one or more of the following events:

 

(i) A transaction or series of transactions (other than an offering of Common Stock to the general public through a registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission) whereby any “Person” or related “group” of “persons” (as such terms are used in Sections 13(d) and 14(d)(2) of the Exchange Act) (other than the Company, any of its subsidiaries, an Executive benefit plan maintained by the Company or any of its subsidiaries or a “Person” that, prior to such transaction, directly or indirectly controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, the Company) directly or indirectly acquires beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Rule 13(d)(3) under the Exchange Act) of securities of the Company possessing more than fifty percent (50%) of the total combined voting power of the Company’s securities outstanding immediately after such acquisition;

 

(ii) The consummation by the Company (whether directly involving the Company or indirectly involving the Company through one or more intermediaries) of (x) a merger, consolidation, reorganization, or business combination or (y) a sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets in any single transaction or series of related transactions:

 

(A) which results in the Company’s voting securities outstanding immediately before the transaction continuing to represent (either by remaining outstanding or by being converted into voting securities of the Company or the Person that, as a result of the transaction, controls, directly or indirectly, the Company or owns, directly or indirectly, all or substantially all of the Company’s assets or otherwise succeeds to the business of the Company (the Company or such Person, the “Successor Entity”) directly or indirectly, at least a majority of the combined voting power of the Successor Entity’s outstanding voting securities immediately after the transaction, and

 

(B) after which no Person or group beneficially owns voting securities representing fifty percent (50%) or more of the combined voting power of the Successor Entity; provided, however, that no Person or group shall be treated for purposes of this Section as beneficially owning fifty percent (50%) or more of the combined voting power of the Successor Entity solely as a result of the voting power held in the Company prior to the consummation of the transaction.

 

A transaction shall not constitute a Change in Control if its sole purpose is to change the province of the Company’s incorporation or to create a holding company that will be owned in substantially the same proportions by the persons who held the Company’s securities immediately before such transaction.

 

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(e) “Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

 

(f) “Company” has the meaning ascribed to it in the preamble of this Agreement.

 

(g) “Company Group” shall mean the Company together with any of its direct or indirect subsidiaries.

 

(h) “Confidential Information” means any and all nonpublic information of Company. Confidential Information includes, without limitation, such information relating to (i) the development, research, testing, manufacturing, marketing and financial activities of Company, (ii) the Services, (iii) the costs, sources of supply, financial performance and strategic and/or business plans of Company, (iv) the identity and special needs of the customers and prospective customers of Company, and (v) the people and organizations with whom Company has business relationships and those relationships. Confidential Information also includes any information that Company has received, or may receive hereafter, belonging to customers or others with any understanding, express or implied, that the information would not be disclosed. Notwithstanding the foregoing, “Confidential Information” does not include (x) any information that is or becomes generally known to the industry or the public through no wrongful act of Executive or any representative of Executive and (y) any information that is made legitimately available to Executive by a third party without breach of any confidentiality obligation.

 

(i) “Disability” means Executive’s inability, due to any illness, injury, accident or condition of either a physical or psychological nature, to substantially perform Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder for a period of one hundred twenty (120) consecutive days, or for any one hundred and eighty (180) days during any period of three hundred and sixty-five (365) consecutive calendar days, exclusive of any leave Executive may take under the Family and Medical Leave Act, 29 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. (“FMLA”) or as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq. (“ADA”).

 

(j) “Final Compensation” means the amount equal to the sum of (i) the Base Salary earned but not paid through the date of termination of employment, payable not later than the next scheduled payroll date, (ii) any business and related expenses and allowances incurred by Executive or to which Executive is entitled under Section 4(g) but unreimbursed on the date of termination of employment; provided that with respect to business expenses unreimbursed under Section 4(g), such expenses and required substantiation and documentation are submitted within one hundred eighty (180) days of termination in the case of termination on account of Executive’s death, or thirty (30) days on account of termination for any reason other than death, and that such expenses are reimbursable under Company’s applicable reimbursement policy, and (iii) any other supplemental compensation, insurance, retirement or other benefits due and payable or otherwise required to be provided under Section 4 in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plan or agreement.

 

(k) “Good Reason” means, without Executive’s express written consent, (i) a material reduction in the Base Salary, then in effect, except a material diminution generally affecting the members of the Company’s management, (ii) a material reduction in job title, position or responsibility or (iii) a material breach of any term or condition contained in this Agreement, or (iv) a relocation of Executive’s principal worksite that is not in Singapore. However, none of the foregoing events or conditions will constitute “Good Reason” unless (i) Executive provides Company with written notice of the existence of Good Reason within ninety (90) days following the occurrence thereof, (ii) Company does not reverse or otherwise cure the event or condition within thirty (30) days of receiving that written notice, and (iii) Executive resigns Executive’s employment within thirty (30) days following the expiration of that cure period.

 

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(l) “Intellectual Property” means inventions, discoveries, developments, methods, processes, compositions, works, concepts and ideas (whether or not patentable or copyrightable or constituting trade secrets) conceived, made, created, developed or reduced to practice by Executive (whether alone or with others, whether or not during normal business hours or on or off Company premises) during Executive’s employment that relate to either the Services or any prospective activity of Company or that make use of Confidential Information or any of the equipment or facilities of Company.

 

(m) “Person” means an individual, a corporation, a limited liability company, an association, a partnership, an estate, a trust and any other entity or organization, other than Company.

 

(n) “Remuneration Committee” shall mean the committee of the Board designated to make remuneration decisions relating to senior executive officers of the Company.

 

(o) “Sale of Company” means the sale of Company to an independent third party or group of independent third parties pursuant to which such party or parties acquire (i) equity interests possessing the voting power under normal circumstances to elect a majority of the Board of Directors or similar governing body of Company (whether by merger, consolidation or sale or transfer of such equity interests), or (ii) all or substantially all of Company’s assets determined on a consolidated basis.

 

(p) “Services” means all services planned, researched, developed, tested, manufactured, sold, licensed, leased or otherwise distributed or put into use by Company, together with all products provided or planned by Company, during Executive’s employment.

 

12. Withholding. All payments made by Company under this Agreement may be reduced by any tax or other amounts required to be withheld by Company under applicable law or by any amounts authorized in writing by Executive.

 

13. Assignment. Neither Company nor Executive may make any assignment of this Agreement or any interest herein, by operation of law or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the other; provided, however, that Company may assign its rights and obligations under this Agreement without the consent of Executive in the event of a Sale of Company. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon Company and Executive, their respective successors, executors, administrators, heirs and permitted assigns.

 

14. Compliance with Code Section 409A.

 

(a) Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, Executive’s employment will be deemed to have terminated on the date of Executive “separation from service” (within the meaning of Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(h)) with Company.

 

(b) It is intended that this Agreement will comply with Section 409A of the Code, and any regulations and guideline issued thereunder (“Section 409A”) to the extent that any compensation and benefits provided hereunder constitute deferred compensation subject to Section 409A. This Agreement shall be interpreted on a basis consistent with this intent. The parties will negotiate in good faith to amend this Agreement as necessary to comply with Section 409A in a manner that preserves the original intent of the parties to the extent reasonably possible. No action or failure to act, pursuant to this Section 14 shall subject Company to any claim, liability, or expense, and Company shall not have any obligation to indemnify or otherwise protect Executive from the obligation to pay any taxes pursuant to Section 409A of the Code.

 

(c) For purposes of the application of Treas. Reg. § 1.409A-1(b)(4)(or any successor provision), each payment in a series of payments will be deemed a separate payment.

 

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(d) Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Agreement by reason of Executive’s separation from service during a period in which Executive is a “specified Executive” (as defined under Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder), then, subject to any permissible acceleration of payment by Company under Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):

 

(i) if the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, Executive’s right to receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be delayed until the earlier of Executive’s death or the first day of the seventh month following Executive’s separation from service; and

 

(ii) if the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month period immediately following Executive’s separation from service will be accumulated and Executive’s right to receive payment or distribution of such accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of Executive’s death or the first day of the seventh month following Executive’s separation from service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to Executive and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining payments or distributions will resume.

 

This Section 14(d) should not be construed to prevent the application of Treas. Reg. § 1.409A-1(b)(9)(iii)(or any successor provision) to amounts payable hereunder (or any portion thereof).

 

15. Golden Parachute Limitation. Notwithstanding anything in this Section or elsewhere in this Agreement to the contrary, in the event the payments and benefits payable hereunder to or on behalf of Executive (which the parties agree will not include any portion of payments allocated to the non-competition and non-solicitation provisions of Section 9) that are classified as payments of reasonable compensation for purposes of Section 280G of the Code, when added to all other amounts and benefits payable to or on behalf of Executive, would result in the loss of a deduction under Code Section 280G, or the imposition of an excise tax under Code Section 4999, the amounts and benefits payable hereunder shall be reduced to such extent as may be necessary to avoid such loss of deduction or imposition of excise tax. In applying this principle, the reduction shall be made in a manner consistent with the requirements of Code Section 409A and where two or more economically equivalent amounts are subject to reduction, but payable at different times, such amounts shall be reduced on a pro-rata basis. All calculations required to be made under this subsection will be made by the Company’s independent public accountants, subject to the right of Executive’s professional advisors to review the same. The parties recognize that the actual implementation of the provisions of this subsection are complex and agree to deal with each other in good faith to resolve any questions or disagreements arising hereunder.

 

16. Successors

 

(a) Company’s Successors. Any successor to the Company (whether direct or indirect and whether by purchase, merger, consolidation, liquidation or otherwise) to all or substantially all of the Company’s business and/or assets shall assume the obligations under this Agreement and agree expressly to perform the obligations under this Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent as the Company would be required to perform such obligations in the absence of a succession. For all purposes under this Agreement, the term “Company” shall include any successor• to the Company’s business and/or assets which executes and delivers the assumption agreement described in this Section or which becomes bound by the terms of this Agreement by operation of law.

 

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(b) Executive’s Successors. The terms of this Agreement and all rights of Executive hereunder shall inure to the benefit of, and be enforceable by, Executive’s personal or legal representatives, executors, administrators, successors, heirs, distributees, devisees and legatees.

 

17. Indemnification. Company will indemnify Executive to the fullest extent permitted by law, for all amounts (including, without limitation, judgments, fines, settlement payments, expenses and reasonable out-of-pocket attorneys’ fees) incurred or paid by Executive in connection with any action, suit, investigation or proceeding, or threatened action, suit, investigation or proceeding, arising out of or relating to the performance by Executive of services for, or the acting by Executive as a director, officer or Executive of, Company, or any subsidiary of Company. Any fees or other necessary expenses incurred by Executive in defending any such action, suit, investigation or proceeding shall be paid by Company in advance, subject to Company’s right to seek repayment from Executive if a determination is made that Executive was not entitled to indemnification.

 

18. Severability. If any portion or provision of this Agreement shall to any extent be declared illegal or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, then the remainder of this Agreement, or the application of such portion or provision in circumstances other than those as to which it is so declared illegal or unenforceable, shall not be affected thereby, and each portion and provision of this Agreement shall be valid and enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law.

 

19. Waiver. No waiver of any provision hereof shall be effective unless made in writing and signed by the waiving party. The failure of either party to require the performance of any term or obligation of this Agreement, or the waiver by either party of any breach of this Agreement, shall not prevent any subsequent enforcement of such term or obligation or be deemed a waiver of any subsequent breach.

 

20. Survival. Sections 7 through 30 shall survive and continue in full force in accordance with their terms notwithstanding the termination of Executive’s employment (and hence the Term of this Agreement) for any reason.

 

21. Notices. Any and all notices, requests, demands and other communications provided for by this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be effective when delivered in Person, with respect to notices delivered personally, or upon confirmed receipt when delivered by facsimile or deposited with a reputable, nationally recognized overnight courier service and addressed or faxed to Executive at Executive’s last known address on the books of Company or, in the case of Company, at its principal place of business, attention: Secretary, Board of Directors.

 

22. Entire Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties (including with respect to Company, its successors and assigns) with respect to Executive’s employment and supersedes all prior communications, agreements and understandings, written or oral, with respect to the terms and conditions of Executive’s employment.

 

23. Amendment. This Agreement may be amended or modified only by a written instrument signed by Executive and by an expressly authorized representative of Company.

 

24. Headings. The headings and captions in this Agreement are for convenience only and in no way define or describe the scope or content of any provision of this Agreement.

 

25. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument. Furthermore, the delivery of a copy of such signature by facsimile transmission or other electronic exchange methodology shall constitute a valid and binding execution and delivery of this Agreement by such party, and such electronic copy shall constitute an enforceable original document. Counterpart signatures need not be on the same page and shall be deemed effective upon receipt.

 

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26. Additional Obligations. Without implication that the contrary would otherwise be true, Executive’s obligations under Sections 7 through 10 are in addition to, and not in limitation of, any obligations that Executive may have under applicable law (including any law regarding trade secrets, duty of loyalty, fiduciary duty, unfair competition, unjust enrichment, slander, libel, conversion, misappropriation and fraud).

 

27. Confidentiality. The parties acknowledge and agree that this Agreement and each of its provisions are and shall be treated strictly confidential. During the Term and thereafter, Executive shall not disclose any terms of this Agreement to any Person or entity without the prior written consent of Company, with the exception of Executive’s tax, legal or accounting advisors or for legitimate business purposes of Executive, or as otherwise required by law.

 

28. No Rule of Construction. This Agreement shall be construed to be neither against nor in favor of any party hereto based upon any party’s role in drafting this Agreement, but rather in accordance with the fair meaning hereof.

 

29. Governing Law. The validity, interpretation, construction and performance of this Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the Nevada.

 

30. WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL. EXECUTIVE AND COMPANY EXPRESSLY WAIVE ANY RIGHT EITHER MAY HAVE TO A JURY TRIAL CONCERNING ANY CIVIL ACTION THAT MAY ARISE FROM THIS AGREEMENT, OR THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE PARTIES HERETO.

 

31. Conditions. The Executive acknowledges and agrees that in signing this Agreement, and providing the Company with the necessary documentation to perform the checks required for the Executive’s role and with references, the Executive is providing consent to the Company or its agent, to performs such checks and contact the references the Executive provided to the Company.

 

32. Prior Restrictions. By signing below, the Executive represents that the Executive is not bound by the terms of any agreement with any Person which restricts in any way the Executive’s hiring by the Company and the performance of the Executive’s expected job duties; the Executive also represents that, during the Executive’s employment with the Company, the Executive shall not disclose or make use of any confidential information of any other persons or entities in violation of any of their applicable policies or agreements and/or applicable law.

 

33. Independent Legal Counsel. By signing below, the Executive hereby acknowledges that the Executive has been encouraged to obtain independent legal advice regarding the execution of this Agreement, and that the Executive has either obtained such advice or voluntarily chosen not to do so, and hereby waives any objections or claims the Executive may make resulting from any failure on the Executive’s part to obtain such advice.

 

34. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which when executed shall be deemed to be an original but all of which taken together shall constitute one and the same agreement. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page to this Agreement by electronic transmission, including in portable document format (.pdf), shall be deemed as effective as delivery of an original executed counterpart of this Agreement.

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed by Company (by its duly authorized representative) and by Executive, as of the date first above written.

 

SOCIETY PASS INCORPORATED  
   
   
By:    
  Name:  Peter DiChiara  
  Title: Corporate Secretary  
   
EXECUTIVE:  
   
Raynauld Liang  
   
By:    

 

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EXHIBIT A

 

Release of Claims

 

FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION OF the benefits to be provided me in connection with the termination of my employment, as set forth in that certain Employment Agreement, dated as of October [*], 2023 (the “Agreement”), between me and Society Pass Incorporated (the “Company”), or under any severance pay plan applicable to me, which benefits are conditioned on my signing this Release of Claims and to which I am not otherwise entitled, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, I, on my own behalf and on behalf of my heirs, executors, administrators, beneficiaries, representatives and assigns, and all others connected with me, hereby release and forever discharge Company and any of its subsidiaries and Affiliates (as that term is defined in Section 11 of the Agreement) and all of their respective past, present and future officers, directors, trustees, equity holders, Executives, agents, managers, joint venturers, representatives, successors and assigns, and all others connected with any of them (collectively, the “Released Parties”), both individually and in their official capacities, from any and all causes of action, rights and claims of any type or description, known or unknown, which I have had in the past, now have, or might now have, through the date of my signing of this Release of Claims, in any way resulting from, arising out of or connected with my employment by Company or any of its Affiliates or the termination of that employment, including, but not limited to, any allegation, claim or violation arising under: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; the Civil Rights Act of 1991; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended (including the Older Worker Benefit Protection Act); the Equal Pay Act of 1963, as amended; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993; the Worker Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act; Executive Retirement Income Security Act of 1974; the Fair Labor Standards Act; any applicable Executive Orders; or their state or local counterparts; or under any other federal, state or local civil or human rights law, or under any other federal, state or local law, regulation or ordinance; or under any public policy, contract or tort, or under common law; or arising under any policies, practices or procedures of Company; or any claim for wrongful discharge, breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress or defamation; or any claim for costs, fees or other expenses, including attorneys’ fees incurred in these matters (all of the foregoing collectively referred to herein as “Claims”), other than (i) the right to payment of any vested or accrued benefits under any supplemental compensation, insurance, retirement and/or other benefit plan or agreement applicable to Executive, (ii) the right to payment of any amounts owed to me by Company pursuant to Section 5 of the Agreement, (iii) any rights under applicable workers compensation or unemployment compensation laws, (iv) any rights that survive termination of my employment pursuant to an option grant agreement or certificate to purchase Company’s (or an Affiliate’s) capital stock, (v) any rights with respect to Company’s (or an Affiliate’s) capital stock owned by Executive or (vi) any rights to indemnification under the Agreement, Company’s by-laws or any other applicable law.

 

In signing this Release of Claims, I acknowledge my understanding that I may not sign it prior to the termination of my employment, but that I may consider the terms of this Release of Claims for up to twenty-one (21) days (or such longer period as Company may specify) from the later of the date my employment with Company terminates or the date I receive this Release of Claims. I also acknowledge that I am advised by Company and its Affiliates to seek the advice of an attorney prior to signing this Release of Claims; that I have had sufficient time to consider this Release of Claims and to consult with an attorney, if I wished to do so, or to consult with any other Person of my choosing before signing; and that I am signing this Release of Claims voluntarily and with a full understanding of its terms.

 

I represent that I have not filed against the Released Parties any complaints, charges, or lawsuits arising out of my employment, or any other matter arising on or prior to the date of this Release of Claims, and covenant and agree that I will never individually or with any Person file, or commence the filing of, any charges, lawsuits, complaints or proceedings with any governmental agency, or against the Released Parties with respect to any of the matters released by me pursuant to this Release of Claims.

 

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I further acknowledge that, in signing this Release of Claims, I have not relied on any promises or representations, express or implied, that are not set forth expressly in the Agreement. I understand that I may revoke this Release of Claims at any time within seven (7) days of the date of my signing by written notice to the Secretary, Board of Directors of Company (or such other Person as Company may specify by notice to me given in accordance with the Agreement) and that this Release of Claims will take effect only upon the expiration of such seven-day revocation period and only if I have not timely revoked it.

 

Intending to be legally bound, I have signed this Release of Claims as of the date written below.

 

Signature:  
     
Name:  Raynauld Liang  
     
Date    

 

 

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EX-10.3 4 ea186434ex10-3_society.htm FORM OF EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT BY AND BETWEEN THE COMPANY AND YEE SIONG TAN

Exhibit 10.3

 

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

 

This Employment Agreement, dated as of October [*], 2023 (this “Agreement”), is made and entered into by and between Society Pass Incorporated, a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), and Yee Siong Tan, an adult individual (the “Executive”). Terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in Section 11.

 

RECITALS

 

WHEREAS, subject to the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth, Company wishes to enter into an employment agreement with the Executive as Chief Financial Officer and Executive wishes to enter into an employment contract with the Company for further employment by Company as its Chief Financial Officer.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing premises and the mutual promises, terms, provisions, and conditions set forth in this Agreement, the adequacy and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as follows:

 

AGREEMENT

 

1. Employment. Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, Company hereby offers, and Executive hereby accepts continued employment with Company, as of the date first above written (the “Start Date”).

 

2. Term. Subject to Section 5, Executive’s employment under the terms of this Agreement be for a period (the “Term”) commencing on the Start Date and continuing until the fifth (5th) anniversary of the Start Date (the “Term End Date”), provided, however, that unless a party has given the other party written notice at least ninety (90) days prior to the Term End Date (or any anniversary of the Term End Date) that such party does not agree to renew this Agreement, the term of this Agreement and the Term shall be deemed renewed for a term ending one (1) year subsequent to the Term End Date (or anniversary of the Term End Date). The parties may terminate this Agreement and Executive’s employment hereunder during the Term in accordance with, and subject to the provisions of, Section 5.

 

3. Capacity and Performance.

 

(a) During the Term, the Executive shall be employed by Company as its Chief Financial Officer. Executive shall perform such duties and responsibilities as directed by the Chief Executive Officer consistent with Executive’s position on behalf of Company.

 

(b) Executive shall devote all of his necessary and required attention, skill, and best efforts to the performance of his duties under this Agreement during the Term of Employment, and shall not perform any activity that (x) conflicts with the interests of the Company or any other member of the Company Group, (y) interferes with the proper and efficient performance of Executive’s duties for the Company, or (z) interferes with Executive’s exercise of judgment in the Company’s best interests. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing herein shall preclude Executive from (i) serving, with the prior written consent of the Board, as a member of the board of directors or advisory board (or the equivalent in the case of a non-corporate entity) of a noncompeting for-profit business and one or more charitable organizations, (ii) engaging in charitable activities and community affairs, and (iii) managing Executive’s personal investments and affairs; provided, however, that the activities set out in clauses (i), (ii), and (iii) shall be limited by Executive so as not to materially interfere, individually or in the aggregate, with the performance of his duties and responsibilities hereunder.

 

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(c) Executive’s employment with Company shall be exclusive with respect to the Business of Company. Accordingly, during the Term, Executive shall devote Executive’s necessary business time and Executive’s best efforts, business judgment, skill and knowledge to the advancement of the business and interests of Company and the discharge of Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder, except for permitted vacation (and other paid time off) periods, reasonable periods of illness or incapacity, and reasonable and customary time spent on civic, charitable and religious activities, in each case such activities shall not interfere in any material respect with Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder.

 

(d) During the Term, the Executive will report directly to the Chief Executive Officer.

 

(e) Executive shall be employed to perform his duties under this Agreement at any location or locations as may be mutually agreeable between the Executive and Company (including reasonable provisions during the COVID-19 national public health emergency).

 

4. Compensation and Benefits.

 

(a) Base Salary. For services performed by Executive under this Agreement, Company shall pay Executive an annual base salary during the Term at the rate of $150,000 per year, minus applicable withholdings and deductions, payable at the same times as salaries are payable to other executives of Company (the “Base Salary”). During the Term, the Base Salary shall be reviewed by the Remuneration Committee and/or the Board of Directors (the “Board”) each year, and the Board may, from time to time, increase such Base Salary and any reference to “Base Salary” herein shall refer to such Base Salary, as increased.

 

(b) Annual Cash Bonus. For each fiscal year of the Company during the Term and at the discretion of the Board and/or Remuneration Committee, the Company shall afford Executive the opportunity to earn an incentive bonus (“Bonus”) as described in this Section 4(b). The aggregate target Bonus payable to Executive under such program(s) shall equal a minimum of twenty five percent (25%) of the Base Salary for such fiscal year and shall be payable to the extent the applicable performance goals are achieved (which goals and payment matrices shall be set by the Remuneration Committee of the Board in its discretion). The amount of the Bonus will be determined by certification by the Board that the applicable goals have been achieved, and the Board shall promptly provide such certification following achievement of the applicable goals. The amount payable under this Section 4(b) shall be paid by the seventh (7th) day following the approval of the annual audited financial statements by the Board or its audit committee, as applicable, for the calendar year in which the Bonus is earned or if later, the fifteenth day of the third month following the end of the Company’s fiscal year in which the Bonus is earned.

 

(c) Equity Award. The Executive shall be issued 50,000 incentive stock options with an exercise price equal to the closing market price of the Company’s common stock as of the date of this Agreement.

 

(d) Annual Equity Awards. In addition to Section 4(c), for each fiscal year of the Company during the Term, Executive shall be entitled to participate in all long-term incentive plans (including any equity incentive plan) sponsored by the Company either now or in the future, on terms and conditions similar to those applicable to other executive officers of the Company generally. The amount and terms of the long-term incentive awards awarded to the Executive shall be set by the Remuneration Committee in its discretion after consultation with a compensation consultant, if any, retained by the Remuneration Committee.

 

(e) Other Executive Benefits. During the Term, the Executive shall be entitled to participate in all Executive benefit plans from time to time generally in effect for Company’s Executives (collectively, “Benefit Plans”). Such participation and receipt of benefits under any such Benefit Plans shall be on the same terms (including cost-sharing between Company and Executive) as are applicable to other Company Executives and shall be subject to the terms of the applicable plan documents and generally applicable Company policies. Company may alter, modify, add to or delete the Benefit Plans in a manner nondiscriminatory to Executive at any time in accordance with applicable plan rules

 

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(f) Vacation. The Executive shall be entitled to an annual vacation of twenty (20) days per full calendar year of his employment with the Company hereunder plus all national holidays in Singapore. The Executive shall not be paid for any unused vacation.

 

(g) Business and Travel Expenses. Company shall pay or reimburse Executive for all reasonable, customary and necessary business expenses (including cell phone, travel, lodging, and entertainment expenses) which are correctly documented and incurred or paid by Executive in the performance of Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder, subject to the rules, regulations, and procedures of Company and in effect from time to time.

 

5. Termination of Employment; Severance Benefits. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2, the Executive’s employment hereunder shall terminate under the following circumstances:

 

(a) Death. If Executive’s dies during the Term, Executive’s employment hereunder shall immediately and automatically terminate.

 

(b) Disability.

 

(i) Company may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder due to Executive’s Disability during the Term by giving Executive thirty (30) days’ written notice of its intent to terminate, but in no event shall such termination be effective prior to the expiration of the time periods in the definition of “Disability.”

 

(ii) In the event of such termination for Disability, Executive will receive Executive’s Final Compensation. Company shall have no further obligation hereunder to Executive upon termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(b), including, specifically, that the provisions of Section 5(d) shall not apply.

 

(iii) If any question arises as to whether during any period Executive has a Disability as defined herein, Executive may, and at the request of Company shall, submit to a medical examination by a qualified, unbiased physician selected by Company and reasonably acceptable to Executive or Executive’s duly appointed guardian, if any, to determine whether Executive has a Disability, and such determination shall for the purposes of this Agreement be conclusive of the issue.

 

(c) By Company for Cause. Company may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, as defined in Section 11, at any time upon notice to Executive setting forth in reasonable detail the nature of such Cause. Upon the giving of notice of termination of Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, Executive will receive Executive’s Final Compensation. Except as provided herein, Company will have no further obligation to Executive upon termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(c). Any notice of termination of Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, or any notice to Executive regarding any event, condition or circumstance that, if not cured, if applicable, in accordance with the above, could give rise to a termination of Executive’s employment hereunder for Cause, shall set forth in detail the applicable event(s), condition(s) or circumstance(s) constituting reason(s) or potential reason(s) for such termination hereunder.

 

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(d) By Company Other than for Cause or by Executive for Good Reason. Company may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder other than for Cause at any time upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to Executive and Executive may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder for Good Reason at any time upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to Company. In the event of a termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(d), in addition to the Final Compensation, Executive shall receive continuation of Executive’s Base Salary, at the rate in effect as of the date immediately preceding the date of termination, until the earlier of (x) the Term End Date and (y) the first anniversary of the date of termination (provided, however if the date of termination is after the first anniversary of the Start Date, the period pursuant to this subsection (y) shall be eighteen (18) months after the date of termination), payable in accordance with the Company’s regular payroll practices, less applicable withholdings, commencing at the conclusion of the period set forth in this Section 5(d), provided that the first installment of such payments shall include all amounts which would have been paid during the period between Executive’s date of termination and the date of such first installment.

  

(e) By Executive Other than for Good Reason. Executive may terminate Executive’s employment hereunder other than for Good Reason upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to Company; provided, that Company may, in its sole and absolute discretion, by written notice accelerate such date of termination. In the event of a termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(e), Executive will receive the Final Compensation. Company shall have no further obligation hereunder to Executive upon termination of Executive’s employment under this Section 5(e).

 

6. Effect of Termination.

 

(a) Upon termination of Executive’s employment hereunder and subject to the provisions of Section 5, Company’s entire obligation to Executive shall be payment of Final Compensation.

 

(b) In connection with cessation of Executive’s service as Chief Financial Officer of Company for any reason, except as may otherwise be requested by the Company in writing and agreed upon in writing by Executive, Executive shall be deemed to have resigned from any and all directorships, committee memberships, and any other positions Executive holds with the Company or any other member of the Group. Executive hereby agrees that no further action is required by Executive or any of the preceding to make the transitions and resignations provided for in this paragraph effective, but Executive nonetheless agrees to execute any documentation Company reasonably requests at the time to confirm it and to not reassume any such service or position without the written consent of Company.

 

(c) The provisions of this Section 6 shall apply to any termination of employment. Provisions of this Agreement will survive any termination if so provided herein or if necessary or desirable to accomplish the purposes of other surviving provisions, including, without limitation, the obligations of Executive under Sections 7, 9 and 10.

 

(e) Any termination of Executive’s employment with Company under this Agreement shall automatically be deemed to be simultaneous resignation of all other positions and titles (including any director positions) that Executive holds with Company and any Affiliate or subsidiary thereof. This Section 6(e) shall constitute a resignation notice for such purposes.

 

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(f) Upon termination of the Executive’s employment or upon the Company’s request at any other time, the Executive will deliver to the Company all of the Company’s property, equipment, and documents, together with all copies thereof, and any other material containing or disclosing any Intellectual Property or Confidential Information and certify in writing that the Executive has fully complied with the foregoing obligation. The Executive agrees that the Executive will not copy, delete, or alter any information contained upon any Company computer or Company equipment before the Executive returns it to the Company. In addition, if the Executive has used any personal computer, server, or email system to receive, store, review, prepare or transmit any Company information, including but not limited to, Confidential Information, the Executive agrees to provide the Company with a computer-usable copy of all such Confidential Information and then permanently delete and expunge such Confidential Information from those systems; and the Executive agrees to provide the Company access to the Executive’s system as reasonably requested to verify that the necessary copying and/or deletion is completed.

 

7. Confidential Information.

 

(a) Executive acknowledges that Company continually develops Confidential Information, that Executive may develop Confidential Information for Company and that Executive may learn of Confidential Information during the course of employment with Company. Executive will comply with the policies and procedures of Company for protecting Confidential Information and shall not disclose to any Person or use, other than as required by applicable law, regulation or process or for the proper performance of Executive’s duties and responsibilities to Company, any Confidential Information obtained by Executive incident to Executive’s employment or other association with Company. Executive understands that this restriction shall continue to apply after Executive’s employment terminates, regardless of the reason for such termination.

 

(b) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Section 7 to the contrary, nothing contained herein shall prevent Executive from disclosing any Confidential Information required by law, subpoena, court order or other legal process to be disclosed; provided, that, Executive shall give prompt written notice to Company of such requirement, disclose no more information than is so required and cooperate, at Company’s cost and expense, with any attempt by Company to obtain a protective order or similar treatment with respect to such information.

 

(c) Pursuant to the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016, Executive understands that:

 

(i) Executive may not be held criminally or civilly liable under any federal or state trade secret law for the disclosure of a trade secret that is made in confidence to a federal, state, or local government official, either directly or indirectly, or to an attorney and solely for the purpose of reporting or investigating a suspected violation of law; or is made in a complaint or other document that is filed under seal in a lawsuit or other proceeding; and

 

(ii) if Executive files a lawsuit for retaliation by Company for reporting a suspected violation of law Executive may disclose the employer’s trade secrets to Executive’s attorney and use the trade secret information in the court proceeding if Executive files any document containing the trade secret under seal and does not disclose the trade secret, except pursuant to court order.

 

8. Assignment of Rights to Intellectual Property. Executive shall promptly and fully disclose to Company all Intellectual Property developed for the benefit of Company in the course of Executive’s employment by Company. Executive hereby assigns and agrees to assign to Company (or as otherwise directed by Company) Executive’s full right, title and interest in and to all such Intellectual Property. Executive agrees to execute any and all applications for domestic and foreign patents, copyrights or other proprietary rights and to do such other acts (including without limitation the execution and delivery of instruments of further assurance or confirmation) requested by Company (at Company’s expense) to assign to Company the Intellectual Property developed for the benefit of Company in the course of Executive’s employment by Company and to permit Company to enforce any patents, copyrights or other proprietary rights to the Intellectual Property. Executive will not charge Company for time spent in complying with these obligations. All copyrightable works that Executive creates developed for the benefit of Company in the course of Executive’s employment by Company shall be considered “work made for hire.”

 

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9. Restricted Activities. Executive agrees that the restrictions on Executive’s activities during and after Executive’s employment set forth below are necessary to protect the goodwill, Confidential Information and other legitimate interests of Company and its successors and assigns:

 

(a) During the term of this Agreement and during the Restricted Period following termination of employment, Executive will not, without the prior written consent of Company, directly or indirectly, and whether as principal or investor or as an Executive, officer, director, manager, partner, consultant, agent, or otherwise, alone or in association with any other Person, firm, corporation, or other business organization, engage or otherwise become involved in a Competing Business (as defined below) in any country in which the Company conducted business during the Term; provided, however, that the provisions of this Section 9 shall apply solely to those activities of a Competing Business which are congruent with those activities with which Executive was personally involved or for which Executive was responsible while employed by Company or its subsidiaries during the twelve (12) month period preceding termination of Executive’s employment. This Section 9 will not be violated, however, by Executive’s investment of up to $100,000 in the aggregate in one or more publicly-traded companies that engage in a Competing Business. “Competing Business” means a business or enterprise (other than Company or its subsidiaries) engaged in online commerce or advertising in Southeast Asia and any other business directly competing with the business of the Company as currently conducted or otherwise conducted by the Company during the Term. “Restricted Period” means twelve (12) months.

 

(b) During the Term of this Agreement and during the Restricted Period (as defined above), Executive will not engage in any Wrongful Solicitation. A “Wrongful Solicitation” shall be deemed to occur when Executive directly or indirectly (except in the course of Executive’s employment with Company), for the purpose of conducting or engaging in a Competing Business, calls upon, solicits, advises or otherwise does, or attempts to do, business with any Person who is, or was, during the then most recent 12-month period, a customer of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or takes away or interferes or attempts to take away or interfere with any custom, trade, business, patronage or affairs of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or hires or attempts to hire any Person who is, or was during the most recent 12-month period, an Executive, officer, representative or agent of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or solicits, induces, or attempts to solicit or induce any Person who is an Executive, officer, representative or agent of Company or any of its subsidiaries to leave the employ of Company or any of its subsidiaries, or violate the terms of their contract, or any employment agreement, with it.

 

(c) It is expressly understood and agreed that although Executive and Company consider the restrictions contained in this Section 9 to be reasonable, if a final judicial determination is made by a court of competent jurisdiction that the time or territory or any other restriction contained in this Agreement is an unenforceable restriction against Executive, the provisions of this Agreement shall not be rendered void but shall be deemed amended to apply as to such maximum time and territory and to such maximum extent as the court may judicially determine or indicate to be enforceable. Alternatively, if any court of competent jurisdiction finds that any restriction contained in this Agreement is unenforceable, and such restriction cannot be amended so as to make it enforceable, such finding shall not affect the enforceability of any of the other restrictions contained herein.

 

(d) It is expressly understood by Executive that in the event of a violation of any period specified in this Section 9, such period shall be extended by a period of time equal to that period beginning with the commencement of any such violation and ending when such violation shall have been finally terminated in good faith.

 

(e) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Section 9, Executive’s service pursuant to Section 3(f) shall not constitute a breach of this Section 9.

 

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10. Enforcement of Covenants. Executive acknowledges that Executive has carefully read and considered all the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including the restraints imposed upon Executive pursuant to Sections 7, 8 and 9. Executive agrees that these restraints are necessary for the reasonable and proper protection of Company and its successors and assigns and that each and every one of the restraints is reasonable in respect to subject matter, length of time and geographic area. Executive further acknowledges that, were Executive to breach any of the covenants contained in Sections 7, 8 and 9, the damage to Company would be irreparable. Executive therefore agrees that Company, in addition to any other remedies available to it, shall be entitled to preliminary and permanent injunctive relief against any breach or threatened breach by Executive of any of the covenants herein, without any requirement to post a bond or similar security. The parties further agree that, in the event that any provision of Sections 7, 8 or 9 shall be determined by any court of competent jurisdiction to be unenforceable by reason of its being extended over too great a time, too large a geographic area or too great a range of activities, such provision shall be deemed to be modified to permit its enforcement to the maximum extent permitted by law.

 

11. Definitions. Words or phrases which are initially capitalized or are within quotation marks shall have the meanings provided in this Section and as provided elsewhere herein. For purposes of this Agreement, the following definitions apply:

 

(a) “$” refers to U.S. Dollars.

 

(b) “Affiliate” means, with respect to any specified Person, 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 either (i) direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of such Person, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by agreement or otherwise or (ii) vote at least fifty percent (50%) or more of the securities having voting power for the election of a majority of the directors (or Persons performing similar functions) of such Person.

 

(c) “Board” shall have the meaning in Section 4(a).

 

(d) “Cause” means if Executive is discharged by Company on account of the occurrence of one or more of the following events:

 

(i) Executive’s continued refusal or failure to perform (other than by reason of Disability) Executive’s material duties and responsibilities to Company if such refusal or failure is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice of such refusal or failure by Company to Executive, or Executive’s continued refusal or failure to follow any reasonable lawful direction of the Board if such refusal or failure is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice of such refusal or failure by Company to Executive;

 

(ii) a material breach of this Agreement (other than Sections 7, 8 and 9) by Executive that, if capable of being cured, is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice of such breach by Company to Executive;

 

(iii) an intentional and material breach of Sections 7, 8 and 9 hereof by Executive;

 

(iv) willful, grossly negligent or unlawful misconduct by Executive which causes material harm to Company or its reputation;

 

(v) any conduct engaged in by Executive that is materially detrimental to the business or reputation of Company as determined by the Board in good faith using its reasonable business judgment that is not cured within thirty (30) days following written notice from Company to Executive;

 

(vi) Company is directed in writing by regulatory or governmental authorities to terminate the employment of Executive or Executive engages in activities that (i) are not approved or authorized by the Board, and (ii) cause actions to be taken by regulatory or governmental authorities that have a material adverse effect on Company; or

 

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(vii) a conviction, plea of guilty, or plea of nolo contendere by Executive, of or with respect to a criminal offense which is a felony or other crime involving dishonesty, disloyalty, fraud, embezzlement, theft or similar action(s) (including, without limitation, acceptance of bribes, kickbacks or self-dealing), or the material breach of Executive’s fiduciary duties with respect to Company.

 

(e) “Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

 

(f) “Company” has the meaning ascribed to it in the preamble of this Agreement.

 

(g) “Company Group” shall mean the Company together with any of its direct or indirect subsidiaries.

 

(h) “Confidential Information” means any and all nonpublic information of Company. Confidential Information includes, without limitation, such information relating to (i) the development, research, testing, manufacturing, marketing and financial activities of Company, (ii) the Services, (iii) the costs, sources of supply, financial performance and strategic and/or business plans of Company, (iv) the identity and special needs of the customers and prospective customers of Company, and (v) the people and organizations with whom Company has business relationships and those relationships. Confidential Information also includes any information that Company has received, or may receive hereafter, belonging to customers or others with any understanding, express or implied, that the information would not be disclosed. Notwithstanding the foregoing, “Confidential Information” does not include (x) any information that is or becomes generally known to the industry or the public through no wrongful act of Executive or any representative of Executive and (y) any information that is made legitimately available to Executive by a third party without breach of any confidentiality obligation.

 

(i) “Disability” means Executive’s inability, due to any illness, injury, accident or condition of either a physical or psychological nature, to substantially perform Executive’s duties and responsibilities hereunder for a period of one hundred twenty (120) consecutive days, or for any one hundred and eighty (180) days during any period of three hundred and sixty-five (365) consecutive calendar days, exclusive of any leave Executive may take under the Family and Medical Leave Act, 29 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. (“FMLA”) or as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq. (“ADA”).

 

(j) “Final Compensation” means the amount equal to the sum of (i) the Base Salary earned but not paid through the date of termination of employment, payable not later than the next scheduled payroll date, (ii) any business and related expenses and allowances incurred by Executive or to which Executive is entitled under Section 4(g) but unreimbursed on the date of termination of employment; provided that with respect to business expenses unreimbursed under Section 4(g), such expenses and required substantiation and documentation are submitted within one hundred eighty (180) days of termination in the case of termination on account of Executive’s death, or thirty (30) days on account of termination for any reason other than death, and that such expenses are reimbursable under Company’s applicable reimbursement policy, and (iii) any other supplemental compensation, insurance, retirement or other benefits due and payable or otherwise required to be provided under Section 4 in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plan or agreement.

 

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(k) “Good Reason” means, without Executive’s express written consent, (i) a material reduction in the Base Salary, then in effect, except a material diminution generally affecting the members of the Company’s management, (ii) a material reduction in job title, position or responsibility or (iii) a material breach of any term or condition contained in this Agreement, or (iv) a relocation of Executive’s principal worksite that is not in Singapore. However, none of the foregoing events or conditions will constitute “Good Reason” unless (i) Executive provides Company with written notice of the existence of Good Reason within ninety (90) days following the occurrence thereof, (ii) Company does not reverse or otherwise cure the event or condition within thirty (30) days of receiving that written notice, and (iii) Executive resigns Executive’s employment within thirty (30) days following the expiration of that cure period.

 

(l) “Intellectual Property” means inventions, discoveries, developments, methods, processes, compositions, works, concepts and ideas (whether or not patentable or copyrightable or constituting trade secrets) conceived, made, created, developed or reduced to practice by Executive (whether alone or with others, whether or not during normal business hours or on or off Company premises) during Executive’s employment that relate to either the Services or any prospective activity of Company or that make use of Confidential Information or any of the equipment or facilities of Company.

 

(m) “Person” means an individual, a corporation, a limited liability company, an association, a partnership, an estate, a trust and any other entity or organization, other than Company.

 

(n) “Remuneration Committee” shall mean the committee of the Board designated to make remuneration decisions relating to senior executive officers of the Company.

 

(o) “Sale of Company” means the sale of Company to an independent third party or group of independent third parties pursuant to which such party or parties acquire (i) equity interests possessing the voting power under normal circumstances to elect a majority of the Board of Directors or similar governing body of Company (whether by merger, consolidation or sale or transfer of such equity interests), or (ii) all or substantially all of Company’s assets determined on a consolidated basis.

 

(p) “Services” means all services planned, researched, developed, tested, manufactured, sold, licensed, leased or otherwise distributed or put into use by Company, together with all products provided or planned by Company, during Executive’s employment.

 

12. Withholding. All payments made by Company under this Agreement may be reduced by any tax or other amounts required to be withheld by Company under applicable law or by any amounts authorized in writing by Executive.

 

13. Assignment. Neither Company nor Executive may make any assignment of this Agreement or any interest herein, by operation of law or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the other; provided, however, that Company may assign its rights and obligations under this Agreement without the consent of Executive in the event of a Sale of Company. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon Company and Executive, their respective successors, executors, administrators, heirs and permitted assigns.

 

14. Compliance with Code Section 409A.

 

(a) Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, Executive’s employment will be deemed to have terminated on the date of Executive “separation from service” (within the meaning of Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(h)) with Company.

 

(b) It is intended that this Agreement will comply with Section 409A of the Code, and any regulations and guideline issued thereunder (“Section 409A”) to the extent that any compensation and benefits provided hereunder constitute deferred compensation subject to Section 409A. This Agreement shall be interpreted on a basis consistent with this intent. The parties will negotiate in good faith to amend this Agreement as necessary to comply with Section 409A in a manner that preserves the original intent of the parties to the extent reasonably possible. No action or failure to act, pursuant to this Section 14 shall subject Company to any claim, liability, or expense, and Company shall not have any obligation to indemnify or otherwise protect Executive from the obligation to pay any taxes pursuant to Section 409A of the Code.

 

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(c) For purposes of the application of Treas. Reg. § 1.409A-1(b)(4)(or any successor provision), each payment in a series of payments will be deemed a separate payment.

 

(d) Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Agreement by reason of Executive’s separation from service during a period in which Executive is a “specified Executive” (as defined under Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder), then, subject to any permissible acceleration of payment by Company under Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):

 

(i) if the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, Executive’s right to receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be delayed until the earlier of Executive’s death or the first day of the seventh month following Executive’s separation from service; and

 

(ii) if the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month period immediately following Executive’s separation from service will be accumulated and Executive’s right to receive payment or distribution of such accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of Executive’s death or the first day of the seventh month following Executive’s separation from service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to Executive and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining payments or distributions will resume.

 

This Section 14(d) should not be construed to prevent the application of Treas. Reg. § 1.409A-1(b)(9)(iii)(or any successor provision) to amounts payable hereunder (or any portion thereof).

 

15. Prior Restrictions. By signing below, the Executive represents that the Executive is not bound by the terms of any agreement with any Person which restricts in any way the Executive’s hiring by the Company and the performance of the Executive’s expected job duties; the Executive also represents that, during the Executive’s employment with the Company, the Executive shall not disclose or make use of any confidential information of any other persons or entities in violation of any of their applicable policies or agreements and/or applicable law.

 

16. Successors.

 

(a) Company’s Successors. Any successor to the Company (whether direct or indirect and whether by purchase, merger, consolidation, liquidation or otherwise) to all or substantially all of the Company’s business and/or assets shall assume the obligations under this Agreement and agree expressly to perform the obligations under this Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent as the Company would be required to perform such obligations in the absence of a succession. For all purposes under this Agreement, the term “Company” shall include any successor• to the Company’s business and/or assets which executes and delivers the assumption agreement described in this Section or which becomes bound by the terms of this Agreement by operation of law.

 

(b) Executive’s Successors. The terms of this Agreement and all rights of Executive hereunder shall inure to the benefit of, and be enforceable by, Executive’s personal or legal representatives, executors, administrators, successors, heirs, distributees, devisees and legatees.

 

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17. Indemnification. Company will indemnify Executive to the fullest extent permitted by law, for all amounts (including, without limitation, judgments, fines, settlement payments, expenses and reasonable out-of-pocket attorneys’ fees) incurred or paid by Executive in connection with any action, suit, investigation or proceeding, or threatened action, suit, investigation or proceeding, arising out of or relating to the performance by Executive of services for, or the acting by Executive as a director, officer or Executive of, Company, or any subsidiary of Company. Any fees or other necessary expenses incurred by Executive in defending any such action, suit, investigation or proceeding shall be paid by Company in advance, subject to Company’s right to seek repayment from Executive if a determination is made that Executive was not entitled to indemnification.

 

18. Severability. If any portion or provision of this Agreement shall to any extent be declared illegal or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, then the remainder of this Agreement, or the application of such portion or provision in circumstances other than those as to which it is so declared illegal or unenforceable, shall not be affected thereby, and each portion and provision of this Agreement shall be valid and enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law.

 

19. Waiver. No waiver of any provision hereof shall be effective unless made in writing and signed by the waiving party. The failure of either party to require the performance of any term or obligation of this Agreement, or the waiver by either party of any breach of this Agreement, shall not prevent any subsequent enforcement of such term or obligation or be deemed a waiver of any subsequent breach.

 

20. Survival. Sections 7 through 30 shall survive and continue in full force in accordance with their terms notwithstanding the termination of Executive’s employment (and hence the Term of this Agreement) for any reason.

 

21. Notices. Any and all notices, requests, demands and other communications provided for by this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be effective when delivered in Person, with respect to notices delivered personally, or upon confirmed receipt when delivered by facsimile or deposited with a reputable, nationally recognized overnight courier service and addressed or faxed to Executive at Executive’s last known address on the books of Company or, in the case of Company, at its principal place of business, attention: Secretary, Board of Directors.

 

22. Entire Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties (including with respect to Company, its successors and assigns) with respect to Executive’s employment and supersedes all prior communications, agreements and understandings, written or oral, with respect to the terms and conditions of Executive’s employment.

 

23. Amendment. This Agreement may be amended or modified only by a written instrument signed by Executive and by an expressly authorized representative of Company.

 

24. Headings. The headings and captions in this Agreement are for convenience only and in no way define or describe the scope or content of any provision of this Agreement.

 

25. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument. Furthermore, the delivery of a copy of such signature by facsimile transmission or other electronic exchange methodology shall constitute a valid and binding execution and delivery of this Agreement by such party, and such electronic copy shall constitute an enforceable original document. Counterpart signatures need not be on the same page and shall be deemed effective upon receipt.

 

26. Additional Obligations. Without implication that the contrary would otherwise be true, Executive’s obligations under Sections 7 through 10 are in addition to, and not in limitation of, any obligations that Executive may have under applicable law (including any law regarding trade secrets, duty of loyalty, fiduciary duty, unfair competition, unjust enrichment, slander, libel, conversion, misappropriation and fraud).

 

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27. Confidentiality. The parties acknowledge and agree that this Agreement and each of its provisions are and shall be treated strictly confidential. During the Term and thereafter, Executive shall not disclose any terms of this Agreement to any Person or entity without the prior written consent of Company, with the exception of Executive’s tax, legal or accounting advisors or for legitimate business purposes of Executive, or as otherwise required by law.

 

28. No Rule of Construction. This Agreement shall be construed to be neither against nor in favor of any party hereto based upon any party’s role in drafting this Agreement, but rather in accordance with the fair meaning hereof.

 

29. Governing Law. The validity, interpretation, construction and performance of this Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the Nevada.

 

30. WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL. EXECUTIVE AND COMPANY EXPRESSLY WAIVE ANY RIGHT EITHER MAY HAVE TO A JURY TRIAL CONCERNING ANY CIVIL ACTION THAT MAY ARISE FROM THIS AGREEMENT, OR THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE PARTIES HERETO.

 

31. Conditions. The Executive acknowledges and agrees that in signing this Agreement, and providing the Company with the necessary documentation to perform the checks required for the Executive’s role and with references, the Executive is providing consent to the Company or its agent, to performs such checks and contact the references the Executive provided to the Company.

 

32. Independent Legal Counsel. By signing below, the Executive hereby acknowledges that the Executive has been encouraged to obtain independent legal advice regarding the execution of this Agreement, and that the Executive has either obtained such advice or voluntarily chosen not to do so, and hereby waives any objections or claims the Executive may make resulting from any failure on the Executive’s part to obtain such advice.

 

33. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which when executed shall be deemed to be an original but all of which taken together shall constitute one and the same agreement. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page to this Agreement by electronic transmission, including in portable document format (.pdf), shall be deemed as effective as delivery of an original executed counterpart of this Agreement.

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed by Company (by its duly authorized representative) and by Executive, as of the date first above written.

 

SOCIETY PASS INCORPORATED  
     
By:                       
Name: Raynauld Liang  
Title: Chief Executive Officer  
     
EXECUTIVE:  
     
Yee Siong Tan  
   
By:    

 

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EXHIBIT A

 

Release of Claims

 

FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION OF the benefits to be provided me in connection with the termination of my employment, as set forth in that certain Employment Agreement, dated as of October [*], 2023 (the “Agreement”), between me and Society Pass Incorporated (the “Company”), or under any severance pay plan applicable to me, which benefits are conditioned on my signing this Release of Claims and to which I am not otherwise entitled, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, I, on my own behalf and on behalf of my heirs, executors, administrators, beneficiaries, representatives and assigns, and all others connected with me, hereby release and forever discharge Company and any of its subsidiaries and Affiliates (as that term is defined in Section 11 of the Agreement) and all of their respective past, present and future officers, directors, trustees, equity holders, Executives, agents, managers, joint venturers, representatives, successors and assigns, and all others connected with any of them (collectively, the “Released Parties”), both individually and in their official capacities, from any and all causes of action, rights and claims of any type or description, known or unknown, which I have had in the past, now have, or might now have, through the date of my signing of this Release of Claims, in any way resulting from, arising out of or connected with my employment by Company or any of its Affiliates or the termination of that employment, including, but not limited to, any allegation, claim or violation arising under: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; the Civil Rights Act of 1991; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended (including the Older Worker Benefit Protection Act); the Equal Pay Act of 1963, as amended; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993; the Worker Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act; Executive Retirement Income Security Act of 1974; the Fair Labor Standards Act; any applicable Executive Orders; or their state or local counterparts; or under any other federal, state or local civil or human rights law, or under any other federal, state or local law, regulation or ordinance; or under any public policy, contract or tort, or under common law; or arising under any policies, practices or procedures of Company; or any claim for wrongful discharge, breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress or defamation; or any claim for costs, fees or other expenses, including attorneys’ fees incurred in these matters (all of the foregoing collectively referred to herein as “Claims”), other than (i) the right to payment of any vested or accrued benefits under any supplemental compensation, insurance, retirement and/or other benefit plan or agreement applicable to Executive, (ii) the right to payment of any amounts owed to me by Company pursuant to Section 5 of the Agreement, (iii) any rights under applicable workers compensation or unemployment compensation laws, (iv) any rights that survive termination of my employment pursuant to an option grant agreement or certificate to purchase Company’s (or an Affiliate’s) capital stock, (v) any rights with respect to Company’s (or an Affiliate’s) capital stock owned by Executive or (vi) any rights to indemnification under the Agreement, Company’s by-laws or any other applicable law.

 

In signing this Release of Claims, I acknowledge my understanding that I may not sign it prior to the termination of my employment, but that I may consider the terms of this Release of Claims for up to twenty-one (21) days (or such longer period as Company may specify) from the later of the date my employment with Company terminates or the date I receive this Release of Claims. I also acknowledge that I am advised by Company and its Affiliates to seek the advice of an attorney prior to signing this Release of Claims; that I have had sufficient time to consider this Release of Claims and to consult with an attorney, if I wished to do so, or to consult with any other Person of my choosing before signing; and that I am signing this Release of Claims voluntarily and with a full understanding of its terms.

 

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I represent that I have not filed against the Released Parties any complaints, charges, or lawsuits arising out of my employment, or any other matter arising on or prior to the date of this Release of Claims, and covenant and agree that I will never individually or with any Person file, or commence the filing of, any charges, lawsuits, complaints or proceedings with any governmental agency, or against the Released Parties with respect to any of the matters released by me pursuant to this Release of Claims.

 

I further acknowledge that, in signing this Release of Claims, I have not relied on any promises or representations, express or implied, that are not set forth expressly in the Agreement. I understand that I may revoke this Release of Claims at any time within seven (7) days of the date of my signing by written notice to the Secretary, Board of Directors of Company (or such other Person as Company may specify by notice to me given in accordance with the Agreement) and that this Release of Claims will take effect only upon the expiration of such seven-day revocation period and only if I have not timely revoked it.

 

Intending to be legally bound, I have signed this Release of Claims as of the date written below.

 

Signature:     
     
Name: Yee Siong Tan  
     
Date    

 

 

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EX-10.4 5 ea186434ex10-4_society.htm FORM OF TRANSITION, RELEASE AND CONSULTING AGREEMENT

Exhibit 10.4

 

TRANSITION, RELEASE AND CONSULTING AGREEMENT

 

This Transition, Release and Consulting Agreement (this “Agreement") is entered into this 4th day of October,2023 by and between Dennis Nguyen, an individual (“Executive”), and Society Pass Inc., a company incorporated under the laws of Nevada (the “Company”).

 

WHEREAS, Executive has been employed by the Company as the Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer; and

 

WHEREAS, the Executive and the Company entered into an Employment Agreement, dated as of 01 April 2017 (the “Employment Agreement”) which provides for a monthly salary of $40,000 and an annual cash bonus of $250,000; and

 

WHEREAS, effective as of the end of the business day on 4 October 2023, the Executive’s employment with the Company will terminate, as a result of the Executive’s resignation which has been accepted by the Company, and the Company and Executive desire to enter into this Agreement upon the terms set forth herein; and

 

WHEREAS, the Company and Executive desire that the Executive continue to provide services to the Company as a consultant following his termination of employment.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the covenants undertaken and the releases contained in this Agreement, Executive and the Company agree as follows:

 

1. Termination of Employment. Executive’s employment with the Company will terminate as of the end of the day on 4 October 2023 (the “Separation Date”). Effective as of the Separation Date, Executive agrees to waive any right or claim to reinstatement as an employee of the Company and each of its affiliates. Effective as of the Separation Date, Executive hereby confirms that Executive will not hold any position as an officer, director or employee with the Company and each of its affiliates.

 

Upon or promptly following the Separation Date (and in any event within twenty-one (21) days following the Separation Date), Executive hereby agrees to execute an additional release in the same form as included in this Agreement in Exhibit A (the “Bring-Down Release”). Executive hereby agrees that the Bring-Down Release will require Executive to acknowledge and agree that (subject to the Executive receiving all payments, benefits, and other remuneration the Executive is entitled to under the Employment Agreement, as modified by this Agreement) Executive has received all amounts owed for Executive’s regular and usual salary (including, but not limited to, any bonus or other wages), reimbursement of expenses and usual benefits.

 

 


 

2. Mutual Release. In connection with the execution of this Agreement, Executive, on behalf of Executive, Executive’s descendants, dependents, heirs, executors, administrators, assigns, and successors, and each of them, hereby covenants not to sue and fully releases and discharges the Company and each of its parents, subsidiaries and affiliates, past and present, as well as its and their trustees, directors, officers, members, managers, partners, agents, attorneys, insurers, employees, stockholders, representatives, assigns, and successors, past and present (and including, without limitation, any current or former members of the Board of Directors of Society Pass Incorporated (the ”Board”)), and each of them, hereinafter together and collectively referred to as the “Releasees,” with respect to and from any and all claims, wages, demands, rights, liens, agreements or contracts (written or oral), covenants, actions, suits, causes of action, obligations, debts, costs, expenses, attorneys’ fees, damages, judgments, orders and liabilities of whatever kind or nature in law, equity or otherwise, whether now known or unknown, suspected or unsuspected, and whether or not concealed or hidden (each, a “Claim”), which he now owns or holds or he has at any time heretofore owned or held or may in the future hold as against any of said Releasees (including, without limitation, any Claim arising out of or in any way connected with Executive’s service as an officer, director, employee, member or manager of any Releasee, Executive’s separation from Executive’s position as an officer, director, employee, manager and/or member, as applicable, of any Releasee, or any other transactions, occurrences, acts or omissions or any loss, damage or injury whatever), whether known or unknown, suspected or unsuspected, resulting from any act or omission by or on the part of said Releasees, or any of them, committed or omitted prior to the date of this Agreement (the “Release”).

  

In connection with the execution of this Agreement, the Company, on behalf its Board, subsidiaries, affiliate companies, associate companies, fully releases and discharges the Executive, from any and all liability, actions, causes of actions, and claims of any nature, whether known or unknown, in connection with Executive’s employment and all interactions, agreements, contracts, express or implied. This Mutual Release, however, does not apply to any claim which as a matter of law cannot be released, including, but not limited to, claims for unemployment insurance benefits and workers’ compensation claims. The Parties agree that it is their respective intent to release all claims which they can legally release. This Mutual Release excludes claims that cannot be released or waived by law.

 

This Mutual Release does not apply to any obligation of the Company to Executive pursuant to any of the following: (1) any equity-based awards previously granted by the Company or its affiliates to Executive, to the extent that such awards continue after the termination of Executive’s employment with the Company in accordance with the applicable terms of such awards (and subject to any limited period in which to exercise such awards following such termination of employment); (2) any right to indemnification that Executive may have pursuant to the Bylaws of the Company, its Articles of Incorporation or under the Employment Agreement or any other written indemnification agreement with the Company (or any corresponding provision of any subsidiary or affiliate of the Company) or applicable state law with respect to any loss, damages or expenses (including but not limited to attorneys’ fees to the extent otherwise provided) that Executive may in the future incur with respect to Executive’s service as an employee, officer or director of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates; (3) with respect to any rights that Executive may have to insurance coverage for such losses, damages or expenses under any Company (or subsidiary or affiliate) directors and officers liability insurance policy; or (4) any rights to payments or benefits under this Agreement.

 

3. ADEA Waiver. Executive expressly acknowledges and agrees that by entering into this Agreement, Executive is waiving any and all rights or Claims that he may have arising under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended (the “ADEA”), which have arisen on or before the date of execution of this Agreement. Executive further expressly acknowledges and agrees that:

 

A. Executive is hereby advised in writing by this Agreement to consult with an attorney before signing this Agreement; B. Executive has voluntarily chosen to enter into this Agreement and has not been forced or pressured in any way to sign it;

 

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C. Executive was given a copy of this Agreement on September 29, 2023 and informed that he had twenty one (21) days within which to consider this Agreement and that if he wished to execute this Agreement prior to expiration of such 21-day period, he should execute the Endorsement attached hereto;

 

D. Executive was informed that he had seven (7) days following the date of execution of this Agreement in which to revoke this Agreement, and this Agreement will become null and void if Executive elects revocation during that time. Any revocation must be in writing and must be received by the Company during the seven-day revocation period. In the event that Executive exercises Executive’s right of revocation, neither the Company nor Executive will have any obligations under this Agreement;

 

E Nothing in this Agreement prevents or precludes Executive from challenging or seeking a determination in good faith of the validity of this waiver under the ADEA, nor does it impose any condition precedent, penalties or costs from doing so, unless specifically authorized by federal law.

 

4. Consulting Term.

 

A. Beginning on 5 October 2023 and continuing through December 31, 2025 (the “Consulting Term”), Executive agrees to serve as a Senior Advisor to the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer to provide consulting services to the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer including providing support and advice on strategies related to potential fundraising activities, mergers and acquisitions and other strategic matters that may arise for the Company and consulting on trends and emerging innovations in the Company’s lines of business (the “Consulting Services”). During the Consulting Term, the Company shall pay Executive $1,500,000 on 5 October 2023 for services from the period from 5 October 2023 through 31 December 2023, $500,000 on 1 January 2024 for services during the remainder of the Consulting Term (the “Consulting Fee”) as consideration for the Consulting Services, The Consulting Term may be paid to an entity controlled by the Executive and may be extended by written amendment to this Agreement that is signed by both the Company and the Executive.

 

B. Executive and the Company agree that in no event will the Company require, nor will Executive perform, a level of services during such period that would result in Executive not having a “separation from service” (within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code) from the Company and its affiliates on the Separation Date. The Consulting Services will be performed at such times as are reasonably requested by the Chairman of Board and Chief Executive Officer after reasonable consultation with Executive. Executive acknowledges and agrees that his status at all times during the Consulting Term shall be that of an independent contractor, and that Executive shall have the right to control and determine the method and means of performing the Consulting Services. Executive hereby waives any rights to be treated as an employee or deemed employee of the Company or any of its affiliates for any purpose during the Consulting Term.

 

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5. Purchase of Personal Items. The Executive agrees to sell to the Company all of the Executive’s belongings in the Executive’s apartment, including all furniture, including beds, dressers, tables, desks, lamps and grand piano in the Marina Bay Residences in Singapore for $100,000.

 

6. Payment of Executive California Home Rent and Utilities. The Company shall pay the Executive’s California apartment monthly rent and monthly utilities of up to $7,500 for the Consulting Term.

 

6. Compliance with Protective Covenants. Executive hereby agrees to comply with all of the protective covenants set forth in Section 6 of the Employment Agreement following the Separation Date. To the extent there is any conflict between the terms of this Agreement and the Employment Agreement, this Agreement shall control.

 

7. Restriction on Competition. Executive hereby agrees that he will not, directly or indirectly through any other Person engage in, enter the employ of, render any services to, have any ownership interest in, nor participate in the financing, operation, management or control of, any Competing Business during the Consulting Term. A Competing Business any entity that is conducting business that is the same or substantially the same as the Company as of the date of this Agreement or in the same geographical area as the business of the Company.

 

8. No Transferred Claims. Executive warrants and represents that the Executive has not heretofore assigned or transferred to any person not a party to this Agreement any released matter or any part or portion thereof and he shall defend, indemnify and hold the Company and each of its affiliates harmless from and against any claim (including the payment of attorneys’ fees and costs actually incurred whether or not litigation is commenced) based on or in connection with or arising out of any such assignment or transfer made, purported or claimed.

 

9. Severability. It is the desire and intent of the parties hereto that the provisions of this Agreement be enforced to the fullest extent permissible under the laws and public policies applied in each jurisdiction in which enforcement is sought. Accordingly, if any particular provision of this Agreement shall be adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, prohibited or unenforceable under any present or future law, such provision, as to such jurisdiction, shall be ineffective, without invalidating the remaining provisions of this Agreement or affecting the validity or enforceability of such provision in any other jurisdiction; furthermore, in lieu of such invalid or unenforceable provision there will be added automatically as a part of this Agreement, a legal, valid and enforceable provision as similar in terms to such invalid or unenforceable provision as may be possible. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if such provision could be more narrowly drawn so as not to be invalid, prohibited or unenforceable in such jurisdiction, it shall, as to such jurisdiction, be so narrowly drawn, without invalidating the remaining provisions of this Agreement or affecting the validity or enforceability of such provision in any other jurisdiction.

 

10. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in separate counterparts, each of which is deemed to be an original and all of which taken together constitute one and the same agreement. Photographic or other electronic copies of such signed counterparts may be used in lieu of the originals for any purpose.

 

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11. Successors. This Agreement is personal to Executive and shall not, without the prior written consent of the Company, be assignable by Executive. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Company and its respective successors and assigns and any such successor or assignee shall be deemed substituted for the Company under the terms of this Agreement for all purposes. As used herein, “successor” and “assignee” shall include any person, firm, corporation or other business entity which at any time, whether by purchase, merger, acquisition of assets, or otherwise, directly or indirectly acquires the ownership of the Company, acquires all or substantially all of the Company’s assets, or to which the Company assigns this Agreement by operation of law or otherwise.

 

12. Governing Law. THIS AGREEMENT WILL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH UNITED STATES FEDERAL LAW AND, TO THE EXTENT NOT PREEMPTED BY UNITED STATES FEDERAL LAW, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA, WITHOUT GIVING EFFECT TO ANY CHOICE OF LAW OR CONFLICTING PROVISION OR RULE (WHETHER OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION) THAT WOULD CAUSE THE LAWS OF ANY JURISDICTION OTHER THAN UNITED STATES FEDERAL LAW AND THE LAW OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA TO BE APPLIED. IN FURTHERANCE OF THE FOREGOING, APPLICABLE FEDERAL LAW AND, TO THE EXTENT NOT PREEMPTED BY APPLICABLE FEDERAL LAW, THE INTERNAL LAW OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA, WILL CONTROL THE INTERPRETATION AND CONSTRUCTION OF THIS AGREEMENT, EVEN IF UNDER SUCH JURISDICTION’S CHOICE OF LAW OR CONFLICT OF LAW ANALYSIS, THE SUBSTANTIVE LAW OF SOME OTHER JURISDICTION WOULD ORDINARILY APPLY.

 

13. Amendment and Waiver. The provisions of this Agreement may be amended and waived only with the prior written consent of the Company and Executive, and no course of conduct or failure or delay in enforcing the provisions of this Agreement shall be construed as a waiver of such provisions or affect the validity, binding effect or enforceability of this Agreement or any provision hereof.

 

14. Notices. Any notice provided for in this Agreement must be in writing and must be either personally delivered, e-mailed, sent by reputable overnight courier service (charges prepaid) to the recipient at the address below indicated or at such other address or to the attention of such other person as the recipient party has specified by prior written notice to the sending party. Notices will be deemed to have been given hereunder and received when delivered personally or one day after deposit with a reputable overnight courier service . If a notice is emailed, a delivery confirmation report received by the sender, which records the time that the email was delivered to the recipient’s last notified email address is prima facie evidence of its receipt by the recipient, unless the sender receives a delivery failure notification, indicating that the electronic mail has not been delivered to the recipient.

 

if to the Company: mailed to Grace Global Raffles, #14-01/02 137 Market Street Singapore 048943 or emailed to corporatesecretary@thesocietypass.com.

 

if to the Executive, to the address most recently on file in the records of the Company.

 

15. Descriptive Headings and Construction. The descriptive headings of this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and do not constitute a part of this Agreement. The language used in this Agreement shall be deemed to be the language chosen by the parties to express their mutual intent, and no rule of strict construction shall be applied against any party.

 

16. Legal Counsel. Each party recognizes that this is a legally binding contract and acknowledges and agrees that they have had the opportunity to consult with legal counsel of their choice. Executive acknowledges and agrees that he has read and understands this Agreement completely, is entering into it freely and voluntarily, and has been advised to seek counsel prior to entering into this Agreement and he has had ample opportunity to do so.

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned have read and understand the consequences of this Agreement and voluntarily it as of the first date written above.

 

EXECUTIVE  
   
 
Dennis Nguyen  
   
COMPANY  
 
Ray Liang  
Chief Executive Officer  

 

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ENDORSEMENT

 

I, Dennis Nguyen, hereby acknowledge that I was given twenty one (21) days to consider the foregoing Agreement and voluntarily chose to sign the Agreement prior to the expiration of the 21-day period.

 

I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States and the State of Florida that the foregoing is true and correct.

 

EXECUTIVE  
   
   
Dennis Nguyen  

 

 

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