LICN Lichen China Limited

Translation of foreign currencies into US$1 have been made at the following exchange rates for the respective periods:

Parties, which can be a corporation or individual, are considered to be related if the Company has the ability, directly or indirectly, to control the other party or exercise significant influence over the other party in making financial and operating decisions. Companies are also considered to be related if they are subject to common control or common significant influence, such as a family member or relative, shareholder, or a related corporation.

ASC 825-10 requires certain disclosures regarding the fair value of financial instruments. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. A three-level fair value hierarchy prioritizes the inputs used to measure fair value. The hierarchy requires entities to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. The three levels of inputs used to measure fair value are as follows:

The fair value of the Company’s financial instruments, including cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable, accrued expenses and other current liabilities, approximate their recorded values due to their short-term maturities as of June 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023.

Cash consist of cash on hand, cash in banks, which are unrestricted as to withdrawal or use, and have insignificant risk of changes in value. The Company maintains most of its bank accounts in the PRC.

Accounts receivable represents the Company’s right to consideration in exchange for goods and services that the Company has transferred to the customers before payment is due. Accounts receivable is stated at the historical carrying amount, net of an estimated allowance for uncollectible accounts. The allowance for credit losses for accounts receivable is based upon the current expected credit losses (“CECL”) model. The CECL model requires an estimate of the credit losses expected over the life of accounts receivable since initial recognition, and accounts receivable with similar risk characteristics are grouped together when estimating CECL. In assessing the CECL, the Company applies a roll rate-based method that considers historical collectability based on past due status, the age of the balances, credit quality of the Company’s customers based on ongoing credit evaluations, current economic conditions, reasonable and supportable forecasts of future economic conditions, and other factors that may affect the Company’s ability to collect from customers. There was no allowance for credit losses set up by the Company as of June 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. 

Unbilled receivable consists primarily of contract asset, representing the Company’s right to consideration in exchange for goods and service performed, which invoice has not been issued.

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realizable value. Cost elements of inventories comprise the purchase price of products, shipping charges to receive products from the suppliers when they are embedded in the purchase price. Cost is determined using the weighted average method. Provisions are made for excessive, slow moving, expired and obsolete inventories as well as for inventories with carrying values in excess of market. Certain factors could impact the realizable value of inventory, so the Company continually evaluates the recoverability based on assumptions about customer demand and market conditions. The evaluation may take into consideration historical usage, inventory aging, expiration date, expected demand, anticipated sales price, product obsolescence and other factors. The reserve or write-down is equal to the difference between the cost of inventory and the estimated net realizable value based upon assumptions about future demand and market conditions. If actual market conditions are less favorable than those projected by management, additional inventory reserves or write-downs may be required that could negatively impact the Company’s gross margin and operating results. If actual market conditions are more favorable, the Company may have higher gross margin when products that have been previously reserved or written down are eventually sold. As of June 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, management compared the cost of inventories with their net realizable value and determined no inventory write-down was necessary.

Represents cash deposited for potential acquisition and software development service. The deposits are refundable and bear no interest pursuant to terms of contract. The potential acquisition and the software development service is in progress and anticipated to be completed by 2024.

Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment if any. Depreciation is computed using the straight-line method over the following estimated useful lives.

The cost and related accumulated depreciation of assets sold or otherwise retired are eliminated from the accounts and any gain or loss is included in the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income (loss). Expenditures for maintenance and repairs are charged to earnings as incurred, while additions, renewals and betterments, which are expected to extend the useful life of assets, are capitalized. The Company also re-evaluates the periods of depreciation to determine whether subsequent events and circumstances warrant revised estimates of useful lives.

Intangible assets consist primarily of software acquired, which are stated at cost less accumulated amortization and impairment, if any. Intangible assets are amortized using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives, which are generally 5-10 years. The estimated useful lives of amortized intangible assets are reassessed if circumstances occur that indicate the original estimated useful lives have changed.

Mainly represents the deposit of the new purchased property and prepaid renovation expense. The deposits are refundable and bear no interest pursuant to terms of contract. The property under development is commitment to be completed by the end of 2028. The amortization period of the renovation is five years.

The Company evaluates its long-lived assets, including property and equipment and intangibles with finite lives, for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances, such as a significant adverse change to market conditions that will impact the future use of the assets, indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be fully recoverable. When these events occur, the Company evaluates the recoverability of long-lived assets by comparing the carrying amount of the assets to the future undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the assets and their eventual disposition. If the sum of the expected undiscounted cash flows is less than the carrying amount of the assets, the Company recognizes an impairment loss based on the excess of the carrying amount of the assets over their fair value. Fair value is generally determined by discounting the cash flows expected to be generated by the assets, when the market prices are not readily available. The adjusted carrying amount of the assets become new cost basis and are depreciated over the assets’ remaining useful lives. Long-lived assets are grouped with other assets and liabilities at the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities. Given no events or changes in circumstances indicating the carrying amount of long-lived assets may not be recovered through the related future net cash flows, the Company did not recognize any impairment loss on long-lived assets for the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023. There can be no assurance that future events will not have impact on company’s revenue or financial position which could result in impairment in the future.

The Company, through its subsidiary, leases its office, which are classified as operating leases in accordance with ASC 842. Operating leases are required to record in the balance sheet as right-of-use assets and lease liabilities, initially measured at the present value of the lease payments. The Company has elected the package of practical expedients, which allows the Company not to reassess (1) whether any expired or existing contracts as of the adoption date are or contain a lease, (2) lease classification for any expired or existing leases as of the adoption date, and (3) initial direct costs for any expired or existing leases as of the adoption date. The Company elected the short-term lease exemption for the lease terms that are 12 months or less.

At inception of a contract, the Company assesses whether a contract is, or contains, a lease. A contract is or contains a lease if it conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of time in exchange of a consideration. To assess whether a contract is or contains a lease, the Company assesses whether the contract involves the use of an identified asset, whether it has the right to obtain substantially all the economic benefits from the use of the asset and whether it has the right to control the use of the asset. The right-of-use assets and related lease liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date. The Company recognizes operating lease expenses on a straight-line basis over the lease term and had no finance leases for any of the periods stated herein.

The right-of-use of asset is initially measured at cost, which comprises the initial amount of the lease liability adjusted for any lease payments made at or before the commencement date, plus any initial direct costs incurred and less any lease incentive received. All right-of-use assets are reviewed for impairment annually. There was no impairment for right-of-use assets as of June 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023.

On February 6, 2023, the Company’s Registration Statement on Form F-1 to register 4,000,000 Class A Ordinary Shares with par value $0.00004 per share, was declared effective by the Securities & Exchange Commission. The Company’s common stock began trading on February 8, 2023 on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “LICN.”

On February 8, 2023, we completed our IPO in which we issued and sold 4,000,000 Class A Ordinary shares of common stock at an offering price of $4.00 per share. We received net proceeds of $14,098,140, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses. Deferred, direct offering costs were capitalized and consisted of fees and expenses incurred in connection with the sale of our common stock in the IPO, including the legal, accounting, printing and other offering related costs. Upon completion of the IPO, these deferred IPO costs were reclassified from current assets to stockholders’ equity and recorded against the net proceeds from the offering.

From time to time, the Company is a party to various legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business. The Company accrues costs associated with these matters when they become probable and the amount can be reasonably estimated. Legal costs incurred in connection with loss contingencies are expensed as incurred. The Company’s management does not expect any liability from the disposition of such claims and litigation individually or in the aggregate would have a material adverse impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

The Company adopted ASC Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, effective as of January 1, 2019. Accordingly, the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements for the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023 are presented under ASC 606. The core principle of the guidance is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. Revenue is the transaction price the Company expects to be entitled to in exchange for the promised goods or services in a contract in the ordinary course of the Company’s activities and is recorded net of value-added tax (“VAT”). To achieve that core principle, the Company applies the following steps:

Step 1: Identify the contract (s) with a customer

Step 2: Identify the performance obligations in the contract

Step 3: Determine the transaction price

Step 4: Allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract

Step 5: Recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation 

No practical expedients were used when the Company adopted the ASC 606. Revenue recognition policies for each type of revenue stream are as follow:

Financial and taxation solution services

Revenues from financial and taxation solution services for which control of services is transferred over time is recognized progressively based on the contract costs incurred to date (primarily comprising staff costs and industry expert cost by reference to the time as recorded in the monthly working record incurred to date) as compared to the total costs to be incurred under the transaction (by reference to the total budgeted time of the respective project) to depict the Company’s performance in transferring control of services promised to a customer. The Company recognizes revenues over time only if it can reasonably measure its progress toward complete satisfaction of the performance obligation. The Company normally requires the customers to pay a deposit upon entering into the service contracts.

Education support services - sales of teaching and learning materials

Revenues from the sales of educational materials for which control of assets is transferred at a point in time is recognized when the goods are delivered to customers. The Company does not provide any sales-related warranties. There is no right of return by customers under the Company’s standard contract terms.

Education support services - Provision of marketing, operation and technical support services

Revenues from provision of marketing, operation and technical support services from the partnered institutions is recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the agreement. The transaction price inclusive of value added tax as received from customers in advance is recognized as a unearned revenue at the time of the initial transaction and is released on a straight-line basis over the period of service (usually one year).

Software and maintenance services

Standard software is a right to use license because the software has standalone functionality, and the customer can use the software as it is available at a point in time. The Company recognizes revenues for such licenses at a point in time when the customer has received licenses and thus has control over the software. In case there is an update of the standard software, end customers or distributors are required to pay additional consideration to buy upgraded version. Revenues from maintenance services is recognized over time within the service period.

Unearned revenues

Unearned revenue consists of contract liability, which is recorded when a payment is received from a customer before the Company transfers the related services. Unearned revenue is recognized as revenue when the Company performs the services under the contract.

Disaggregated information of revenues by services:

Operating segments are reported in a manner consistent with the internal reporting provided to the chief operating decision-maker. The chief operating decision-maker has been identified as the Chief Executive Officer who allocates resources to and assesses the performance of the operating segments of an entity. The Company’s reporting segments are decided based on its operating segments while taking full consideration of various factors such as products and services, geographic location and regulatory environment related to administration of the management. Operating segments meeting the same qualifications are allocated as one reporting segment, providing independent disclosures. The Company does not distinguish between markets or segments for the purpose of internal reports. The Company does not distinguish revenues, costs and expenses between segments in its internal reporting, and reports costs and expenses by nature as a whole. Hence, the Company has only one reportable segment.

Revenue represents the invoiced value of goods and service, net of VAT. The VAT is based on gross sales price and VAT rates range up to 13%, depending on the type of products sold or service provided. Entities that are VAT general taxpayers are allowed to offset qualified input VAT paid to suppliers against their output VAT liabilities. Net VAT balance between input VAT and output VAT is recorded in taxes payable. All of the VAT returns filed by the Company’s subsidiaries in PRC remain subject to examination by the tax authorities for five years from the date of filing.

The Company follows the liability method of accounting for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740 (“ASC 740”), Income Taxes. The Company accounts for current income taxes in accordance with the laws of the relevant tax authorities. Deferred income taxes are recognized when temporary differences exist between the tax bases of assets and liabilities and their reported amounts in the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period including the enactment date. Valuation allowances are established, when necessary, to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized.

The Company is not subject to tax on income or capital gain under the current tax laws of U.S. And the Company is subject to tax on income or capital gain under the tax laws of PRC.

An uncertain tax position is recognized as a benefit only if it is “more likely than not” that the tax position would be sustained in a tax examination. The amount recognized is the largest amount of tax benefit that is greater than 50% likely of being realized on examination. For tax positions not meeting the “more likely than not” test, no tax benefit is recorded. For the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, no uncertain tax position is recognized. Penalties and interest incurred related to underpayment of income tax are classified as income tax expense in the period incurred. No significant penalties or interest relating to income taxes have been incurred during the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023. All of the tax returns of the Company’s subsidiaries in PRC remain subject to examination by the tax authorities for five years from the date of filing.

The Company’s PRC subsidiaries are required to allocate at least 10% of their after-tax profit to the general reserve in accordance with the PRC accounting standards and regulations. The allocation to the general reserve will cease if such reserve has reached 50% of the registered capital of respective company. These reserves can only be used for specific purposes and are not transferable to the Company in the form of loans, advances, or cash dividends. There is no such regulation of providing statutory reserve in Hong Kong.

Advertising expenditures are expensed as incurred and such expenses were included as part of selling and marketing expenses. For the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, the advertising expenses amounted to approximately $3.48 million and $2.01 million, respectively.

Comprehensive income consists of two components, net income and other comprehensive loss. Other comprehensive loss refers to revenue, expenses, gains and losses that under GAAP are recorded as an element of equity but are excluded from net income. Other comprehensive income (loss) consists of a foreign currency translation adjustment resulting from the Company not using the U.S. dollar as its functional currencies.

The Company computes earnings per share (“EPS”) in accordance with ASC 260, Earnings per Share. ASC 260 requires companies to present basic and diluted EPS. Basic EPS is measured as net income divided by the weighted average common share outstanding for the period. Diluted EPS presents the dilutive effect on a per-share basis of the potential Ordinary Shares (e.g., convertible securities, options and warrants) as if they had been converted at the beginning of the periods presented, or issuance date, if later. Potential Ordinary Shares that have an anti-dilutive effect (i.e., those that increase income per share or decrease loss per share) are excluded from the calculation of diluted EPS. There were no dilutive or anti-dilutive potential Ordinary Shares or effect for the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023.

In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-07, Segment Reporting: Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures (“ASU 2023-07”), which focuses on improving reportable segment disclosure requirements, primarily through enhanced disclosures about significant segment expenses. A public entity shall disclose for each reportable segment the significant expense categories and amounts that are regularly provided to the CODM and included in reported segment profit or loss. ASU 2023-07 also requires public entities to provide in interim periods all disclosures about a reportable segment’s profit or loss and assets that are currently required annually. Entities are permitted to disclose more than one measure of a segment’s profit or loss if such measures are used by the CODM to allocate resources and assess performance, as long as at least one of those measures is determined in a way that is most consistent with the measurement principles used to measure the corresponding amounts in the consolidated financial statements. ASU 2023-07 is applied retrospectively to all periods presented in financial statements, unless it is impracticable. This update will be effective for the Group’s fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024. Early adoption is permitted. The Group is currently in the process of evaluating the disclosure impact of adopting ASU 2023-07.

In September 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures. The Board is issuing the amendments in this Update to enhance the transparency and decision usefulness of income tax disclosures. Investors currently rely on the rate reconciliation table and other disclosures, including total income taxes paid, to evaluate income tax risks and opportunities. While investors find these disclosures helpful, they suggested possible enhancements to better (1) understand an entity’s exposure to potential changes in jurisdictional tax legislation and the ensuing risks and opportunities, (2) assess income tax information that affects cash flow forecasts and capital allocation decisions, and (3) identify potential opportunities to increase future cash flows. The Board decided that the amendments should be effective for public business entities for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2024

In June 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-03 Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to Contractual Sale Restrictions. The update clarifies that a contractual restriction on the sale of an equity security is not considered part of the unit of account of the equity security and, therefore, is not considered in measuring fair value. The update also clarifies that an entity cannot, as a separate unit of account, recognize and measure a contractual sale restriction. The update also requires certain additional disclosures for equity securities subject to contractual sale restrictions. For public business entities, the amendments in this Update are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods within those fiscal years. For all other entities, the amendments are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted for both interim and annual financial statements that have not yet been issued or made available for issuance. As an emerging growth company, the standard is effective for the Company for the year ended December 31, 2025. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of the new guidance on its unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.

The Company does not discuss recent pronouncements that are not anticipated to have an impact on or are unrelated to its consolidated financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or disclosures.