Exhibit 10.01
SECURITIES PURCHASE
AGREEMENT
This Securities Purchase Agreement (this “
Agreement ”) is dated as of May 6, 2009, between
AgFeed Industries, Inc., a Nevada corporation (the “
Company ”), and each purchaser identified on the
signature pages hereto (each, including its successors and assigns,
a “ Purchaser ” and collectively, the “
Purchasers ”).
WHEREAS, subject to the terms and conditions set
forth in this Agreement and pursuant to Section 4(2) of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Securities
Act ”), and Rule 506 promulgated thereunder, the Company
desires to issue and sell to each Purchaser, and each Purchaser,
severally and not jointly, desires to purchase from the Company,
securities of the Company as more fully described in this
Agreement.
NOW, THEREFORE, IN CONSIDERATION of the mutual
covenants contained in this Agreement, and for other good and
valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are
hereby acknowledged, the Company and each Purchaser agree as
follows:
ARTICLE I.
DEFINITIONS
1.1
Definitions . In addition to the terms defined elsewhere in
this Agreement, for all purposes of this Agreement, the following
terms have the meanings set forth in this Section 1.1:
“ Acquiring Person ” shall
have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 4.5.
“ Action ” shall have the
meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(j).
“ Affiliate ” means any
Person that, directly or indirectly through one or more
intermediaries, controls or is controlled by or is under common
control with a Person, as such terms are used in and construed
under Rule 405 under the Securities Act.
“ Board of Directors ” means
the board of directors of the Company.
“ Business Day ” means any
day except any Saturday, any Sunday, any day which is a federal
legal holiday in the United States or any day on which banking
institutions in the State of New York are authorized or required by
law or other governmental action to close.
“ Closing ” means the closing
of the purchase and sale of the Securities pursuant to Section
2.1.
“ Closing Date ” means the
Trading Day on which all of the Transaction Documents have been
executed and delivered by the applicable parties thereto, and all
conditions precedent to (i) the Purchasers’ obligations to
pay the Subscription Amount and (ii) the Company’s
obligations to deliver the Securities, in each case, have been
satisfied or waived.
“ Commission ” means
the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
“ Common Stock ” means the
common stock of the Company, par value $0.001 per share, and any
other class of securities into which such securities may hereafter
be reclassified or changed.
“ Common Stock Equivalents ”
means any securities of the Company or the Subsidiaries which would
entitle the holder thereof to acquire at any time Common Stock,
including, without limitation, any debt, preferred stock, rights,
options, warrants or other instrument that is at any time
convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for, or otherwise
entitles the holder thereof to receive, Common Stock.
“ Company Counsel ” means
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, PC, with offices located at Two
Liberty Place, Suite 3200, Philadelphia, PA 19102.
“ Disclosure Schedules ”
means the Disclosure Schedules of the Company delivered
concurrently herewith.
“ Effective Date ”
means the date that the initial Registration Statement filed by the
Company pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement is first
declared effective by the Commission.
“ Evaluation Date ” shall
have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
3.1(r).
“ Exchange Act ” means the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and
regulations promulgated thereunder.
“ Exempt Issuance ” means the
issuance of (a) shares of Common Stock or options to employees,
officers or directors of the Company pursuant to any stock or
option plan duly adopted for such purpose, by a majority of the
non-employee members of the Board of Directors or a majority of the
members of a committee of non-employee directors established for
such purpose, (b) securities upon the exercise or exchange of or
conversion of any Securities issued hereunder and/or other
securities exercisable or exchangeable for or convertible into
shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding on the date of this
Agreement, provided that such securities have not been amended
since the date of this Agreement to increase the number of such
securities or to decrease the exercise, exchange or conversion
price of such securities, and (c) securities issued pursuant to
acquisitions or strategic transactions approved by a majority of
the disinterested directors of the Company, provided that any such
issuance shall only be to a Person which is, itself or through its
subsidiaries, an operating company in a business synergistic with
the business of the Company or a vendor of assets usable in the
business of the Company, and in which the Company receives benefits
in addition to the investment of funds, but shall not include a
transaction in which the Company is issuing securities primarily
for the purpose of raising capital or to an entity whose primary
business is investing in securities.
“ FWS ” means Feldman
Weinstein & Smith LLP with offices located at 420 Lexington
Avenue, Suite 2620, New York, New York 10170-0002.
“ GAAP ” shall have the
meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(h).
“ Intellectual Property Rights
” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
3.1(o).
“ Legend Removal Date ” shall
have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
4.1(c).
“ Liens ” means a lien,
charge, security interest, encumbrance, right of first refusal,
preemptive right or other restriction.
“ Material Adverse Effect ”
shall have the meaning assigned to such term in Section
3.1(b).
“ Material Permits ” shall
have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
3.1(m).
“ Per Share Purchase Price ”
equals $4.2925 , subject to adjustment for reverse and
forward stock splits, stock dividends, stock combinations and other
similar transactions of the Common Stock that occur after the date
of this Agreement and before the Closing Date.
“ Person ” means an
individual or corporation, partnership, trust, incorporated or
unincorporated association, joint venture, limited liability
company, joint stock company, government (or an agency or
subdivision thereof) or other entity of any kind.
“ Proceeding ” means an
action, claim, suit, investigation or proceeding (including,
without limitation, an informal investigation or partial
proceeding, such as a deposition), whether commenced or
threatened.
“ Public Information Failure
” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
4.2(b).
“ Public Information Failure
Payments ” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term
in Section 4.2(b).
“ Purchaser Party ”
shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
4.8.
“ Registration Rights Agreement
” means the Registration Rights Agreement, dated the date
hereof, among the Company and the Purchasers, in the form of
Exhibit A attached hereto.
“ Registration Statement ”
means a registration statement meeting the requirements set forth
in the Registration Rights Agreement and covering the resale by the
Purchasers of the Shares and the Warrant Shares.
“ Required Approvals ” shall
have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
3.1(e).
“ Rule 144 ” means Rule 144
promulgated by the Commission pursuant to the Securities Act, as
such Rule may be amended from time to time, or any similar rule or
regulation hereafter adopted by the Commission having substantially
the same effect as such Rule.
“ Rule 424 ” means Rule 424
promulgated by the Commission pursuant to the Securities Act, as
such Rule may be amended or interpreted from time to time, or any
similar rule or regulation hereafter adopted by the Commission
having substantially the same purpose and effect as such
Rule.
“ SEC Reports ” shall have
the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.1(h).
“ Securities ” means the
Shares, the Warrants and the Warrant Shares.
“ Securities Act ” means the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder.
“ Shares ” means the shares
of Common Stock issued or issuable to each Purchaser pursuant to
this Agreement.
“ Short Sales ” means all
“short sales” as defined in Rule 200 of Regulation SHO
under the Exchange Act (but shall not be deemed to include the
location and/or reservation of borrowable shares of Common
Stock).
“ Subscription Amount ”
means, as to each Purchaser, the aggregate amount to be paid for
Shares and Warrants purchased hereunder as specified below such
Purchaser’s name on the signature page of this Agreement and
next to the heading “Subscription Amount,” in United
States dollars and in immediately available funds.
“ Subsidiary ” means any
subsidiary of the Company as set forth on Schedule 3.1(a)
and shall, where applicable, also include any direct or indirect
subsidiary of the Company formed or acquired after the date
hereof.
“ Trading Day ” means a day
on which the principal Trading Market is open for
trading.
“ Trading Market ” means any
of the following markets or exchanges on which the Common Stock is
listed or quoted for trading on the date in question: the NYSE
AMEX, the Nasdaq Capital Market, the Nasdaq Global Market, the
Nasdaq Global Select Market, the New York Stock Exchange or the OTC
Bulletin Board (or any successors to any of the
foregoing).
“ Transaction Documents ”
means this Agreement, the Warrants, the Registration Rights
Agreement, all exhibits and schedules thereto and hereto and any
other documents or agreements executed in connection with the
transactions contemplated hereunder.
“ Transfer Agent ” means
StockTrans Inc., the current transfer agent of the Company, with a
mailing address of 44 W Lancaster Ave, Ardmore, PA 19003 and a
telephone number of (610) 649-7300, and any successor transfer
agent of the Company.
“ Variable Rate Transaction ”
shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section
4.12(b).
“ VWAP ” means, for any date,
the price determined by the first of the following clauses that
applies: (a) if the Common Stock is then listed or quoted on a
Trading Market, the daily volume weighted average price of the
Common Stock for such date (or the nearest preceding date) on the
Trading Market on which the Common Stock is then listed or quoted
as reported by Bloomberg L.P. (based on a Trading Day from 9:30
a.m. (New York City time) to 4:02 p.m. (New York City time)),
(b) if the OTC Bulletin Board is not a Trading Market, the
volume weighted average price of the Common Stock for such date (or
the nearest preceding date) on the OTC Bulletin Board, (c) if the
Common Stock is not then listed or quoted for trading on the OTC
Bulletin Board and if prices for the Common Stock are then reported
in the “Pink Sheets” published by Pink OTC Markets,
Inc. (or a similar organization or agency succeeding to its
functions of reporting prices), the most recent bid price per share
of the Common Stock so reported, or (d) in all other cases,
the fair market value of a share of Common Stock as determined by
an independent appraiser selected in good faith by the Purchasers
of a majority in interest of the Shares then outstanding and
reasonably acceptable to the Company, the fees and expenses of
which shall be paid by the Company.
“ Warrants ” means,
collectively, the Common Stock purchase warrants delivered to the
Purchasers at the Closing in accordance with Section 2.2(a) hereof,
which Warrants shall be exercisable immediately and have a term of
exercise equal to 5 years, in the form of Exhibit C attached
hereto.
“ Warrant Shares ” means the
shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the
Warrants.
ARTICLE II.
PURCHASE AND SALE
2.1
Closing . On the Closing Date, upon the terms and
subject to the conditions set forth herein, substantially
concurrent with the execution and delivery of this Agreement by the
parties hereto, the Company agrees to sell, and the Purchasers,
severally and not jointly, agree to purchase, up to an
aggregate of $15,000,000 of Shares and Warrants. Each
Purchaser shall deliver to the Company via wire transfer or a
certified check of immediately available funds equal to such
Purchaser’s Subscription Amount as set forth on the signature
page hereto executed by such Purchaser, and the Company shall
deliver to each Purchaser its respective Shares and a Warrant, as
determined pursuant to Section 2.2(a), and the Company and each
Purchaser shall deliver the other items set forth in Section 2.2
deliverable at the Closing. Upon satisfaction of the
covenants and conditions set forth in Sections 2.2 and 2.3, the
Closing shall occur at the offices of FWS or such other location as
the parties shall mutually agree.
2.2
Deliveries .
(a) On
or prior to the Closing Date, the Company shall deliver or cause to
be delivered to each Purchaser the following:
(i) this
Agreement duly executed by the Company;
(ii) a
legal opinion of Company Counsel, substantially in the form of
Exhibit B attached hereto;
(iii) a
copy of the irrevocable instructions to the Transfer Agent
instructing the Transfer Agent to deliver a certificate evidencing
a number of Shares equal to such Purchaser’s Subscription
Amount divided by the Per Share Purchase Price, registered in the
name of such Purchaser;
(iv) a
Warrant registered in the name of such Purchaser to purchase up to
a number of shares of Common Stock equal to 50% of such
Purchaser’s Shares, with an exercise price equal to
$4.50 , subject to adjustment therein; and
(v) the
Registration Rights Agreement duly executed by the
Company.
(b) On
or prior to the Closing Date, each Purchaser shall deliver or cause
to be delivered to the Company the following:
(i) this
Agreement duly executed by such Purchaser;
(ii) such
Purchaser’s Subscription Amount by wire transfer to the
account as specified in writing by the Company; and
(iii) the
Registration Rights Agreement duly executed by such
Purchaser.
2.3
Closing Conditions .
(a) The
obligations of the Company hereunder in connection with the Closing
are subject to the following conditions being met:
(i) the
accuracy in all material respects when made and on the Closing Date
of the representations and warranties of the Purchasers contained
herein (unless as of a specific date therein);
(ii) all
obligations, covenants and agreements of each Purchaser required to
be performed at or prior to the Closing Date shall have been
performed; and
(iii) the
delivery by each Purchaser of the items set forth in Section 2.2(b)
of this Agreement.
(b) The
respective obligations of the Purchasers hereunder in connection
with the Closing are subject to the following conditions being
met:
(i) the
accuracy in all material respects when made and on the Closing Date
of the representations and warranties of the Company contained
herein (unless as of a specific date therein);
(ii) all
obligations, covenants and agreements of the Company required to be
performed at or prior to the Closing Date shall have been
performed;
(iii) the
delivery by the Company of the items set forth in Section 2.2(a) of
this Agreement;
(iv) there
shall have been no Material Adverse Effect with respect to the
Company since the date hereof; and
(v) from
the date hereof to the Closing Date, trading in the Common Stock
shall not have been suspended by the Commission or the
Company’s principal Trading Market (except for any suspension
of trading of limited duration agreed to by the Company, which
suspension shall be terminated prior to the Closing), and, at any
time prior to the Closing Date, trading in securities generally as
reported by Bloomberg L.P. shall not have been suspended or
limited, or minimum prices shall not have been established on
securities whose trades are reported by such service, or on any
Trading Market, nor shall a banking moratorium have been declared
either by the United States or New York State authorities nor shall
there have occurred any material outbreak or escalation of
hostilities or other national or international calamity of such
magnitude in its effect on, or any material adverse change in, any
financial market which, in each case, in the reasonable judgment of
each Purchaser, makes it impracticable or inadvisable to purchase
the Securities at the Closing.
ARTICLE III.
REPRESENTATIONS AND
WARRANTIES
3.1
Representations and Warranties of the Company . Except as
set forth in the SEC Reports or Disclosure Schedules or the SEC
Reports, which Disclosure Schedules and SEC Reports shall be deemed
a part hereof and shall qualify any representation or otherwise
made herein to the extent of the disclosure contained therein, the
Company hereby makes the following representations and warranties
to each Purchaser:
(a)
Subsidiaries . All of the direct and indirect
subsidiaries of the Company and the direct or indirect ownership of
each Subsidiary by the Company, are set forth on Schedule
3.1(a) .
(b)
Organization and Qualification . The Company and
each of the Subsidiaries is an entity duly incorporated or
otherwise organized, validly existing and in good standing under
the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation or organization,
with the requisite power and authority to own and use its
properties and assets and to carry on its business as currently
conducted. The Company is not in violation nor default
of any of the provisions of its respective certificate or articles
of incorporation, bylaws or other organizational or charter
documents. The Company is duly qualified to conduct
business and is in good standing as a foreign corporation or other
entity in each jurisdiction in which the nature of the business
conducted or property owned by it makes such qualification
necessary, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good
standing, as the case may be, could not have or reasonably be
expected to result in: (i) a material adverse effect on the
legality, validity or enforceability of any Transaction Document,
(ii) a material adverse effect on the results of operations,
assets, business, prospects or condition (financial or otherwise)
of the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or (iii) a
material adverse effect on the Company’s ability to perform
in any material respect on a timely basis its obligations under any
Transaction Document (any of (i), (ii) or (iii), a “
Material Adverse Effect ”) and no Proceeding has been
instituted in any such jurisdiction revoking, limiting or
curtailing or seeking to revoke, limit or curtail such power and
authority or qualification.
(c)
Authorization; Enforcement . The Company has the
requisite corporate power and authority to enter into and to
consummate the transactions contemplated by each of the Transaction
Documents and otherwise to carry out its obligations hereunder and
thereunder. The execution and delivery of each of the
Transaction Documents by the Company and the consummation by it of
the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby have been duly
authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Company and
no further action is required by the Company, the Board of
Directors or the Company’s stockholders in connection
therewith other than in connection with the Required
Approvals. Each Transaction Document to which it is a
party has been (or upon delivery will have been) duly executed by
the Company and, when delivered in accordance with the terms hereof
and thereof, will constitute the valid and binding obligation of
the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its
terms, except: (i) as limited by general equitable principles and
applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and
other laws of general application affecting enforcement of
creditors’ rights generally, (ii) as limited by laws relating
to the availability of specific performance, injunctive relief or
other equitable remedies and (iii) insofar as indemnification and
contribution provisions may be limited by applicable
law.
(d)
No Conflicts . The execution, delivery and
performance by the Company of the Transaction Documents, the
issuance and sale of the Securities and the consummation by it of
the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby to which it is a
party do not and will not: (i) conflict with or violate any
provision of the Company’s or any Subsidiary’s
certificate or articles of incorporation, bylaws or other
organizational or charter documents, (ii) conflict with, or
constitute a default (or an event that with notice or lapse of time
or both would become a default) under, result in the creation of
any Lien upon any of the properties or assets of the Company or any
Subsidiary, or give to others any rights of termination, amendment,
acceleration or cancellation (with or without notice, lapse of time
or both) of, any agreement, credit facility, debt or other
instrument (evidencing a Company or Subsidiary debt or otherwise)
or other understanding to which the Company or any Subsidiary is a
party or by which any property or asset of the Company or any
Subsidiary is bound or affected, or (iii) subject to the Required
Approvals, conflict with or result in a violation of any law, rule,
regulation, order, judgment, injunction, decree or other
restriction of any court or governmental authority to which the
Company or a Subsidiary is subject (including federal and state
securities laws and regulations), or by which any property or asset
of the Company or a Subsidiary is bound or affected; except in the
case of each of clauses (ii) and (iii), such as could not have or
reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse
Effect.
(e)
Filings, Consents and Approvals . The Company is
not required to obtain any consent, waiver, authorization or order
of, give any notice to, or make any filing or registration with,
any court or other federal, state, local or other governmental
authority or other Person in connection with the execution,
delivery and performance by the Company of the Transaction
Documents, other than: (i) the filings required pursuant to Section
4.4 of this Agreement, (ii) the filing of the Registration
Statement with the Commission pursuant to the Registration
Rights Agreement, (iii) the notice and/or application(s)
to each applicable Trading Market for the issuance and sale of the
Securities and the listing of the Securities for trading thereon in
the time and manner required thereby and (iv) the filing of Form D
with the Commission and such filings as are required to be made
under applicable state securities laws (collectively, the “
Required Approvals ”).
(f)
Issuance of the Securities . The Securities are
duly authorized and, when issued and paid for in accordance with
the applicable Transaction Documents, will be duly and validly
issued, fully paid and nonassessable, free and clear of all Liens
imposed by the Company other than restrictions on transfer provided
for in the Transaction Documents. The Warrant Shares,
when issued in accordance with the terms of the Transaction
Documents, will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable,
free and clear of all Liens imposed by the Company other than
restrictions on transfer provided for in the Transaction
Documents. The Company has reserved from its duly
authorized capital stock the maximum number of shares of Common
Stock issuable pursuant to this Agreement and the
Warrants.
(g)
Capitalization . The capitalization of the
Company is as set forth on Schedule 3.1(g) . The Company has
not issued any capital stock since its most recently filed periodic
report under the Exchange Act, other than pursuant to the exercise
of employee stock options under the Company’s stock option
plans, the issuance of shares of Common Stock to employees pursuant
to the Company’s employee stock purchase plans and pursuant
to the conversion and/or exercise of Common Stock Equivalents
outstanding as of the date of the most recently filed periodic
report under the Exchange Act. No Person has any right
of first refusal, preemptive right, right of participation, or any
similar right to purchase the Securities in connection with the
transactions contemplated by the Transaction
Documents. Except as a result of the purchase and sale
of the Securities or as disclosed in the SEC Reports, there are no
outstanding options, warrants, scrip rights to subscribe to, calls
or commitments of any character whatsoever relating to, or
securities, rights or obligations convertible into or exercisable
or exchangeable for, or giving any Person any right to subscribe
for or acquire any shares of Common Stock, or contracts,
commitments, understandings or arrangements by which the Company or
any Subsidiary is or may become bound to issue additional shares of
Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents. Except as set
forth on Schedule 3.1(g) , the issuance and sale of the
Securities will not obligate the Company to issue shares of Common
Stock or other securities to any Person (other than the Purchasers
and the placement agent) and will not result in a right of any
holder of Company securities to adjust the exercise, conversion,
exchange or reset price under any of such securities. All of the
outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are validly
issued, fully paid and nonassessable, have been issued in
compliance with all federal and state securities laws, and none of
such outstanding shares was issued in violation of any preemptive
rights or similar rights to subscribe for or purchase
securities. No further approval or authorization of any
stockholder, the Board of Directors or others is required for the
issuance and sale of the Securities. Except as set forth
in the SEC Reports, there are no stockholders agreements, voting
agreements or other similar agreements with respect to the
Company’s capital stock to which the Company is a party or,
to the knowledge of the Company, between or among any of the
Company’s stockholders.
(h)
SEC Reports; Financial Statements . The Company
has filed all reports, schedules, forms, statements and other
documents required to be filed by the Company under the Securities
Act and the Exchange Act, including pursuant to Section 13(a) or
15(d) thereof, for the two years preceding the date hereof (or such
shorter period as the Company was required by law or regulation to
file such material) (the foregoing materials, including the
exhibits thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein,
being collectively referred to herein as the “ SEC
Reports ”). As of their respective dates, the
SEC Reports complied in all material respects with the requirements
of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, as applicable, and none
of the SEC Reports, when filed (or as amended prior to the date
hereof), contained any untrue statement of a material fact or
omitted to state a material fact required to be stated therein or
necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of
the circumstances under which they were made, not
misleading. The financial statements of the Company
included in the SEC Reports comply in all material respects with
applicable accounting requirements and the rules and regulations of
the Commission with respect thereto as in effect at the time of
filing. Such financial statements have been prepared in
accordance with United States generally accepted accounting
principles applied on a consistent basis during the periods
involved (“ GAAP ”), except as may be otherwise
specified in such financial statements or the notes thereto and
except that unaudited financial statements may not contain all
footnotes required by GAAP, and fairly present in all material
respects the financial position of the Company and its consolidated
Subsidiaries as of and for the dates thereof and the results of
operations and cash flows for the periods then ended, subject, in
the case of unaudited statements, to normal, immaterial, year-end
audit adjustments.
(i)
Material Changes; Undisclosed Events, Liabilities or
Developments . Since the date of the latest audited
financial statements included within the SEC Reports, except as
specifically disclosed in a subsequent SEC Report filed prior to
the date hereof and except for economic conditions in the markets
for the products of the Company and its Subsidiaries which
conditions have not disproportionably impacted the Company and the
Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, (i) there has been no event,
occurrence or development that has had or that could reasonably be
expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, (ii) the Company
has not incurred any liabilities (contingent or otherwise) other
than (A) trade payables and accrued expenses incurred in the
ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and (B)
liabilities not required to be reflected in the Company’s
financial statements pursuant to GAAP or disclosed in filings made
with the Commission, (iii) the Company has not altered its method
of accounting, (iv) the Company has not declared or made any
dividend or distribution of cash or other property to its
stockholders or purchased, redeemed or made any agreements to
purchase or redeem any shares of its capital stock and (v) the
Company has not issued any equity securities to any officer,
director or Affiliate, except pursuant to existing Company stock
option plans. The Company does not have pending before
the Commission any request for confidential treatment of
information. No event, liability, fact, circumstance, occurrence or
development has occurred or exists, or is reasonably expected to
occur or exist, with respect to the Company or its Subsidiaries or
their respective business, properties, operations, assets or
condition (financial or otherwise) which has had or could
reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect that
has not been publicly disclosed at least 1 Trading Day prior to the
date that this representation is made.
(j)
Litigation . There is no action, suit, inquiry,
notice of violation, proceeding or investigation pending or, to the
knowledge of the Company, threatened against or affecting the
Company, any Subsidiary or any of their respective properties
before or by any court, arbitrator, governmental or administrative
agency or regulatory authority (federal, state, county, local or
foreign) (collectively, an “ Action ”) which (i)
adversely affects or challenges the legality, validity or
enforceability of any of the Transaction Documents or the
Securities or (ii) could, if there were an unfavorable decision,
have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse
Effect. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary, nor any
director or officer thereof, is or has been the subject of any
Action involving a claim of violation of or liability under federal
or state securities laws or a claim of breach of fiduciary
duty. There has not been, and to the knowledge of the
Company, there is not pending or contemplated, any investigation by
the Commission involving the Company or any current or former
director or officer of the Company. The Commission has
not issued any stop order or other order suspending the
effectiveness of any registration statement filed by the Company or
any Subsidiary under the Exchange Act or the Securities
Act.
(k)
Labor Relations . No material labor dispute
exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent with
respect to any of the employees of the Company, which could
reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse
Effect. None of the Company’s or its
Subsidiaries’ employees is a member of a union that relates
to such employee’s relationship with the Company or such
Subsidiary, and neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is
a party to a collective bargaining agreement, and the Company and
its Subsidiaries believe that their relationships with their
employees are good. No executive officer, to the
knowledge of the Company, is, or is now expected to be, in
violation of any material term of any employment contract,
confidentiality, disclosure or proprietary information agreement or
non-competition agreement, or any other contract or agreement or
any restrictive covenant in favor of any third party, and the
continued employment of each such executive officer does not
subject the Company or any of its Subsidiaries to any liability
with respect to any of the foregoing matters. The
Company and its Subsidiaries are in compliance with all U.S.
federal, state, local and foreign laws and regulations relating to
employment and employment practices, terms and conditions of
employment and wages and hours, except where the failure to be in
compliance could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably
be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(l)
Compliance . Neither the Company nor any
Subsidiary: (i) is in default under or in violation of (and no
event has occurred that has not been waived that, with notice or
lapse of time or both, would result in a default by the Company or
any Subsidiary under), nor has the Company or any Subsidiary
received notice of a claim that it is in default under or that it
is in violation of, any indenture, loan or credit agreement or any
other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it
or any of its properties is bound (whether or not such default or
violation has been waived), (ii) is in violation of any judgment,
decree, or order of any court, arbitrator or governmental body or
(iii) is or has been in violation of any statute, rule, ordinance
or regulation of any governmental authority, including without
limitation all foreign, federal, state and local laws applicable to
its business and all such laws that affect the environment, except
in each case as could not have or reasonably be expected to result
in a Material Adverse Effect.
(m)
Regulatory Permits . The Company and the
Subsidiaries possess all certificates, authorizations and permits
issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign
regulatory authorities necessary to conduct their respective
businesses as described in the SEC Reports, except where the
failure to possess such permits could not reasonably be expected to
result in a Material Adverse Effect (“ Material
Permits ”), and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary
has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation
or modification of any Material Permit.
(n)
Title to Assets . The Company and the
Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all
real property owned by them and good and marketable title in all
personal property owned by them that is material to the business of
the Company and the Subsidiaries, in each case free and clear of
all Liens, except for Liens as do not materially affect the value
of such property and do not materially interfere with the use made
and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and the
Subsidiaries and Liens for the payment of federal, state or other
taxes, the payment of which is neither delinquent nor subject to
penalties. Any real property and facilities held under
lease by the Company and the Subsidiaries are held by them under
valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with which the Company and
the Subsidiaries are in compliance.
(o)
Patents and Trademarks . The Company and the
Subsidiaries have, or have rights to use, all patents, patent
applications, trademarks, trademark applications, service marks,
trade names, trade secrets, inventions, copyrights, licenses and
other intellectual property rights and similar rights as described
in the SEC Reports as necessary or material for use in connection
with their respective businesses and which the failure to so have
could have a Material Adverse Effect (collectively, the “
Intellectual Property Rights ”). Neither
the Company nor any Subsidiary has received a notice (written or
otherwise) that any of the Intellectual Property Rights used by the
Company or any Subsidiary violates or infringes upon the rights of
any Person. To the knowledge of the Company, all such
Intellectual Property Rights are enforceable and there is no
existing infringement by another Person of any of the Intellectual
Property Rights. The Company and its Subsidiaries have
taken reasonable security measures to protect the secrecy,
confidentiality and value of all of their intellectual properties,
except where failure to do so could not, individually or in the
aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse
Effect.
(p)
Insurance . The Company and the Subsidiaries are
insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against
such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent and
customary in the businesses in which the Company and the
Subsidiaries are engaged in the geographical areas in which those
businesses are conducted, including, but not limited to, directors
and officers insurance. Neither the Company nor any
Subsidiary has any reason to believe that it will not be able to
renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage
expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may
be necessary to continue its business without a significant
increase in cost.
(q)
Transactions With Affiliates and Employees
. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, none of the
officers or directors of the Company and, to the knowledge of the
Company, none of the employees of the Company is presently a party
to any transaction with the Company or any Subsidiary (other than
for services as employees, officers and directors), including any
contract, agreement or other arrangement providing for the
furnishing of services to or by, providing for rental of real or
personal property to or from, or otherwise requiring payments to or
from any officer, director or such employee or, to the knowledge of
the Company, any entity in which any officer, director, or any such
employee has a substantial interest or is an officer, director,
trustee or partner, in each case in excess of $120,000 other than
for: (i) payment of salary or consulting fees for services
rendered, (ii) reimbursement for expenses incurred on behalf of the
Company and (iii) other employee benefits, including stock option
agreements under any stock option plan of the Company.
(r)
Sarbanes-Oxley; Internal Accounting Controls
. The Company is in material compliance with all
provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 which are applicable
to it as of the Closing Date. The Company and the
Subsidiaries maintain a system of internal accounting controls
sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that: (i) transactions
are executed in accordance with management’s general or
specific authorizations, (ii) transactions are recorded as
necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in
conformity with GAAP and to maintain asset accountability, (iii)
access to assets is permitted only in accordance with
management’s general or specific authorization, and (iv) the
recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing
assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with
respect to any differences. The Company has established disclosure
controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e)
and 15d-15(e)) for the Company and designed such disclosure
controls and procedures to ensure that information required to be
disclosed by the Company in the reports it files or submits under
the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported,
within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules
and forms. The Company’s certifying officers have
evaluated the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure
controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by the
Company’s most recently filed periodic report under the
Exchange Act (such date, the “ Evaluation Date
”). The Company presented in its most recently
filed periodic report under the Exchange Act the conclusions of the
certifying officers about the effectiveness of the disclosure
controls and procedures based on their evaluations as of the
Evaluation Date. Since the Evaluation Date, there have
been no changes in the Company’s internal control over
financial reporting (as such term is defined in the Exchange Act)
that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially
affect, the Company’s internal control over financial
reporting.
(s)
Certain Fees . Except for the placement agent
fees payable to Rodman & Renshaw LLP in connection with the
transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents, no
brokerage or finder’s fees or commissions are or will be
payable by the Company to any broker, financial advisor or
consultant, finder, placement agent, investment banker, bank or
other Person with respect to the transactions contemplated by the
Transaction Documents. The Purchasers shall have no
obligation with respect to any fees or with respect to any claims
made by or on behalf of other Persons for fees of a type
contemplated in this Section that may be due in connection with the
transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.
(t)
Private Placement . Assuming the accuracy of the
Purchasers’ representations and warranties set forth in
Section 3.2, no registration under the Securities Act is required
for the offer and sale of the Securities by the Company to the
Purchasers as contemplated h
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