Table of Contents

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 14, 2016

Registration No. 333-            

 

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM S-3

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

EMPIRE RESORTS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Delaware   13-3714474

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification Number)

c/o Monticello Casino and Raceway

204 State Route 17B, P.O. Box 5013

Monticello, New York 12701

(845) 807-0001

(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)

 

 

Joseph A. D’Amato

Chief Executive Officer

Empire Resorts, Inc.

c/o Monticello Casino and Raceway

204 State Route 17B, P.O. Box 5013

Monticello, New York 12701

(845) 807-0001

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

 

 

Copies to:

Douglas S. Ellenoff, Esq.

Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP

1345 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10105-0302

(212) 370-1300

Fax: (212) 370-7889

 

 

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public:  From time to time after the effective date of this Registration Statement.

If the only securities being registered on this Form are being offered pursuant to dividend or interest reinvestment plans, please check the following box:  ☐

If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, other than securities offered only in connection with dividend or interest reinvestment plans, check the following box:  ☒

If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering:  ☐

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  ☐

If this Form is a registration statement pursuant to General Instruction I.D. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, check the following box.  ☐

If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.D. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box.  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filer      Accelerated filer  
Non-accelerated filer   ☐  (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)    Smaller reporting company  


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CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

 

 

Title of Each Class of

Securities to be Registered(1)

 

Amount

to be

Registered(2)(3)

 

Proposed

Maximum

Aggregate

Offering Price

per Security(2)(3)

 

Proposed

Maximum

Aggregate

Offering Price(2)(3)

 

Amount of

Registration Fee(4)(5)

Empire Resorts, Inc.

               

Common Stock, par value $.01 per share

  —     —     —     —  

Preferred Stock, par value $.01 per share

  —     —     —     —  

Purchase Contracts(6)

  —     —     —     —  

Warrants to Purchase Common Stock, Preferred Stock or other Securities(7)

  —     —     —     —  

Subscription Rights to Purchase Common Stock or Preferred Stock

  —     —     —     —  

Depositary Shares

  —     —     —     —  

Debt Securities (which may be senior or subordinated, convertible or non-convertible, secured or unsecured)

  —     —     —     —  

Units(8)

  —     —     —     —  

TOTAL

  —     —     $250,000,000   $28,975

 

 

(1) Securities registered hereunder may be sold separately, together or as units with other securities registered hereunder.
(2) Not specified as to each class of securities to be registered pursuant to Form S-3 General Instruction II.D.
(3) The Registrant is registering an indeterminate aggregate principal amount and number of securities of each identified class of securities up to a proposed aggregate offering price of $250,000,000, which may be offered from time to time in unspecified numbers and at indeterminate prices, and as may be issuable upon conversion, redemption, repurchase, exchange, or exercise of any securities registered hereunder, including under any applicable anti-dilution provisions. In addition, pursuant to Rule 416 under the Securities Act, the shares being registered hereunder include such indeterminate number of shares of common stock and preferred stock as may be issuable with respect to the shares being registered hereunder as a result of stock splits, stock dividends or similar transaction.
(4) The registration fee is calculated in accordance with Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The proposed maximum aggregate offering price has been estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee in accordance with Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act and corresponds to the new securities being registered hereby and not to the Unsold Securities carried over from the 2014 Registration Statement (as defined in footnote 5 below).
(5) Pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) under the Securities Act, the securities registered pursuant to this registration statement include unsold securities previously registered by the registrant on the registrant’s registration statement (File No. 333-193176) filed on January 3, 2014 and declared effective on February 4, 2014 (the “2014 Registration Statement”). The 2014 Registration Statement registered the offer and sale of an indeterminate number of shares of common stock, an indeterminate number of shares of preferred stock, an indeterminate number of purchase contracts, an indeterminate number of warrants to purchase common stock or preferred stock or other securities, an indeterminate number of subscription rights to purchase common stock or preferred stock, an indeterminate number of depositary shares, an indeterminate number of debt securities, and an indeterminate number of units comprised of any of the foregoing securities, having an aggregate initial offering price of $250,000,000, a portion which remains unsold as of the date of filing this registration statement. The registrant has determined to include in this registration statement certain unsold securities under the 2014 Registration Statement with an aggregate offering price of $83,780,177.60 (the “Unsold Securities”). Pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) under the Securities Act, the filing fee of $8,436.66 relating to the Unsold Securities under the 2014 Registration Statement will continue to be applied to the Unsold Securities registered pursuant to this registration statement. To the extent that, after the filing date hereof and prior to the effectiveness of this registration statement, the registrant sells any Unsold Securities pursuant to the 2014 Registration Statement, the registrant will identify in a pre-effective amendment to this registration statement the updated amount of Unsold Securities from the 2014 Registration Statement to be included in this registration statement pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6). Pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) under the Securities Act, the offering of the Unsold Securities under the 2014 Registration Statement will be deemed terminated as of the date of effectiveness of this registration statement.
(6) Includes purchase contracts issuable upon conversion or exchange of securities registered hereunder to the extent any such securities are by their terms convertible into or exchangeable for purchase contracts. Each purchase contract obligates the registrant to sell, and the holder thereof to purchase, an indeterminate number of debt securities, shares of common stock, shares of preferred stock or other securities registered hereunder.
(7) Warrants may represent rights to purchase debt securities, common stock, preferred stock or other securities registered hereunder.
(8) Each Unit consists of any combination of two or more of the securities being registered hereby.

 

 

The Registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until this Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

 

 

 


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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell the securities until the Registration Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, of which this prospectus is a part, is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.

 

SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED OCTOBER 14, 2016

Preliminary Prospectus

 

LOGO

$250,000,000

COMMON STOCK

PREFERRED STOCK

PURCHASE CONTRACTS

WARRANTS

SUBSCRIPTION RIGHTS

DEPOSITARY SHARES

DEBT SECURITIES

UNITS

 

 

We may offer and sell from time to time, in one or more series, any one of the following securities of Empire Resorts, Inc. (“Empire” or the “Company”), for total gross proceeds of up to $250,000,000:

 

    common stock;

 

    preferred stock;

 

    purchase contracts;

 

    warrants to purchase our securities;

 

    subscription rights to purchase any of the foregoing securities;

 

    depositary shares;

 

    debt securities (which may be senior or subordinated, convertible or non-convertible, secured or unsecured); and

 

    units comprised of the foregoing securities.

We may offer and sell these securities separately or together, in one or more series or classes and in amounts, at prices and on terms described in one or more offerings. We may offer securities through underwriting syndicates managed or co-managed by one or more underwriters or dealers, through agents or directly to purchasers. The prospectus supplement for each offering of securities will describe in detail the plan of distribution for that offering. For general information about the distribution of securities offered, please see “Plan of Distribution” in this prospectus.

Empire’s common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol “NYNY.” If we decide to seek a listing of any preferred stock, purchase contracts, warrants, subscriptions rights, depositary shares, debt securities or units offered by this prospectus, the related prospectus supplement will disclose the exchange or market on which the securities will be listed, if any, or where we have made an application for listing, if any.

 

 

         Investing in our securities involves certain risks. You should carefully read and consider the section entitled “ Risk Factors ” on page 4 and the risk factors included in our periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and, if any, in the relevant prospectus supplement. We urge you to carefully read this prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement, together with the documents we incorporate by reference, before making your investment decision.

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

 

The date of this prospectus is                     , 2016.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

     Page  

About This Prospectus

     1   

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

     2   

About Empire Resorts, Inc.

     3   

Risk Factors

     4   

Use of Proceeds

     5   

Plan of Distribution

     6   

Description of Securities We May Offer

     9   

Forms of Securities

     19   

Legal Matters

     21   

Experts

     21   

Where You Can Find More Information

     21   

Incorporation of Certain Information by Reference

     21   

 

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ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS

This prospectus is part of a registration statement on Form S-3 that we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, utilizing a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf registration process, we may offer and sell, either individually or in combination, in one or more offerings, any of the securities described in this prospectus, for total gross proceeds of up to $250,000,000. This prospectus provides you with a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we offer securities under this prospectus, we will provide a prospectus supplement to this prospectus that will contain more specific information about the terms of that offering. We may also authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to you that may contain material information relating to these offerings. The prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus that we may authorize to be provided to you may also add, update or change any of the information contained in this prospectus or in the documents that we have incorporated by reference into this prospectus. In this prospectus, unless the context indicates otherwise, the terms “Empire,” “Company,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Empire Resorts, Inc., a Delaware corporation.

We urge you to read carefully this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement and any free writing prospectuses we have authorized for use in connection with a specific offering, together with the information incorporated herein by reference as described under the heading “Incorporation of Certain Information by Reference,” before investing in any of the securities being offered. You should rely only on the information contained in, or incorporated by reference into, this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement, along with the information contained in any free writing prospectuses we have authorized for use in connection with a specific offering. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with different or additional information. This prospectus is an offer to sell only the securities offered hereby, but only under circumstances and in jurisdictions where it is lawful to do so.

The information appearing in this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus is accurate only as of the date on the front of the document and any information we have incorporated by reference is accurate only as of the date of the document incorporated by reference, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement or any related free writing prospectus, or any sale of a security.

This prospectus contains summaries of certain provisions contained in some of the documents described herein, but reference is made to the actual documents for complete information. All of the summaries are qualified in their entirety by the actual documents. Copies of some of the documents referred to herein have been filed, will be filed or will be incorporated by reference as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, and you may obtain copies of those documents as described below under the section entitled “Where You Can Find More Information.”

 

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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement and the documents incorporated by reference herein include forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21B of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus are forward-looking statements. The words “believe,” “may” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect” and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, business prospectus, growth strategy and liquidity. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions and our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements for many reasons, including the factors described in the sections entitled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC.

The forward-looking statements speak as of the date made and are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results or developments may differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, and we undertake no obligation to update any such statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

You should carefully read the factors described in the “Risk Factors” section of any prospectus supplement or other offering material, as well as any risks described in the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus for a description of certain risks that could, among other things, cause our actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements. You should understand that it is not possible to predict or identify all such factors and that this list should not be considered a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. You should also realize that if the assumptions we have made prove inaccurate or if unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the views and estimates included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus.

 

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ABOUT EMPIRE RESORTS, INC.

Overview

Empire was organized as a Delaware corporation on March 19, 1993, and since that time has served as a holding company for various subsidiaries engaged in the hospitality and gaming industries.

Through our wholly-owned subsidiary, Monticello Raceway Management, Inc. (“MRMI”), we currently own and operate Monticello Casino and Raceway, a 45,000 square foot video gaming machine (“VGM”) and harness horseracing facility located in Monticello, New York, approximately 90 miles northwest of New York City. Monticello Casino and Raceway operates 1,110 VGMs, which includes 1070 video lottery terminals and 40 electronic game positions (“ETGs”). VGMs are similar to slot machines, but they are connected to a central system and report financial information to the central system. ETGs include the games of roulette, blackjack, craps and 3-card poker. We also generate racing revenues through pari-mutuel wagering on the running of live harness horse races, the import simulcasting of harness and thoroughbred horse races from racetracks across the country and internationally, and the export simulcasting of our races to offsite pari-mutuel wagering facilities. In a letter dated April 13, 2016, the New York State Gaming Commission (the “NYSGC”) approved MRMI’s racetrack and simulcast license renewal applications for calendar year 2016. Generally, the annual license renewal process requires the NYSGC to review the financial responsibility, experience, character and general fitness of MRMI and its management.

On December 21, 2015, our wholly-owned subsidiary, Montreign Operating Company, LLC was awarded a license (a “Gaming Facility License”) by the NYSGC to operate a resort casino (“Montreign Resort Casino” or the “Casino Project”) to be located at the site of a four-season destination resort planned for the Town of Thompson in Sullivan County approximately 90 miles from New York City (“Adelaar” or the “Adelaar Project”). The award of the Gaming Facility License follows the Company’s selection in December 2014 by the New York State Gaming Facility Location Board as the sole Hudson Valley—Catskills Area casino applicant eligible to apply to the NYSGC for a Gaming Facility License. The Gaming Facility License became effective on March 1, 2016 (the “License Award Effective Date”).

The Adelaar Project is to be located on approximately 1,700 acres owned by EPT Concord II, LLC and EPR Concord II, L.P., two wholly-owned subsidiaries of EPR Properties (“EPR”). Montreign Resort Casino is part of the initial phase of the Adelaar Project, which will also include an Indoor Waterpark Lodge (the “Waterpark”), Rees Jones redesigned “Monster” Golf Course (the “Golf Course”) and an Entertainment Village, which will include retail, restaurants and other amenities (the “Entertainment Village” and, together with the Casino Project, the Waterpark and the Golf Course, the “Initial Projects”). Although construction has commenced, over the past four years, the Company has expended substantial time and resources on designing Montreign Resort Casino and, in conjunction with EPR, working with local, state and federal agencies and officials to obtain the necessary permits and approvals for the construction of the Initial Projects.

The principal executive offices of Empire are located at Monticello Casino and Raceway, 204 State Route 17B, P.O. Box 5013, Monticello, New York 12701, and our telephone number is (845) 807-0001. Empire’s website address is www.empireresorts.com. Except for the documents referred to in the section “Incorporation of Certain Information by Reference,” which are specifically incorporated by reference in this prospectus, information contained on our website or that can be accessed through our website does not constitute a part of this prospectus. We have included Empire’s website address only as an interactive textual reference and do not intend it to be an active link to Empire’s website.

 

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RISK FACTORS

Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. Before deciding whether to invest in our securities, you should carefully consider the risk factors we describe in any prospectus supplement and in any related free writing prospectus for a specific offering of securities, as well as those incorporated by reference into this prospectus or such prospectus supplement. You should also carefully consider other information contained and incorporated by reference in this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement, including our financial statements and the related notes thereto incorporated by reference in this prospectus, especially the information in the section titled “Risk Factors” from Empire’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, which was filed with the SEC on March 10, 2016. The risks and uncertainties described in the applicable prospectus supplement and our other filings with the SEC incorporated by reference herein are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently consider immaterial may also adversely affect us. If any of the described risks occur, our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially harmed. In such case, the value of our securities could decline and you may lose all or part of your investment.

 

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USE OF PROCEEDS

Unless otherwise indicated in a prospectus supplement, we expect the net proceeds from the sale of the securities will be used for the development of the Montreign Resort Casino and Adelaar, capital expenditures at Empire’s existing facility, working capital and for other general corporate purposes. We may also use a portion of the net proceeds to acquire or invest in businesses, products and technologies that are complementary to our business, but we currently have no commitments or agreements relating to any of these types of transactions.

Adelaar and Montreign Resort Casino

Montreign Resort Casino

Montreign Resort Casino is designed to meet 5-star and 5-diamond standards and is expected to include:

 

    A 90,000 square foot casino floor featuring 2,150 slot machines, 102 table games and a 14 – 16 table poker room (inclusive of the poker room and VIP and high-limit areas);

 

    Designated VIP/high-limit areas within such gaming floor which will offer a minimum of 26 slot machines, 8 table games, and a player’s lounge offering food and beverage;

 

    An 18 story hotel tower containing 332 luxury rooms (including at least eight 1,000 – 1,200 square foot garden suites, seven 1,800 square foot, two story townhouse villas, and 12 penthouse-level suites), indoor pools and fitness center;

 

    A VIP floor containing 6 private VIP gaming salons, a private gaming cage, and butler service;

 

    27,000 square feet of multi-purpose meeting and entertainment space with seating capacity for 1,300 people and a mezzanine level that includes the 14 -16 table poker room, access to outdoor terraces and approximately 7,000 square feet of meeting room space;

 

    A 7,500 square foot spa located on the VIP level; and

 

    Seven restaurants and four bars.

Gaming Facility License

The Gaming Facility License became effective on March 1, 2016. The Gaming Facility License will have an initial duration of ten years from the License Award Effective Date. It shall be renewable thereafter for a period of at least an additional ten years, as determined by the NYSGC. The Gaming Facility License is also subject to certain conditions established by the NYSGC.

Golf Course and Entertainment Village

Our subsidiaries are responsible for the development and construction of the Golf Course and the Entertainment Village. The development of the Entertainment Village is expected to be built-out in phases. We have agreed to invest a minimum of $15 million in the development and construction of the Golf Course and $25 million in the development and construction of the Entertainment Village. The Company is currently preparing the design plans for the Entertainment Village. The Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Empire Resorts Real Estate I, LLC, has obtained final site plan approval from the Town of Thompson Planning Board for, and has begun site preparation of, the redesign of the Golf Course.

 

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PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION

We may sell the securities from time to time to or through underwriters or dealers, through agents, or directly to one or more purchasers. A distribution of the securities offered by this prospectus may also be effected through the issuance of derivative securities, including without limitation, preferred stock, purchase contracts, warrants, subscription rights and depositary shares. In addition, the manner in which we may sell some or all of the securities covered by this prospectus includes, without limitation, through:

 

    a block trade in which a broker-dealer will attempt to sell as agent, but may position or resell a portion of the block, as principal, in order to facilitate the transaction;

 

    purchases by a broker-dealer, as principal, and resale by the broker-dealer for its account; or

 

    ordinary brokerage transactions and transactions in which a broker solicits purchasers.

A prospectus supplement or supplements with respect to each series of securities will describe the terms of the offering, including, to the extent applicable:

 

    the terms of the offering;

 

    the name or names of the underwriters or agents and the amounts of securities underwritten or purchased by each of them, if any;

 

    the public offering price or purchase price of the securities or other consideration therefor, and the proceeds to be received by us from the sale;

 

    any delayed delivery requirements;

 

    any over-allotment options under which underwriters may purchase additional securities from us;

 

    any underwriting discounts or agency fees and other items constituting underwriters’ or agents’ compensation

 

    any discounts or concessions allowed or re-allowed or paid to dealers; and

 

    any securities exchange or market on which the securities may be listed.

The offer and sale of the securities described in this prospectus by us, the underwriters or the third parties described above may be effected from time to time in one or more transactions, including privately negotiated transactions, either:

 

    at a fixed price or prices, which may be changed;

 

    in an “at the market” offering within the meaning of Rule 415(a)(4) of the Securities Act;

 

    at prices related to such prevailing market prices; or

 

    at negotiated prices.

Only underwriters named in the prospectus supplement will be underwriters of the securities offered by the prospectus supplement.

Underwriters and Agents; Direct Sales

If underwriters are used in a sale, they will acquire the offered securities for their own account and may resell the offered securities from time to time in one or more transactions, including negotiated transactions, at a fixed public offering price or at varying prices determined at the time of sale. We may offer the securities to the public through underwriting syndicates represented by managing underwriters or by underwriters without a syndicate.

Unless the prospectus supplement states otherwise, the obligations of the underwriters to purchase the securities will be subject to the conditions set forth in the applicable underwriting agreement. Subject to certain conditions, the underwriters will be obligated to purchase all of the securities offered by the prospectus supplement,

 

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other than securities covered by any over-allotment option. Any public offering price and any discounts or concessions allowed or re-allowed or paid to dealers may change from time to time. We may use underwriters with whom we have a material relationship. We will describe in the prospectus supplement, naming the underwriter, the nature of any such relationship.

We may sell securities directly or through agents we designate from time to time. We will name any agent involved in the offering and sale of securities, and we will describe any commissions we will pay the agent in the prospectus supplement. Unless the prospectus supplement states otherwise, our agent will act on a best-efforts basis for the period of its appointment.

We may authorize agents or underwriters to solicit offers by certain types of institutional investors to purchase securities from us at the public offering price set forth in the prospectus supplement pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a specified date in the future. We will describe the conditions to these contracts and the commissions we must pay for solicitation of these contracts in the prospectus supplement.

Dealers

We may sell the offered securities to dealers as principals. The dealer may then resell such securities to the public either at varying prices to be determined by the dealer or at a fixed offering price agreed to with us at the time of resale.

Institutional Purchasers

We may authorize agents, dealers or underwriters to solicit certain institutional investors to purchase offered securities on a delayed delivery basis pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a specified future date. The applicable prospectus supplement or other offering materials, as the case may be, will provide the details of any such arrangement, including the offering price and commissions payable on the solicitations.

We will enter into such delayed contracts only with institutional purchasers that we approve. These institutions may include commercial and savings banks, insurance companies, pension funds, investment companies and educational and charitable institutions.

Indemnification; Other Relationships

We may provide agents, underwriters, dealers and remarketing firms with indemnification against certain civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or contribution with respect to payments that the agents or underwriters may make with respect to these liabilities. Agents, underwriters, dealers and remarketing firms, and their affiliates, may engage in transactions with, or perform services for, us in the ordinary course of business. This includes commercial banking and investment banking transactions.

Market-Making; Stabilization and Other Transactions

There is currently no market for any of the offered securities, other than the common stock of Empire, which is listed on the Nasdaq Global Market. If the offered securities are traded after their initial issuance, they may trade at a discount from their initial offering price, depending upon prevailing interest rates, the market for similar securities and other factors. While it is possible that an underwriter could inform us that it intends to make a market in the offered securities, such underwriter would not be obligated to do so, and any such market-making could be discontinued at any time without notice. Therefore, no assurance can be given as to whether an active trading market will develop for the offered securities. We have no current plans for listing of the preferred stock, purchase contracts, warrants, subscription rights, depositary shares, debt securities or units on any securities exchange or quotation system; any such listing with respect to any particular securities will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement or other offering materials, as the case may be.

 

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Any underwriter may engage in over-allotment, stabilizing transactions, short-covering transactions and penalty bids in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Over-allotment involves sales in excess of the offering size, which create a short position. Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase the underlying security so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum price. Syndicate-covering or other short-covering transactions involve purchases of the securities, either through exercise of the over-allotment option or in the open market after the distribution is completed, to cover short positions. Penalty bids permit the underwriters to reclaim a selling concession from a dealer when the securities originally sold by the dealer are purchased in a stabilizing or covering transaction to cover short positions. Those activities may cause the price of the securities to be higher than it would otherwise be. If commenced, the underwriters may discontinue any of the activities at any time.

Any underwriters or agents that are qualified market makers on the Nasdaq Global Market may engage in passive market making transactions in our common stock on the Nasdaq Global Market in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act, during the business day prior to the pricing of the offering, before the commencement of offers or sales of our common stock. Passive market makers must comply with applicable volume and price limitations and must be identified as passive market makers. In general, a passive market maker must display its bid at a price not in excess of the highest independent bid for such security; if all independent bids are lowered below the passive market maker’s bid, however, the passive market maker’s bid must then be lowered when certain purchase limits are exceeded. Passive market making may stabilize the market price of the securities at a level above that which might otherwise prevail in the open market and, if commenced, may be discontinued at any time.

Fees and Commissions

We will disclose the fees to be paid to any underwriter, dealer or agent in the prospectus supplement for any takedown. If any conflict of interest exists between the issuer and an underwriter, dealer or agent participating in an offering of securities under this prospectus, the offering will be conducted in compliance with FINRA Rule 5121.

 

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DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES WE MAY OFFER

General

This prospectus describes the general terms of our capital stock. The following description is not complete and may not contain all the information you should consider before investing in our capital stock. For a more detailed description of these securities, you should read the applicable provisions of Delaware law and our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, as amended, and our second amended and restated bylaws. When we offer to sell a particular series of these securities, we will describe the specific terms of the series in a supplement to this prospectus. Accordingly, for a description of the terms of any series of securities, you must refer to both the prospectus supplement relating to that series and the description of the securities described in this prospectus. To the extent the information contained in the prospectus supplement differs from this summary description, you should rely on the information in the prospectus supplement.

Our authorized capital stock consists of 150,000,000 shares of common stock and 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, of which 95,000 shares have been designated Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, $.01 par value per share, 821,496 shares have been designated Series B Preferred Stock, $.01 par value per share, 137,889 shares have been designated Series C Preferred Stock, $.01 par value per share, 4,000 shares have been designated Series D Preferred Stock, $.01 par value per share, and 1,730,697 shares have been designated Series E Preferred Stock, $.01 par value per share.

New York State Gaming Commission . Our capital stock is transferable subject to the provisions of Section 303 of the Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law, so long as we hold directly or indirectly, a racing license issued by the NYSGC (formerly the New York Racing and Wagering Board), and may be subject to compliance with the requirements of other laws pertaining to licenses held directly or indirectly by us. The owners of capital stock issued by the Company may be required by regulatory authorities to possess certain qualifications and may be required to dispose of their capital stock if the owner does not possess such qualifications.

We, directly or through agents, dealers or underwriters designated from time to time, may offer, issue and sell, together or separately, up to $250,000,000 in the aggregate of:

 

    common stock;

 

    preferred stock;

 

    purchase contracts;

 

    warrants to purchase our securities;

 

    subscription rights to purchase our securities;

 

    depositary shares;

 

    secured or unsecured debt securities consisting of notes, debentures or other evidences of indebtedness which may be senior debt securities, senior subordinated debt securities or subordinated debt securities, each of which may be convertible into equity securities; or

 

    units comprised of, or other combinations of, the foregoing securities.

We may issue the debt securities as exchangeable for or convertible into shares of common stock, preferred stock or other securities. The preferred stock may also be exchangeable for and/or convertible into shares of common stock, another series of preferred stock or other securities. When a particular series of securities is offered, a supplement to this prospectus will be delivered with this prospectus, which will set forth the terms of the offering and sale of the offered securities.

Common Stock

As of September 30, 2016, there were 31,139,207 shares of common stock outstanding and 209 holders of record of our common stock.

 

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Voting.  Each holder of common stock is entitled to one vote for each share on all matters to be voted upon by the holders of common stock.

Dividends.  Subject to preferences that may be applicable to any then outstanding preferred stock, and further subject to any contractual limitations on the declaration, setting aside or payment of dividends, holders of common stock are entitled to receive ratably those dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by our board of directors out of legally available funds.

Liquidation . In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of common stock will be entitled to share ratably in the net assets legally available for distribution to stockholders after the payment of all of our debts and other liabilities and the satisfaction of any liquidation preferences that may be granted to the holders of any then outstanding shares of preferred stock.

Rights and Preferences . The common stock has no preemptive, conversion or other subscription rights, and there are no redemption or sinking fund provisions applicable to the common stock. The rights, preferences and privileges of the holders of common stock are subject to, and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of preferred stock, which we may designate and issue in the future.

Our common stock is admitted for trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol “NYNY”.

The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company.

Preferred Stock

Our board of directors has the authority to issue up to an aggregate of 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock in one or more series and to fix the voting powers, designations, preferences and rights, and qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof, of each such series without any further vote or action by the stockholders, of which an aggregate of 2,789,082 have been designated as a previously issued series of preferred stock. 44,258 shares of Series B Preferred Stock are currently outstanding.

We will fix the rights, preferences, privileges and restrictions of the preferred stock of each series in the certificate of designation relating to that series. We will file as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report on Form 8-K that we file with the SEC, the form of any certificate of designation that describes the terms of the series of preferred stock we are offering before the issuance of the related series of preferred stock. This description will include any or all of the following, as required:

 

    the title and stated value;

 

    the number of shares we are offering;

 

    the liquidation preference per share;

 

    the purchase price;

 

    the dividend rate, period and payment date and method of calculation for dividends;

 

    whether dividends will be cumulative or non-cumulative and, if cumulative, the date from which dividends will accumulate;

 

    any contractual limitations on our ability to declare, set aside or pay any dividends;

 

    the procedures for any auction and remarketing, if any;

 

    the provisions for a sinking fund, if any;

 

    the provisions for redemption or repurchase, if applicable, and any restrictions on our ability to exercise those redemption and repurchase rights;

 

    any listing of the preferred stock on any securities exchange or market;

 

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    whether the preferred stock will be convertible into our common stock, and, if applicable, the conversion price, or how it will be calculated, and the conversion period;

 

    whether the preferred stock will be exchangeable into debt securities, and, if applicable, the exchange price, or how it will be calculated, and the exchange period;

 

    voting rights, if any, of the preferred stock;

 

    preemptive rights, if any;

 

    restrictions on transfer, sale or other assignment, if any;

 

    whether interests in the preferred stock will be represented by depositary shares;

 

    a discussion of any material or special United States federal income tax considerations applicable to the preferred stock;

 

    the relative ranking and preferences of the preferred stock as to dividend rights and rights if we liquidate, dissolve or wind up our affairs;

 

    any limitations on issuance of any class or series of preferred stock ranking senior to or on a parity with the series of preferred stock as to dividend rights and rights if we liquidate, dissolve or wind up our affairs; and

 

    any other specific terms, preferences, rights or limitations of, or restrictions on, the preferred stock.

If we issue shares of preferred stock under this prospectus, after receipt of payment therefor, the shares will be fully paid and non-assessable.

The Delaware General Corporation Law provides that the holders of preferred stock will have the right to vote separately as a class on any proposal involving fundamental changes in the rights of holders of that preferred stock. This right is in addition to any voting rights provided for in the applicable certificate of designation.

Our board of directors may authorize the issuance of preferred stock with voting or conversion rights that could adversely affect the voting power or other rights of the holders of our common stock. Preferred stock could be issued quickly with terms designed to delay or prevent a change in control of our Company or make removal of management more difficult. Additionally, the issuance of preferred stock could have the effect of decreasing the market price of our common stock.

Purchase Contracts

We may issue purchase contracts, representing contracts obligating holders to purchase from us, and us to sell to the holders, a specific or varying number of common stock, preferred stock, warrants, depositary shares, debt securities or depositary shares, warrants or any combination of the above, at a future date or dates. Alternatively, the purchase contracts may obligate us to purchase from holders, and obligate holders to sell to us, a specific or varying number of common stock, preferred stock, warrants, depositary shares, debt securities, or any combination of the above. The price of the securities and other property subject to the purchase contracts may be fixed at the time the purchase contracts are issued or may be determined by reference to a specific formula set forth in the purchase contracts. The purchase contracts may be issued separately or as a part of a unit that consists of (a) a purchase contract and (b) one or more of the other securities that may be sold by us pursuant to this prospectus, debt obligations of third parties (including U.S. Treasury securities) or any combination of the foregoing, which may secure the holders’ obligations to purchase the securities under the purchase contract. The purchase contracts may require us to make periodic payments to the holders or require the holders to make periodic payments to us. These payments may be unsecured or prefunded and may be paid on a current or on a deferred basis. The purchase contracts may require holders to secure their obligations under the contracts in a manner specified in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

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We will file as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report on Form 8-K that we file with the SEC, forms of the purchase contracts and purchase contract agreement, if any. The applicable prospectus supplement will describe the terms of any purchase contracts in respect of which this prospectus is being delivered, including, to the extent applicable, the following:

 

    whether the purchase contracts obligate the holder or us to purchase or sell, or both purchase and sell, the securities subject to purchase under the purchase contract, and the nature and amount of each of those securities, or the method of determining those amounts;

 

    whether the purchase contracts are to be prepaid or not;

 

    whether the purchase contracts are to be settled by delivery, or by reference or linkage to the value, performance or level of the securities subject to purchase under the purchase contract;

 

    any acceleration, cancellation, termination or other provisions relating to the settlement of the purchase contracts; and

 

    whether the purchase contracts will be issued in fully registered or global form.

Warrants

We may issue warrants to purchase our securities or other rights, including rights to receive payment in cash or securities based on the value, rate or price of one or more specified commodities, currencies, securities or indices, or any combination of the foregoing. Warrants may be issued independently or together with any other securities and may be attached to, or separate from, such securities. To the extent warrants that we issue are to be publicly-traded, each series of such warrants will be issued under a separate warrant agreement to be entered into between us and a warrant agent.

We will file as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report on Form 8-K that we file with the SEC, forms of the warrant and warrant agreement, if any. The prospectus supplement relating to any warrants that we may offer will contain the specific terms of the warrants and a description of the material provisions of the applicable warrant agreement, if any. These terms may include the following:

 

    the title of the warrants;

 

    the price or prices at which the warrants will be issued;

 

    the designation, amount and terms of the securities or other rights for which the warrants are exercisable;

 

    the designation and terms of the other securities, if any, with which the warrants are to be issued and the number of warrants issued with each other security;

 

    the aggregate number of warrants;

 

    any provisions for adjustment of the number or amount of securities receivable upon exercise of the warrants or the exercise price of the warrants;

 

    the price or prices at which the securities or other rights purchasable upon exercise of the warrants may be purchased;

 

    if applicable, the date on and after which the warrants and the securities or other rights purchasable upon exercise of the warrants will be separately transferable;

 

    a discussion of any material U.S. federal income tax considerations applicable to the exercise of the warrants;

 

    the date on which the right to exercise the warrants will commence, and the date on which the right will expire;

 

    the maximum or minimum number of warrants that may be exercised at any time;

 

    information with respect to book-entry procedures, if any; and

 

    any other terms of the warrants, including terms, procedures and limitations relating to the exchange and exercise of the warrants.

 

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Exercise of Warrants.  Each warrant will entitle the holder of warrants to purchase the amount of securities or other rights, at the exercise price stated or determinable in the prospectus supplement for the warrants. Warrants may be exercised at any time up to the close of business on the expiration date shown in the applicable prospectus supplement, unless otherwise specified in such prospectus supplement. After the close of business on the expiration date, if applicable, unexercised warrants will become void. Warrants may be exercised in the manner described in the applicable prospectus supplement. When the warrant holder makes the payment and properly completes and signs the warrant certificate at the corporate trust office of the warrant agent, if any, or any other office indicated in the prospectus supplement, we will, as soon as possible, forward the securities or other rights that the warrant holder has purchased. If the warrant holder exercises less than all of the warrants represented by the warrant certificate, we will issue a new warrant certificate for the remaining warrants.

Subscription Rights

We may issue rights to purchase our securities. The rights may or may not be transferable by the persons purchasing or receiving the rights. In connection with any rights offering, we may enter into a standby underwriting or other arrangement with one or more underwriters or other persons pursuant to which such underwriters or other persons would purchase any offered securities remaining unsubscribed for after such rights offering. In connection with a rights offering to holders of our capital stock a prospectus supplement will be distributed to such holders on the record date for receiving rights in the rights offering set by us.

We will file as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report on Form 8-K that we file with the SEC, forms of the subscription rights, standby underwriting agreement or other agreements, if any. The prospectus supplement relating to any rights that we offer will include specific terms relating to the offering, including, among other matters:

 

    the date of determining the security holders entitled to the rights distribution;

 

    the aggregate number of rights issued and the aggregate amount of securities purchasable upon exercise of the rights;

 

    the exercise price;

 

    the conditions to completion of the rights offering;

 

    the date on which the right to exercise the rights will commence and the date on which the rights will expire; and

 

    any applicable federal income tax considerations.

Each right would entitle the holder of the rights to purchase the principal amount of securities at the exercise price set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. Rights may be exercised at any time up to the close of business on the expiration date for the rights provided in the applicable prospectus supplement. After the close of business on the expiration date, all unexercised rights will become void.

Holders may exercise rights as described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Upon receipt of payment and the rights certificate properly completed and duly executed at the corporate trust office of the rights agent, if any, or any other office indicated in the prospectus supplement, we will, as soon as practicable, forward the securities purchasable upon exercise of the rights. If less than all of the rights issued in any rights offering are exercised, we may offer any unsubscribed securities directly to persons other than stockholders, to or through agents, underwriters or dealers or through a combination of such methods, including pursuant to standby underwriting arrangements, as described in the applicable prospectus supplement.

Depositary Shares

General.  We may offer fractional shares of preferred stock, rather than full shares of preferred stock. If we decide to offer fractional shares of our preferred stock, we will issue receipts for depositary shares. Each depositary

 

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share will represent a fraction of a share of a particular series of our preferred stock, and the applicable prospectus supplement will indicate that fraction. The shares of preferred stock represented by depositary shares will be deposited under a deposit agreement between us and a depositary that is a bank or trust company that meets certain requirements and is selected by us. The depositary will be specified in the applicable prospectus supplement. Each owner of a depositary share will be entitled to all of the rights and preferences of the preferred stock represented by the depositary share. The depositary shares will be evidenced by depositary receipts issued pursuant to the deposit agreement. Depositary receipts will be distributed to those persons purchasing the fractional shares of our preferred stock in accordance with the terms of the offering. We will file as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report on Form 8-K that we file with the SEC, forms of the deposit agreement, form of certificate of designation of underlying preferred stock, form of depositary receipts and any other related agreements.

Dividends and Other Distributions .  The depositary will distribute all cash dividends or other cash distributions received by it in respect of the preferred stock to the record holders of depositary shares relating to such preferred shares in proportion to the numbers of depositary shares held on the relevant record date.

In the event of a distribution other than in cash, the depositary will distribute securities or property received by it to the record holders of depositary shares in proportion to the numbers of depositary shares held on the relevant record date, unless the depositary determines that it is not feasible to make such distribution. In that case, the depositary may make the distribution by such method as it deems equitable and practicable. One such possible method is for the depositary to sell the securities or property and then distribute the net proceeds from the sale as provided in the case of a cash distribution.

Redemption of Depositary Shares .  Whenever we redeem the preferred stock, the depositary will redeem a number of depositary shares representing the same number of shares of preferred stock so redeemed. If fewer than all of the depositary shares are to be redeemed, the depositary shares to be redeemed will be selected by lot, pro rata or by any other equitable method as the depositary may determine.

Voting of Underlying Shares . Upon receipt of notice of any meeting at which the holders of our preferred stock of any series are entitled to vote, the depositary will mail the information contained in the notice of the meeting to the record holders of the depositary shares relating to that series of preferred stock. Each record holder of the depositary shares on the record date will be entitled to instruct the depositary as to the exercise of the voting rights represented by the number of shares of preferred stock underlying the holder’s depositary shares. The depositary will endeavor, to the extent it is practical to do so, to vote the number of whole shares of preferred stock underlying such depositary shares in accordance with such instructions. We will agree to take all actions that the depositary may deem reasonably necessary in order to enable the depositary to do so. To the extent the depositary does not receive specific instructions from the holders of depositary shares relating to such preferred shares, it will abstain from voting such shares of preferred stock.

Withdrawal of Shares . Upon surrender of depositary receipts representing any number of whole shares at the depositary’s office, unless the related depositary shares previously have been called for redemption, the holder of the depositary shares evidenced by the depositary receipts will be entitled to delivery of the number of whole shares of the related series of preferred stock and all money and other property, if any, underlying such depositary shares. However, once such an exchange is made, the preferred stock cannot thereafter be redeposited in exchange for depositary shares. Holders of depositary shares will be entitled to receive whole shares of the related series of preferred stock on the basis set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. If the depositary receipts delivered by the holder evidence a number of depositary shares representing more than the number of whole shares of preferred stock of the related series to be withdrawn, the depositary will deliver to the holder at the same time a new depositary receipt evidencing the excess number of depositary shares.

Amendment and Termination of Depositary Agreement .  The form of depositary receipt evidencing the depositary shares and any provision of the applicable depositary agreement may at any time be amended by agreement between us and the depositary. We may, with the consent of the depositary, amend the depositary agreement from time to time in any manner that we desire. However, if the amendment would materially and adversely alter the rights of the existing holders of depositary shares, the amendment would need to be approved by the holders of at least a majority of the depositary shares then outstanding.

 

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The depositary agreement may be terminated by us or the depositary if:

 

    all outstanding depositary shares have been redeemed; or

 

    there has been a final distribution in respect of the shares of preferred stock of the applicable series in connection with our liquidation, dissolution or winding up and such distribution has been made to the holders of depositary receipts.

Resignation and Removal of Depositary.  The depositary may resign at any time by delivering to us notice of its election to do so. We may remove a depositary at any time. Any resignation or removal will take effect upon the appointment of a successor depositary and its acceptance of appointment.

Charges of Depositary.  We will pay all transfer and other taxes and governmental charges arising solely from the existence of any depositary arrangements. We will pay all charges of each depositary in connection with the initial deposit of the preferred shares of any series, the initial issuance of the depositary shares, any redemption of such preferred shares and any withdrawals of such preferred shares by holders of depositary shares. Holders of depositary shares will be required to pay any other transfer taxes.

Notices . Each depositary will forward to the holders of the applicable depositary shares all notices, reports and communications from us which are delivered to such depositary and which we are required to furnish the holders of the preferred stock represented by such depositary shares.

Miscellaneous . The depositary agreement may contain provisions that limit our liability and the liability of the depositary to the holders of depositary shares. Both the depositary and we are also entitled to an indemnity from the holders of the depositary shares prior to bringing, or defending against, any legal proceeding. We or any depositary may rely upon written advice of counsel or accountants, or information provided by persons presenting preferred shares for deposit, holders of depositary shares or other persons believed by us to be competent and on documents believed by us or them to be genuine.

Debt Securities

As used in this prospectus, the term “debt securities” means the debentures, notes, bonds and other evidences of indebtedness that we may issue from time to time. The debt securities will either be senior debt securities, senior subordinated debt or subordinated debt securities. We may also issue convertible debt securities. Debt securities issued under an indenture (which we refer to herein as an Indenture), which are contracts entered into between us and a trustee to be named therein. We will file as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report on Form 8-K that we file with the SEC, the Indenture, if applicable, form of debt securities. We may issue debt securities and incur additional indebtedness other than through the offering of debt securities pursuant to this prospectus. It is likely that convertible debt securities will not be issued under an Indenture.

In the event that any series of debt securities will be subordinated to other indebtedness that we have outstanding or may incur, the terms of the subordination will be set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to the subordinated debt securities.

We may issue debt securities from time to time in one or more series, in each case with the same or various maturities, at par or at a discount. Unless indicated in a prospectus supplement, we may issue additional debt securities of a particular series without the consent of the holders of the debt securities of such series outstanding at the time of the issuance. Any such additional debt securities, together with all other outstanding debt securities of that series, will constitute a single series of debt securities under the applicable Indenture and will be equal in ranking.

Should an Indenture relate to unsecured indebtedness, in the event of a bankruptcy or other liquidation event involving a distribution of assets to satisfy our outstanding indebtedness or an event of default under a loan agreement relating to secured indebtedness of our company or its subsidiaries, the holders of such secured indebtedness, if any, would be entitled to receive payment of principal and interest prior to payments on the unsecured indebtedness issued under an Indenture.

 

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Each prospectus supplement will describe the terms relating to the specific series of debt securities. These terms will include some or all of the following:

 

    the title of debt securities and whether the debt securities are senior or subordinated;

 

    any limit on the aggregate principal amount of debt securities of such series;

 

    the percentage of the principal amount at which the debt securities of any series will be issued;

 

    the ability to issue additional debt securities of the same series;

 

    the purchase price for the debt securities and the denominations of the debt securities;

 

    the specific designation of the series of debt securities being offered;

 

    the maturity date or dates of the debt securities and the date or dates upon which the debt securities are payable and the rate or rates at which the debt securities of the series shall bear interest, if any, which may be fixed or variable, or the method by which such rate shall be determined;

 

    the basis for calculating interest;

 

    the date or dates from which any interest will accrue or the method by which such date or dates will be determined;

 

    the duration of any deferral period, including the period during which interest payment periods may be extended;

 

    whether the amount of payments of principal of (and premium, if any) or interest on the debt securities may be determined with reference to any index, formula or other method, such as one or more currencies, commodities, equity indices or other indices, and the manner of determining the amount of such payments;

 

    the dates on which we will pay interest on the debt securities and the regular record date for determining who is entitled to the interest payable on any interest payment date;

 

    the place or places where the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest on the debt securities will be payable, where any securities may be surrendered for registration of transfer, exchange or conversion, as applicable, and notices and demands may be delivered to or upon us pursuant to the applicable Indenture;

 

    the rate or rates of amortization of the debt securities;

 

    any terms for the attachment to the debt securities of warrants, options or other rights to purchase or sell our securities;

 

    if the debt securities will be secured by any collateral and, if so, a general description of the collateral and the terms and provisions of such collateral security, pledge or other agreements;

 

    if we possess the option to do so, the periods within which and the prices at which we may redeem the debt securities, in whole or in part, pursuant to optional redemption provisions, and the other terms and conditions of any such provisions;

 

    our obligation or discretion, if any, to redeem, repay or purchase debt securities by making periodic payments to a sinking fund or through an analogous provision or at the option of holders of the debt securities, and the period or periods within which and the price or prices at which we will redeem, repay or purchase the debt securities, in whole or in part, pursuant to such obligation, and the other terms and conditions of such obligation;

 

    the terms and conditions, if any, regarding the option or mandatory conversion or exchange of debt securities;

 

    the period or periods within which, the price or prices at which and the terms and conditions upon which any debt securities of the series may be redeemed, in whole or in part at our option and, if other than by a board resolution, the manner in which any election by us to redeem the debt securities shall be evidenced;

 

    any restriction or condition on the transferability of the debt securities of a particular series;

 

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    the portion, or methods of determining the portion, of the principal amount of the debt securities which we must pay upon the acceleration of the maturity of the debt securities in connection with any event of default;

 

    the currency or currencies in which the debt securities will be denominated and in which principal, any premium and any interest will or may be payable or a description of any units based on or relating to a currency or currencies in which the debt securities will be denominated;

 

    provisions, if any, granting special rights to holders of the debt securities upon the occurrence of specified events;

 

    any deletions from, modifications of or additions to the events of default or our covenants with respect to the applicable series of debt securities, and whether or not such events of default or covenants are consistent with those contained in the applicable Indenture;

 

    any limitation on our ability to incur debt, redeem stock, sell our assets or other restrictions;

 

    the application, if any, of the terms of the applicable Indenture relating to defeasance and covenant defeasance (which terms are described below) to the debt securities;

 

    what subordination provisions will apply to the debt securities;

 

    the terms, if any, upon which the holders may convert or exchange the debt securities into or for our securities or property;

 

    whether we are issuing the debt securities in whole or in part in global form;

 

    any change in the right of the trustee or the requisite holders of debt securities to declare the principal amount thereof due and payable because of an event of default;

 

    the depositary for global or certificated debt securities, if any;

 

    any material federal income tax consequences applicable to the debt securities, including any debt securities denominated and made payable, as described in the prospectus supplements, in foreign currencies, or units based on or related to foreign currencies;

 

    any right we may have to satisfy, discharge and defease our obligations under the debt securities, or terminate or eliminate restrictive covenants or events of default in the Indentures, by depositing money or U.S. government obligations with the trustee of the Indentures;

 

    the names of any trustees, depositories, authenticating or paying agents, transfer agents or registrars or other agents with respect to the debt securities;

 

    to whom any interest on any debt security shall be payable, if other than the person in whose name the security is registered, on the record date for such interest, the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a temporary global debt security will be paid;

 

    if the principal of or any premium or interest on any debt securities is to be payable in one or more currencies or currency units other than as stated, the currency, currencies or currency units in which it shall be paid and the periods within and terms and conditions upon which such election is to be made and the amounts payable (or the manner in which such amount shall be determined);

 

    the portion of the principal amount of any debt securities which shall be payable upon declaration of acceleration of the maturity of the debt securities pursuant to the applicable Indenture;

 

    if the principal amount payable at the stated maturity of any debt security of the series will not be determinable as of any one or more dates prior to the stated maturity, the amount which shall be deemed to be the principal amount of such debt securities as of any such date for any purpose, including the principal amount thereof which shall be due and payable upon any maturity other than the stated maturity or which shall be deemed to be outstanding as of any date prior to the stated maturity (or, in any such case, the manner in which such amount deemed to be the principal amount shall be determined); and

 

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    any other specific terms of the debt securities, including any modifications to the events of default under the debt securities and any other terms which may be required by or advisable under applicable laws or regulations.

Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we do not anticipate the debt securities will be listed on any securities exchange. Holders of the debt securities may present registered debt securities for exchange or transfer in the manner described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Except as limited by the applicable Indenture, we will provide these services without charge, other than any tax or other governmental charge payable in connection with the exchange or transfer.

Debt securities may bear interest at a fixed rate or a variable rate as specified in the prospectus supplement. In addition, if specified in the prospectus supplement, we may sell debt securities bearing no interest or interest at a rate that at the time of issuance is below the prevailing market rate, or at a discount below their stated principal amount. We will describe in the applicable prospectus supplement any special federal income tax considerations applicable to these discounted debt securities.

We may issue debt securities with the principal amount payable on any principal payment date, or the amount of interest payable on any interest payment date, to be determined by referring to one or more currency exchange rates, commodity prices, equity indices or other factors. Holders of such debt securities may receive a principal amount on any principal payment date, or interest payments on any interest payment date, that are greater or less than the amount of principal or interest otherwise payable on such dates, depending upon the value on such dates of applicable currency, commodity, equity index or other factors. The applicable prospectus supplement will contain information as to how we will determine the amount of principal or interest payable on any date, as well as the currencies, commodities, equity indices or other factors to which the amount payable on that date relates and certain additional tax considerations.

Units

We may issue units consisting of any combination of the other types of securities offered under this prospectus in one or more series. We may evidence each series of units by unit certificates that we may issue under a separate agreement. We may enter into unit agreements with a unit agent. Each unit agent, if any, may be a bank or trust company that we select. We will indicate the name and address of the unit agent, if any, in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to a particular series of units. Specific unit agreements, if any, will contain additional important terms and provisions. We will file as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, or will incorporate by reference from a current report that we file with the SEC, the form of unit and the form of each unit agreement, if any, relating to units offered under this prospectus.

If we offer any units, certain terms of that series of units will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement, including, without limitation, the following, as applicable

 

    the title of the series of units;

 

    identification and description of the separate constituent securities comprising the units;

 

    the price or prices at which the units will be issued;

 

    the date, if any, on and after which the constituent securities comprising the units will be separately transferable;

 

    a discussion of certain United States federal income tax considerations applicable to the units; and

 

    any other material terms of the units and their constituent securities.

 

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FORMS OF SECURITIES

Each security may be represented either by a certificate issued in definitive form to a particular investor or by one or more global securities representing the entire issuance of securities. Certificated securities in definitive form and global securities will be issued in registered form. Definitive securities name you or your nominee as the owner of the security, and in order to transfer or exchange these securities or to receive payments other than interest or other interim payments, you or your nominee must physically deliver the securities to the trustee, registrar, paying agent or other agent, as applicable. Global securities name a depositary or its nominee as the owner of the debt securities, warrants or units represented by these global securities. The depositary maintains a computerized system that will reflect each investor’s beneficial ownership of the securities through an account maintained by the investor with its broker/dealer, bank, trust company or other representative, as we explain more fully below.

Registered Global Securities

We may issue the securities in the form of one or more fully registered global securities that will be deposited with a depositary or its nominee identified in the applicable prospectus supplement and registered in the name of that depositary or nominee. In those cases, one or more registered global securities will be issued in a denomination or aggregate denominations equal to the portion of the aggregate principal or face amount of the securities to be represented by registered global securities. Unless and until it is exchanged in whole for securities in definitive registered form, a registered global security may not be transferred except as a whole by and among the depositary for the registered global security, the nominees of the depositary or any successors of the depositary or those nominees.

The specific terms of the depositary arrangement with respect to any securities to be represented by a registered global security will be described in the prospectus supplement relating to those securities. We anticipate that the following provisions will apply to all depositary arrangements.

Ownership of beneficial interests in a registered global security will be limited to persons, called participants, that have accounts with the depositary or persons that may hold interests through participants. Upon the issuance of a registered global security, the depositary will credit, on its book-entry registration and transfer system, the participants’ accounts with the respective principal or face amounts of the securities beneficially owned by the participants. Any dealers, underwriters or agents participating in the distribution of the securities will designate the accounts to be credited. Ownership of beneficial interests in a registered global security will be shown on, and the transfer of ownership interests will be effected only through, records maintained by the depositary, with respect to interests of participants, and on the records of participants, with respect to interests of persons holding through participants. The laws of some states may require that some purchasers of securities take physical delivery of these securities in definitive form. These laws may impair your ability to own, transfer or pledge beneficial interests in registered global securities.

So long as the depositary, or its nominee, is the registered owner of a registered global security, that depositary or its nominee, as the case may be, will be considered the sole owner or holder of the securities represented by the registered global security for all purposes under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement.

Except as described below, owners of beneficial interests in a registered global security will not be entitled to have the securities represented by the registered global security registered in their names, will not receive or be entitled to receive physical delivery of the securities in definitive form and will not be considered the owners or holders of the securities under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement. Accordingly, each person owning a beneficial interest in a registered global security must rely on the procedures of the depositary for that registered global security and, if that person is not a participant, on the procedures of the participant through which the person owns its interest, to exercise any rights of a holder under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement. We understand that under existing industry practices, if we request any action of holders or if an owner of a beneficial interest in a registered global security desires to give or take any action that a holder is entitled to give or take under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement, the depositary for the registered global security would authorize the participants holding the relevant beneficial interests to give or take that action, and the participants would authorize beneficial owners owning through them to give or take that action or would otherwise act upon the instructions of beneficial owners holding through them.

 

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Payments to holders with respect to securities represented by a registered global security registered in the name of a depositary or its nominee will be made to the depositary or its nominee, as the case may be, as the registered owner of the registered global security. None of the Company, the trustees, the warrant agents, the unit agents or any other agent of the Company, agent of the trustees, the warrant agents or unit agents will have any responsibility or liability for any aspect of the records relating to payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests in the registered global security or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to those beneficial ownership interests.

We expect that the depositary for any of the securities represented by a registered global security, upon receipt of any payment of principal, premium, interest or other payment or distribution to holders of that registered global security, will immediately credit participants’ accounts in amounts proportionate to their respective beneficial interests in that registered global security as shown on the records of the depositary. We also expect that payments by participants to owners of beneficial interests in a registered global security held through participants will be governed by standing customer instructions and customary practices, as is now the case with the securities held for the accounts of customers or registered in “street name,” and will be the responsibility of those participants.

If the depositary for any of these securities represented by a registered global security is at any time unwilling or unable to continue as depositary or ceases to be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act and a successor depositary registered as a clearing agency under the Exchange Act is not appointed by us within 90 days, we will issue securities in definitive form in exchange for the registered global security that had been held by the depositary. Any securities issued in definitive form in exchange for a registered global security will be registered in the name or names that the depositary gives to the relevant trustee, warrant agent, unit agent or other relevant agent of ours or theirs. It is expected that the depositary’s instructions will be based upon directions received by the depositary from participants with respect to ownership of beneficial interests in the registered global security that had been held by the depositary.

 

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LEGAL MATTERS

Unless otherwise indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, the validity of the securities offered by this prospectus will be passed upon for us by Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP, New York, New York. If legal matters in connection with offerings made by this prospectus are passed on by counsel for the underwriters, dealers or agents, if any, that counsel will be named in the applicable prospectus supplement.

EXPERTS

The consolidated financial statements of Empire Resorts, Inc. appearing in Empire Resorts, Inc.’s Annual Report (Form 10-K) as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2015 including schedules appearing therein, and the effectiveness of Empire Resorts, Inc.’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2015, have been audited by Ernst & Young LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report thereon, included therein, and incorporated herein by reference. Such consolidated financial statements are incorporated herein by reference in reliance upon such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION

We file annual, reports quarterly and special reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. Information filed with the SEC by us can be inspected and copied at the Public Reference Room maintained by the SEC at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. You may also obtain copies of this information by mail from the Public Reference Section of the SEC at prescribed rates. Further information on the operation of the SEC’s Public Reference Room in Washington, D.C. can be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. The SEC also maintains a web site that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information about issuers, such as us, who file electronically with the SEC. The address of that website is www.sec.gov.

INCORPORATION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION BY REFERENCE

We are “incorporating by reference” in this prospectus certain documents we file with the SEC, which means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those documents. The information in the documents incorporated by reference is considered to be part of this prospectus. Statements contained in documents that we file with the SEC and that are incorporated by reference in this prospectus will automatically update and supersede information contained in this prospectus, including information in previously filed documents or reports that have been incorporated by reference in this prospectus, to the extent the new information differs from or is inconsistent with the old information. We have filed or may file the following documents with the SEC and they are incorporated herein by reference as of their respective dates of filing.

 

    Our Annual Report, as amended, on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, originally filed with the SEC on March 10, 2016;

 

    Our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2016 filed with the SEC on May 4, 2016;

 

    Our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2016 filed with the SEC on August 2, 2016;

 

    Our Current Reports on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 20, 2016, June 6, 2016, June 8, 2016 and July 21, 2016;

 

    Our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed with the SEC on September 20, 2016; and

 

    The description of our common stock contained in our Form 8-A filed on June 20, 2001 and as it may be further amended from time to time.

All documents filed by us pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the date of this prospectus and before the termination or completion of this offering of our securities shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this prospectus and to be a part of it from the filing dates of such documents, except in each case for information contained in any such filing where we indicate that such information is being furnished and is not to be considered “filed” under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

 

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Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in this prospectus shall be deemed modified, superseded or replaced for purposes of this prospectus to the extent that a statement contained in this prospectus, or in any subsequently filed document that also is deemed to be incorporated by reference in this prospectus, modifies, supersedes or replaces such statement. Any statement so modified, superseded or replaced shall not be deemed, except as so modified, superseded or replaced, to constitute a part of this prospectus. None of the information that we disclose under Items 2.02 or 7.01 of any Current Report on Form 8-K or any corresponding information, either furnished under Item 9.01 or included as an exhibit therein, that we may from time to time furnish to the SEC will be incorporated by reference into, or otherwise included in, this prospectus, except as otherwise expressly set forth in the relevant document. Subject to the foregoing, all information appearing in this prospectus is qualified in its entirety by the information appearing in the documents incorporated by reference.

Documents incorporated by reference are available from us without charge, excluding all exhibits unless we have specifically incorporated by reference the exhibit in this prospectus. You may obtain documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus by requesting them in writing or by telephone from:

Empire Resorts, Inc.

c/o Monticello Casino and Raceway

204 State Route 17B, P.O. Box 5013

Monticello, New York 12701

Attention: Secretary

(845) 807-0001

 

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PART II

INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN THE PROSPECTUS

Item 14. Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution.

The following table sets forth all expenses to be paid by the registrant. All amounts shown are estimates except for the registration fee.

 

SEC registration fee

   $ 28,975   

Printing

     *   

Legal fees and expenses

     *   

Accounting fees and expenses

     *   

Trustees’ Fees and Expenses

     *   

Warrant Agent Fees and Expenses

     *   

Miscellaneous

     *   

Total

  

 

* These fees are calculated based on the securities offered and the number of issuances and accordingly cannot be estimated at this time. The applicable prospectus supplement will set forth the estimated amount of expenses of any offering of securities.

Item 15. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), which is applicable to the Company, authorizes a corporation to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, other than an action by or in the right of the corporation, because such person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or other enterprise, against expenses, including attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him or her in connection with such suit or proceeding if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reason to believe his conduct was unlawful. Similar indemnity is authorized for such persons against expenses, including attorneys’ fees, actually and reasonably incurred in defense or settlement of any such pending, completed or threatened action or suit by or in the right of the corporation if such person acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and provided further that, unless a court of competent jurisdiction otherwise provides, such person shall not have been adjudged liable to the corporation. Any such indemnification may be made only as authorized in each specific case upon a determination by the stockholders or disinterested directors that indemnification is proper because the indemnitee has met the applicable standard of conduct.

Section 145 of the DGCL also authorizes a corporation to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise, against any liability asserted against him or her and incurred by him or her in any such capacity, or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the corporation would otherwise have the power to indemnify him or her. The Company maintains insurance policies under which its directors and officers are insured, within the limits and subject to the limitations of the policies, against expenses in connection with the defense of actions, suits or proceedings, and certain liabilities that might be imposed as a result of such actions, suits or proceedings, to which they are parties by reason of being or having been a director or officer of the Company.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains provisions eliminating a director’s personal liability for monetary damages resulting from a breach of fiduciary duty, except in certain circumstances involving wrongful acts, including:

 

    for any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders;

 

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    for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;

 

    any unlawful payments of dividends or unlawful stock repurchases, redemptions or other distributions as provided in Section 174 of the DGCL; or

 

    for any transaction from which the director derives an improper personal benefit.

These provisions do not limit or eliminate our rights or those of any stockholder to seek non-monetary relief, such as an injunction or rescission, in the event of a breach of a director’s fiduciary duty. These provisions will not alter a director’s liability under federal securities laws.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation also provides that if the DGCL is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of directors, then the liability of our directors will be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL. We believe that these provisions are necessary to attract and retain qualified individuals to serve as directors and officers.

Our second amended and restated bylaws provide that we will indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, as it now exists or may in the future be amended, against all expenses and liabilities reasonably incurred for their service for or on our behalf. Our second amended and restated bylaws provide that we shall advance the expenses incurred by a director or officer in advance of the final disposition of an action or proceeding. The second amended and restated bylaws also authorize us to indemnify any of our employees or agents and permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director, employee or agent for any liability arising out of his or her action in that capacity, whether or not the DGCL would otherwise permit indemnification.

Item 16. Exhibits

The agreements included or incorporated by reference as exhibits to this registration statement contain representations and warranties by each of the parties to the applicable agreement. These representations and warranties were made solely for the benefit of the other parties to the applicable agreement and (i) were not intended to be treated as categorical statements of fact, but rather as a way of allocating the risk to one of the parties if those statements prove to be inaccurate; (ii) may have been qualified in such agreement by disclosures that were made to the other party in connection with the negotiation of the applicable agreement; (iii) may apply contract standards of “materiality” that are different from “materiality” under the applicable securities laws; and (iv) were made only as of the date of the applicable agreement or such other date or dates as may be specified in the agreement.

The undersigned registrant acknowledges that, notwithstanding the inclusion of the foregoing cautionary statements, it is responsible for considering whether additional specific disclosures of material information regarding material contractual provisions are required to make the statements in this registration statement not misleading.

 

Exhibit

Number

  

Description of Document

  1.1    Form of Underwriting Agreement **
  3.1    Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, dated February 16, 2011.(1)
  3.2    Second Amended and Restated By-Laws, as most recently amended on March 14, 2011.(2)
  3.3    Certificate of Amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, dated December 13, 2011.(3)
  3.4    Certificate of Amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, dated December 21, 2015 and effective as of December 23, 2015.(13)
  4.1    Form of Common Stock Certificate.(4)
  4.2    Certificate of Designations, Preferences and Rights of Series B Preferred Stock dated July 31, 1996.(5)

 

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  4.3    Certificate of Designation setting forth the Preferences, Rights and Limitations of Series B Preferred Stock and Series C Preferred Stock, dated May 29, 1998.(6)
  4.4    Certificate of Amendment to the Certificate of Designation setting forth the Preferences, Rights and Limitations of Series B Preferred Stock and Series C Preferred Stock, dated June 13, 2001.(7)
  4.5    Certificate of Designations setting forth the Preferences, Rights and Limitations of Series D Preferred Stock, dated February 7, 2000.(8)
  4.6    Certificate of the Designations, Powers, Preferences and Rights of the Series E Preferred Stock, dated December 10, 2002.(9)
  4.7    Certificate of Amendment of Certificate of the Designations, Powers, Preferences and Other Rights and Qualifications of the Series E Preferred Stock, dated January 12, 2004.(10)
  4.8    Certificate of Designations of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, dated March 24, 2008.(11)
  4.9    Certificate of Amendment to the Certificate of Designations of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, dated August 19, 2009.(12)
  4.10    Form of Preferred Stock Certificate and Form of Certificate of Designation of Preferred Stock**
  4.11    Form of Stock Purchase Contract**
  4.12    Form of Warrant Agreement and Form of Warrant Certificate**
  4.13    Form of Subscription Rights Agreement and Form Subscription Rights Certificate**
  4.14    Form of Unit Agreement**
  4.15    Form of Unit**
  4.16    Form of Indenture*
  4.17    Form of Note**
  4.18    Form of Debt Securities**
  5.1    Opinion of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP*
23.1    Consent of Ernst & Young LLP*
23.2    Consent of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1)*
24.1    Power of Attorney (included in Part II of this Registration Statement)*

 

* Filed herewith.
** If applicable, to be filed by an amendment or as an exhibit to a report pursuant to section 13(a) or section 15(d) of the Exchange Act and incorporated by reference
+ To be filed pursuant to Rule 305(b)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act.
(1) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 of Empire Resorts, Inc.’s Current Report on Form 8-K (an “8-K”), filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on February 16, 2011.
(2) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to Empire Resort, Inc. Annual Report on Form 10-K (a “10-K”) for the year ended December 31, 2010, filed with the Commission on March 18, 2011.
(3) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Empire Resort, Inc.’s 8-K, filed with the Commission on December 13, 2011.
(4) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to Empire Resorts, Inc.’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011 (the “12/31/11 10-K”), filed with the Commission on March 19, 2012.
(5) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to Empire Resorts, Inc.’s 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003 (the “2003 10-K”), filed with the Commission on March 30, 2004.

 

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(6) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the 2003 10-K.
(7) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.4 to the 2003 10-K.
(8) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4 to Empire Resorts, Inc.’s 8-K, filed with the Commission on February 15, 2000.
(9) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.5 to the 2003 10-K.
(10) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.6 to the 2003 10-K.
(11) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Empire Resort, Inc.’s 8-K, filed with the Commission on March 24, 2008.
(12) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1. to Empire Resorts, Inc.’s 8-K, filed with the Commission on August 19, 2009.
(13) Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Empire Resorts, Inc.‘s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 23, 2015.

Item 17. Undertakings

(a) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:

(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:

(i) to include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933;

(ii) to reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than a 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and

(iii) to include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement;

provided however , that paragraphs (1)(i), (1)(ii) and (1)(iii) do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement, or is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) that is part of the registration statement.

(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

(4) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser:

(i) Each prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and

(ii) Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii), or (x) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 shall be

 

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deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which that prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date.

(iii) Each prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) as part of a registration statement relating to an offering, other than registration statements relying on Rule 430B or other than prospectuses filed in reliance on Rule 430A, shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the date it is first used after effectiveness. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such first use, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such date of first use.

(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability of the registrant under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities, the undersigned registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser:

(i) Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424;

(ii) Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned registrant;

(iii) The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant; and

(iv) Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned registrant to the purchaser.

(b) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability of the registrant under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(c) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes to supplement the prospectus, after the expiration of the subscription period, to set forth the results of the subscription offer, the transactions by the underwriters during the subscription period, the amount of unsubscribed securities to be purchased by the underwriters, and the terms of any subsequent reoffering thereof. If any public offering by the underwriters is to be made on terms differing from those set forth on the cover page of the prospectus, a post-effective amendment will be filed to set forth the terms of such offering.

 

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(d) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

(e) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes to file an application for the purpose of determining the eligibility of the trustee to act under subsection (a) of Section 310 of the Trust Indenture Act in accordance with the rules and regulations prescribed by the Commission under Section 305(b)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act.

(f) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that:

(i) For purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b) (1) or (4) or 497(h) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of this registration statement as of the time it was declared effective; and

(ii) For the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

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Signatures

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-3 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the city of New York, state of New York, on October 14, 2016.

 

EMPIRE RESORTS, INC.
By:   /s/ Joseph A. D’Amato
  Name: Joseph A. D’Amato
  Title: Chief Executive Officer

Power of Attorney

KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Joseph A. D’Amato as his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact with full power of substitution and resubstitution for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments, including post-effective amendments to this registration statement, and to file the same, with exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact or her substitutes may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated below.

 

Signature

  

Title

 

Date

/s/ Joseph A. D’Amato

Joseph A. D’Amato

  

Chief Executive Officer and Director

(Principal Executive Officer)

  October 14, 2016

/s/ Laurette J. Pitts

Laurette J. Pitts

   Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)   October 14, 2016

/s/ Emanuel R. Pearlman

Emanuel R. Pearlman

   Executive Chairman of the Board   October 14, 2016

/s/ Keith Horn

Keith Horn

   Director   October 14, 2016

/s/ Edmund Marinucci

Edmund Marinucci

   Director   October 14, 2016

/s/ Nancy A. Palumbo

Nancy A. Palumbo

   Director   October 14, 2016

/s/ Gregg Polle

Gregg Polle

   Director   October 14, 2016
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