Exhibit 10.1
DATED October 8,
2008
SHARE PURCHASE
AGREEMENT
IN RELATION TO
CHINA HR.COM HOLDINGS
LTD
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1.
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Definitions and Interpretations
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1
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2.
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Sale and Purchase
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9
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3.
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Purchase Price
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9
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4.
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Conditions
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13
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5.
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Closing
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14
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6.
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Representations and Warranties
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17
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7.
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Post-Closing Covenants
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19
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8.
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Indemnification
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22
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9.
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Confidentiality
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25
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10.
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Further Assurance
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25
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11.
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No Partnership
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25
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12.
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Remedies
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25
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13.
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Consents
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26
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14.
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Costs
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26
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15.
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Assignment
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26
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16.
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Entire Agreement
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26
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17.
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Amendment
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26
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18.
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Notices
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26
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19.
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Waiver
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29
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20.
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Severability
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30
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21.
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Counterparts
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30
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22.
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Governing Law
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30
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23.
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Dispute Resolution
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30
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THIS SHARE PURCHASE
AGREEMENT (this “
Agreement ”) is made on October 8,
2008
AMONG:
(1)
China HR.com Holdings Ltd, a company
established under the laws of the Cayman Islands with its
registered office at Scotia Centre, 4th Floor, P.O. Box 2804,
George Town, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands (the “
Company ”);
(2)
the shareholders of the Company
listed on Part I of Schedule 2 hereto (the “
Sellers ”);
(3)
Jiexian ZHANG, ([CHINESE
CHARACTERS]) an individual with PRC Identity Card
No. 510102196410128492 (“ Mr. Jiexian Zhang
”); Jianguo ZHANG ([CHINESE CHARACTERS]), an individual with
PRC Identity Card No. 620105630516101 (“
Mr. Jianguo Zhang ”); Xuebin LU ([CHINESE
CHARACTERS]), an individual with PRC Identity Card
No. 340825197305264615 (“ Mr. Xuebin Lu
”); Shengping TANG ([CHINESE CHARACTERS]), an individual with
PRC Identity Card No. 110108197409170034 (“
Mr. Shengping Tang ”); Xiaowen ZHANG ([CHINESE
CHARACTERS]), an individual with PRC Identity Card
No. 650104196905140710 (“ Mr. Xiaowen Zhang
”);
(4)
Monster Worldwide Netherlands B.V.,
a company established under the laws of the Netherlands (the
“ Purchaser ”);
(5)
Monster Worldwide Limited (formerly
known as TMP Worldwide Limited), a company established under the
laws of England (“ TMP ”);
(6)
the shareholders of the Company
listed on Part II of Schedule 2 hereto (the “ ESOP
Holders ”); and
(7)
Monster Worldwide, Inc., a
Delaware corporation (“ MWI ”).
RECITALS
WHEREAS:
The Sellers and the ESOP Holders
desire to sell or procure to be sold an aggregate of 30,907,569
ordinary shares of the Company with a par value of $0.05 per share
(the “ Shares ”) registered in their names to
the Purchaser, and the Purchaser desires to purchase the Shares
from the Sellers and the ESOP Holders upon the terms and conditions
set forth herein.
IT IS AGREED
as follows:
1.
DEFINITIONS AND
INTERPRETATIONS
1.1
Definitions.
In this Agreement, unless the
context requires otherwise:
“ Accounts ”
means, in relation to a Group Company, its Audited Accounts and its
Management Accounts;
“ Affiliate ”
means, in relation to any Person, any Person which is Controlled
by, and Controls or is under common Control with, the
first-mentioned Person;
“ Agreed Claim ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.2(a);
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“ Agreement ” has
the meaning given in the Preamble;
“ AIC ” means the
relevant PRC Administration for Industry and Commerce;
“ Approval ”
means any written approval, authorization, concession, consent,
certificate, license, permit, entitlement and the like of or from
relevant PRC Authorities;
“ Applicable Laws
” means with respect to any Person or matter, any and all
provisions of any constitution, treaty, statute, law, rules of
common law or equity, legislation, regulation, ordinance, code,
rule, judgment, order, decree, conditions of any Approval,
requirement, directive, guideline, policy or other restriction or
any decision of, or determination by, or any interpretation or
administration of any of the foregoing by any governmental,
administrative, legislative judicial or securities regulatory
authority, including any stock exchange, or board on which the
Shares or any Person are listed, whether at the national or any
local level, whether in effect as of the date hereof or thereafter
and in each case as amended from time to time, applicable to such
Person or matter;
“ Arbitrated Claim
Amount ” has the meaning given in Clause
3.5.4;
“ Audited Accounts
” means, in relation to a Group Company, its audited
financial statements for the financial year ending on
December 31, 2007, a copy of which has been delivered to the
Purchaser;
“ Business ”
means the business of the Group Companies as operated as of the
Closing Date;
“ Business Day ”
means a calendar day (except Saturdays or Sundays) on which banks
operating in the PRC, Hong Kong and the U.S. are open for ordinary
business and dealings in inter-bank deposits and payments can take
place;
“ BVI HoldCo ”
means China-HR.com Corporation, a company established under the
laws of the British Virgin Island with its registered office at
P.O. Box 957, Offshore Incorporation Centre, Road Town,
Tortola, British Virgin Islands;
“ Cash Balance”
means the aggregate cash and bank balances of the Group Companies
taken as a whole as of the end of the Closing Date, which, for the
avoidance of doubt, shall not include the amount of RMB2,074,239.50
(which is the amount deposited with E-Career Beijing to pay the
individual income tax liabilities of the ESOP Holders with respect
their option exercises) but shall include the ESOP Exercise
Price;
“ China ” or
“ PRC ” means the People’s Republic of
China but excluding, for the purposes of this Agreement, Hong Kong,
the Macau Special Administrative Region and Taiwan;
“ Claim ” has the
meaning given in Clause 8.1.8;
“ Close Relatives
” means in relation to any individual, such
individual’s spouse, parents, siblings and children
(including step children);
“ Closing ” means
the taking of the steps referred to in Clause 5;
“ Closing Date ”
means the date on which all the Conditions are satisfied (other
than those Conditions which have been waived in accordance with
this Agreement, and those Conditions whose satisfaction by their
terms or nature can only be determined on such date), or such other
date as may be agreed between the Parties in writing;
“Company
” has the meaning given in the
Preamble;
“Condition
” means a condition set out in
Clause 4.1;
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“ Contract ”
means any agreement, lease, evidence of Indebtedness, mortgage,
indenture, security agreement or other contract (whether written or
oral);
“ Contributing Seller
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.3;
“ Control ”
means, in relation to a Person (other than a natural person):
(i) the power, directly or indirectly, to direct or cause the
direction of the management and policies of such Person whether
through the ownership of voting securities, by contract, credit
arrangement or proxy, or as trustee, executor, agent or otherwise;
(ii) the possession, directly or indirectly, of more than
one-half of the voting power of such Person (or more than
twenty-five percent (25%) of such voting power for the purposes of
Clause 7.2.3); or (iii) the power, directly or indirectly, to
appoint a majority of the members of, or otherwise control, the
board of directors or similar governing body of such Person (or
more than twenty-five percent (25%) of the members of such
governing entity for the purposes of Clause 7.2.3);
“ Counter Notice
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.2(a);
“ Directors ”
means the directors from time to time of any Group Company; and
each is referred to as a “ Director
”;
“ Disclosure Schedule
” means the schedule of exceptions, dated the date of this
Agreement, attached as Schedule 7;
“ Disputed Claim
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.2(b);
“ Dispute Period
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.2(a);
“ DOC ” has the
meaning given in Clause 18.5.1, Part II of Schedule
3;
“ E-Career Beijing
” means E-career (Beijing), Ltd. ([CHINESE CHARACTERS]), a
cooperative joint venture established under the laws of the PRC
with its registered office at Rooms 810 and 812, Yanyuan Resources
Tower, 151 Zhongguancun North Street, Haidian District, Beijing,
PRC;
“ E-Career Shanghai
” means E-career Network Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
([CHINESE CHARACTERS]), a cooperative joint venture established
under the laws of the PRC with its registered office at
Room 108, No. 3618, Tanglu Road, Pudong District,
Shanghai, PRC;
“ E-Career Suzhou
” means E-career (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. ([CHINESE CHARACTERS]) a
wholly foreign-owned enterprise established under the laws of the
PRC with its registered office at 8 th Floor, Phase III
of International Technology Park, No. 328 Jichang Road, Suzhou
Industrial Park, Suzhou, PRC;
“ E-Channel Beijing
” means Beijing E-Channel Enterprise Management Consulting
Co., Ltd. ([CHINESE CHARACTERS]), a domestic limited liability
company established under the laws of the PRC with its registered
office at 4 th Floor, Tower 2, CITIC Tower, No. 19
Jianguomenwai Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing, PRC;
“ Encumbrance ”
means any mortgage, assessment, security interest, lease, charge,
pledge, lien, hypothecation, easements, rights of way, retention of
title, conditional sale, adverse claim or levy, or other
encumbrance of any kind, or any conditional sale Contract, title
retention Contract or other Contract to give any of the foregoing,
whether arising by operation of law or otherwise; and
shall
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include any agreement, commitment or
arrangement to create or effect any of the above; and “
Encumber ” shall be construed accordingly;
“ ESOP Cash Amount
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.2(ii);
“ ESOP Exercise Price
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.2(iv);
“ ESOP Holders ”
has the meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Escrow Account
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.3;
“ Escrow Agent ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.3;
“ Escrow Amount ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.3;
“ Escrow Agreement
” means that certain Escrow Agreement by and among JPMorgan
Chase, the Seller Representatives and the Purchaser dated as of
October 6, 2008;
“ Escrow Fees ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.6;
“ Escrow Period ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.3;
“ ESOP Cash Amount
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.2(ii);
“ FCPA ” has the
meaning given in Clause 18.3, Part II of Schedule
3;
“ First Company Board
Resolutions ” has the meaning given in Clause
5.2.2(b);
“ Group Companies
” means the Company, BVI HoldCo, HKCo and the PRC
Subsidiaries, the details for which are set forth in Schedule 1;
and “ Group Company ” means any of the Group
Companies;
“ HKCo ” means
China HR.com (Hong Kong) Limited, a company established under the
laws of Hong Kong, with its registered address at 9/F., Tung Ning
Building, 249–253, Des Voeux Road, Central, Hong
Kong;
“ HKIAC ” has the
meaning given in Clause 23.2;
“ Hong Kong ”
means the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of
PRC;
“ Indebtedness ”
means of any Person means all obligations of such Person
(i) for borrowed money, (ii) evidenced by notes, bonds,
debentures or similar instruments, (iii) for the deferred
purchase price of goods or services (other than trade payables or
accruals incurred in the ordinary course of business),
(iv) under capital leases, or (v) in the nature of
guarantees of the obligations described in clauses (i) through
(iv) above of any other Person;
“ Indemnified Party
” has the meaning given in Clause 8.1.8;
“ Indemnifying Party
” has the meaning given in Clause 8.1.8;
“ Initial Sellers Cash
Amount ” has the meaning given in Clause
3.2(i);
“ Internet Recruiting
Business ” has the meaning given in Clause
7.2.3(a);
“ JPMorgan Chase
” means JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, Hong Kong
Branch;
“ Key Employee ”
means each of the Persons listed on Schedule 13;
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“ Last Accounting Date
” has the meaning given in Clause 6.3, Part II of
Schedule 3;
“ Leased Properties
” means the properties (and their particulars) that are set
out in Schedule 5;
“ Liable Seller ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.2(e);
“ Lists ” has the
meaning given in Clause 18.5.1, Part II of Schedule
3;
“ Losses ” means
any losses, liabilities, costs, expenses (including interest),
charges, dues, actions, damages, injuries, claims, fines,
penalties, late payment charges, demands, judgments, costs,
expenses (including reasonable legal fees and other reasonable
professional fees and disbursements), Taxes, deficiencies, suits or
proceedings (including appeals);
“ Mr. Jiexian
Zhang ” has the meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Mr. Jianguo
Zhang ” has the meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Mr. Shengping
Tang ” has the meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Mr. Xiaowen
Zhang ” has the meaning given in the Preamble;
“Mr. Xuebin
Lu ” has the
meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Management Accounts
” means, in relation to a Group Company, its unaudited
management accounts for the period commencing on the day after the
period covered by its Audited Accounts and ending on July 31,
2008, a copy of which is attached as Schedule 8;
“ Management
Shareholders ” means Union Advance Group Limited, Great
Strategies Group Limited and Empire People Limited, and “
Management Shareholder ” means any one of
them;
“ Management Warranties
” has the meaning given in Clause 6.2;
“ Material Adverse
Change ” means any change, effect, event, circumstance or
development (each a “Material Adverse Change ”,
and collectively, “ Material Adverse Changes ”),
individually or in the aggregate, and taken together with all other
Changes, that is materially adverse to the business, assets,
operations, financial condition or results of operations of the
Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole;
“ Material Contracts
” means any Contract other than (i) Contracts for the
purchase of supplies and services that were entered into in the
ordinary course of business that do not involve more than
Twenty-Five Thousand United States Dollars (US$25,000) and do not
extend for more than one year beyond the date hereof, (ii) sales
Contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business,
(iii) Contracts terminable at will by such Group Company on no
more than thirty (30) days’ notice without cost or liability
to such Group Company which neither involve any employment or
consulting arrangement nor are material to the conduct of the
Company’s business, and (iv) Contracts provided for in
this Agreement;
“ MWI ” has the
meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Non-Management
Shareholders ” means E-Career Holdings Ltd., Good
Connection Enterprises Ltd., All United Consultants Limited,
Surbiton Investments Ltd., Full Moon Resources Ltd., Macintosh
Associates Ltd. and Beauchamp Int’l Limited; and “
Non-Management Shareholder ” means any one of
them;
“Notice of
Arbitration” has
the meaning given in Clause 23.2;
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“ Notice of Claim
” means written notice of a Claim specifying in reasonable
detail material aspects of the Claim (including the nature and
basis of the Claim, the individual items included in the Claim, the
date such item of the Claim was either paid, properly accrued, or
arose, and the aggregate amount of the Claim or the
Purchaser’s bona fide estimate of the amount of
Claim);
“ OFAC ” has the
meaning given in Clause 18.4, Part II of Schedule
3;
“ Order ” and
“ Orders ” have the meaning given in Clause
18.4, Part II of Schedule 3;
“ Organizational
Documents ” means with respect to any Person other than a
natural person, the memorandum of association, articles of
association, certificates of incorporation, registration
certificates, by-laws, business license, shareholders’
agreement, joint venture contracts, partnership agreements and
other agreements, certificates, instruments or documents,
individually or collectively, pursuant to which such Person is
established or organized, and/or which govern internal affairs of
such Person, as may from time to time be amended;
“ Parties ” means
the parties to this Agreement and “ Party ”
means any one of them;
“ Person ” means
any natural person, company, corporation, general partnership,
limited partnership, proprietorship, joint venture, firm, trust,
union, government, statutory or public authority, or any entity or
incorporated or unincorporated organization or
association;
“ PRC Authorities
” means the central, provincial, and local governments of all
levels in the PRC, including all the ministries, departments,
commissions, bureaus and branches of national, provincial, county
or other administrative level;
“ PRC Laws ”
means the Applicable Laws of the PRC;
“ PRC Subsidiaries
” means E-Career Beijing, E-Career Shanghai, E-Career Suzhou,
Shanghai Huaying and E-Channel Beijing, and “ PRC
Subsidiary ” means any of the PRC
Subsidiaries;
“ Prior Agreement
” has the meaning given in Clause 5.4;
“ Purchase Price
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.1;
“ Purchaser ” has
the meaning given in the Preamble.
“ Registered Capital
” means the registered capital of the PRC Subsidiaries from
time to time and shall include all rights and interests attaching
thereto;
“ RMB ” or
“ Renminbi ” means Renminbi, the lawful currency
of PRC;
“ SAFE ” means
the PRC State Administration of Foreign Exchange, the Chinese
government authority responsible for implementing and enforcing
foreign exchange controls in China;
“ SAFE Circulars
” means the SAFE Circular on Issues relating to the
Administration of Foreign Exchange of Company Financing through
Offshore Special Purpose Vehicles and Round-Tripping Investment by
PRC Residents issued by SAFE with effect from November 1,
2005 and any PRC Laws in force from time to time which operate to
implement, restate, amend or repeal any of the aforesaid circular
or any part thereof;
“ Second Company Board
Resolutions ” has the meaning given in Clause
5.2.3(b);
“ Seller A ESOP Amount
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.2(v);
“ Seller B ESOP Amount
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.2(vi);
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“ Sellers ” has
the meaning given in the Preamble;
“ Sellers Trust Amount
” has the meaning given in Clause 3.2(iii);
“ Seller
Representatives ” means initially each of Union Advance
Group Limited, Good Connection Enterprises Ltd. E-Career Holdings
Ltd. and Full Moon Resources Ltd. or any other representative
appointed pursuant to the Seller Side Agreement dated as of
October 8, 2008 amongst the Contributing Sellers;
“ Seller Warranties
” has the meaning given in Clause 6.1;
“ Selling Parties
” means the Sellers, ESOP Holders, Mr. Jiexian Zhang,
Mr. Jianguo Zhang, Mr. Xuebin Lu, Mr. Shengping Tang
and Mr. Xiaowen Zhang.
“ Settled Claim ”
has the meaning given in Clause 3.5.2(b);
“ Shares ” has
the meaning given in the Recitals;
“ Shanghai Huaying
” means Shanghai Huaying Network Technology Co., Ltd.
([CHINESE CHARACTERS]), a domestic limited liability company
established under the laws of the PRC with its registered office at
Room 202, No. 3528 (Yi), Tanglu Road, Pudong District,
Shanghai, PRC;
“ Social Insurance
Premiums ” means the social insurance premiums, including
retirement insurance, unemployment insurance, medical insurance,
birth insurance, employment injury insurance, housing reserve fund
and any other social security funds, payable under PRC
Laws;
“ Subsidiary ”
means any corporate Person in which the Company or any subsidiary
holds, directly or indirectly, shares, registered capital, or any
other equity interest from time to time, including without
limitation the PRC Subsidiaries, and “ Subsidiaries
” shall mean all such Persons, including E-Channel
Beijing;
“ Taxes ”
means:
(i) all forms of taxation,
whether levied by reference to income, profits, gains, asset
values, turnover, added value, payroll, ownership of any asset or
occupation of premises or other matters of any kind; and
(ii) all statutory,
governmental, national, state, provincial, local governmental or
municipal impositions, duties, contributions, rates and levies of
whatever nature,
in each case, whenever and wherever
imposed (whether imposed by way of a withholding or deduction for
or on account of tax or otherwise), including individual income tax
relating to employees, and all penalties, charges, costs and
interest relating thereto;
“ TMP ” has the
meaning given in the Preamble;
“ US Dollars
” or “ US$ ” means United States Dollar,
the lawful currency of the U.S.A;
“ U.S. ” or
“ U.S.A. ” means the United States of
America;
“ US GAAP ” means
the generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S.A.
consistently applied; and
“ Warranties ”
means the Seller Warranties, the Management Warranties and the
representations and warranties given by the Purchaser under this
Agreement.
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1.2
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Interpretations.
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1.2.1
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Any references, express or
implied, to statutes or statutory provisions shall be construed as
references to those statutes or provisions as respectively amended
or re-enacted or as their application is modified from time to time
by other provisions (whether before or after the date hereof) and
shall include any statutes or provisions of which they are
re-enactments (whether with or without modification) and any
orders, regulations, instruments or other subordinate legislation
under the relevant statute or statutory provision. References to
sections of consolidating legislation shall wherever necessary or
appropriate in the context be construed as including references to
the sections of the previous legislation from which the
consolidating legislation has been prepared.
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1.2.2
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References to any document
(including this Agreement) are references to that document as
amended, consolidated, supplemented, novated or replaced from time
to time.
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1.2.3
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References herein to
Recitals, Clauses and Schedules are to the recitals of, clauses in
and the schedules to this Agreement unless the context requires
otherwise and the Recitals, the Schedules and the Appendices to
this Agreement shall be deemed to form part of this
Agreement.
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1.2.4
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The expressions
“Seller” and the “Purchaser” shall, where
the context permits, include their respective successors and
permitted assigns.
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1.2.5
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The expressions
“including” or “includes” means including
or includes without limitation.
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1.2.6
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Where under this Agreement the day on which any
act, matter or thing is to be done is a day other than a Business
Day, such act, matter or thing shall be done on the immediately
succeeding Business Day, unless otherwise specified. If a period of
time is specified and dates from, after or before a given day or
the day of an act or event, it is to be calculated exclusive of
that day unless otherwise specified.
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1.2.7
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All reference to time shall
be to Beijing, PRC time unless otherwise specified.
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1.2.8
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To be effective under this
Agreement, any consent, approval, permission or authorization to be
given by a Party must be in writing, signed by or on its behalf.
Nothing in this Agreement is to be construed as imposing any
obligation on a Party not to refuse any consent, approval,
permission or authorization unreasonably or without delay, save
where expressly provided in this Agreement. The Party may impose
any conditions it deems appropriate to any consent, approval,
permission or authorization it gives (if any).
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1.2.9
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Any consent, approval,
permission or authorization given by a Party shall operate as a
consent, approval, permission or authorization only for the
particular matter to which it relates and not as a general waiver
or release of any of the provisions of this Agreement nor shall it
be construed as dispensing with the necessity of obtaining consent,
approval, permission or authorization from another Person (if
required by Applicable Laws or otherwise) or the specific consent,
approval, permission or authorization of that Party in future,
unless expressly so provided.
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1.2.10
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Unless the context requires
otherwise, words importing the singular include the plural and vice
versa and words importing a gender include every
gender.
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1.2.11
All references to
the obtaining of an Approval include:
(a)
the obtaining of
all applicable written approvals, authorizations, concessions,
consents, certificates, licenses, permits, entitlements and the
like of or from the relevant PRC Authorities;
(b)
the completion of
all required filings, registration, notification or the like of the
same with or to the relevant PRC Authorities in regards to the
Approval; and
(c)
the obtaining of
all certificates or other documentary evidence issued by the
relevant PRC Authorities and delivered to the applying party for
(i) any of the above written approvals, authorizations,
concessions, consents, certificates, licenses, permits,
entitlements or the like and (ii) the completion of all
filings, registrations, notifications or procedures or the
like.
1.2.12
References to any
specified Chinese government authority in this Agreement shall
include the PRC Authorities succeeding or from time to time
exercising the functions of the first mentioned Chinese government
authority relevant to this Agreement.
1.2.13
Headings are
inserted for convenience only and shall not affect the construction
of this Agreement.
1.2.14
Where a word or
phrase is defined, its other grammatical forms have a corresponding
meaning.
1.2.15
Where any
statement is to the effect that any Person is not aware of any
matter or circumstance or is a statement qualified by the
expression “to the Person’s knowledge” or
“so far as the Person is aware” or any similar
expression, that statement (a) shall be deemed to refer to the
actual knowledge of a fact of such Person and (if applicable) its
directors and employees and (b) shall include a further
statement that it has been made after due and careful
enquiries.
2.
SALE AND
PURCHASE
2.1
Sale of Shares.
Subject to the terms and conditions
of this Agreement, the Purchaser shall purchase all rights, title
and interests in the Shares from the Sellers and the ESOP Holders,
and each Seller and ESOP Holder shall sell to the Purchaser the
number of Shares in the Company set forth opposite such
Seller’s name in Part I of Schedule 2 and set forth
opposite such ESOP Holder’s name in Part II of Schedule
2, respectively, in each case free from all Encumbrances and
together with all rights attaching or accruing to them at
Closing.
2.2
The Parties hereto acknowledge and
agree that the Purchaser shall not be obliged to complete the
purchase of any Shares unless the purchase of all Shares is
completed simultaneously in accordance with this
Agreement.
3.
PURCHASE
PRICE
3.1
Each Seller and
ESOP Holder shall be entitled to receive consideration in cash in
respect of the Shares held by such Seller or ESOP Holder in such
aggregate amount as set forth opposite such Seller’s name in
Schedule 2 and such ESOP Holder’s name in Schedule 2.
The total consideration payable by the Purchaser for the Shares
shall be US$174,000,000 as adjusted pursuant to Clauses 3.3, 3.4
and 3.5 below (the “ Purchase Price ”).
9
3.2
Closing Date Payment.
At the Closing,
the Purchaser shall deliver:
(i) an aggregate amount of
US$106,799,380.32 (the “ Initial Sellers Cash
Amount ”), to the Sellers, payable to the Sellers in such
amounts and to the bank accounts as set forth opposite the
Sellers’ name in Part I of Schedule 2;
(ii) an aggregate amount of
US$20,296,572.67 (the “ ESOP Cash Amount ”) to
the Escrow Agent, pursuant to the terms and conditions of the
Escrow Agreement;
(iii) an aggregate amount of
US$1,600,000.00 (the “ Sellers Trust Amount ”)
to the account of Morrison & Foerster LLP as set forth in
Part II of Schedule 2;
(iv) an aggregate amount of
US$2,657,127.22 (the “ ESOP Exercise Price ”) to
the account of the Company as set forth in Part II of Schedule
2;
(v) an amount of
US$2,377,378.35 (the “ Seller A ESOP Amount ”)
to the account of Seller A to the bank account as set forth
opposite his or her name in Part II of Schedule 2;
and
(vi) an amount of US$269,541.41
(the “ Seller B ESOP Amount ”) to the account of
Seller B to the bank account as set forth opposite his or her name
in Part II of Schedule 2.
The Purchaser’s obligation to
pay the Initial Sellers Cash Amount, ESOP Cash Amount, Sellers
Trust Amount, ESOP Exercise Price, the Seller A ESOP Amount and the
Seller B ESOP Amount portions of the Purchase Price shall be fully
discharged upon such payments being delivered in accordance with
this Clause 3.2.
3.3
Escrow Amount.
Of the Purchase Price, US$40,000,000
(the “ Escrow Amount ”) shall be paid by the
Purchaser into an interest-bearing account (the “ Escrow
Account ”) in the name of JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Hong
Kong Branch (the “ Escrow Agent ”) governed by
the Escrow Agreement and shall be held there for a period of no
longer than eighteen (18) months from the Closing Date (the “
Escrow Period ”). With respect to each Seller
and applicable ESOP Holder, those amounts set forth opposite such
Seller’s name in Part I of Schedule 2 and such ESOP
Holder’s name in Part II of Schedule 2, shall be deemed
to have been contributed to the Escrow Amount by that Seller or
ESOP Holder. Each Seller and ESOP Holder who is deemed to
have contributed any amount to the Escrow Account is referred to as
a “ Contributing Seller ”. During the
Escrow Period, the Escrow Amount shall be made available to the
Purchaser to satisfy Claims in accordance with the provisions of
Clause 3.5.
3.4
Prior to the
Closing Date, the Purchaser and the Seller Representatives shall
enter into the Escrow Agreement with the Escrow Agent in order to
open the Escrow Account. The Purchaser shall remit the ESOP
Cash Amount and the Escrow Amount in accordance with the Escrow
Agreement on the Closing Date. As soon as practicable after
the Closing Date, the Purchaser and a Seller Representative shall
jointly notify the Escrow Agent in writing that the Closing has
occurred. The Seller Representatives shall act as the
authorized representatives of the Contributing Sellers with respect
to the Escrow Account, and all written decisions of at least three
(3) Seller Representatives with respect to the Escrow Account
shall be binding on all Contributing Sellers.
3.5
Payment of Escrow
Amount.
3.5.1
The Escrow Agent
shall only act pursuant to the provisions of the Escrow Agreement,
which shall contain substantially the same payment procedures as
set forth below.
10
3.5.2
In the event that
the Purchaser shall have delivered a Notice of Claim to the Seller
Representatives, the Contributing Sellers and the Escrow Agent
before the expiration of the Escrow Period, the following procedure
shall apply:
(a)
If none of the
Seller Representatives contest such Notice of Claim by giving the
Purchaser and the Escrow Agent a written counter notice
(“ Counter
Notice ”) within twenty (20)
Business Days after the delivery of the Notice of Claim (the
“ Dispute Period
”), the
Escrow Agent shall, without the need for any further action by any
Seller Representative or the Purchaser, release the amount of the
Claim set forth in the Notice of Claim (an “
Agreed Claim ”), and any accrued
interest thereof, to the Purchaser within three (3) Business
Days after the expiration of the Dispute Period with respect to
such Claim.
(b)
If a Counter
Notice is delivered by any Seller Representative with respect to a
Claim pending resolution of the dispute (a “
Disputed Claim ”), the Escrow Agent
shall make payment with respect to a Disputed Claim only in
accordance with (i) the joint written instructions of the
Purchaser and at least three (3) Seller Representatives,
(ii) an arbitral award or (iii) a final court order of
competent jurisdiction, which payment of such Claim (a
“ Settled Claim
”) and any
accrued interest thereof shall be made within three
(3) Business Days from the date the Escrow Agent receives the
joint written instructions of the Purchaser and at least three
(3) Seller Representatives or, as the case may be, such
arbitral award or final court order regarding such Settled
Claim.
(c)
Upon delivery by
any Seller Representative of a Counter Notice, the parties agree to
attempt to resolve any Disputed Claim by holding good faith
discussions between at least three (3) Seller Representatives
and the duly authorized representative(s) of the
Purchaser. If the Disputed Claim is not resolved within
twenty (20) Business Days after the delivery of the Counter Notice
pursuant to Clause 3.5.2(a) or such other date as may be
agreed between at least three (3) Seller Representatives and
the Purchaser in writing, any Seller Representative or the
Purchaser may refer the Disputed Claim to arbitration in accordance
with Clause 23.
(d)
Notwithstanding
anything in this Agreement to the contrary, the liability of each
Seller for a Claim under Clause 8 shall be subject to the
limitations on liability set forth in Clauses 8.1.5 and 8.1.6 and
limited to the amount remaining in the Escrow Account and any
accrued interest thereof that has not yet been released to the
Contributing Sellers or the Purchaser, as the case may be, pursuant
to this Clause 3.
(e)
Notwithstanding
Clause 3.3 or any other provision to the contrary in this
Agreement, each Contributing Seller agrees that the Purchaser shall
be entitled to apply the Escrow Amount (and any accrued interest
thereof) towards the satisfaction of any Agreed Claim or Settled
Claim to the extent permitted under this Clause 3.5 regardless of
whether such Contributing Seller is liable under the relevant Claim
and regardless of the amounts the Contributing Seller who is liable
under the relevant Claim (the “ Liable Seller ”) has contributed to
the Escrow Amount, and each Contributing Seller shall not raise,
and shall procure the Seller Representatives not to raise, any
objection in relation to such application on the ground that such
Contributing Seller is not the Liable Seller and the amount it
contributed to the Escrow Amount may not be used to satisfy the
Claim.
11
3.5.3
All payments with
respect to Agreed Claims and Settled Claims under this Clause 3.5
shall be paid out subject to the provisions of Clause
8.
3.5.4
Within fifteen
(15) Business Days after expiration of the Escrow Period, the
Purchaser and a Seller Representative shall jointly instruct the
Escrow Agent to release the amount remaining in the Escrow Amount
to each of the Contributing Sellers in accordance with the terms of
the Escrow Agreement, after having deducted the amounts required to
satisfy all Agreed Claims and Settled Claims (including any accrued
interest thereof) which are outstanding and unpaid, and any Claims
in respect of which arbitration has been commenced in accordance
with Clause 23 and the HKIAC Administered Arbitration Rules at
the expiration of the Escrow Period (the “
Arbitrated Claim Amount
”).
The Escrow
Agent shall release any Arbitrated Claim Amount (and any accrued
interest thereof) in accordance (i) the joint written
instructions of the Purchaser and at least three (3) Seller
Representatives, (ii) an arbitral award or (iii) a final
court order of competent jurisdiction, and such release shall be
made within three (3) Business Days from the date the Escrow
Agent receives such joint instructions or, as the case may be, such
arbitral award or final court order regarding such Arbitrated Claim
Amount.
3.5.5
Any interest
accruing on the Escrow Account shall be for the benefit of the
Contributing Sellers as set forth in the Escrow Agreement,
provided , however, that the Purchaser shall be entitled to
interest attributable to any Agreed Claims or Settled Claims paid
to the Purchaser.
3.5.6
All fees and
expenses of the Escrow Agent pursuant to the Escrow Agreement which
shall be US$10,000 (the “ Escrow Fees ”) shall be
borne