10-K
Table of Contents
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
(Mark One)
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022
OR
FOR THE TRANSITION PERIOD FROM
TO
Commission File
Number 001-40415
Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its Charter)
1 Little West 12th Street, 4th FloorNew York, New York 10014
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:
(408) 829-3134
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class TradingSymbol(s) Name of each exchangeon which registered
Class A ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 FWAC The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
YES
☐ NO ☒
Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Act. YES ☐ NO ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. YES ☒ NO ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation
S-T
(§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to submit such files). YES ☒ NO ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a
non-accelerated
filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in
Rule 12b-2
of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer ☐ Accelerated filer ☐
Non-accelerated filer ☒ Smaller reporting company ☒
Emerging growth company ☒
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the Registrant is a shell company (as defined in
Rule 12b-2
of the Exchange Act). YES ☒ NO ☐
As of June 30, 2022, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the aggregate market value of common equity held by
non-affiliates
was $267,575,000.
As of March 22
, 2023,
28,407,000
Class A ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share, and
6,875,000
Class B ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share, were issued and outstanding.
Documents Incorporated by Reference: None
Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
PART I 1
Item 1. Business 1
Item 1A. Risk Factors 15
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 45
Item 2. Properties 45
Item 3. Legal Proceedings 45
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 45
Item 6. Selected Financial Data 47
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 55
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 55
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures 56
Item 9B. Other Information 56
Item 9C Disclosure Reporting Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspection 56
PART III 56
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 56
Item 11. Executive Compensation 65
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services 68
Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules 69
Signatures 71
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K including, without limitation, statements under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” regarding our financial position, business strategy and the plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward looking statements. When used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, words such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “continue,” or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions, as they relate to us or our management, identify forward looking statements. Such forward looking statements are based on the beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, our management. No assurance can be given that results in any forward-looking statement will be achieved and actual results could be affected by one or more factors, which could cause them to differ materially. The cautionary statements made in this Annual Report should be read as being applicable to all forward-looking statements whenever they appear in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. For these statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including but not limited to, those detailed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are qualified in their entirety by this paragraph.
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GLOSSARY
“Affiliate” of any person or entity means any other person or entity that directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, such first person or entity.
“Affiliated Joint Acquisition” means an initial business combination opportunity we pursue jointly with our sponsor, Fifth Wall, or one or more of their respective affiliates, portfolio companies and/or investors.
“Companies Act” means the Companies Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands as the same may be amended from time to time.
“equity-linked securities” are any debt or equity securities that are convertible, exercisable or exchangeable for our Class A ordinary shares issued in a financing transaction in connection with our initial business combination, including, but not limited to, a private placement of equity or debt.
“Fifth Wall” is Fifth Wall Asset Management, LLC, collectively with its Affiliates and any investment funds, investment vehicles or accounts managed or advised by any of the foregoing, which are Affiliates of our sponsor.
“Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II” is a special purpose acquisition company, which, on February 28, 2022 has requested withdrawal of its Registration Statement on Form S-1 because it is not currently pursuing a public offering of securities.
“Founder Investor” is Light BCTO Ltd., a British Virgin Islands company, which is an Affiliate of EE Capital Pte. Ltd., a limited partner of funds affiliated with Fifth Wall.
“founders” are Brendan Wallace, co-founder and Managing Partner at Fifth Wall, and Andriy Mykhaylovskyy, Managing Partner and Chief Operating Officer at Fifth Wall.
“IPO” refers to that the initial public offering of the Company, as filed on a registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-255292) that was declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on May 24, 2021.
“management” or “our management team” are our executive officers and directors.
“Merger” means the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, including the Domestication and the Mergers.
“Mergers” refers to: (A) the merger of Merger Sub with and into MIC in accordance with the MGCL (the “First Merger”), with MIC continuing as the surviving entity (the “First-Step Surviving Company”) and (B) immediately following the effectiveness of the First Merger, the merger of the First-Step Surviving Company with and into Surviving Pubco in accordance with the MGCL (the “Second Merger”), in each case, pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement.
“Merger Agreement” means that Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated December 13, 2022, by and among, the Company, Queen Merger Corp. I, a Maryland corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“Merger Sub”), and Mobile Infrastructure Corporation, a Maryland corporation (“MIC”).
“ordinary shares” are our Class A ordinary shares and our Class B ordinary shares (for the avoidance of doubt, Class B ordinary shares are not “Public Shares”).
“Private Placement Shares” are the 907,000 Class A ordinary shares issued to our sponsor in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of our IPO and upon conversion of working capital loans, if any.
“Public Shares” are our Class A ordinary shares sold in our IPO (whether they are purchased in the IPO or thereafter in the open market).
“shareholders” are the holders of our Public Shares, including our sponsor and management team to the extent our sponsor and/or members of our management team purchase Public Shares, provided that our sponsor’s and each member of our management team’s status as a “shareholder” will only exist with respect to such Public Shares.
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“sponsor” is Fifth Wall Acquisition sponsor III LLC, a Cayman Islands limited liability company, which is an Affiliate of Fifth Wall.
“Trust Account” means a trust account, with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, to maintain the $275,000,000 of the net proceeds from the IPO and the Private Placement (which includes the underwriters’ deferred discount of $9,625,000, which has subsequently been waived by the underwriters).
SUMMARY OF RISK FACTORS
An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. The following is a summary of the principal factors that make an investment in our securities speculative or risky, all of which are more fully described below in the section titled “Risk Factors.” This summary should be read in conjunction with the “Risk Factors” section and should not be relied upon as an exhaustive summary of the material risks facing our business. In addition to the following summary, you should consider the information set forth in the “Risk Factors” section and the other information contained in this Annual Report before investing in our securities:
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PART I
Item 1. Business
General
We are a blank check company incorporated in February 2021 as a Cayman Islands exempted company whose business purpose is to effect a business combination with one or more businesses (the “initial business combination”).
Initial Public Offering
On May 24, 2021, the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-255292) (the “Registration Statement”) relating to the initial public offering (the “IPO”) of Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III (the “Company”) was declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company granted the underwriters in the IPO a 45-day option to purchase up to 3,750,000 additional Class A Ordinary Shares (as defined below) to cover over-allotments, if any.
On May 27, 2021, the Company consummated the IPO of 27,500,000 Class A ordinary shares, $0.0001 par value, of the Company (the “Class A Ordinary Shares”), including the issuance of 2,500,000 shares as a result of the underwriters’ partial exercise of their over-allotment option. The shares were sold at an offering price of $10.00 per share, generating gross proceeds of $275,000,000 (before underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses).
Simultaneously with the consummation of the IPO and the issuance and sale of the shares, the Company consummated the private placement of 907,000 Private Placement Shares at a price of $10.00 per Private Placement Share, to the sponsor, generating gross proceeds of $9,070,000 (the “Private Placement”). No underwriting discounts or commissions were paid with respect to the Private Placement. The Private Placement was conducted as a non-public transaction and, as a transaction by an issuer not involving a public offering, is exempt from registration under the Securities Act in reliance upon Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. The Private Placement Shares are identical to the Class A Ordinary Shares sold in the IPO, subject to certain limited exceptions, including that the sponsor has agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of the Private Placement Shares (except to certain permitted transferees) until 30 days after the completion of the Company’s initial business combination.
A total of $275,000,000 of the net proceeds from the IPO and the Private Placement (which includes the underwriters’ deferred discount of $9,625,000, which has subsequently been waived by the underwriters) was placed in a trust account, with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee (the “Trust Account”). Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account that may be released to the Company to pay its franchise and income tax obligations, the funds held in the Trust Account will not be released from the Trust Account until the earliest of: (1) the completion of the Company’s initial business combination; (2) the redemption of the Public Shares properly submitted in connection with a shareholder vote to amend the Company’s Amended Articles (A) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Company’s initial business combination or to redeem 100% of the Public Shares if the Company has not complete its initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our IPO or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; and (3) the redemption of the Public Shares if the Company has not completed its initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our IPO, subject to applicable law.
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Proposed Merger
On December 13, 2022, the Company (together with its successors, including after the Domestication (as defined below)), entered into an agreement and plan of merger (as it may be amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Merger Agreement”), by and among the Company, Queen Merger Corp. I, a Maryland corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“Merger Sub”), and Mobile Infrastructure Corporation, a Maryland corporation (“MIC”). The transactions set forth in the Merger Agreement, including the Mergers (defined below), will constitute an “initial business combination” as contemplated by the Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association and is referred to herein as the “Merger”.
On March 23, 2023, the Company, Merger Sub and MIC entered into the First Amendment to the Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “First Amendment”) to, among other things, clarify the intended tax treatment of the Merger, expand the size of the post-closing board of directors, and revise certain pre-closing reorganizational steps of MIC affiliates.
The Mergers
The Merger Agreement provides for, among other things, the following transactions: (i) the Company will transfer by way of continuation from the Cayman Islands to the State of Maryland and will domesticate by means of a corporate conversion (the “Domestication”) to a Maryland corporation (“Surviving Pubco”) in accordance with Title 3, Section 9 of the Maryland General Corporation Law, as amended (the “MGCL”), and Part XII of the Cayman Islands Companies Act (as revised), and, in connection with the Domestication, (A) each then issued and outstanding Class A ordinary share, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company (the “Class A Shares”) will convert automatically, on a one-for-one basis, into one share of common stock, par value $0.0001, of Surviving Pubco (the “Surviving Pubco Shares”); and (B) each then issued and outstanding Class B ordinary share, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company will convert automatically, on a one-for-one basis, into one Surviving Pubco Share; and (ii) following the Domestication, (A) Merger Sub will merge with and into MIC in accordance with the MGCL (the “First Merger”), with MIC continuing as the surviving entity (the “First-Step Surviving Company”) and (B) immediately following the effectiveness of the First Merger, the First-Step Surviving Company will merge with and into Surviving Pubco in accordance with the MGCL (the “Second Merger” and, together with the First Merger, the “Mergers”), with Surviving Pubco continuing as the surviving entity (the “Second-Step Surviving Company”).
Lock-up Agreements
Sponsor Lock-up Agreement
Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, our sponsor, MIC and the Company entered into a lock-up agreement(“Sponsor Lock-up Agreement”). Pursuant to the Sponsor Lock-up Agreement, our sponsor agreed, among other things, that its shares received in exchange for the Class A Shares in the Mergers, may not be transferred until, subject to certain customary exceptions, the earlier to occur of (a) six (6) months following the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement (the “Closing”) and (b) the date after the Closing on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s shareholders having the right to exchange their equity holdings in the Company for cash, securities or other property.
Seller Lock-up Agreement
Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, certain security holders of MIC (“MIC Holders”), the Company and MIC entered into a lock-up agreement(“Seller Lock-up Agreement”). Pursuant to the Seller Lock-up Agreement, MIC Holders agreed, among other things, that their shares of Surviving Pubco Shares received in exchange for their shares of MIC Common Stock may not be transferred until, subject to certain customary exceptions, the earlier to occur of (a) six (6) months following Closing and (b) the date after the Closing on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s shareholders having the right to exchange their equity holdings in the Company for cash, securities or other property.
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Sponsor Agreement
Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, the Company also entered into a Sponsor Agreement (the “Sponsor Agreement”) with our sponsor, and certain holders of the Company’s Class B ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Class B Holders”), whereby our sponsor and the Class B Holders, have agreed to waive certain of their anti-dilution and conversion rights with respect to their Class B ordinary shares (such shares, together with any Class A Shares or Surviving Pubco Shares issuable upon conversion thereof, the “Founder Shares”). Our sponsor also has agreed to certain restrictions with respect to its Founder Shares, as follows: (a) 1,658,750 Founder Shares will vest at such time as the aggregate volume-weighted average price per Surviving Pubco Share for any 5-consecutive trading day period after the date on which the Closing occurs (the “Closing Date”) equals or exceed $16.00 per share (provided that such Founder Shares will be cancelled if the Founder Shares have not vested prior to December 31, 2026), (b) 1,658,750 Founder Shares will vest at such time as the aggregate volume-weighted average price per Surviving Pubco Share for any 5-consecutive trading day period after the Closing Date equals or exceeds $20.00 per share (provided that such Founder Shares will be cancelled if the Founder Shares have not vested prior to December 31, 2028), (c) our sponsor will deliver to the Company for cancellation and for no consideration 1,375,000 Founder Shares and any portion of 2,062,500 Founder Shares not transferred to third-party investors in connection with the Closing, and (d) if the aggregate cash proceeds generated from additional Subscription Agreements (defined below) entered into with other investors ( the “PIPE Investments”) (excluding the Initial PIPE Investment (defined below) and PIPE Investments by MIC’s directors, officers and affiliates) and any other third-party financing (other than debt financing) to be funded at the Closing are less than $40,000,000, our sponsor will deliver to the Company for cancellation and for no consideration 1,375,000 Founder Shares, which number of shares shall be reduced to 1,000,000 Founder Shares if such cash proceeds at Closing equal or exceed $40,000,000 but are less than $50,000,000. If earlier, the Founder Shares described in the foregoing clauses (a) and (b) shall vest on the date after the Closing on which Surviving Pubco (or its successors) completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of Surviving Pubco’s (or its successor’s) stockholders having the right to exchange their Surviving Pubco Shares for cash, securities or other property.
PIPE Investment (Private Placement)
Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, the Company entered into a subscription agreement (the “Subscription Agreement”) with each of Harvest Small Cap Partners, L.P. and Harvest Small Cap Partners Master, Ltd.(collectively, the “Initial PIPE Investor”), pursuant to which, among other things, the Initial PIPE Investor has agreed to subscribe for and purchase, and the Company has agreed to issue and sell to the Initial PIPE Investor an aggregate of 1,200,000 Surviving Pubco Shares for a purchase price of $10.00 per 1.2 shares, on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth therein (the “Initial PIPE Investment”). The Subscription Agreement contains customary representations and warranties of the Company, on the one hand, and the Initial PIPE Investor, on the other hand, and customary conditions to closing, including the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement. Surviving Pubco Shares to be issued and sold to the Initial PIPE Investor pursuant to the Subscription Agreement will not be registered under the Securities Act, in reliance on the exemption from registration provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and/or Regulation D promulgated thereunder. The Subscription Agreement provides the Initial PIPE Investor with certain customary registration rights. The Subscription Agreement further provides that one-sixth of the Surviving Pubco Shares issued to the PIPE Investors will be subject to certain transfer restrictions.
Support Agreements
Color Up Support Agreement
Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, the Company and Color Up, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (“Color Up”), entered into an agreement (the “Color Up Support Agreement”) pursuant to which Color Up agreed to vote its shares of MIC Common Stock (i) in favor of the Mergers and the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, (ii) in favor of any proposal to adjourn a meeting of the MIC stockholders at which there is a proposal to adopt the Merger Agreement if there are not sufficient votes to adopt the proposals described in clause (i) above or if there are not sufficient shares of MIC’s common stock present in person or represented by proxy to constitute a quorum, (iii) against any merger, purchase of all or substantially all of the MIC’s assets or other business combination transaction (other than the Merger Agreement), (iv) subject to certain
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exceptions, in any circumstances upon which a consent or other approval is required under MIC’s Charter or otherwise sought with respect to the Merger Agreement (including the Mergers), to vote, consent or approve all of Color Up’s MIC Common Stock held at such time in favor thereof, (v) against and withhold consent with respect to any merger, purchase of all or substantially all of MIC’s assets or other business combination transaction (other than the Merger Agreement), (vi) against any proposal, action or agreement that would impede, frustrate, prevent or nullify any provision of the Color Up Support Agreement, the Merger Agreement, or the Mergers, and (vii) in favor of any proposal to amend the Third Amended and Restated Limited Partnership Agreement of Mobile Infra Operating Partnership, L.P. (including the conversion to a limited liability company, the “LLCA”), as contemplated by the Merger Agreement. The Color Up Support Agreement also contains customary termination provisions.
HS3 Support Agreement
Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, the Company and HSCP Strategic III, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (“HS3”), entered into an agreement (as amended by the First Amendment, the “A&R HS3 Support Agreement”) pursuant to which HS3 agreed to, among other things, enter into the LLCA in connection with the consummation of the Merger. The A&R HS3 Support Agreement also contains customary termination provisions.
Additional information regarding MIC and the Merger is available in the proxy statement/prospectus most recently filed by the Company with the SEC on January 13, 2023.
Business Strategy
Our strategy is to identify and acquire businesses within the sectors in which Fifth Wall invests, with a focus on later-stage companies with high quality growth fundamentals and strong market dynamics, whose pace of growth can benefit from our operational expertise and differentiated distribution capabilities. Our management expects to benefit from Fifth Wall’s experience as one of the largest and most active venture investors at the intersection of real estate and technology and its proven track record with deep experience in investing, operations and technology as well as a global consortium of real estate partners representing almost every real estate sector and every major geography. In the event that the Merger is not consummated, we intend to leverage our sponsor’s expertise and extensive network of strategic LPs, portfolio companies, real estate relationships and reputation in the real estate technology sector to identify alternative investment opportunities with meaningful near term growth potential that can generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for our shareholders.
While we may pursue an acquisition opportunity in any business, industry, sector or geographical location, in the event that the Merger is not consummated, we intend to focus on industries both inside and outside of the United States that complement our management team’s background, and to capitalize on the ability of our management team to identify and acquire a business focusing on verticals of the real estate industry, as well as the adjacent industries that collectively make up the human-made environment that provides the setting for human activity, ranging in scale from buildings to cities and beyond, which we call the “Built World.” Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II also intends to focus on these so-called “proptech” companies, focusing specifically on proptech companies serving the residential real estate industry. As such, if any officer or director serving Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II or Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III becomes aware of a business combination opportunity with a proptech company serving the residential real estate industry (and no other parties to which such officers or directors may owe any fiduciary, contractual or other obligations, including in the case of officers and directors associated or affiliated with Fifth Wall, wish to pursue such opportunity), such officers and directors will present the opportunity to Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II. In all other cases, the opportunity will be first presented to Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III.
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Sources of Target Businesses
Certain members of our management team have spent significant portions of their careers working with businesses in the proptech industry and have developed a wide network of professional services contacts and business relationships in that industry. The members of our board of directors also have significant executive management and public company experience with proptech companies. In the event that the Merger is not consummated, our process of identifying acquisition targets will leverage our management team’s industry experiences, demonstrated deal sourcing capabilities and broad and deep network of relationships, including executives and management teams, private equity groups and other institutional investors, large business enterprises, lenders, investment bankers and other investment market participants, restructuring advisers, consultants, attorneys and accountants, which we believe should provide us with a number of business combination opportunities. We expect that the collective experience, capability and network of our founders, directors and officers, combined with their individual and collective reputations in the investment community, will help to create prospective business combination opportunities in the event that the Merger is not consummated.
In addition, we anticipate that target business candidates may be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment bankers and private investment funds. Target businesses may be brought to our attention by such unaffiliated sources as a result of being solicited by us through calls or mailings. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read the Registration Statement and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates of which they become aware through their business contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions.
While we do not presently anticipate engaging the services of professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions on any formal basis, we may engage these firms or other individuals in the future, in which event we may pay a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation to be determined in an arm’s length negotiation based on the terms of the transaction. We will engage a finder only to the extent our management determines that the use of a finder may bring opportunities to us that may not otherwise be available to us or if finders approach us on an unsolicited basis with a potential transaction that our management determines is in our best interest to pursue. Payment of a finder’s fee is customarily tied to completion of a transaction, in which case any such fee will be paid out of the funds held in the Trust Account. In no event, however, will our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation by the company prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). None of our sponsor, executive officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates, will be allowed to receive any compensation, finder’s fees or consulting fees from a prospective business combination target in connection with a contemplated acquisition of such target by us.
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, we are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, or from making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our sponsor, officers or directors. Although we would not specifically focus on, or target, transactions with affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination as set forth below and such transaction was approved by a majority of our independent and disinterested directors. In the event that the Merger is not consummated and we seek to complete our initial business combination with (a) a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor or any of our officers or directors or (b) a business combination target that we know or should reasonably know is affiliated with a member of our sponsor owning at least 5% of the membership interests in the sponsor, we, or a committee of independent and disinterested directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking which is a member of FINRA or an independent valuation or appraisal firm, that such an initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.
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As more fully discussed in “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance—Conflicts of Interest,” if any of our executive officers becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity, including private funds under the management of Fifth Wall and their respective portfolio companies, to which he or she has pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us, subject to their fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law. In addition, existing and future funds managed by Fifth Wall and their respective portfolio companies may compete with us for business combination opportunities and if such opportunities are pursued by such entities, we may be precluded from pursuing such opportunities. All of our executive officers currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us. In addition, we may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such entity a class of equity or equity-linked securities. Any such business combination may require additional consents from third parties outside the control of our directors, officers or Fifth Wall, including any such business combination that requires the consent of the limited partner advisory committee of one or more investment funds managed or advised by Fifth Wall. We may be prevented from pursuing an Affiliated Joint Acquisition or other similar business combination if such consents are not obtained. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law: (i) no individual serving as a director or an officer shall have any duty, except to the extent expressly assumed by contract, to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as us; and (ii) we renounce any interest or expectancy in, or in being offered an opportunity to participate in, any potential transaction or matter which may be a corporate opportunity for any director or officer, on the one hand, and us, on the other.
Acquisition Criteria
We have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective targets. We will use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating acquisition opportunities, but we may decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines.
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These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that our management may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the above criteria in our shareholder communications related to our initial business combination, which, as discussed in this report, would be in the form of tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials that we would file with the SEC.
Evaluation of a Target Business and Structuring of Our Initial Business Combination
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, in evaluating a prospective alternative target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review which may encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial, operational, legal and other information which will be made available to us. If we determine to move forward with a particular alternative target, we will proceed to structure and negotiate the terms of the alternative business combination transaction.
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, the time required to select and evaluate an alternative target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with that process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of, and negotiation with, a prospective target business with which our initial business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination. The company will not pay any consulting fees to members of our management team, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered to or in connection with our initial business combination.
Initial Business Combination
Nasdaq rules and our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association require that we complete one or more business combinations having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the Trust Account (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the interest earned on the Trust Account) at the time of signing the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. If our board of directors is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, or we are considering an initial business combination with an affiliated entity, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), or an independent valuation or appraisal firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria.
We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public shareholders own shares will own or acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure our initial business combination such that the post-transaction company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the prior owners of the target business, the target management team or shareholders or for other reasons, but in any case, in the event that the Merger is not consummated, we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment
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company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our shareholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock, shares or other equity interests of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our shareholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. If the business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% of net assets test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the target businesses and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking shareholders’ approval, as applicable.
We have until May 27, 2023 to complete our initial business combination.
Shareholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve Our Initial Business Combination
The Merger requires the approval of our shareholders; however, in the event the Merger is not consummated, in connection with any proposed alternative initial business combination, we may conduct redemptions without a shareholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC subject to the provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association. However, we will seek shareholder approval if it is required by law or applicable stock exchange rule, or we may decide to seek shareholder approval for business or other legal reasons.
Under Nasdaq’s listing rules, shareholder approval is required in connection with the Merger. In the event that the Merger is not consummated, in connection with any proposed alternative initial business combination, shareholder approval would be required under Nasdaq’s rules if, for example:
• the expected cost of holding a shareholder vote;
• other time and budget constraints of the company; and
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Redemption Rights for Public Shareholders upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination
We will provide our shareholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Class A ordinary shares upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination, including interest (net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the Trust Account is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per Public Share. The per ordinary share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by any deferred underwriting commissions payable to the underwriters. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Our sponsor has entered into an agreement with us, pursuant to which it has agreed to (i) waive its redemption rights with respect to its Class B ordinary shares and (ii) waive its rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to its Class B ordinary shares if we fail to consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO. Our sponsor and our directors and executive officers have also agreed (A) that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association that would modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our Public Shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or with respect to any other material provisions relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares and (B) to waive their redemption rights with respect to their Class B ordinary shares and any Public Shares they have acquired during the IPO or may acquire afterwards in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. However, if our sponsor or members of our management team acquire Public Shares in or after the IPO, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to such Public Shares if we fail to consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO.
Limitations on Redemptions
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that in no event will we redeem our Public Shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules), which is also a mutual condition to the consummation of the Merger. However, in the event that the Merger is not consummated, a proposed alternative initial business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all Class A ordinary shares that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed alternative initial business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all Class A ordinary shares submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.
Limitation on Redemption Upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination If We Seek Shareholder Approval
In connection with the Merger we will provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Class A ordinary shares upon completion of the Merger in connection with a shareholder meeting called to approve the Merger. In the event that the Merger is not consummated, if we seek shareholder approval of a proposed alternative initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with such initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that a shareholder, together with any affiliate of such shareholder or any other person with whom such shareholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the ordinary shares sold in our IPO, which we refer to as the Excess Shares. We believe this restriction will discourage shareholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to exercise their redemption rights against a proposed business combination as a means to force us or our management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public shareholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our IPO could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us, our sponsor or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our shareholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of the shares sold in the IPO without our prior consent, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of shareholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our initial business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash.
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However, we would not be restricting our shareholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination.
Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if No Initial Business Combination
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that we will have only 24 months from the closing of the IPO to consummate an initial business combination. If we are unable to consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses and net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders’ rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that, if we wind up for any other reason prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, we will follow the foregoing procedures with respect to the liquidation of the Trust Account as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, subject to applicable Cayman Islands law.
Our sponsor has entered into an agreement with us, pursuant to which it has waived its rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to its Class B ordinary shares if we fail to consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO. However, if our sponsor or members of our management team acquire Public Shares in or after the IPO, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to such Public Shares if we fail to consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO.
Our sponsor had agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our Public Shares if we do not consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or with respect to any other material provisions relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest (net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares. However, we may not redeem our Public Shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). If this optional redemption right is exercised with respect to an excessive number of Public Shares such that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement, we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our Public Shares at such time. This redemption right shall apply in the event of the approval of any such amendment, whether proposed by our sponsors, any executive officer or director, or any other person.
We expect that all costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from amounts remaining out of proceeds held outside the Trust Account, although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. However, if those funds are not sufficient to cover the costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, we may request the trustee to release to us an additional amount of up to $100,000 of such accrued interest to pay those costs and expenses.
If we were to expend all of the net proceeds of the IPO, other than the proceeds deposited in the Trust Account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the Trust Account, the per-share redemption amount received by shareholders upon our dissolution would be $10.00. The proceeds deposited in the Trust Account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority than the claims of our public shareholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by shareholders will not be less than $10.00. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims.
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Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (excluding our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the Trust Account for the benefit of our public shareholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the Trust Account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the Trust Account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the Trust Account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. The underwriters will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the Trust Account. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the Trust Account for any reason. In order to protect the amounts held in the Trust Account, our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a vendor for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amounts in the Trust Account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per Public Share and (ii) the actual amount per Public Share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case less taxes payable, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account nor will it apply to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the IPO against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims. However, we have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and we believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
In the event that the proceeds in the Trust Account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per Public Share and (ii) the actual amount per Public Share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case less taxes payable, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so in any particular instance. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be less than $10.00 per share.
As noted, we will seek to reduce the possibility that our sponsor will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (excluding our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the Trust Account. Our sponsor will also not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the IPO against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. We have access to up to $1,000,000 from the proceeds of the IPO with which to pay any such potential claims (including costs and expenses incurred in
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connection with our liquidation, currently estimated to be no more than approximately $100,000). In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, shareholders who received funds from our Trust Account could be liable for claims made by creditors. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $2,570,000, we may fund such excess with funds from the funds not to be held in the Trust Account. In such case, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the Trust Account would decrease by a corresponding amount. Conversely, in the event that the offering expenses are less than our estimate of $2,570,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the Trust Account would increase by a corresponding amount.
If we file a bankruptcy, winding-up or insolvency petition or an involuntary bankruptcy, winding-up or insolvency petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy or insolvency laws, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our shareholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the Trust Account, we cannot assure you we will be able to return $10.00 per share to our public shareholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy or insolvency petition or an involuntary bankruptcy, winding-up or insolvency petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by shareholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/ creditor and/or bankruptcy and/or insolvency laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.”
As a result, a bankruptcy or insolvency court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our shareholders. Furthermore, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, and thereby exposing itself and our company to claims of punitive damages, by paying public shareholders from the Trust Account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons.
Our public shareholders will be entitled to receive funds from the Trust Account only (i) in the event of the redemption of our Public Shares if we do not consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, (ii) in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our Public Shares if we do not consummate an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or with respect to any other material provisions relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity or (iii) if they redeem their respective shares for cash upon the completion of the initial business combination. In no other circumstances will a shareholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the Trust Account. In the event we seek shareholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a shareholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a shareholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the Trust Account. Such shareholder must have also exercised its redemption rights described above. These provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, like all provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, may be amended with a shareholder vote.
Permitted Purchases and Other Transactions with Respect to Our Securities
The Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates may purchase Public Shares in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of the Merger. There is no limit on the number of shares the Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates may purchase in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and Nasdaq rules. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. None of the funds in the Trust Account will be used to purchase Public Shares in such transactions. If they engage in such transactions, they will not make any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act.
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In the event that the Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from shareholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling shareholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. The Company does not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act. Pursuant to the SEC’s Compliance and Disclosure Interpretation 166.01, purchases of our ordinary shares by our sponsor generally have an indicia of being a tender offer; however, SEC staff has indicated that it will not object to purchases by a SPAC sponsor or its affiliates outside of the redemption offer as long as the following conditions are satisfied:
• the purpose of the purchases by the SPAC sponsor or its affiliates;
Any such purchases effectuated by the Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates will comply with such conditions.
The purpose of such share purchases and other transactions would be to increase the likelihood that the conditions to the consummation of the initial business combination are satisfied or to provide additional financing for the combined company following the closing of the initial business combination; however, pursuant to SEC guidance set forth above, Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates, as applicable, may not vote such purchased shares in favor of the shareholder proposals presented at a meeting of the shareholders to approve the initial business combination.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Public Shares may be reduced and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, which may make it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
The Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the shareholders with whom the Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the shareholders contacting the Company directly or by the Company’s receipt of redemption requests submitted by shareholders (in the case of Public Shares) following the Company’s mailing of proxy materials in connection with an initial business combination. To the extent that the
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Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling shareholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the Trust Account or vote against the initial business combination, whether or not such shareholder has already submitted a proxy with respect to the initial business combination but only if such shares have not already been voted at the general meeting related to the initial business combination. The Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates will select which shareholders to purchase shares from based on the negotiated price and number of shares and any other factors that they may deem relevant, and will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.
The Company’s officers, directors, and advisors, our sponsor, or their affiliates will not make purchases of shares if the purchases would violate the SEC guidance set forth above or Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.
Corporate Information
We are a Cayman Islands exempted company. Exempted companies are Cayman Islands companies conducting business mainly outside the Cayman Islands and, as such, are exempted from complying with certain provisions of the Companies Act. As an exempted company, we have applied for and received a tax exemption undertaking from the Cayman Islands government that, in accordance with Section 6 of the Tax Concessions Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands, for a period of 20 years from the date of the undertaking, no law which is enacted in the Cayman Islands imposing any tax to be levied on profits, income, gains or appreciations will apply to us or our operations and, in addition, that no tax to be levied on profits, income, gains or appreciations or which is in the nature of estate duty or inheritance tax will be payable (i) on or in respect of our shares, debentures or other obligations or (ii) by way of the withholding in whole or in part of a payment of dividend or other distribution of income or capital by us to our shareholders or a payment of principal or interest or other sums due under a debenture or other obligation of us.
Competition
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, in identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for a proposed alternative initial business combination, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds, public companies, operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than us. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our shareholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.
Facilities
We currently maintain our executive offices at 1 Little West 12th Street, 4th Floor, New York, New York 10014. We have entered into an administrative support agreement with an affiliate of our sponsor pursuant to which we have agreed to pay the sponsor affiliate a total of up to $17,500 per month for office space and professional, secretarial, administrative and support services provided to us. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
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Employees
We currently have two executive officers. These individuals are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time they devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the stage of the business combination process we are in. We do not intend to have any full time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination.
Periodic Reporting and Audited Financial Statements
We have registered our Class A ordinary shares under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accountants.
We will provide shareholders with audited financial statements of a prospective target business as part of any tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials sent to shareholders to assist them in assessing the target business. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, United States generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) or international financial reporting standards (“IFRS”), depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), or PCAOB. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such financial statements in time for us to disclose such financial statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. While this may limit the pool of potential business combination candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.
We are required to evaluate our internal control procedures for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”). Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to have our internal control procedures audited. A target business may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), as modified by the JOBS Act, and will remain such for up to five years. However, if our annual gross revenue is $1.07 billion or more, if our non-convertible debt issued within a three-year period exceeds $1 billion or the market value of our ordinary shares held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million on the last day of the second fiscal quarter of any given fiscal year, we would cease to be an emerging growth company as of the following fiscal year. As an emerging growth company, we have elected, under Section 107(b) of the JOBS Act, to take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully all of the risks described below, together with the other information contained in this Annual Report, before making a decision to invest in our securities. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
For risk factors related to the Merger, see the proxy statement/prospectus most recently filed by the Company with the SEC on January 13, 2023.
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Risks Related to Our Business and Financial Position
We are a blank check company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a blank check company with no operating results, and we will not commence operations until consummating our initial business combination. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. We may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we fail to complete our initial business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.
We may be a passive foreign investment company for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
We currently expect that we or any of our direct or indirect investments may be treated as a “passive foreign investment company” for U.S. federal income tax purposes for our current taxable year and taxable years thereafter. If we are a PFIC for any taxable year (or portion thereof) that is included in the holding period of a U.S. Holder (as defined in the section of the Registration Statement captioned “Taxation—U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations for U.S. Holders”) of our Class A ordinary shares, the U.S. Holder may be subject to adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences and may be subject to additional reporting requirements. Our PFIC status for our current and subsequent taxable years may depend on whether we qualify for the PFIC start-up exception and the timing of our initial business combination. Depending on the particular circumstances, the application of the PFIC start-up exception is subject to uncertainty, and there can be no assurance that we will qualify for the PFIC start-up exception. In addition, our status as a PFIC for any taxable year will not be determinable until after the end of such taxable year. Accordingly, there can be no assurance with respect to our status as a PFIC for our current taxable year or any subsequent taxable year. The U.S. federal income tax rules applicable to investments in passive foreign investment companies are very complex, and a U.S. investor may suffer adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences as a result of these rules. Each prospective U.S. investor should consult its own tax advisor regarding the tax considerations relating to an investment in a passive foreign investment company.
Our initial business combination or reincorporation may result in taxes imposed on shareholders.
We may, subject to requisite shareholder approval under the Companies Act, effect a business combination with a target company in another jurisdiction, reincorporate in the jurisdiction in which the target company or business is located, or reincorporate in another jurisdiction. Such transaction(s) may require a shareholder to recognize taxable income in the jurisdiction in which the shareholder is a tax resident or in which its members are resident if it is a tax transparent entity. We do not intend to make any cash distributions to shareholders to pay such taxes. Shareholders may be subject to withholding taxes or other taxes with respect to their ownership of us after the reincorporation.
If we determine to do this, the laws of such jurisdiction may govern some or all of our future material agreements. The system of laws and the enforcement of existing laws in such jurisdiction may not be as certain in implementation and interpretation as in the Cayman Islands. The inability to enforce or obtain a remedy under any of our future agreements could result in a significant loss of business, business opportunities or capital.
After our initial business combination, it is possible that a majority of our directors and officers will live outside the United States and all of our assets will be located outside the United States; therefore investors may not be able to enforce federal securities laws or their other legal rights.
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, it is possible that after our initial business combination, a majority of our directors and officers will reside outside of the United States and all of our assets will be located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult, or in some cases not possible, for investors in the United States to enforce their legal rights, to effect service of process upon all of our directors or officers or to enforce judgments of United States courts predicated upon civil liabilities and criminal penalties on our directors and officers under United States laws.
In particular, there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Cayman Islands or any other applicable jurisdictions would recognize and enforce judgments of U.S. courts obtained against us or our directors or officers predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States or entertain original actions brought in the Cayman Islands or any other applicable jurisdiction’s courts against us or our directors or officers predicated upon the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States.
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Past performance by Fifth Wall, including our management team, may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us.
Information regarding performance by, or businesses associated with, Fifth Wall is presented for informational purposes only. Any past experience and performance of Fifth Wall or our management team is not a guarantee either: (1) that we will be able to successfully identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination; or (2) of any results with respect to any initial business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of Fifth Wall or our management team’s performance as indicative of the future performance of an investment in us or the returns we will, or are likely to, generate going forward. An investment in us is not an investment in Fifth Wall. Our officers, directors and Fifth Wall have had limited experience with a blank check company or special purpose acquisition company in the past.
We are dependent upon our executive officers and directors and their loss could adversely affect our ability to operate.
Our operations are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and, in particular, our executive officers and directors. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our officers and directors, at least until we have completed our initial business combination. In addition, our executive officers and directors are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating their time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence. We do not have an employment agreement with, or key-man insurance on the life of, any of our directors or executive officers. The unexpected loss of the services of one or more of our directors or executive officers could have a detrimental effect on us. Further, Fifth Wall and each of our officers and directors have duties and obligations with respect to confidentiality to other entities and may in the future agree to additional such duties or obligations, which may prevent Fifth Wall and such officers and directors from disclosing such information to the company. Fifth Wall and our officers and directors will comply with such duties and obligations of confidentiality to such other entities, in which case, the company may not have access to such information.
Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the status of debt and equity markets.
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in, and a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases could result in, a widespread health crisis that materially and adversely affects the economies and financial markets worldwide, and the operations and financial position of any potential target business with which we consummate a business combination could be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if continued concerns relating to COVID-19 restrict travel, limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors, if the target company’s personnel, vendors and service providers are unavailable to negotiate and consummate a transaction in a timely manner, or if COVID-19 causes a prolonged economic downturn. The extent to which COVID-19 impacts our search for a business combination will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including the emergence of any new variants. If the disruptions posed by COVID-19 or other matters of global concern continue for an extensive period of time, our ability to consummate a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected.
In addition, our ability to consummate a business combination may be dependent on the ability to raise equity and debt financing which may be impacted by COVID-19 and other events, including as a result of increased market volatility, decreased market liquidity and third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all.
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The requirement that the target business or businesses that we acquire must collectively have a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the balance of the funds in the Trust Account (excluding any taxes payable) at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination may limit the type and number of companies with which we may complete such a business combination.
Nasdaq rules and our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association require that the target business or businesses that we acquire must collectively have a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the balance of the funds in the Trust Account (excluding any taxes payable) at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination. This restriction may limit the type and number of companies that we may complete a business combination with. If we are unable to locate a target business or businesses that satisfy this fair market value test, we may be forced to liquidate and you will only be entitled to receive your pro rata portion of the funds in the Trust Account, which may be less than $10.00 per ordinary share.
The nominal purchase price paid by our sponsor for the Class B ordinary shares may significantly dilute the implied value of your Public Shares in the event we consummate an initial business combination, and our sponsor is likely to make a substantial profit on its investment in us in the event we consummate an initial business combination, even if the business combination causes the trading price of our ordinary shares to materially decline.
While we offered our ordinary shares at an offering price of $10.00 per share and the amount in our Trust Account was initially $10.00 per Public Share, implying an initial value of $10.00 per Public Share, our sponsor paid only a nominal aggregate purchase price of $25,000 for the Class B ordinary shares, or approximately $0.003 per share. As a result, the value of your Public Shares may be significantly diluted in the event we consummate an initial business combination. Our sponsor is likely to make a substantial profit on its investment in us even if we select and consummate an initial business combination that causes the trading price of our ordinary shares to decline, while our public shareholders who purchased their shares in our IPO could lose significant value in their Public Shares. Our sponsor may therefore be economically incentivized to consummate an initial business combination with a riskier, weaker-performing or less-established target business than would be the case if our sponsor had paid the same per share price for the Class B ordinary shares as our public shareholders paid for their Public Shares.
We identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. These material weaknesses could continue to adversely affect our ability to report our results of operations and financial condition accurately and in a timely manner.
Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP. Management also evaluates the effectiveness of the Company’s internal controls and we will disclose any changes and material weaknesses identified through such evaluation in those internal controls. A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.
As described elsewhere in this report, we identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting related to the recognition of a waiver of a portion of the underwriters’ commissions which was contingently payable upon closing of a future business combination, with the offsetting entry resulting in an initial discount to the securities sold in the initial public offering. On March 30, 2023, the Company’s board of directors concluded that the Company’s previously issued (i) unaudited interim financial statements included in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2022, filed with the SEC on August 11, 2022 and (ii) unaudited interim financial statements included in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2022, filed with the SEC on November 10, 2022, should be restated to recognize the extinguishment of a contingent liability allocated to Public Shares as an adjustment to the carrying value of the Public Shares subject to possible redemption. Our management has concluded that the control deficiency that resulted in these restatements constituted a material weakness as of June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2022.
We have implemented a remediation plan, described under Item 9A, Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures, to remediate this material weakness but can give no assurance that the measures we have taken will remediate this material weakness or prevent any future material weaknesses or deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting. Even though we are implementing measures to strengthen our controls and procedures, in the future those controls and procedures may not be adequate to prevent or identify irregularities or errors or to facilitate the fair presentation of our financial statements.
We may face litigation and other risks as a result of the material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting.
As a result of such material weakness and the restatement described above, we face potential for litigation or other disputes which may include, among others, claims invoking the federal and state securities laws, contractual claims or other claims arising from the restatement and material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting and the preparation of our financial statements. As of the date of this Annual Report, we have no knowledge of any such litigation or dispute. However, we can provide no assurance that such litigation or dispute will not arise in the future. Any such litigation or dispute, whether successful or not, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition or our ability to complete a business combination.
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If we are unable to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting or disclosure controls and procedures, our ability to record, process, and report financial information accurately and to prepare financial statements within required time periods could be adversely affected, which could subject us to litigation, investigations, or penalties; negatively affect our liquidity, our access to capital markets, perceptions of our creditworthiness, our ability to complete acquisitions, or investor confidence in our financial reporting, any of which may require management resources or cause our share price to decline.
Our independent registered public accounting firm’s report contains an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”
We may not have sufficient liquidity to meet our anticipated obligations over the next year from the issuance of these financial statements. We have until May 27, 2023 to consummate a business combination. It is uncertain that we will be able to consummate a business combination by this time. If a business combination is not consummated by this date, there will be a mandatory liquidation and subsequent dissolution of the Company. Management has determined that the liquidity condition and mandatory liquidation, should a business combination not occur, and potential subsequent dissolution raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. No adjustments have been made to the carrying amounts of assets or liabilities should the Company be required to liquidate after May 27, 2023.
Risks Related to Our Proposed Initial Business Combination
Our public shareholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may consummate our initial business combination even though a majority of our public shareholders do not support such a combination.
If a shareholder vote is not required, we may conduct redemptions via a tender offer. Accordingly, we may consummate our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our Public Shares do not approve the business combination.
Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash.
At the time of your investment in us, you will not be provided with an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of one or more target businesses. Because our board of directors may consummate our initial business combination without seeking shareholder approval, public shareholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the business combination. Accordingly, your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to exercising your redemption rights within the period of time (which will be at least 20 business days) set forth in our tender offer documents mailed to our public shareholders in which we describe our business combination.
If we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination, our sponsor has agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public shareholders vote.
As of December 31, 2021, our sponsor owns approximately 21.7% of our outstanding ordinary shares. Our sponsor also may from time to time purchase additional Class A ordinary shares prior to our initial business combination.
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that, if we seek shareholder approval of an initial business combination, we will complete our initial business combination only if we receive approval pursuant to an ordinary resolution under Cayman Islands law, which requires the affirmative vote of a majority of the shareholders who attend and vote at a general meeting of the company. Accordingly, if we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination, the agreement by our sponsor to vote in favor of our initial business combination will increase the likelihood that we will receive the requisite shareholders’ approval for such initial business combination.
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The ability of our public shareholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential business combination targets, which may make it difficult for us to enter into our initial business combination with a target.
We may enter into a transaction agreement with a prospective target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public shareholders exercise their redemption rights, we may not be able to meet such closing condition, and as a result, would not be able to proceed with the business combination. Furthermore, in no event will we redeem our Public Shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001. Consequently, if accepting all properly submitted redemption requests would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 or such greater amount necessary to satisfy a closing condition as described above, we would not proceed with such redemption and the related business combination and may instead search for an alternate business combination. Prospective targets would be aware of these risks and, thus, may be reluctant to enter into our initial business combination transaction with us.
The ability of a large number of our shareholders to exercise redemption rights may not allow us to consummate the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.
In connection with the successful consummation of our business combination, we may redeem up to that number of ordinary shares that would permit us to maintain net tangible assets of $5,000,001. If our business combination requires us to use substantially all of our cash to pay the purchase price, the redemption threshold may be further limited. Alternatively, we may need to arrange third party financing to help fund our business combination in case a larger percentage of shareholders exercise their redemption rights than we expect. If the acquisition involves the issuance of our shares as consideration, we may be required to issue a higher percentage of our shares to the target or its shareholders to make up for the failure to satisfy a minimum cash requirement. Raising additional funds to cover any shortfall may involve dilutive equity financing or incurring indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. This may limit our ability to effectuate the most attractive business combination available to us.
The requirement that we maintain a minimum net worth or retain a certain amount of cash could increase the probability that we cannot consummate our business combination and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your shares.
If, pursuant to the terms of our proposed business combination, we are required to maintain a minimum net worth or retain a certain amount of cash in trust in order to consummate the business combination and regardless of whether we proceed with redemptions under the tender offer or proxy rules, the probability that we cannot consummate our business combination is increased. If we do not consummate our business combination, you would not receive your pro rata portion of the Trust Account until we liquidate. If you are in need of immediate liquidity, you could attempt to sell your shares in the open market; however, at such time our shares may trade at a discount to the pro rata amount in our Trust Account. In either situation, you may suffer a material loss on your investment or lose the benefit of funds expected in connection with our redemption until we liquidate or you are able to sell your shares in the open market.
The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating our initial business combination.
Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning our initial business combination will be aware that we must consummate our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO. Consequently, such target businesses may obtain leverage over us in negotiating our initial business combination, knowing that if we do not complete our initial business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination with any target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the timeframe described above. In addition, we may have limited time to conduct due diligence and may enter into our initial business combination on terms that we would have rejected upon a more comprehensive investigation.
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We may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within the required time period, in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our Public Shares and liquidate.
We may not be able to find a suitable target business and consummate an initial business combination, such as the Merger, within 24 months after the closing of the IPO. Our ability to complete our initial business combination may be negatively impacted by general market conditions, volatility in the capital and debt markets and the other risks described herein. If we have not consummated an initial business combination within such applicable time period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses and net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders’ rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case, to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that, if we wind up for any other reason prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, we will follow the foregoing procedures with respect to the liquidation of the Trust Account as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, subject to applicable Cayman Islands law. In either such case, our public shareholders may receive only $10.00 per Public Share, or less than $10.00 per Public Share, or possibly less, on the redemption of their Public Shares. See “- If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by shareholders may be less than $10.00 per Public Share” and other risk factors herein.
If we seek shareholder approval of our business combination, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares from shareholders, in which case they may influence a vote in favor of a proposed business combination that you do not support.
If we seek shareholder approval of our business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares or equity-linked securities in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the consummation of our initial business combination. Such purchases will not be made if our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates are in possession of any material non-public information that has not been disclosed to the selling shareholder, although they are under no obligation to do so. However, other than as expressly stated herein, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. In the event that our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public shareholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling shareholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. It is intended that, if Rule 10b-18 would apply to purchases by our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates, then such purchases will comply with Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act, to the extent it applies, which provides a safe harbor for purchases made under certain conditions, including with respect to timing, pricing and volume of purchases.
The purpose of such purchases would be to (1) increase the likelihood of obtaining shareholder approval of the business combination or (2) satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of the business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. This may result in the consummation of an initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.
Purchases of ordinary shares in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions by our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may make it difficult for us to maintain the listing of our shares on a national securities exchange following the consummation of an initial business combination.
If our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase ordinary shares in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, the public “float” of our ordinary shares and the number of beneficial holders of our securities would both be reduced, possibly making it difficult to maintain the listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange following consummation of the business combination.
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If a shareholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our Public Shares in connection with our initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.
We will comply with the proxy rules or tender offer rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our initial business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a shareholder fails to receive our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, such shareholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our Public Shares in connection with our initial business combination will describe the various procedures that must be complied with in order to validly redeem or tender Public Shares. In the event that a shareholder fails to comply with these procedures, its shares may not be redeemed.
You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the Trust Account, except under certain limited circumstances. To liquidate your investment, therefore, you may be forced to sell your Public Shares, potentially at a loss.
Our public shareholders shall be entitled to receive funds from the Trust Account only in the event of a redemption to public shareholders prior to any winding up in the event we do not consummate our initial business combination or our liquidation, if they redeem their shares in connection with an initial business combination that we consummate or if we seek to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association to modify the substance or timing of our redemption obligation to redeem all Public Shares if we cannot complete an initial business combination within 24 months of the closing of the IPO or with respect to any other material provisions relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity. In no other circumstances will a shareholder have any right or interest of any kind to the funds in the Trust Account. Accordingly, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your Public Shares, potentially at a loss.
You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.
Because the net proceeds of the IPO are intended to be used to complete our initial business combination with a target business that had not been identified at the time of our IPO, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, because we will have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 upon the successful consummation of the IPO and have filed a Current Report on Form 8-K, including an audited balance sheet demonstrating this fact, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors in blank check companies, such as Rule 419.
Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules. Among other things, this means our shares were immediately tradable following the IPO and we have a longer period of time to complete our initial business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419.
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If we seek shareholder approval of our business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of shareholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our ordinary shares, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our ordinary shares.
If we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that a public shareholder, individually or together with any affiliate of such shareholder or any other person with whom such shareholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in the IPO. Your inability to redeem more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in the IPO will reduce your influence over our ability to consummate our initial business combination and you could suffer a material loss on your investment in us if you sell such excess shares in open market transactions. As a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, you would be required to sell your shares in open market transaction, potentially at a loss.
As the number of special purpose acquisition companies increases, there may be more competition to find an attractive target for an initial business combination. This could increase the costs associated with completing our initial business combination and may result in our inability to find a suitable target for our initial business combination.
In recent years, the number of special purpose acquisition companies that have been formed has increased substantially. Many companies have entered into business combinations with special purpose acquisition companies, and there are still many special purpose acquisition companies seeking targets for their initial business combination, as well as many additional special purpose acquisition companies currently in registration. As a result, at times, fewer attractive targets may be available, and it may require more time, effort and resources to identify a suitable target for an initial business combination.
In addition, because there are more special purpose acquisition companies seeking to enter into an initial business combination with available targets, the competition for available targets with attractive fundamentals or business models may increase, which could cause target companies to demand improved financial terms. Attractive deals could also become scarcer for other reasons, such as economic or industry sector downturns, geopolitical tensions or increases in the cost of additional capital needed to close business combinations or operate targets post-business combination. This could increase the cost of, delay or otherwise complicate or frustrate our ability to find a suitable target for and/or complete our initial business combination.
If the funds held in the Trust Account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the 24 months following the IPO, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
The funds available to us outside of the Trust Account may not be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the 24 months following the IPO, assuming that our initial business combination is not consummated during that time. Of the funds available to us, we could use a portion of the funds available to us to pay fees to advisors for our potential Merger or, if our Merger is not completed, to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we are unable to fund such down payments or “no shop” provisions, our ability to close a contemplated transaction could be impaired. Furthermore, if we entered into a letter of intent where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public shareholders may only receive a pro rata portion of the amount then in the Trust Account (which may be less than $10.00 per ordinary share) on our redemption.
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Subsequent to our consummation of our initial business combination, we may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges.
Even if we conduct thorough due diligence on a target business with which we combine, this diligence may not surface all material issues that may be present inside a particular target business. And, regardless of how comprehensive our diligence may be, factors outside of the target business and outside of our control may arise later. As a result of these factors, we may be forced to later write-down or write-off assets, restructure our operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in our reporting losses. Even if our due diligence successfully identifies certain risks, unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analysis. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, the fact that we report charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause us to violate net worth or other covenants to which we may be subject as a result of assuming pre-existing debt held by a target business or by virtue of our obtaining post-combination debt financing.
Our directors may decide not to enforce indemnification obligations against our sponsor, resulting in a reduction in the amount of funds in the Trust Account available for distribution to our public shareholders.
In the event that the proceeds in the Trust Account are reduced below $10.00 per ordinary share and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine on our behalf whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so in any particular instance. If our independent directors choose not to enforce these indemnification obligations on our behalf, the amount of funds in the Trust Account available for distribution to our public shareholders may be reduced below $10.00 per ordinary share.
Unlike some other similarly structured special purpose acquisition companies, our sponsor will receive additional Class A ordinary shares if we issue certain shares to consummate an initial business combination.
The Class B ordinary shares will automatically convert into Class A ordinary shares concurrently with or immediately following the consummation of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for share sub-divisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like, and subject to further adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional Class A ordinary shares or equity-linked securities are issued or deemed issued in connection with our initial business combination, the number of Class A ordinary shares issuable upon conversion of all Class B ordinary shares will equal, in the aggregate, on an as converted basis, 20% of the total number of Class A ordinary shares outstanding after such conversion (after giving effect to any redemptions of Class A ordinary shares by public shareholders). This amount will include the total number of Class A ordinary shares issued, or deemed issued or issuable upon conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities or rights issued or deemed issued, by the company in connection with or in relation to the consummation of the initial business combination, but will exclude any Class A ordinary shares or equity-linked securities or rights exercisable for or convertible into Class A ordinary shares issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial business combination, the Private Placement Shares, and any Private Placement Shares issued to our sponsor, officers or directors upon conversion of working capital loans, provided that such conversion of Class B ordinary shares will never occur on a less than one-for-one basis. This is different than some other similarly structured special purpose acquisition companies in which the initial shareholders will only be issued an aggregate of 20% of the total number of shares to be outstanding prior to our initial business combination.
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Our executive officers and directors will allocate their time to other businesses thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.
Our executive officers and directors are not required to, and will not, commit their full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business combination and their other businesses. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Each of our executive officers is engaged in several other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation, and our executive officers are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs. Our independent directors also serve as officers and board members for other entities. If our executive officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote substantial amounts of time to such affairs in excess of their current commitment levels, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs which may have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination. For a complete discussion of our executive officers’ and directors’ other business affairs, please see “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance.”
Fifth Wall and each of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual or other obligations to other entities and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.
Until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses. Fifth Wall and each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have, additional fiduciary, contractual or other obligations to other entities, including Fifth Wall investment funds, investment vehicles, accounts and clines and their respective portfolio companies, pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity or other business opportunities to such entity first, in which case such opportunity may not be made available to us, and Fifth Wall or such person will only present such opportunity to us if such other entity rejects the opportunity and consummating the transaction would not violate any restrictive covenants or other legal obligations to which such officers and directors are subject, including their fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law. In addition, existing and future Fifth Wall investment funds, investment vehicles, accounts, accounts and clients and their respective portfolio companies may compete with us for business combination opportunities and, if such opportunities are pursued by such entities, we may be precluded from pursuing such opportunities. If any officer or director serving Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II or Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III becomes aware of a business combination opportunity with a proptech company serving the residential real estate industry (and no other parties to which such officers or directors may owe any fiduciary, contractual or other obligations, including in the case of officers and directors associated or affiliated with Fifth Wall, Fifth Wall, wish to pursue such opportunity), such officers and directors will present the opportunity to Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II. In all other cases, the opportunity will be first presented to Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III. Further, any of the foregoing may engage in businesses that are competitive to a prospective or actual target for the company’s initial business acquisition. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to another entity prior to its presentation to us, subject to their fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law: (i) no individual serving as a director or an officer shall have any duty, except and to the extent expressly assumed by contract, to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as us; and (ii) we renounce any interest or expectancy in, or in being offered an opportunity to participate in, any potential transaction or matter which may be a corporate opportunity for any director or officer on the one hand, and us, on the other. If Fifth Wall or any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which Fifth Wall or such person has then-current fiduciary, contractual or other obligations to present such opportunity to such entity (including Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II), Fifth Wall or such person will honor such fiduciary, contractual or other obligations to present such opportunity to such entity first, in which case such opportunity may not be made available to us, and Fifth Wall or such person will only present such opportunity to us if such other entity rejects the opportunity and consummating the transaction would not violate any restrictive covenants or other legal obligations to which such officers and directors are subject, including their fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law. In addition, Fifth Wall and its Affiliates and our officers and directors have previously sponsored and formed and become officers or directors of, and in the future may sponsor or form or become officers or directors of, other special purpose acquisition companies similar to ours, or may pursue other business or investment ventures, including without limitation forming investment funds or other vehicles, whose strategies may conflict with or otherwise be competitive with us during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. For example, Affiliates of Fifth Wall are currently sponsoring one other special purpose acquisition company, Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II. Although we intend to focus on industries both inside and outside of the United States, Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II is also pursuing an acquisition opportunity in any business, industry, sector or geographical location with a focus on “Built World”. Mr. Wallace, our Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, is the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II and Mr. Mykhaylovskyy, our Chief Financial Officer and director, is the Chief Financial Officer of Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II. Our other directors, Adeyemi Ajao, Alana Beard, Poonam Sharma Mathis and Amanda Parness are also directors of Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II. As a result, any such other special purpose acquisition companies, businesses or investments, including without limitation investment funds or other vehicles, with which Fifth Wall and its Affiliates, and our officers and directors are involved, may present
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additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an initial business combination that you should be aware of. Please see “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance—Conflicts of Interest” and “Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence.” If any officer or director serving Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II or Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III becomes aware of a business combination opportunity with a proptech company serving the residential real estate industry (and no other parties to which such officers or directors may owe any fiduciary, contractual or other obligations, including in the case of officers and directors associated or affiliated with Fifth Wall, Fifth Wall, wish to pursue such opportunity), such officers and directors will present the opportunity to Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II. In all other cases, the opportunity will be first presented to Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III.
While an affiliate of Fifth Wall has voting and investment discretion with respect to the ordinary shares held of record by our sponsor, Founder Investor has purchased 25% of the economic interest in our Sponsor for a purchase price equivalent to 40% of the Sponsor’s initial investment in us. Founder Investor, together with its affiliates, is an active investor and may present similar conflicts of interest.
Our executive officers, directors, sponsor and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.
We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, executive officers, sponsor or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. In fact (subject to certain approvals and consents), we may enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or executive officers or a target business in which any of the foregoing have an interest, although we do not intend to do so, or we may acquire a target business through an Affiliated Joint Acquisition with one or more affiliates of Fifth Wall and/or one or more investors in any current or future Fifth Wall investment fund, investment vehicle, account or client. Nor do we have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours. In particular, certain of the Fifth Wall funds are focused on investments in the proptech industry. As a result, there may be substantial overlap between companies that would be a suitable business combination for us and companies that would make an attractive target for the Fifth Wall funds. In addition, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law: (i) no individual serving as a director or an officer shall have any duty, except to the extent expressly assumed by contract, to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as us; and (ii) we renounce any interest or expectancy in, or in being offered an opportunity to participate in, any potential transaction or matter which may be a corporate opportunity for any director or officer, on the one hand, and us, on the other.
The personal and financial interests of our directors and officers may influence their motivation in timely identifying and selecting a target business and completing a business combination or in determining the outcome of any conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of such personal and financial interests. In addition, our directors and officers may have interests in other special purpose acquisition companies similar to ours (including sponsors and special purpose acquisition companies that are not Affiliates of Fifth Wall). Consequently, our directors’ and officers’ discretion in identifying and selecting a suitable target business may result in a conflict of interest when determining whether the terms, conditions and timing of a particular business combination are appropriate and in our shareholders’ best interest. If this were the case, it would be a breach of their fiduciary duties to us as a matter of Cayman Islands law and we or our shareholders might have a claim against such individuals for infringing on our shareholders’ rights. However, we might not ultimately be successful in any claim we may make against them for such reason.
While an affiliate of Fifth Wall has voting and investment discretion with respect to the ordinary shares held of record by our sponsor, Founder Investor has purchased 25% of the economic interest in our sponsor for a purchase price equivalent to 40% of the sponsor’s initial investment in us. Founder Investor, together with its affiliates, is an active investor and may present similar conflicts of interest.
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We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our sponsor, executive officers, directors or existing holders which may raise potential conflicts of interest.
In light of the involvement of our sponsor, executive officers and directors with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our sponsor, executive officers, directors or existing holders. Our directors also serve as officers and board members for other entities, including, without limitation, those described under “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance—Conflicts of Interest.” Such entities (including Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. II) may compete with us for business combination opportunities. Although we will not be specifically focusing on, or targeting, any transaction with any affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination as set forth in “Item 1. Business—Evaluation of a Target Business and Structuring of Our Initial Business Combination” and such transaction was approved by a majority of our independent and disinterested directors. Despite our agreement to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or a valuation or appraisal firm regarding the fairness to our company from a financial point of view of a business combination with (a) an entity or entities affiliated with our sponsor or any of our officers or directors or (b) an entity or entities we know or should reasonably know are affiliated with a member of our sponsor owning at least 5% of the membership interests in the sponsor, potential conflicts of interest still may exist and, as a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our public shareholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.
Moreover, we may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with one or more affiliates of Fifth Wall and/or one or more investors in Fifth Wall. Any such parties may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the business combination by issuing to such parties a class of equity or equity-linked securities. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours. Any such business combination may require additional consents from third parties outside the control of our directors, officers or Fifth Wall, including any such business combination that requires the consent of the limited partner advisory committee of one or more investment funds managed or advised by Fifth Wall. We may be prevented from pursuing an Affiliated Joint Acquisition or other similar business combination if such consents are not obtained.
While an affiliate of Fifth Wall has voting and investment discretion with respect to the ordinary shares held of record by our sponsor, Founder Investor has purchased 25% of the economic interest in our sponsor for a purchase price equivalent to 40% of the sponsor’s initial investment in us. Founder Investor, together with its affiliates, is an active investor and may present similar conflicts of interest.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities may be restricted, including restrictions on the nature of our investments and restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. In addition, we may have imposed upon us burdensome requirements, including registration as an investment company, adoption of a specific form of corporate structure and reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to consummate our initial business combination.
In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading in securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business will be to identify and complete a business combination and thereafter to operate the post-business combination business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor. We do not believe that our principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in the Trust Account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations.
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Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee is not permitted to invest in other securities or assets. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, and by having a business plan targeted at acquiring and growing businesses for the long term (rather than on buying and selling businesses in the manner of a merchant bank or private equity fund), we intend to avoid being deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. Our securities are not intended for persons who are seeking a return on investments in government securities or investment securities. The Trust Account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of either: (i) the completion of our initial business combination; (ii) the redemption of any Public Shares properly tendered in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to provide holders of our Class A ordinary shares the right to have their shares redeemed in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our Public Shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to the rights of holders of our Class A ordinary shares, and (iii) the redemption of our Public Shares if we have not consummated an initial business within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, subject to applicable law and as further described herein. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete a business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination within the required time period, our public shareholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per Public Share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our Trust Account.
We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete our initial business combination with which a substantial majority of our shareholders do not agree.
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association does not provide a specified maximum redemption threshold, except that in no event will we redeem our Public Shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001. In addition, our proposed initial business combination may impose a minimum cash requirement for: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions. As a result, we may be able to complete our initial business combination even though a substantial majority of our public shareholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or any of their affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all Class A ordinary shares that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares in connection with such initial business combination, all Class A ordinary shares submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.
Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, investments and results of operations.
We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments, in particular, the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application also may change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
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If we are unable to consummate our initial business combination, our public shareholders may be forced to wait up to 24 months or longer before redemption from our Trust Account.
If we are unable to consummate our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, we will, as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter (subject to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and applicable law), distribute the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account (net of taxes payable), pro rata to our public shareholders by way of redemption and cease all operations except for the purposes of winding up of our affairs by way of a voluntary liquidation, as further described herein. Any redemption of public shareholders from the Trust Account shall be effected as required by our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association prior to our commencing any voluntary liquidation. Except as otherwise described herein, we have no obligation to return funds to investors prior to the date of any redemption required as a result of our failure to consummate our initial business combination within the period described above or our liquidation, unless we consummate our initial business combination prior thereto and only then in cases where investors have sought to redeem their ordinary shares. Only upon any such redemption of Public Shares as we are required to effect, or any liquidation, will public shareholders be entitled to distributions if we are unable to complete our initial business combination.
The grant of registration rights to our sponsor may make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination, and the future exercise of such rights may adversely affect the market price of our ordinary shares.
Pursuant to an agreement entered into in connection with the IPO, our sponsor (and/or our sponsor’s designees) and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the Class B ordinary shares, the private shares, the underlying securities and any securities issued upon conversion of working capital loans. We will bear the cost of registering these securities. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our ordinary shares. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the shareholder of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our ordinary shares that is expected to occur when the securities owned by our sponsor, holders of our private shares or their respective permitted transferees are registered.
Because we are not limited to evaluating a particular business or specific geographic location or any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’ operations.
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, we may pursue an alternative acquisition opportunity in any business industry or sector, but we intend to initially focus on those industries or sectors that complement our management team’s background. Except for the limitations that a target business have a fair market value of at least 80% of the value of the Trust Account (excluding any taxes payable) and that we are not permitted to effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or similar company with nominal operations, we will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting a prospective acquisition candidate. To the extent we consummate our initial business combination, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations with which we combine. For example, if we combine with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of sales or earnings, we may be affected by the risks inherent in the business and operations of a financially unstable or a development stage entity. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we may not properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors and we may not have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and thus leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. In addition, investors will be relying on the business judgment of our board of directors, which will have significant discretion in choosing the standard used to establish the fair market value of a particular target business. An investment in our shares may not ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors than a direct investment, if such opportunity were available, in an acquisition target.
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We may seek investment opportunities outside our management’s area of expertise and our management may not be able to adequately ascertain or assess all significant risks associated with the target company.
In the event that the Merger is not consummated, there is no limitation on the industry or business sector we may consider when contemplating a proposed alternative initial business combination. We may therefore be presented with an alternative business combination candidate in an industry unfamiliar to our management team, but determine that such candidate offers an attractive investment opportunity for our company. In the event we elect to pursue an investment outside of our management’s expertise, our management’s experience may not be directly applicable to the target business or their evaluation of its operations.
Although we identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines.