ISPC iSpecimen Inc

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 8-K

 

CURRENT REPORT

PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): September 19, 2024

 

iSpecimen Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Delaware		001-40501		27-0480143
(State or other jurisdiction of Incorporation)		(Commission File Number)		(IRS Employer Identification No.)

 

8 Cabot Road Woburn, MA 01801

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (781) 301-6700

 

Not Applicable

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

Title of each class		Trading symbol(s)		Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share		ISPC		The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

 

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

 

Emerging growth company x

 

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

 

 

 

Item 1.01.

Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

 

On September 19, 2024, iSpecimen Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), entered into a Note Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) with a lender (the “Lender”). Pursuant to the provisions of the Purchase Agreement, the Lender agreed to provide a loan to the Company in the amount of $1,000,000 (the “Loan”) and the Company agreed to issue to the Lender a promissory note in the principal amount of $1,000,000 payable within 12 months after the date of issuance, with interest accruing and payable at a rate of 18% per annum (the “Note”). The Purchase Agreement contains customary representations and warranties and obligates the Lender to provide an additional loan to the Company, in the form of a revolving line of credit of up to $1,000,000, upon the Company’s initial filing of a Registration Statement for an underwritten or best-efforts public offering for gross proceeds of at least $5,000,000.

 

On September 25, 2024, the Company and the Lender closed the transactions (“Closing”) described in the Purchase Agreement, the Lender provided funds to the Company in the net amount of $960,000 and the Company issued the Note to the Lender in the principal amount of $1,000,000. The Note contains customary negative covenants and provisions relating to an Event of Default (as defined in the Note) by the Company thereunder.

 

Westpark Capital, Inc. served as the placement agent in connection with the Loan and was paid a placement agent fee in the amount of $40,000 for its services.

 

The foregoing descriptions of the material terms of the Purchase Agreement and the Note are qualified in their entirety by reference to the full text of the Purchase Agreement and the Note, copies of which are filed as Exhibits 10.1 and 4.1, respectively, hereto and are incorporated herein by reference.

 

Item 2.03

Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an Off-Balance Sheet Arrangement of a Registrant.

 

The disclosure contained in Item 1.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K is incorporated by reference in this Item 2.03.

 

Item 5.02

Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

 

Pursuant to the Purchase Agreement, among other things, as a condition to Closing, three of the five directors serving on the board of directors of the Company (the “Board”) resigned from the Board and were replaced by three new directors designated by the Lender, which became effective immediately upon Closing. The Company received letters of resignation from each of Steven Gullans and Theresa Mock, each as a member of the Board, and from Elizabeth A. Graham, as a member and the chairperson of the Board, effective upon Closing. None of Mr. Gullans’, Ms. Mock’s or Ms. Graham’s decisions to resign as a director was the result of any disagreements between such director, on the one hand, and the Company’s management or Board, on the other hand, as to any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies, or practices.

 

In addition, effective upon Closing on September 25, 2024, Richard Paolone, Avtar Dhaliwal and Katherine (Katie) Field were each appointed to serve on the Board as a Class I director, a Class II director and a Class III director of the Company, respectively, with Ms. Field appointed as the chairperson of the Board. Mr. Paolone’s, Mr. Dhaliwal’s, and Ms. Field’s term of office will expire at the Company’s 2025 2026 and 2027 annual meetings of stockholders, respectively, or until the election and qualification of his or her successor, subject to his or her earlier death, resignation or removal. Also, effective upon Closing, each of Mr. Paolone and Ms. Field was appointed as a member of the Audit Committee of the Board each of Mr. Paolone and Mr. Dhaliwal was appointed as a member of the Compensation Committee of the Board (the “Compensation Committee”), with Mr. Paolone appointed as Chair of the Compensation Committee, and each of Mr. Dhaliwal and Ms. Field was appointed as a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Board (the “Nominating Committee”), with Mr. Dhaliwal appointed as Chair of the Nominating Committee.

 

 

Appointment of Richard Paolone to the Board of Directors

 

Richard Paolone, age 34, is a Toronto-based securities lawyer where his work focuses on securities, corporate finance, and mergers and acquisitions. He has a wide range of corporate experience from representing companies in private and public offerings of debt and equity securities. In June 2020, Mr. Paolone founded Paolone Law Professional Corporation, where he has been the principal since such date. From February 2019 to October 2019, and again from September 2020 to January 2021, Mr. Paolone was a director of Evolution Global Frontier Ventures Corp. (formerly Ascension Exploration Inc.), a company that is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Mr. Paolone also serves as Director and CEO of several private and reporting companies. Since February 2019, Mr. Paolone has also been the CEO and director of Rotonda Ventures Corp., a public company in Canada. Since February 2021, Mr. Paolone has also been the CEO, CFO, and director of Republic Goldfields Inc., a public company in Canada. Also, since February 2021, Mr. Paolone has been the CEO, CFO, and director of Emerald Isle Resources Inc., a public company in Canada. Since April 2022, Mr. Paolone has also served as a director of Critical Infrastructure Technologies Ltd., a mining technology company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Since December 2022, Mr. Palaone has also served as a director of SBD Capital Inc., a company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Since June 2023, Mr. Paolone has also served as a director of Xander Resources Inc., a mining company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Since November 2023, he has also served as a director of Ashington Innovations Plc., a special purpose acquisition company listed on London Stock Exchange. Since September 2024, Mr. Paolone has served on the board of Safe Supply Streaming Co Ltd., an investment issuer listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Since May 2019, he has served as a director of Red Pine Petroleum Ltd., a company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, and also served as its CEO from October 2020 until September 2021. Mr. Paolone has been integral to multiple mergers and acquisitions and reverse takeover transactions in the industries of mining, cannabis, carbon credits, oil and gas, technology, and plant-based food. Mr. Paolone holds a B.A. in criminal justice from Mount Royal University and a J.D. from Bond University. He is a licensed barrister and solicitor lawyer in Ontario. Mr. Paolone is well-qualified to serve on the Board due to his corporate experiences in mergers and acquisition and private and public offerings of debt and equity securities.

 

As the Company’s common stock is listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market (“Nasdaq”), determination of the independence of the Company’s directors is made using the definition of “independent director” contained in Nasdaq Listing Rule 5605(a)(2). The Board has affirmatively determined that Mr. Paolone is an “independent director,” as that term is defined in the Nasdaq rules.

 

Mr. Paolone is entitled to the standard compensation paid by the Company to all of its nonemployee directors under the Company’s Nonemployee Director Compensation Policy (pro-rated as applicable to reflect the actual time Mr. Paolone has served on the Board for the year).

 

Mr. Paolone has entered into an indemnification agreement in the form the Company has entered into with its other nonemployee directors, which form is filed as Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1/A, filed by the Company on December 31, 2020 and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

There are no family relationships between Mr. Paolone and any director, executive officer, or person nominated or chosen by the Company to become an executive officer of the Company. There are no transactions between the Company and Mr. Paolone that are subject to disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.

 

Appointment of Katharyn (Katie) Field to the Board of Directors

 

Katharyn (Katie) Field, age 41, has a background which includes positions spanning both the private and public sectors and brings a wealth of experience and expertise in strategy consulting and executive leadership. Ms. Field is currently the chief executive officer and Chairman of Halo Collective Inc., a cannabis company, where she has served since May 2019, an Executive Director at Akanda Corporation, a medical cannabis company, where she has served since June 2022, the Chairperson of Aerwins Technology, a technology company, where she has served since June 2023, and the director of Virpax Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRPX), a preclinical-stage pharmaceutical company, where she has served since July 2024. Previously, she served as a director of Elegance Brands from March 2021 until March 2022. She has held prominent positions at renowned organizations such as The White House in the office of the public liaison, The Brookings Institution as a manager of operations, and Bain & Company as a consultant. In 2014, Ms. Field entered the cannabis industry and played a pivotal role in the procurement, build-out, and sale of one of the original vertically integrated licensed medical marijuana treatment centers in Florida. Subsequently, she operated a strategy consulting practice focused on cannabis and served as Executive Vice President of Corporate Development at MariMed from 2018 to 2019. Ms. Field holds an MBA in Economics from Columbia Business School and a BA in Public Policy with honors from Stanford University. Ms. Field is well-qualified to serve on the Board due to her experience and expertise in strategy consulting and executive leadership.

 

 

The Board has affirmatively determined that Ms. Field is an “independent director,” as that term is defined in the Nasdaq rules.

 

Ms. Field is entitled to the standard compensation paid by the Company to all of its nonemployee directors under the Company’s Nonemployee Director Compensation Policy (pro-rated as applicable to reflect the actual time Ms. Field has served on the Board for the year).

 

Ms. Field has entered into an indemnification agreement in the form the Company has entered into with its other nonemployee directors, which form is filed as Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1/A, filed by the Company on December 31, 2020 and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

There are no family relationships between Ms. Field and any director, executive officer, or person nominated or chosen by the Company to become an executive officer of the Company. There are no transactions between the Company and Ms. Field that are subject to disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.

 

Appointment of Avtar Dhaliwal to the Board of Directors

 

Avtar Dhaliwal, age 30, has served as a director and a member of the compensation committee of the board of Halo Collective Inc. since March 2022, which is a cannabis extraction company that develops and manufactures quality cannabis oils and concentrates, and he has been a member of its audit committee of the board in August 2024. Since August 2024, Mr. Dhaliwal has been a director of Advent Technologies Holdings Inc., a US corporation that develops, manufactures, and assembles complete fuel cell systems as well as supplying customers with critical components for fuel cells in the renewable energy sector. Since December 2021, Mr. Dhaliwal has been the Chief Executive Officer of Modern Plant Based Foods, a Canadian food company that offers a portfolio of plant-based products. Previously, Mr. Dhaliwal worked in operations and logistics with Modern Plant Based Foods Inc. beginning in October 2019, and has also been the Chief Executive Officer of Pontus Protein Ltd., an agricultural food and technology company focused on creating and acquiring the best technology, since March 2022. From January 2024 until May 2024, Mr. Dhaliwal was the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Trilogy AI, a company committed to transforming the beauty industry through its artificial intelligence technology. Mr. Dhaliwal holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of British Columbia Okanagan. Mr. Dhaliwal is well-qualified to serve on the Board due to his management experience across multiple industries.

 

The Board has affirmatively determined that Mr. Dhaliwal is an “independent director,” as that term is defined in the Nasdaq rules.

 

Mr. Dhaliwal is entitled to the standard compensation paid by the Company to all of its nonemployee directors under the Company’s Nonemployee Director Compensation Policy (pro-rated as applicable to reflect the actual time Mr. Dhaliwal has served on the Board for the year).

 

Mr. Dhaliwal has entered into an indemnification agreement in the form the Company has entered into with its other nonemployee directors, which form is filed as Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1/A, filed by the Company on December 31, 2020 and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

There are no family relationships between Mr. Dhaliwal and any director, executive officer, or person nominated or chosen by the Company to become an executive officer of the Company. There are no transactions between the Company and Mr. Dhaliwal that are subject to disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.

 

 

Item 9.01.

Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d) Exhibits.

 

Exhibit No.	Description
4.1	Senior Note, dated as of September 25, 2024
10.1	Note Purchase Agreement, dated as of September 19, 2024
10.2	Form of Indemnification Agreement, by and between the Company and certain directors and executive officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of the Company’s Form S-1/A (File No. 333-250198) with the SEC on December 31, 2020).
104	Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the XBRL document)

 

 

SIGNATURE

 

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

 

Dated: September 25, 2024

 

	iSPECIMEN INC.
	By:	/s/ Tracy Curley
		Name: Tracy Curley
		Title: Chief Executive Officer

 

 

 

Exhibit 4.1

 

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR THE SECURITIES COMMISSION OF ANY STATE IN RELIANCE UPON AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), AND, ACCORDINGLY, MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR PURSUANT TO AN AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE STATE SECURITIES LAWS. THIS SECURITY MAY BE PLEDGED IN CONNECTION WITH A BONA FIDE MARGIN ACCOUNT OR OTHER LOAN SECURED BY SUCH SECURITIES.

 

Date of this Note: September 25, 2024			Original Principal Amount:		$	1,000,000
Final Maturity Date: September 25, 2025			Interest Rate:			18	%

 

iSPECIMEN, INC.

SENIOR NOTE

 

THIS SENIOR NOTE (this “Note”) is a duly authorized and validly issued promissory note of iSpecimen Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), designated as a senior note.

 

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, the Company promises to pay to 1396974 BC LTD. or its registered assigns (“Holder”), the Original Principal Amount of this Note as set forth hereinabove (the “Original Principal Amount”) on the Final Maturity Date set forth hereinabove (the “Final Maturity Date”), or such earlier date as this Note is required or permitted to be repaid as provided hereunder (as the case may be, the “Maturity Date”), and to pay interest to the Holder in accordance with the provisions hereof. This Note is subject to the following additional provisions:

 

Section 1. Definitions. For the purposes hereof, in addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Note: (a) capitalized terms not otherwise defined herein shall have the meanings set forth in the Purchase Agreement, and (b) the following terms shall have the following meanings:

 

“Bankruptcy Event” means any of the following events: (a) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary (as such term is defined in Rule 1-02(w) of Regulation S-X) thereof commences a case or other proceeding under any bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, adjustment of debt, relief of debtors, dissolution, insolvency or liquidation or similar law of any jurisdiction relating to the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof, (b) there is commenced against the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof any such case or proceeding that is not dismissed within 60 days after commencement, (c) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof is adjudicated insolvent or bankrupt or any order of relief or other order approving any such case or proceeding is entered, (d) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof suffers any appointment of any custodian or the like for it or any substantial part of its property that is not discharged or stayed within 60 calendar days after such appointment, (e) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof makes a general assignment for the benefit of creditors, (f) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof calls a meeting of its creditors with a view to arranging a composition, adjustment or restructuring of its debts, (g) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof admits in writing that it is generally unable to pay its debts as they become due, (h) the Company or any Significant Subsidiary thereof, by any act or failure to act, expressly indicates its consent to, approval of or acquiescence in any of the foregoing or takes any corporate or other action for the purpose of effecting any of the foregoing.

 

 

“Event of Default” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5(a).

 

“Fundamental Transaction” shall mean and include any of the following: (i) the merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another Person; (ii) any sale, lease, license, assignment, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets in one or a series of related transactions(including any asset or group of assets, regardless whether then so classified by the Company, which would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, as such term is defined in Rule 1-02(w) of Regulation S-X), (iii) any, direct or indirect, purchase offer, tender offer or exchange offer (whether by the Company or another Person) is completed pursuant to which holders of Common Stock are permitted to sell, tender or exchange their shares for other securities, cash or property and has been accepted by the holders of 50% or more of the outstanding Common Stock, (iv) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions effects any reclassification, reorganization or recapitalization of the Common Stock or any compulsory share exchange pursuant to which the Common Stock is effectively converted into or exchanged for other securities, cash or property, or (v) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions consummates a stock or share purchase agreement or other business combination (including, without limitation, a reorganization, recapitalization, spin-off, merger or scheme of arrangement) with another Person or group of Persons whereby such other Person or group acquires more than 50% of the outstanding shares of Common Stock (not including any shares of Common Stock held by the other Person or other Persons making or party to, or associated or affiliated with the other Persons making or party to, such stock or share purchase agreement or other business combination).

 

“Indebtedness” means any liabilities of the Company for borrowed money or amounts owed and all guaranties made by the Company of borrowed money or amounts owed by others.

 

“Mandatory Default Amount” means, with respect to this Note at any time: (A) the product of (i) the sum of: (1) the outstanding balance of the Original Principal Amount of this Note at such time, plus (2) all accrued and unpaid interest hereunder at such time and (ii) 120%, plus (B) all liquidated damages and other amounts, costs, expenses and/or liquidated damages due under or in respect of this Note, if any.

 

“Original Issue Date” means the “Date of this Note” as set forth hereinabove.

 

“Payment Amount” means, with respect to this Note at any time, the sum of: (1) the outstanding balance of the Original Principal Amount of this Note at such time, plus (2) all accrued and unpaid interest hereunder at such time, plus (3) all liquidated damages and other amounts, costs, expenses and/or liquidated damages due under or in respect of this Note, if any.

 

“Purchase Agreement” means the Note Purchase Agreement, dated as of September 18, 2024 by and among the Company and the original holder of this Note, as amended, modified, or supplemented from time to time in accordance with its terms.

 

“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

 

Section 2. Interest and Payment.

 

(a)            The Original Principal Amount of this Note shall bear interest accruing at eighteen percent (18%) per annum, calculated on the basis of a 360-day year, consisting of twelve 30 calendar day periods, and shall accrue daily commencing on the Original Issue Date until payment in full of this Note.

 

(b)            On the Maturity Date, the entire Payment Amount (or, if an Event of Default shall have previously occurred, the Mandatory Default Amount) shall become due and payable. The Company may prepay this Note in full at any time after the Original Issue Date in an amount equal to the Payment Amount, without premium or penalty; provided, however, that if an Event of Default shall have previously occurred, then the Company shall pay the Mandatory Default Amount.

 

Section 3. Registration of Transfers and Exchanges.

 

(a)            Different Denominations. This Note is exchangeable for an equal aggregate Original Principal Amount of this Note of different authorized denominations, as requested by the Holder surrendering the same. No service charge will be payable for such registration of transfer or exchange.

 

(b)            Investment Representations. This Note has been issued subject to certain investment representations of the original Holder set forth in the Purchase Agreement and may be transferred or exchanged only in compliance with the Purchase Agreement and applicable federal and state securities laws and regulations.

 

(c)            Reliance on Note Register. Prior to due presentment for transfer to the Company of this Note, the Company and any agent of the Company may treat the Person in whose name this Note is duly registered on its official registry of Notes as the owner hereof for the purpose of receiving payment as herein provided and for all other purposes, whether or not this Note is overdue, and neither the Company nor any such agent shall be affected by notice to the contrary.

 

Section 4. Negative Covenants. As long as any portion of this Note remains outstanding, unless the holders of a majority in Original Principal Amount of the then outstanding Note shall have otherwise given prior written consent, the Company shall not, and shall not permit any of its Subsidiaries (if any) to, directly or indirectly:

 

(a)            amend its organization documents, including, without limitation, its certificate of incorporation and bylaws, in any manner that materially and adversely affects any rights of holders of a Note;

 

(b)            repay, repurchase or offer to repay, repurchase or otherwise acquire more than a de minimis number of shares of its Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents other than (i) as required under the Transaction Documents, (ii) repurchases of Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents of departing officers and directors of the Company, provided that such repurchases shall not exceed an aggregate of $25,000 for all officers and directors during the term of this Note, (iii) repurchases of Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents, pursuant to existing repurchase agreements, provided that such repurchases shall not exceed an aggregate of $25,000 during the term of this Note, or (iv) shares of Common Stock and Common Stock Equivalents which do not vest or are otherwise forfeited, provided (in case of forfeiture) that such Common Stock and Common Stock Equivalents are not acquired for cash;

 

(c)            repay, repurchase or offer to repay, repurchase or otherwise acquire any Indebtedness, other than the Note, if on a pro-rata basis, and the Credit Line, other than regularly scheduled principal and interest payments as such terms are in effect as of the Original Issue Date; provided that no Event of Default shall then exist or occur or exist by reason thereof; and provided further that is acknowledged and understood by the Holder that nothing contained herein shall prevent the Company from being able to pay all of its accounts payable in the ordinary course of business;

 

 

(d)            pay cash dividends or distributions on any equity securities of the Company;

 

(e)            enter into any material transaction with any Affiliate of the Company, unless such transaction is made on an arm’s-length basis and expressly approved by a majority of the disinterested directors of the Company (even if less than a quorum otherwise required for board approval); or

 

(f)            enter into any agreement with respect to any of the foregoing.

 

Section 5. Events of Default.

 

(a)            “Event of Default” means, wherever used herein, any of the following events (whatever the reason for such event and whether such event shall be voluntary or involuntary or effected by operation of law or pursuant to any judgment, decree or order of any court, or any order, rule or regulation of any administrative or governmental body):

 

(i)            any default in the payment of the Payment Amount (or, if an Event of Default shall have previously occurred, the Mandatory Default Amount) as and when the same shall become due and payable (whether on the Maturity Date, by mandatory prepayment, acceleration or otherwise) which default is not cured within five (5) Business Days;

 

(ii)            any of the Investor Board Member Nominees shall have been removed from the Board of Directors (and not promptly replaced on the Board of Directors by a Replacement Nominee) without the prior written consent of the Holder;

 

(iii)            the Company shall fail to observe or perform any other covenant or agreement contained in the Note, which failure is not cured, if possible to cure, within the earlier to occur of (A) two (2) Business Days after notice of such failure sent by the Holder or by any other Holder to the Company and (B) five (5) Business Days after the Company has become or should have become aware of such failure;

 

(iv)            a default or event of default (subject to any grace or cure period provided in the applicable agreement, document or instrument) shall occur under (A) any of the Transaction Documents, or (B) any other material agreement, lease, document or instrument to which the Company or any Subsidiary is obligated (and not covered by clause (vii) below);

 

(v)            any material representation or warranty made in this Note, any other Transaction Documents, any written statement pursuant hereto or thereto or any other report, financial statement or certificate made or delivered to the Holder or any other Holder shall be untrue or incorrect in any material respect as of the date when made;

 

(vi)            the Company or any Significant Subsidiary (as such term is defined in Rule 1-02(w) of Regulation S-X) shall be subject to a Bankruptcy Event;

 

(vii)            the Company shall default on any of its obligations under any mortgage, credit agreement or other facility, indenture agreement, capital lease, factoring agreement or other instrument under which there may be issued, or by which there may be secured or evidenced, any Indebtedness for borrowed money or money due under any long term leasing or factoring arrangement that (a) involves an obligation greater than $50,000, whether such Indebtedness now exists or shall hereafter be created, and (b) results in such Indebtedness becoming or being declared due and payable prior to the date on which it would otherwise become due and payable;

 

 

(viii)            the Company shall be a party to any change of control transaction or Fundamental Transaction or shall agree to sell or dispose of all or in excess of 33% of its assets in one transaction or a series of related transactions (whether or not such sale would constitute a change of control transaction); or

 

(ix)            a final non-appealable judgment by any competent court of competent jurisdiction for the payment of money in an amount of at least $50,000 is rendered against the Company, and the same remains undischarged and unpaid for a period of 45 days during which execution of such judgment is not effectively stayed.

 

(b)            Remedies Upon Event of Default. If any Event of Default occurs, the Mandatory Default Amount of this Note shall become, at the Holder’s election, immediately due and payable in cash. Upon the payment in full of the Payment Amount (or, if an Event of Default shall have previously occurred, the Mandatory Default Amount) in accordance with the terms of this Note, the Holder shall promptly surrender this Note to or as directed by the Company. In connection with such acceleration described herein, the Holder need not provide, and the Company hereby waives, any presentment, demand, protest or other notice of any kind, and the Holder may immediately and without expiration of any grace period enforce any and all of its rights and remedies hereunder and all other remedies available to it under applicable law. Such acceleration may be rescinded and annulled by Holder at any time prior to payment hereunder and the Holder shall have all rights as a holder of the Note until such time, if any, as the Holder receives full payment pursuant to this Section 5(b). No such rescission or annulment shall affect any subsequent Event of Default or impair any right consequent thereon.

 

Section 6. Miscellaneous.

 

(a)            Notices. Any and all notices or other communications or deliveries to be provided by the Holder hereunder shall be in writing and delivered personally, by email attachment, or sent by a nationally recognized overnight courier service, addressed to the Company, at the address set forth on in the Purchase Agreement, or such other, email address, or address as the Company may specify for such purposes by notice to the Holder delivered in accordance with this Section 6(a). Any and all notices or other communications or deliveries to be provided by the Company hereunder shall be in writing and delivered personally, by facsimile, by email attachment, or sent by a nationally recognized overnight courier service addressed to each Holder at the facsimile number, email address or address of the Holder appearing on the books of the Company, or if no such facsimile number or email attachment or address appears on the books of the Company, at the principal place of business of such Holder, as set forth in the Purchase Agreement. Any notice or other communication or deliveries hereunder shall be deemed given and effective on the earliest of: (i) the date of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via facsimile at the facsimile number or email attachment to the email address set forth on the signature pages attached hereto prior to 5:30 p.m. (Eastern time) on any date, (ii) the next Business Day after the date of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via facsimile at the facsimile number or email attachment to the email address set forth on the signature pages attached hereto on a day that is not a Business Day or later than 5:30 p.m. (Eastern time) on any Business Day, (iii) the second Business Day following the date of mailing, if sent by U.S. nationally recognized overnight courier service, or (iv) upon actual receipt by the party to whom such notice is required to be given.

 

(b)            Absolute Obligation; Ranking. Except as expressly provided herein, no provision of this Note shall alter or impair the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay the principal of, liquidated damages and accrued interest, as applicable, on this Note at the time, place, and rate, and in the coin or currency, herein prescribed. This Note is a direct debt obligation of the Company. This Note is a senior direct debt obligation of the Company that ranks (x) pari passu with all other Notes (if any) now or hereafter issued under the terms of the Purchase Agreement, and (y) senior or pari passu with all other Indebtedness of the Company.

 

 

(c)            Lost or Mutilated Note. If this Note shall be mutilated, lost, stolen or destroyed, the Company shall execute and deliver, in exchange and substitution for and upon cancellation of a mutilated Note, or in lieu of or in substitution for a lost, stolen or destroyed Note, a new Note for the Original Principal Amount of this Note so mutilated, lost, stolen or destroyed, but only upon receipt of evidence of such loss, theft or destruction of such Note, and of the ownership hereof, reasonably satisfactory to the Company.

 

(d)            Governing Law. Section 5.07 of the Purchase Agreement shall apply with respect to any matters relating to this Note.

 

(e)            Waiver. Any waiver by the Company or the Holder of a breach of any provision of this Note shall not operate as or be construed to be a waiver of any other breach of such provision or of any breach of any other provision of this Note. The failure of the Company or the Holder to insist upon strict adherence to any term of this Note on one or more occasions shall not be considered a waiver or deprive that party of the right thereafter to insist upon strict adherence to that term or any other term of this Note on any other occasion. Any waiver by the Company or the Holder must be in writing.

 

(f)            Severability. If any provision of this Note is invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the balance of this Note shall remain in effect, and if any provision is inapplicable to any Person or circumstance, it shall nevertheless remain applicable to all other Persons and circumstances. If it shall be found that any interest or other amount deemed interest due hereunder violates the applicable law governing usury, the applicable rate of interest due hereunder shall automatically be lowered to equal the maximum rate of interest permitted under applicable law. The Company covenants (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) that it shall not at any time insist upon, plead, or in any manner whatsoever claim or take the benefit or advantage of, any stay, extension or usury law or other law which would prohibit or forgive the Company from paying all or any portion of the principal of or interest on this Note as contemplated herein, wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, or which may affect the covenants or the performance of this Note, and the Company (to the extent it may lawfully do so) hereby expressly waives all benefits or advantage of any such law, and covenants that it will not, by resort to any such law, hinder, delay or impede the execution of any power herein granted to the Holder, but will suffer and permit the execution of every such as though no such law has been enacted.

 

(g)            Remedies, Characterizations, Other Obligations, Breaches and Injunctive Relief. The remedies provided in this Note shall be cumulative and in addition to all other remedies available under this Note and any of the other Transaction Documents at law or in equity (including a decree of specific performance and/or other injunctive relief), and nothing herein shall limit the Holder’s right to pursue actual and consequential damages for any failure by the Company to comply with the terms of this Note. The Company covenants to the Holder that there shall be no characterization concerning this instrument other than as expressly provided herein. Amounts set forth or provided for herein with respect to payments and the like (and the computation thereof) shall be the amounts to be received by the Holder and shall not, except as expressly provided herein, be subject to any other obligation of the Company (or the performance thereof). The Company acknowledges that a breach by it of its obligations hereunder will cause irreparable harm to the Holder and that the remedy at law for any such breach may be inadequate. The Company therefore agrees that, in the event of any such breach or threatened breach, the Holder shall be entitled, in addition to all other available remedies, to an injunction restraining any such breach or any such threatened breach, without the necessity of showing economic loss and without any bond or other security being required. The Company shall provide all information and documentation to the Holder that is reasonably requested by the Holder to enable the Holder to confirm the Company’s compliance with the terms and conditions of this Note.

 

 

(h)            Next Business Day. Whenever any payment or other obligation hereunder shall be due on a day other than a Business Day, such payment shall be made on the next succeeding Business Day.

 

(i)            Headings. The headings contained herein are for convenience only, do not constitute a part of this Note and shall not be deemed to limit or affect any of the provisions hereof.

 

Section 7. Amendments; Waivers. Any modifications, amendments or waivers of the provisions hereof shall be subject to Section 5.04 of the Purchase Agreement.

 

Section 8. Usury. To the extent it may lawfully do so, the Company hereby agrees not to insist upon or plead or in any manner whatsoever claim and will resist any and all efforts to be compelled to take the benefit or advantage of, usury laws wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, in connection with any action or proceeding that may be brought by any Holder in order to enforce any right or remedy under any Transaction Document. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary contained in any Transaction Document, it is expressly agreed and provided that the total liability of the Company under the Transaction Documents for payments in the nature of interest shall not exceed the maximum lawful rate authorized under applicable law (the “Maximum Rate”), and, without limiting the foregoing, in no event shall any rate of interest or default interest, or both of them, when aggregated with any other sums in the nature of interest that the Company may be obligated to pay under the Transaction Documents exceed such Maximum Rate. It is agreed that if the maximum contract rate of interest allowed by law and applicable to the Transaction Documents is increased or decreased by statute or any official governmental action subsequent to the date hereof, the new maximum contract rate of interest allowed by law will be the Maximum Rate applicable to the Transaction Documents from the effective date thereof forward, unless such application is precluded by applicable law. If under any circumstances whatsoever, interest in excess of the Maximum Rate is paid by the Company to any Holder with respect to indebtedness evidenced by the Transaction Documents, such excess shall be applied by such Holder to the unpaid principal amount of any such indebtedness or be refunded to the Company, the manner of handling such excess to be at such Holder’s election.

 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this Note to be duly executed by a duly authorized officer as of the date first above indicated.

 

	iSPECIMEN, INC.
	By:	/s/ Tracy Curley
	Name: Tracy Curley
	Title: Chief Executive Officer

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.1

 

NOTE PURCHASE AGREEMENT

 

This Note Purchase Agreement (this “Agreement”) is dated as of September 18, 2024 between iSpecimen Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and the purchaser identified on the signature page (including its successors and assigns, the “Investor”.

 

WHEREAS, the Investor wishes to purchase from the Company, and the Company wishes to issue and sell to the Investor, senior notes in the form of Appendix A hereto (each, a “Note” and collectively, the “Notes”) in an aggregate principal amount of $1,000,000; and

 

WHEREAS, the Company and Investor are executing and delivering this Agreement in reliance upon an exemption from securities registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, afforded by the provisions of Section 4(a)(2) and/or Rule 506(b) of Regulation D promulgated thereunder by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

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 Investor agree as follows:

 

ARTICLE I
DEFINITIONS

 

Section 1.01. Definitions. In addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement:

 

(a)            capitalized terms that are not otherwise defined herein have the meanings given to such terms in the Notes (as defined herein), and (b) the following terms have the meanings set forth in this Agreement.

 

“$” means United States Dollars.

 

“Action” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.01(k).

 

“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 Saturday, 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; provided, however, for clarification, commercial banks shall not be deemed to be authorized or required by law to remain closed due to “stay at home”, “shelter-in-place”, “non-essential employee” or any other similar orders or restrictions or the closure of any physical branch locations at the direction of any governmental authority so long as the electronic funds transfer systems (including for wire transfers) of commercial banks in The City of New York are generally open for use by customers on such day. If the last or appointed day for the taking of any action or the expiration of any right required or granted herein shall not be a Business Day, then such action may be taken or such right may be exercised on the next succeeding Business Day.

 

“Closing” means the closing of the purchase and sale of the Notes pursuant to Section 2.01.

 

“Closing Date” means the Business Day when all of the Transaction Documents specified in Section 2.02 have been executed and delivered by the applicable parties thereto, and conditions precedent to the Investor’s obligations to pay the Subscription Amount the Company’s obligations to issue and deliver the Notes shall 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 $0.0001 per share, and any other class of securities into which such securities may hereafter be reclassified or changed.

 

“Common Stock Equivalent” means any convertible security or warrant, option or other right to subscribe for or purchase any additional shares of Common Stock or any other Common Stock Equivalent.

 

“Credit Line” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 4.04.

 

“Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

“FINRA” means the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

 

“Intellectual Property Rights” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.01(p).

 

“Investor Board Member Nominees” shall mean Richard Paolone, Katie Fields and Avtar Dhaliwal; provided that if any of the foregoing Persons shall cease to be a member of the Board of Directors for any reason, the Investor may designate a different Person not reasonably objectionable to the Company (each, a “Replacement Nominee”), who shall thereupon be an “Investor Board Member Nominee” hereunder for so long as the Note is outstanding and which right shall expire upon the repayment in full of the Note.

 

“Liens” shall mean a lien, charge, security interest, encumbrance, right of first refusal, preemptive right or other restriction or adverse claim of a third party.

 

“Material Adverse Effect” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section  3.01(b).

 

“Notes” means the senior notes issued by the Company to the Investor hereunder, in the form of Appendix A attached hereto.

 

“Person” means an individual or corporation, partnership, trust, incorporated or un-incorporated association, joint-venture, limited liability company, joint-stock company, government (or an agency or subdivision thereof) or other entity of any kind.

 

“Placement Agent”” means WestPark Capital, Inc.

 

“Placement Agent Fees” means fees payable by the Company to the Placement Agent as compensation for its introduction to the Investor and the Investor’s purchase of the Note and providing the Credit Line, as applicable.

 

“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.

 

“Qualified Public Equity Offering” means an underwritten or “best efforts” public offering by the Company of Common Stock and/or Common Stock Equivalents registered under the Securities Act for proceeds to the Company of not less than $5,000,000.

 

“Required Approvals” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.01(e).

 

“Reverse Split” shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.01(g).

 

“SEC Reports” has the meaning ascribed to such term in Section 3.01(h).

 

 

“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

“State Securities Laws” means the securities (or “blue sky”) rules, regulations, or other similar laws of a particular state.

 

“Subscription Amount” means $1,000,000.

 

“Subsidiary” means any subsidiary of the Company and shall, where applicable, include any direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company formed or acquired after the date hereof.

 

“Transaction Documents” means this Agreement, the Note(s) and all appendices, exhibits and schedules hereto and thereto and any other documents or agreements executed in connection with the transactions contemplated hereunder.

 

ARTICLE II

PURCHASE AND SALE

 

Section 2.01            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 Investor agrees to purchase, an aggregate principal amount of Notes equal to the Subscription Amount. At the Closing, the Company and Investor shall deliver the other items set forth in Section 2.02 deliverable at the Closing. Upon satisfaction of the conditions set forth in Sections 2.02 and 2.03, the Closing shall occur at the offices of the Investor’s counsel, or such other location as the parties shall mutually agree or may be closed remotely by electronic delivery of documents.

 

Section 2.02            Closing Deliverables.

 

(a)            By Investor. On or prior to the Closing Date, Investor shall deliver or cause to be delivered to the Company the following:

 

(i)

this Agreement duly executed by Investor; and

 

(ii)

Investor’s Subscription Amount (subject to Section 5.01), by wire transfer to the Company pursuant to the wiring instructions set forth in Section 2.02(c) below.

 

(b)            By the Company. On or prior to the Closing Date, the Company shall deliver or cause to be delivered to Investor:

 

(i)

this Agreement, duly executed by an authorized officer of behalf of the Company;

 

(ii)

a Note registered in the name of Investor (or its nominee) and with a principal amount equal to the Subscription Amount, duly executed by an authorized officer of behalf of the Company; and

 

(iii)

an officer’s certificate of the Company certifying the Company’s: (A) certified charter (or similar formation document); (C) good standing certificate in its state of incorporation; (D) bylaws (or similar governing document); and (D) resolutions of its Board of Directors (or similar governing body) approving and authorizing the execution, delivery and performance of the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby (including, without limitation, the matters contemplated by Section 2.03(b)(vi) below).

 

 

(c)            Wire Instructions. The wire instructions for the Investor’s funding of the Subscription Amount to the Company (subject to Section 5.01) have been sent to the Investor separately:

 

Section 2.03            Closing Conditions.

 

(a)            The obligations of the Company hereunder in connection with the Closing are subject to the following conditions being met (it being understood that the Company may waive any of the conditions):

 

(i)

the accuracy in all material respects on the Closing Date of Investor’s representations and warranties contained herein;

 

(ii)

all obligations, covenants and agreements of Investor required to be performed at or prior to the Closing Date shall have been performed; and

 

(iii)

the delivery by Investor of the items set forth in Section 2.02(a) of this Agreement.

 

(b)            The obligations of Investor hereunder in connection with the Closing are subject to the following conditions being met (it being understood that the Investor may waive any of the conditions):

 

(i)

the accuracy in all material respects (or, to the extent representations or warranties are qualified by materiality or Material Adverse Effect, in all 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 in which case they shall be accurate as of such date);

 

(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 2.02(b) of this Agreement;

 

(iv)

there shall have been no Material Adverse Effect with respect to the Company since the date hereof;

 

(v)

the Reverse Split shall have been consummated, and the Common Stock shall have commenced trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market on a post-Reverse Split basis; and

 

(vi)

not less than three (3) of the five (5) current members of the Board of Directors shall have resigned or been removed as such; and each of the Investor Nominee Board Members shall have been elected or appointed to serve on the Board of Directors effective immediately from and after the Closing.

 

 

ARTICLE III
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

 

Section 3.01            Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company hereby represents and warrants to Investor that, except as set forth in any of the extant SEC Reports, the following representations are true and complete as of the date of the date hereof.

 

(a)            Subsidiaries. The Company does not have any Subsidiaries not disclosed in the SEC Reports.

 

(b)            Organization and Qualification. The Company is an entity duly incorporated or otherwise organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware, 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 or default of any of the provisions of its certificate of incorporation or bylaws, each, as amended and in effect. A complete and correct copy of the Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws, each as amended and in effect on the date of this Agreement and as they will be in effect on the Closing Date, is attached to the officer’s certificate referenced in Section 2.02(b)(iv). There are no other organizational or charter documents of the Company. 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 or any of its material assets or lines of business, individually; 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; provided, however, that “Material Adverse Effect” shall not include any event, occurrence, fact, condition or change, directly or indirectly, arising out of or attributable to: (i) general economic or political conditions, (ii) conditions generally affecting the industry in which the Company or any Subsidiary operates, (iii) any changes in financial or securities markets in general, (iv) acts of war (whether or not declared), armed hostilities or terrorism, or the escalation or worsening thereof, (v) any pandemic, epidemics or human health crises (including COVID-19), (vi) any changes in applicable laws or accounting rules, (vii) the announcement, pendency or completion of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents, or (viii) any action required or permitted by the Transaction Documents or any action taken (or omitted to be taken) with the written consent of or at the written request of the Investor.

 

(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 to which it is a party, the issuance and sale of the Notes and the consummation by the Company of the other transactions contemplated hereby and thereby do not and will not: (i) conflict with or violate any provision of the Company’s certificate 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 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 debt or otherwise) or other understanding to which the Company is a party or by which any property or asset of the Company is bound or affected; or (iii) to the Company’s knowledge, 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 is subject (including federal and State Securities Laws and regulations), or by which any property or asset of the Company 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) such consents, waivers, or authorizations as have been obtained before the Closing; and (ii) the filing of Form D with the Commission, as applicable, and such filings as are required to be made under applicable State Securities Laws (collectively, the “Required Approvals”).

 

(f)             Issuance of the Notes. The Notes are duly authorized and, when issued and/or 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 other than restrictions on transfer provided for in the Transaction Documents.

 

(g)            Capitalization. The reverse stock split of shares of Common Stock in a ratio of 1-for-20 (the “Reverse Split”) became effective on September 13, 2024, and the Common Stock has begun trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market a post-Reverse Split basis. Excepting only the Reverse Split, the capitalization of the Company is as set forth in the SEC Reports. Except in instances where valid waivers have been obtained, no Person has any right of first refusal, preemptive right, right of participation, or any similar right to participate in the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents. Except as set forth in the SEC Reports, there are no Common Stock Equivalents 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 Common Stock or the capital stock of any Subsidiary, or contracts, commitments, understandings or arrangements by which the Company or any Subsidiary is or may become bound to issue additional Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents or capital stock of any Subsidiary. The issuance and sale of the Notes will not obligate the Company or any Subsidiary to issue Common Stock or other securities to any Person 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 duly authorized, 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. Except for the Required Approvals and waivers that have heretofore been obtained, no further approval or authorization of any stockholder, the Board of Directors or others is required for the issuance and sale of the Notes. There are no stockholder 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, 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 SEC 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 year-end audit adjustments.

 

(i)             Undisclosed Liabilities. The Company has no liability, indebtedness, obligation, expense, claim, deficiency or guaranty of any type, whether accrued, absolute, contingent, matured, unmatured or otherwise, required to be reflected in financial statements in accordance with GAAP, which individually or in the aggregate: (A) has not been reflected in the latest balance sheet included in the financial statements referenced hereinabove; or (B) has not arisen: (i) in the ordinary course of business, consistent with past practices, since the date of the latest balance sheet included in such financial statements in an amount that does not exceed $25,000 in any one case or $50,000 in the aggregate, (ii) pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement or other Transaction Document, or (c) are executory performance obligations to be performed after the date hereof in the ordinary course of business pursuant to agreement(s) entered into in the ordinary course of business, consistent with past practices. The Company is not in default with respect to any Indebtedness.

 

(j)             Material Changes. Since the date of the latest financial statements included in the SEC Reports: (A) there has been no event, occurrence or development that has had or that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect; (B) the Company has not incurred any liabilities (contingent or otherwise) other than (i) trade payables and accrued expenses incurred in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, and (ii) liabilities not required to be reflected in the Company’s financial statements pursuant to GAAP; (C) the Company has not altered their method of accounting; (D) 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 except; and (E) the Company has not issued any equity securities except in favor of officers, directors, employees (existing and new) or consultants pursuant to an existing Company equity incentive plans.

 

(k)            Litigation. Except for a Demand for Arbitration, filed by Benjamin Bielak, a former, 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, or any of its properties, before or by any court, arbitrator, governmental or administrative agency or regulatory authority (federal, state, county, local or foreign) (collectively, an “Action”) which: (A) adversely affects or challenges the legality, validity or enforceability of any of the Transaction Documents or the Notes; or (ii) could, if there were an unfavorable decision, have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. None of the Company or any director or officer thereof, is or has been the subject of any Action involving: (x) a claim of violation of or liability under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act, FINRA rules or any State Securities Laws; (y) breach of fiduciary duty; or (z) fraud (statutory or common law), embezzlement, misappropriation or conversion of property or rights, or any other crime involving deceit.

 

(l)             Labor Relations. No 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 employees is a member of a union that relates to such employee’s relationship with the Company, and the Company is not a party to any collective bargaining agreement. The Company believes that its relationships with its 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 to any liability with respect to any of the foregoing matters. To the best of the Company’s knowledge, it is 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.

 

 

(m)            Compliance. Except as disclosed set forth in the SEC Reports, the Company: (i) is neither in default under nor 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 under), nor has the Company 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 not in violation of any order of any court, arbitrator or governmental body; and (iii) is not and has not been in material violation of any statute, law, rule 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.

 

(n)            Regulatory Permits. The Company possesses all certificates, authorizations and permits issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory authorities necessary to conduct its business, except where the failure to possess such permits could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, and the Company has not received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any of the foregoing.

 

(o)            Title to Assets. The Company and its Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property and good and marketable title in all personal property owned by it that, in each case, is material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, in each case free and clear of all Liens, except for Liens that do not materially and adversely (x) affect the value of such property or (y) interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and its Subsidiaries. Any real property and facilities held under lease by the Company or a Subsidiary is held by it under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with which the Company or such Subsidiary (as applicable) are in compliance.

 

(p)            Patents and Trademarks. (i) The Company has, or has 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 necessary or material for use in connection with its business and which the failure to so have could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect (collectively, the “Intellectual Property Rights”); (ii) the Company has not received a notice (written or otherwise) that any of the Intellectual Property Rights violates or infringes upon the intellectual property rights of any other Person; (iii) all Intellectual Property Rights are enforceable by the Company, and there is no existing infringement by any other Person of any of the Intellectual Property Rights, except where the failure to be so enforceable or for such infringements as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and (iv) the Company has taken reasonable security measures to protect the secrecy, confidentiality and value of all of its Intellectual Property Rights, except where failure to do so could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(q)            Transactions with Officers, Directors and Employees. 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 (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 such officer, director or employee or, to the knowledge of the Company, any entity in which any such officer, director or employee has a substantial interest or is an officer, director, trustee, member or partner, in each case other than for: (x) payment of salary or fees for services rendered; (y) reimbursement for expenses incurred on behalf of the Company; and (z) other employee benefits, including stock option agreements under any stock option plan of the Company.

 

(r)             Certain Fees. Except for payments due to the Placement Agent, no brokerage or finder's fees or commissions or similar fees 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. No Investor has or shall have any 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 3.01(r) that may be due in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.

 

 

(s)             Private Placement. Assuming the accuracy of the Investor’s representations and warranties set forth in Section 3.02, no registration under the Securities Act is required for the offer and sale of the Notes by the Company to the Investor as contemplated hereby.

 

(q)            Investment Company. The Company is not, and is not an Affiliate of, and immediately after receipt of payment for the Notes will not be or be an Affiliate of, an ‘investment company’ within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. The Company shall conduct its business in a manner so that it will not be an “investment company” subject to registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

 

(r)             Registration Rights. No Person has any right to demand the Company to file a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of any securities of the Company.

 

(s)            Disclosure. Except with respect to: (i) the material terms and conditions of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents; and (ii) information given to the Investor, if any, which the Company hereby confirms will not constitute material non-public information, the Company confirms that neither it nor any other Person acting on its behalf has provided any of the Investor or their agents or counsel with any information that it believes constitutes or might constitute material, nonpublic information. The Company understands and confirms that the Investor will rely on the foregoing representation in effecting transactions in securities of the Company. All disclosure furnished by or on behalf of the Company to the Investor regarding the Company, its business and the transactions contemplated hereby, is true and correct and does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements made therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

 

(t)             No Integrated Offering. Assuming the accuracy of the Investor’s representations and warranties set forth in Section 3.02, neither the Company, nor any of its Affiliates, nor any Person acting on its or their behalf has, directly or indirectly, made any offers or sales of any security or solicited any offers to buy any security, under circumstances that would cause this offering of the Notes to be integrated with prior offerings by the Company for purposes of the Securities Act which would require the registration of any such securities under the Securities Act.

 

(u)            Solvency. Based on the consolidated financial condition of the Company as of the Closing Date after giving effect to the receipt by the Company of the proceeds from the sale of the Notes hereunder: (i) the fair saleable value of the Company’s assets exceeds the amount that will be required to be paid on or in respect of the Company’s existing debts and other liabilities (including known contingent liabilities) as they mature; (ii) the Company’s assets do not constitute unreasonably small capital to carry on its business as now conducted and as proposed to be conducted including its capital needs taking into account the particular capital requirements of the business conducted by the Company, and projected capital requirements and capital availability thereof; and (iii) the current cash flow of the Company, together with the proceeds the Company would receive, were it to liquidate all of its assets, after taking into account all anticipated uses of the cash, would be sufficient to pay all amounts on or in respect of its liabilities when such amounts are required to be paid. The Company will not, after the Closing Date, incur debts beyond its ability to pay such debts as they mature (taking into account the timing and amounts of cash to be payable on or in respect of its debt). Except as disclosed in the SEC Reports, the Company has no knowledge of any facts or circumstances which lead it to believe that it will file for reorganization or liquidation under the bankruptcy or reorganization laws of any jurisdiction within one year from the Closing Date.

 

(v)            Tax Status. Except as described in current SEC Reports and for matters that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, the Company has filed all federal, state and foreign income and franchise tax returns and have paid or accrued all taxes shown as due thereon, and the Company has no knowledge of a tax deficiency which has been asserted or threatened against the Company.

 

 

(w)            No General Solicitation. Neither the Company nor any Person acting on behalf of the Company has offered or sold any of the Notes by any form of general solicitation or general advertising. The Company has offered the Notes for sale only to the Investor.

 

(x)             Insurance. The Company is insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as management of the Company reasonably believes to be prudent and customary in the businesses in which the Company is engaged. The Company has never been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for, and the Company has no reason to believe that it will not be able to renew all existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers.

 

(y)            Acknowledgment Regarding Investor’s Purchase of Notes. The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Investor is acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length purchaser with respect to the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby. The Company further acknowledges that the Investor is not acting as a financial advisor or fiduciary of the Company (or in any similar capacity) with respect to the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby and any advice given by Investor or any of their respective representatives or agents in connection with the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby is merely incidental to the Investor’s purchase of the Notes. The Company further represents to the Investor that the Company’s decision to enter into this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents has been based solely on the independent evaluation of the transactions contemplated hereby by the Company and its representatives.

 

(z)             No Disqualification Events. With respect to Notes to be offered and sold hereunder in reliance on Rule 506(b) under the Securities Act (“Regulation D Securities”), none of the Company, any of its predecessors, any affiliated issuer, any director, executive officer, other officer of the Company participating in the offering hereunder, any beneficial owner of twenty percent (20%) or more of the Company’s outstanding voting equity securities, calculated on the basis of voting power, nor any promoter (as that term is defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) connected with the Company in any capacity at the time of sale (each, an “Issuer Covered Person” and, together, “Issuer Covered Persons”) is subject to any of the ‘Bad Actor’ disqualifications described in Rule 506(d)(1)(i) to (viii) under the Securities Act (a “Disqualification Event”), except for a Disqualification Event covered by Rule 506(d)(2) or (d)(3). The Company has exercised reasonable care to determine whether any Issuer Covered Person is subject to a Disqualification Event. The Company has complied, to the extent applicable, with its disclosure obligations under Rule 506(e), and has furnished to the Investor a copy of any disclosures provided thereunder.

 

(aa)           Other Covered Persons. The Company is not aware of any Person (other than any Issuer Covered Person) that has been or will be paid (directly or indirectly) remuneration for solicitation of purchasers in connection with the sale of any Regulation D Securities, as applicable.

 

(bb)          Notice of Disqualification Events. The Company will notify the Investor in writing, prior to the Closing Date of: (i) any Disqualification Event relating to any Issuer Covered Person; and (ii) any event that would, with the passage of time, become a Disqualification Event relating to any Issuer Covered Person.

 

(cc)           Foreign Corrupt Practices. Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, no agent or other person acting on behalf of the Company, has: (i) directly or indirectly, used any funds for unlawful contributions, gifts, entertainment or other unlawful expenses related to foreign or domestic political activity; (ii) made any unlawful payment to foreign or domestic government officials or employees or to any foreign or domestic political parties or campaigns from corporate funds; (iii) failed to disclose fully any contribution made by the Company (or made by any person acting on its behalf of which the Company is aware) which is in violation of law; or (iv) violated in any material respect any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

 

(dd)          Office of Foreign Assets Control. Neither the Company nor, to the Company's knowledge, any director, officer, agent, employee or Affiliate of the Company, is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”).

 

 

(ee)           U.S. Real Property Holding Corporation. The Company is not and has never been a U.S. real property holding corporation within the meaning of Section 897 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the Company shall so certify upon Investor’s request.

 

(ff)            Bank Holding Company Act. Neither the Company nor any of its Affiliates is subject to the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (“BHCA”) and to regulation by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Federal Reserve”). Neither the Company nor any of its Affiliates owns or controls, directly or indirectly, five percent (5%) or more of the outstanding shares of any class of voting securities or twenty-five percent (25%) or more of the total equity of a bank or any entity that is subject to the BHCA and to regulation by the Federal Reserve. Neither the Company nor any of its Affiliates exercises a controlling influence over the management or policies of a bank or any entity that is subject to the BHCA and to regulation by the Federal Reserve.

 

(gg)           Money Laundering. The operations of the Company are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial record-keeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, applicable money laundering statutes and applicable rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”), and no Action or Proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.

 

(hh)           Regulation M Compliance. The Company has not, and to its knowledge no one acting on its behalf has, (i) taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or to result in the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of any of the Notes, (ii) sold, bid for, purchased, or paid any compensation for soliciting purchases of, any of the Notes, or (iii) paid or agreed to pay to any Person any compensation for soliciting another to purchase any other securities of the Company, other than, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii), compensation paid to the Company's Placement Agent in connection with the placement of the Notes.

 

(ii)            Representations. The representations and warranties of the Company contained in this Agreement, and the certificate(s) furnished or to be furnished to the Investor at the Closing, when taken as a whole, do not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements contained herein or therein not misleading in light of the circumstances under which they were made. The Company acknowledges and agrees that the representations contained in section 3.02 shall not modify, amend or affect the Investor’s right to rely on the Company’s representations and warranties contained in this section 3.01 or elsewhere in this Agreement or any representations and warranties contained in any other Transaction Document, or any other document or instrument executed and/or delivered in connection with this Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby.

 

The Company acknowledges and agrees that the representations contained in Section 3.02 shall not modify, amend or affect the Investor’s right to rely on the Company’s representations and warranties contained in Section 3.01 of this Agreement or any representations and warranties contained in any other Transaction Document or any other document or instrument executed and/or delivered in connection with this Agreement or the consummation of the transaction contemplated hereby.

 

Section 3.02            Representations and Warranties of the Investor.

 

The Investor hereby represents and warrants as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date to the Company as follows (unless as of a specific date therein, in which case they shall be accurate as of such date):

 

(a)            Authority; Organization. The Investor has full power and authority to enter into this Agreement and to perform all obligations required to be performed by it hereunder. If an entity, The Investor is an entity duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization with full right, corporate or partnership power and authority to enter into and to consummate the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents and otherwise to carry out its obligations hereunder and thereunder. The execution and delivery of the Transaction Documents and performance by the Investor of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate or similar action on the part of the Investor. Each Transaction Document to which it is a party has been duly executed by the Investor, and when delivered by the Investor in accordance with the terms hereof, will constitute the valid and legally binding obligation of the Investor, enforceable against it 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.

 

 

(b)            Own Account. The Investor understands that the Notes are “restricted securities” and have not been registered under the Securities Act or any applicable State Securities Law and is acquiring the Notes as principal for its own account and not with a view to or for distributing or reselling such Notes or any part thereof in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable State Securities Law, has no present intention of distributing any of such Notes in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable State Securities Law and has no direct or indirect arrangement or understandings with any other persons to distribute or regarding the distribution of such Notes (this representation and warranty not limiting the Investor’s right to sell the Notes in compliance with applicable federal and State Securities Laws) in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable State Securities Law. The Investor is acquiring the Notes hereunder in the ordinary course of its business.

 

(c)            Non-Transferrable. The Investor agrees: (i) that the Investor will not sell, assign, pledge, give, transfer or otherwise dispose of the Notes or any interest therein, or make any offer or attempt to do any of the foregoing, except pursuant to a registration of the Notes under the Securities Act and all applicable State Securities Laws, or in a transaction which is exempt from the registration provisions of the Securities Act and all applicable State Securities Laws, (ii) that the certificates representing the Notes will bear a legend making reference to the foregoing restrictions, and (iii) that the Company and its Affiliates shall not be required to give effect to any purported transfer of such Notes except upon compliance with the foregoing restrictions.

 

(d)            Investor Status. The Investor is an “accredited investor” as defined in Rule 501(a) under Regulation D of the Securities Act. The undersigned agrees to furnish any additional information requested by the Company or any of its Affiliates to assure compliance with applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws in connection with the purchase and sale of the Notes. Any information that has been furnished or that will be furnished by the undersigned to evidence its status as an accredited investor is accurate and complete, and does not contain any misrepresentation or material omission.

 

(e)            Experience of The Investor. The Investor, either alone or together with its representatives, has such knowledge, sophistication, and experience in business and financial matters so as to be capable of evaluating the merits and risks of the prospective investment in the Notes, and has so evaluated the merits and risks of such investment. The Investor is able to bear the economic risk of an investment in the Notes and, at the present time, is able to afford a complete loss of such investment.

 

(f)             No Trading Market. The Investor acknowledges that there is currently no trading market for the Notes and that none is expected to develop for the Notes.

 

(g)            General Solicitation. The Investor acknowledges that neither the Company nor any other person offered to sell the Notes to it by means of any form of general solicitation or advertising, including, but not limited to: (i) any advertisement, article, notice, or other communication published in any newspaper, magazine or similar media or broadcast over television or radio, or (ii) any seminar or meeting whose attendees were invited by any general solicitation or general advertising.

 

 

(h)            Confidentiality. Other than to other Persons party to this Agreement and its advisors who have agreed to keep information confidential or have a fiduciary obligation to keep such information confidential, the Investor has maintained the confidentiality of all disclosures made to it in connection with the transaction (including the existence and terms of this transaction).

 

(i)             Foreign Investor. If the Investor is not a United States person, the Investor represents that it has satisfied itself as to the full observance of the laws of its jurisdiction in connection with any invitation to subscribe for the Notes or any use of this Agreement, including: (i) the legal requirements within its jurisdiction for the purchase of the Notes, (ii) any foreign exchange restrictions applicable to such purchase, (iii) any governmental or other consents that may need to be obtained, and (iv) the income tax and other tax consequences, if any, that may be relevant to the purchase, holding, redemption, sale or transfer of the Notes. The Investor further represents that its payment for, and its continued beneficial ownership of the Notes, will not violate any applicable securities or other laws of its jurisdiction.

 

(j)              Information from Company. The Investor and its investment managers, if any, have been afforded the opportunity to obtain any information necessary to verify the accuracy of any representations or information presented by the Company in this Agreement and have had all inquiries to the Company answered, and have been furnished all requested materials, relating to the Company and the offering and sale of the Notes and anything set forth in the Transaction Documents. Neither the Investor nor the Investor’s investment managers, if any, have been furnished any offering literature by the Company or any of its Affiliates, associates, or agents other than the Transaction Documents, and the agreements referenced therein.

 

(k)            The Investor acknowledges and agrees that neither the Placement Agent nor any Affiliate of the Placement Agent has provided such Investor with any information or advice with respect to the Notes nor is such information or advice necessary or desired. Neither the Placement Agent nor any Affiliate has made or makes any representation as to the Company or the quality of the Notes and the Placement Agent and any Affiliate may have acquired non-public information with respect to the Company which such Investor agrees need not be provided to it. In connection with the issuance of the Notes to such Investor, neither the Placement Agent nor any of its Affiliates has acted as a financial advisor or fiduciary to such Investor.

 

(l)              Speculative Nature of Investment; Risk Factors. THE INVESTOR UNDERSTANDS THAT AN INVESTMENT IN THE NOTES INVOLVES A HIGH DEGREE OF RISK. The Investor acknowledges that: (i) any projections, forecasts or estimates as may have been provided to the Investor are purely speculative and cannot be relied upon to indicate actual results that may be obtained through this investment; any such projections, forecasts and estimates are based upon assumptions which are subject to change and which are beyond the control of the Company or its management, (ii) the tax effects which may be expected by this investment are not susceptible to absolute prediction, and new developments and rules of the Internal Revenue Service, audit adjustment, court decisions or legislative changes may have an adverse effect on one or more of the tax consequences of this investment, and (iii) the Investor has been advised to consult with his own advisor regarding legal matters and tax consequences involving this investment. The Investor represents that the Investor’s investment objective is speculative in that the Investor seeks the maximum total return through an investment in a broad spectrum of securities, which involves a higher degree of risk than other investment styles and therefore the Investor’s risk exposure is also speculative. The Notes offered hereby are highly speculative and involve a high degree of risk and Investor should only purchase these securities if Investor can afford to lose their entire investment.

 

(m)            [Intentionally Omitted]

 

(n)             Money Laundering. The operations of the Investor are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial record-keeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, applicable money laundering statutes and applicable rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”), and no Action or Proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company or any Subsidiary, threatened.

 

 

The Investor acknowledges and agrees that the representations contained in Section 3.01 shall not modify, amend or affect the Company’s right to rely on the Investor’s representations and warranties contained in this Section 3.02 or elsewhere in this Agreement or any representations and warranties contained in any other Transaction Document, or any other document or instrument executed and/or delivered in connection with this Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby.

 

ARTICLE IV

OTHER AGREEMENTS OF THE PARTIES

 

Section 4.01            Transfer Restrictions.

 

(a)            The Notes may only be disposed of in compliance with state and federal securities laws. In connection with any transfer of Notes other than pursuant to an effective registration statement, the Company may require the transferor thereof to provide to the Company an opinion of counsel selected by the transferor and reasonably acceptable to the Company, the form and substance of which opinion shall be reasonably satisfactory to the Company, to the effect that such transfer does not require registration of such transferred Notes under the Securities Act. As a condition of such sale or transfer, any such transferee shall agree in writing to be bound by the terms of this Agreement and shall have the rights of the Investor under this Agreement.

 

(b)            The Investor agrees to the imprinting, so long as is required by this Section 4.01, of a legend on any of the Notes in the following form:

 

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR THE SECURITIES COMMISSION OF ANY STATE IN RELIANCE UPON AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), AND, ACCORDINGLY, MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR PURSUANT TO AN AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE STATE SECURITIES LAWS. THIS SECURITY MAY BE PLEDGED IN CONNECTION WITH A BONA FIDE MARGIN ACCOUNT OR OTHER LOAN SECURED BY SUCH SECURITIES.

 

(c)            The Investor will sell Notes only pursuant to the Securities Act, including any applicable prospectus delivery requirements, or an exemption therefrom, and that if Notes are sold pursuant to a registration statement, they will be sold in compliance with the plan of distribution set forth therein, and acknowledges that the removal of the restrictive legend from certificates representing Notes as set forth in this Section 4.01 is predicated upon the Company’s reliance upon this understanding.

 

Section 4.02            Use of Proceeds. The Company shall use the proceeds from the sale of the Notes hereunder for (i) general corporate purposes, including (for the avoidance of doubt) to finance the expenses of a Qualified Public Equity Offering, and (ii) acquisitions approved in advance by the Board of Directors.

 

Section 4.03            Qualified Public Equity Offering Cooperation. The Investor and Company shall cooperate with each other and use commercially reasonable efforts to consummate a Qualified Public Offering as soon as practicable after the date hereof.

 

 

Section 4.04            Revolving Loan Commitment. The Investor hereby commits to provide a one-year revolving line of credit to the Company of up to $1,000,000 (the “Credit Line”) upon its filing of a Registration Statement on Form S-1 with the Commission with respect to a Qualified Public Equity Offering, the material terms of which (including interest and default interest rates) will include representations and warranties, negative covenants and events of default and remedies substantially similar (mutatis mutandis) as those contained in the Note(s). No fees to the Placement Agent shall be payable by the Company in respect of the Credit Line, except for the payment of Placement Agent Fees to the Placement Agent equal to 4% of the amounts drawn down by the Company under the Credit Line. Placement Agent Fees shall be paid by the Company to the Placement Agent at the time of each draw down under the Credit Line in an amount equal to 4% of the amount being drawn down.

 

Section 4.05            Integration. The Company shall not sell, offer for sale, or solicit offers to buy or otherwise negotiate in respect of any security (as defined in Section 2 of the Securities Act) that would be integrated with the offer or sale of the Notes to the Investor in a manner that would require the registration under the Securities Act of the sale of the Notes to the Investor.

 

Section 4.06            Publicity. The Company and the Investor shall consult with each other in issuing any other press releases with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby, and neither the Company nor the Investor shall issue any such press release nor otherwise make any such public statement without the prior consent of the Company with respect to any press release of the Investor, or without the prior consent of the Investor with respect to any press release of the Company mentioning the Investor, which consent shall not unreasonably be withheld or delayed, except if such disclosure is required by law, in which case the disclosing party shall promptly provide the other party with prior notice of such public statement or communication.

 

Section 4.07            Indemnification of Investor. The Company shall indemnify, reimburse and hold harmless the Investor and its partners, members, shareholders, officers, directors, employees and agents (and any other persons with other titles that have similar functions) (collectively, “Indemnitees”) from and against any and all losses, claims, liabilities, damages, penalties, suits, costs and expenses, of any kind or nature, (including fees relating to the cost of investigating and defending any of the foregoing) imposed on, incurred by or asserted against such Indemnitee in any way related to or arising from or alleged to arise from: (i) any breach of any of the representations, warranties, covenants or agreements made by the Company in this Agreement or in the other Transaction Documents and (ii) any action instituted against such Indemnitee in any capacity, or any of them or their respective Affiliates, by any stockholder of the Company who is not an Affiliate of such Indemnitee, with respect to any of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents (unless such action is based upon a breach of such Indemnitee’s representations, warranties or covenants under the Transaction Documents or any agreements or understandings such Indemnitee may have with any such stockholder or any violations by such Indemnitee of state or federal securities laws or any conduct by such Indemnitee which results from the gross negligence or willful misconduct of the Indemnitee as determined by a final, nonappealable decision of a court of competent jurisdiction).

 

ARTICLE V

MISCELLANEOUS

 

Section 5.01            Fees and Expenses. The Company shall bear its own expenses incurred in connection with its negotiation, preparation, execution, delivery and performance of the Transaction Documents, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ and consultants’ fees and expenses relating to any amendments or modifications of the Transaction Documents or any consents or waivers of provisions in the Transaction Documents, and fees and costs of restructuring the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents. When possible, the Company must pay these fees directly, including, but not limited to, any and all wire fees. In addition, the Company shall be responsible to pay (i) $15,000 to the Investor’s counsel in respect of their fees and expenses in connection with the negotiation, preparation, execution, delivery and performance of the Transaction Documents and (ii) $40,000 to the Placement Agent in respect of Placement Agent Fees due and payable in connection with the Investor’s purchase of the Note, which amounts shall be deducted from the Subscription Amount otherwise payable to the Company under Section 2.02 and, with respect to such counsel’s fees and expenses, paid to such counsel by the Investor directly.

 

 

Section 5.02            Entire Agreement. The Transaction Documents, together with the exhibits and schedules thereto, contain the entire understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral or written, with respect to such matters, which the parties acknowledge have been merged into such documents, exhibits and schedules.

 

Section 5.03            Notices. Any notice, request, instruction or other document to be given hereunder by any party to the others shall be in writing and delivered personally or sent by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, or by or email:

 

if to Investor:

1396974 BC Ltd.

113-8030 Ryan Road

Richmond BC V7A2E5

Canada

Attn: Alson Nui, Director

Email: alsonniu@conquestvc.com

 

with a copy to:

Sichenzia Ross Ference Carmel LLP

1185 Avenue of the Americas, 31^st Floor

New York, NY 10036

Attn: Ross Carmel, Esq.

Email: rcarmel@srfc.law

 

if to the Company:

iSpecimen Inc.

8 Cabot Road, Suite 1800

Woburn, MA 01801

Attention: Tracy Curley, CEO

Email: tcurley@ispecimen.com

 

with a copy to:

Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP

1345 Avenue of the Americas, 11^th Floor

New York, NY 10105

Attn: Scott M. Miller, Esq.

Email: smiller@egsllp.com

 

or to such other persons or addresses as may be designated in writing by the party to receive such notice as provided above.

 

Section 5.04            Amendments; Waivers. No provision of this Agreement may be waived, modified, supplemented, or amended except in a written instrument signed, in the case of an amendment, by the Company and the Investor or, in the case of a waiver, by the party against whom enforcement of any such waived provision is sought. No waiver of any default with respect to any provision, condition or requirement of this Agreement shall be deemed to be a continuing waiver in the future or a waiver of any subsequent default or a waiver of any other provision, condition or requirement hereof, nor shall any delay or omission of any party to exercise any right hereunder in any manner impair the exercise of any such right.

 

 

Section 5.05            Successors and Assigns. This Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties and their successors and permitted assigns. The Company may not assign this Agreement or any rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of the Investor (other than by merger). The Investor may assign any or all of its rights under this Agreement to any Person to whom the Investor assigns or transfers any Notes, provided that such transfer complies with all applicable federal and State Securities Laws and that such transferee agrees in writing with the Company to be bound, with respect to the transferred Notes, by the provisions of the Transaction Documents that apply to the “Investor.”

 

Section 5.06            No Third-Party Beneficiaries. This Agreement is intended for the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and permitted assigns and is not for the benefit of, nor may any provision hereof be enforced by, any other Person.

 

Section 5.07            Governing Law. All questions concerning the construction, validity, enforcement and interpretation of the Transaction Documents shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York, USA, without regard to the principles of conflict of laws thereof. Each party agrees that all legal proceedings concerning the interpretation, enforcement and defense of the transactions contemplated by any of the Transaction Documents (whether brought against a party hereto or its Affiliates, directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents) shall be commenced exclusively in the federal and state courts sitting in the County of New York, New York, USA (the “New York Courts”). Each party hereto hereby irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the New York Courts for the adjudication of any dispute hereunder or in connection herewith or with any transaction contemplated hereby or discussed herein (including with respect to the enforcement of any of the Transaction Documents), and hereby irrevocably waives, and agrees not to assert in any suit, action or proceeding, any claim that it is not personally subject to the jurisdiction of such New York Courts, or such New York Courts are improper or inconvenient venue for such proceeding. Each party hereby irrevocably waives personal service of process and consents to process being served in any such suit, action or proceeding by mailing a copy thereof via registered or certified mail or overnight delivery (with evidence of delivery) to such party at the address in effect for notices to it under this Agreement and agrees that such service shall constitute good and sufficient service of process and notice thereof. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to limit in any way any right to serve process in any other manner permitted by applicable law. If any party shall commence an action or proceeding to enforce any provisions of the Transaction Documents, then the prevailing party in such action or proceeding shall be reimbursed by the other party for its attorney’s fees and other costs and expenses incurred in the investigation, preparation and prosecution of such action or proceeding.

 

Section 5.08            Survival. The representations and warranties contained herein shall survive the Closing and the delivery of the Notes.

 

Section 5.09            Execution. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, all of which when taken together shall be considered one and the same agreement and shall become effective when counterparts have been signed by each party and delivered to the other party, it being understood that both parties need not sign the same counterpart. In the event that any signature is delivered by facsimile transmission or by e-mail delivery of a “.pdf” format data file, such signature shall create a valid and binding obligation of the party executing (or on whose behalf such signature is executed) with the same force and effect as if such facsimile or “.pdf” signature page was an original thereof.

 

Section 5.10            Severability. If any term, provision, covenant or restriction of this Agreement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable, the remainder of the terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions set forth herein shall remain in full force and effect and shall in no way be affected, impaired or invalidated, and the parties hereto shall use their commercially reasonable efforts to find and employ an alternative means to achieve the same or substantially the same result as that contemplated by such term, provision, covenant or restriction. It is hereby stipulated and declared to be the intention of the parties that they would have executed the remaining terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions without including any of such that may be hereafter declared invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable.

 

 

Section 5.11            Rescission and Withdrawal Right. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in (and without limiting any similar provisions of) any of the other Transaction Documents, whenever the Investor exercises a right, election, demand or option under a Transaction Document and the Company does not timely perform its related obligations within the periods therein provided, then the Investor may rescind or withdraw, in its sole discretion from time to time upon written notice to the Company, any relevant notice, demand or election in whole or in part without prejudice to its future actions and rights.

 

Section 5.12            Replacement of Notes. If any certificate or instrument evidencing any Notes is mutilated, lost, stolen or destroyed, the Company shall issue or cause to be issued in exchange and substitution for and upon cancellation thereof (in the case of mutilation), or in lieu of and substitution therefor, a new certificate or instrument, but only upon receipt of evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company of such loss, theft or destruction. The applicant for a new certificate or instrument under such circumstances shall also pay any reasonable third-party costs (including customary indemnity) associated with the issuance of such replacement Notes.

 

Section 5.13            Remedies. In addition to being entitled to exercise all rights provided herein or granted by law, including recovery of damages, each of the Investor and the Company will be entitled to seek specific performance under the Transaction Documents. The parties agree that monetary damages may not be adequate compensation for any loss incurred by reason of any breach of obligations contained in the Transaction Documents and hereby agree to waive and not to assert in any action for specific performance of any such obligation the defense that a remedy at law would be adequate.

 

Section 5.14            Payment Set Aside. To the extent that the Company makes a payment or payments to the Investor pursuant to any Transaction Document or the Investor enforces or exercises its rights thereunder, and such payment or payments or the proceeds of such enforcement or exercise or any part thereof are subsequently invalidated, declared to be fraudulent or preferential, set aside, recovered from, disgorged by or are required to be refunded, repaid or otherwise restored to the Company, a trustee, receiver or any other person under any law (including, without limitation, any bankruptcy law, state or federal law, common law or equitable cause of action), then to the extent of any such restoration the obligation or part thereof originally intended to be satisfied shall be revived and continued in full force and effect as if such payment had not been made or such enforcement or setoff had not occurred.

 

Section 5.15            Construction. The parties agree that each of them and/or their respective counsel has reviewed and had an opportunity to revise the Transaction Documents and, therefore, the normal rule of construction to the effect that any ambiguities are to be resolved against the drafting party shall not be employed in the interpretation of the Transaction Documents or any amendments hereto. In addition, each and every reference to share prices and shares of Common Stock in any Transaction Document shall be 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.

 

Section 5.16            Headings. The headings herein are for convenience only, do not constitute a part of this Agreement and shall not be deemed to limit or affect any of the provisions hereof.

 

Section 5.17            WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL. IN ANY ACTION, SUIT, OR PROCEEDING IN ANY JURISDICTION BROUGHT BY ANY PARTY AGAINST ANY OTHER PARTY, THE PARTIES EACH KNOWINGLY AND INTENTIONALLY, TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, HEREBY ABSOLUTELY, UNCONDITIONALLY, IRREVOCABLY AND EXPRESSLY WAIVES FOREVER TRIAL BY JURY.

 

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Note Purchase Agreement to be duly executed by their respective authorized signatories as of the date below.

 

	Company:
	ISPECIMEN INC.
	By:	/s/ Tracy Curley
		Name: Tracy Curley
		Title: Chief Executive Officer
	Investor:
	1396974 BC LTD.
	By:	/s/ Alson Nui
		Name: Alson Nui
		Title: Director

 

See following pages for:

Appendix A: Form of Notes

 

 

v3.24.3

Cover	Sep. 19, 2024
Cover [Abstract]
Document Type	8-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 19, 2024
Entity File Number	001-40501
Entity Registrant Name	iSpecimen Inc.
Entity Central Index Key	0001558569
Entity Tax Identification Number	27-0480143
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	DE
Entity Address, Address Line One	8 Cabot Road
Entity Address, City or Town	Woburn
Entity Address, State or Province	MA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	01801
City Area Code	781
Local Phone Number	301-6700
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share
Trading Symbol	ISPC
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Emerging Growth Company	true
Elected Not To Use the Extended Transition Period	false

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