As filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on
October
27, 2022
Registration No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM F-3
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
UNIVERSE PHARMACEUTICALS INC
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Cayman Islands |
|
Not Applicable |
(State
or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization) |
|
(I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number) |
265 Jingjiu Avenue, Jinggangshan Economic and Technological
Development Zone
Ji’an, Jiangxi Province
People’s Republic of China
+86-0796-8403309
(Address and telephone number of Registrant’s principal executive
offices)
Cogency Global Inc.
122 East 42nd Street, 18th Floor,
New York, NY 10168
+1-212-947-7200
(Name, address, and telephone number of agent for service)
With a Copy to:
Ying Li, Esq.
Guillaume de Sampigny, Esq.
Hunter Taubman Fischer & Li LLC
48 Wall Street, Suite 1100
New York, NY 10005
212-530-2206
Approximate
date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: From time to
time after the effective date of the registration
statement.
If
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, 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.C. 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.C. 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 an emerging growth company
as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of
1933.
Emerging
growth company ☒
If an
emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in
accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant
has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying
with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided
pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.
☐
† |
The
term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any
update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its
Accounting Standards Codification after April 5,
2012. |
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 that specifically states
that this registration statement shall thereafter become effective
in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act, or
until this registration statement shall become effective on such
date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to
said Section 8(a), may determine.
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 U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is
not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting any
offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where such offer
or sale is not permitted. |
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED OCTOBER 27,
2022
PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS
$200,000,000 of
Ordinary Shares
Preferred Shares
Debt Securities
Warrants
Rights
and
Units
UNIVERSE PHARMACEUTICALS INC
This is an offering of the securities of Universe Pharmaceuticals
INC, a Cayman Islands exempted company. Unless otherwise stated, as
used in this prospectus, references to “we,” “us,” “our,” and the
“Company” are to Universe Pharmaceuticals INC, a company organized
under the laws of the Cayman Islands.
We may, from time to time, in one or more offerings, offer and sell
up to $200,000,000 of our ordinary shares, preferred shares, debt
securities, warrants, rights, and units, or any combination
thereof, together or separately as described in this prospectus. In
this prospectus, references to the term “securities” refers,
collectively, to our ordinary shares, preferred shares, debt
securities, warrants, rights, and units. 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 the securities offered, please see “Plan of
Distribution” in this prospectus.
This prospectus provides a general description of the securities we
may offer. We will provide the specific terms of the securities
offered in one or more supplements to this prospectus. We may also
authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to
you in connection with these offerings. You should read this
prospectus, any prospectus supplement, and any free writing
prospectus before you invest in any of our securities. The
prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus may
add, update, or change information in this prospectus. You should
read carefully this prospectus, the applicable prospectus
supplement, and any related free writing prospectus, as well as the
documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference,
before you invest in any of our securities. This prospectus may not
be used to offer or sell any securities unless accompanied by the
applicable prospectus supplement.
Our ordinary shares are listed on the Nasdaq Global Market, or
“Nasdaq,” under the symbol “UPC.” On October 20, 2022, the last
reported sale price of our ordinary shares on Nasdaq was $1.05 per
share. The aggregate market value of our outstanding ordinary
shares held by non-affiliates, or public float, as of October 26,
2022, was approximately $9.73 million, which was calculated based
on 9,270,000 ordinary shares held by non-affiliates and the price
of $1.05 per share, which was the closing price of our ordinary
shares on Nasdaq on October 20, 2022. Pursuant to General
Instruction I.B.5 of Form F-3, in no event will we sell our
securities in a public primary offering with a value exceeding more
than one-third of our public float in any 12-month period so long
as our public float remains below $75 million. During the 12
calendar months prior to and including the date of this prospectus,
we have not offered or sold any securities pursuant to General
Instruction I.B.5 of Form F-3.
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk.
Before making an investment decision, please read the information
under the heading “Risk Factors” beginning on page 13 of this
prospectus and risk factors set forth in our most recent annual
report on Form 20-F (the “2021 Annual Report”), in other
reports incorporated herein by reference, and in an applicable
prospectus supplement.
We may offer and sell the securities from time to time at fixed
prices, at market prices, or at negotiated prices, to or through
underwriters, to other purchasers, through agents, or through a
combination of these methods. If any underwriters are involved in
the sale of any securities with respect to which this prospectus is
being delivered, the names of such underwriters and any applicable
commissions or discounts will be set forth in a prospectus
supplement. The offering price of such securities and the net
proceeds we expect to receive from such sale will also be set forth
in a prospectus supplement. See “Plan of Distribution” elsewhere in
this prospectus for a more complete description of the ways in
which the securities may be sold.
This prospectus refers to (i) Universe Pharmaceuticals INC, the
Cayman Islands holding company, as “we”, “our”, “us”, or the
“Company”, (ii) the Company’s subsidiaries, as “our subsidiaries,”
(iii) Jiangxi Universe Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., the Company’s
indirect wholly owned subsidiary in China (“Jiangxi Universe”) and
its subsidiaries, which are domiciled in China and conducting
business operations in China, as the “operating entities.” The
Company does not conduct any operations.
We are an offshore holding company with no operations of our own
and not a Chinese operating company. Our operations are conducted
in China by our subsidiaries. This is an offering of securities of
the offshore holding company in the Cayman Islands, instead of
securities of our operating companies in China. Investors in our
securities are not purchasing equity interests in our subsidiaries
but instead are purchasing equity interests in the ultimate Cayman
Islands holding company. Therefore, you will not directly hold any
equity interests in our operating companies. The Chinese regulatory
authorities could disallow this structure, which would likely
result in a material change in our operations and/or a material
change in the value of the securities we are registering for sale,
including that it could cause the value of such securities to
significantly decline or become worthless. For risks facing our
Company and this offering as a result of our organizational
structure, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks
Related to Doing Business in China” in the 2021 Annual Report.
We are subject to certain legal and operational risks associated
with having the majority of our operations in China, which could
significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer
securities to investors and cause the value of our securities to
significantly decline or be worthless. See “Item 3. Key
Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in
China—The PRC government has significant authority to intervene or
influence the China operations of an offshore holding company, such
as ours, at any time. The PRC government may exert more control
over offerings conducted overseas and/or foreign investment in
China-based issuers. If the PRC government exerts more oversight
and control over offerings that are conducted overseas and/or
foreign investment in China-based issuers and we were to be subject
to such oversight and control, it may result in a material adverse
change to our business operations, significantly limit or
completely hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer
securities to investors, and cause the ordinary shares to
significantly decline in value or become worthless” in the 2021
Annual Report. Recently, the PRC government adopted a series of
regulatory actions and statements to regulate business operations
in China with little advance notice, including cracking down on
illegal activities in the securities market, adopting new measures
to extend the scope of cybersecurity reviews, and expanding the
efforts in anti-monopoly enforcement. As of the date of this
prospectus, we and our subsidiaries have not been involved in any
investigations on cybersecurity review initiated by any PRC
regulatory authority, nor has any of them received any inquiry,
notice, or sanction. As confirmed by our PRC counsel, AllBright Law
Offices, we are not subject to cybersecurity review by the
Cyberspace Administration of China, or the CAC, since we currently
do not have over one million users’ personal information and do not
anticipate that we will be collecting over one million users’
personal information in the foreseeable future, which we understand
might otherwise subject us to the Cybersecurity Review Measures. We
are not subject to network data security review by the CAC if the
Draft Regulations on the Network Data Security Administration
(Draft for Comments) (the “Security Administration Draft”) are
enacted as proposed, because we currently do not have over one
million users’ personal information, we do not collect data that
affect or may affect national security and we do not anticipate
that we will be collecting over one million users’ personal
information or data that affect or may affect national security in
the foreseeable future, which we understand might otherwise subject
us to the Security Administration Draft. See “Item 3. Key
Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in
China—Failure to comply with cybersecurity, data privacy, data
protection, or any other laws and regulations related to data may
materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition,
and results of operations” in the 2021 Annual Report. According to
our PRC counsel, AllBright Law Offices, no relevant laws or
regulations in the PRC explicitly require us to seek approval from
the China Securities Regulatory Commission for our overseas
listing. As of the date of this prospectus, we and our subsidiaries
have not received any inquiry, notice, warning, or sanction
regarding our overseas listing from the China Securities Regulatory
Commission (the “CSRC”) or any other PRC governmental authorities.
However, since these statements and regulatory actions are newly
published, official guidance and related implementation
rules have not been issued. It is highly uncertain what the
potential impact such modified or new laws and regulations will
have on the daily business operations of our subsidiaries, our
ability to accept foreign investments, and our listing on an U.S.
exchange. The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress
(the “SCNPC”) or PRC regulatory authorities may in the future
promulgate laws, regulations, or implementing rules that
require us or our subsidiaries to obtain regulatory approval from
Chinese authorities for listing in the U.S.
In addition, our ordinary shares may be prohibited from trading on
a national exchange or over-the-counter under the Holding Foreign
Companies Accountable Act, if the Public Company Accounting
Oversight Board (United States) (the “PCAOB”) is unable to inspect
our auditor for three consecutive years beginning in 2021. Our
auditor is headquartered in California and has not been inspected
by the PCAOB, but according to our auditor, it will be inspected by
the PCAOB on a regular basis, and our auditor is not subject to the
determinations announced by the PCAOB on December 16, 2021. If
trading in our ordinary shares is prohibited under the Holding
Foreign Companies Accountable Act in the future because the PCAOB
determines that it cannot inspect or fully investigate our auditor
at such future time, Nasdaq may determine to delist our ordinary
shares and trading in our ordinary shares could be prohibited. On
June 22, 2021, the U.S. Senate passed the Accelerating Holding
Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which, if passed by the U.S.
House of Representatives and signed into law, would reduce the
period of time for foreign companies to comply with PCAOB audits to
two consecutive years instead of three, thus reducing the time
period for triggering the prohibition on trading. On August 26,
2022, the CSRC, the Ministry of Finance of the PRC (the “MOF”), and
the PCAOB signed a Statement of Protocol (the “Protocol”),
governing inspections and investigations of audit firms based in
China and Hong Kong. The Protocol remains unpublished and is
subject to further explanation and implementation. Pursuant to the
fact sheet with respect to the Protocol disclosed by the SEC, the
PCAOB shall have independent discretion to select any issuer audits
for inspection or investigation and has the unfettered ability to
transfer information to the SEC. However, when the PCAOB reassesses
its determinations by the end of 2022, it could determine that it
still unable to inspect and investigate completely audit firms
based in China and Hong Kong. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China—Our ordinary
shares may be delisted or prohibited from being traded
over-the-counter under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable
Act, if the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the
PCAOB, is unable to inspect our auditors. The delisting or the
cessation of trading of our ordinary shares, or the threat of their
being delisted or prohibited from being traded, may materially and
adversely affect the value of your investment. Additionally, the
inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections would deprive our
investors with the benefits of such inspections. Our auditor has
not been inspected by the PCAOB, but according to our auditor, it
will be inspected by the PCAOB on a regular basis” in the 2021
Annual Report.
We are an exempted company with limited liability incorporated in
the Cayman Islands. We may rely on dividends from our subsidiaries
in China for our cash requirements, including any payment of
dividends to our shareholders. PRC regulations may restrict the
ability of our PRC subsidiaries to pay dividends to us, and as a
holding company, we will be dependent on receipt of funds from our
Hong Kong subsidiary, Universe Pharmaceuticals Group
(International) Limited (“Universe HK”).
Current PRC regulations permit our indirect PRC subsidiaries to pay
dividends to Universe HK only out of their accumulated profits, if
any, determined in accordance with Chinese accounting standards and
regulations. In addition, each of our subsidiaries in China is
required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each
year, if any, to fund a statutory reserve until such reserve
reaches 50% of its registered capital. Each of such entity in China
is also required to further set aside a portion of its after-tax
profits to fund the employee welfare fund, although the amount to
be set aside, if any, is determined at the discretion of its board
of directors. Although the statutory reserves can be used, among
other ways, to increase the registered capital and eliminate future
losses in excess of retained earnings of the respective companies,
the reserve funds are not distributable as cash dividends except in
the event of liquidation.
The PRC government also imposes controls on the conversion of RMB
into foreign currencies and the remittance of currencies out of the
PRC. Therefore, we may experience difficulties in complying with
the administrative requirements necessary to obtain and remit
foreign currency for the payment of dividends from our profits, if
any. Furthermore, if our subsidiaries and affiliates in the PRC
incur debt on their own in the future, the instruments governing
the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other
payments. If we or our subsidiaries are unable to receive all of
the revenue from our operations, we may be unable to pay dividends
on our ordinary shares.
Cash dividends, if any, on our ordinary shares will be paid in U.S.
dollars. Universe HK may be considered a non-resident enterprise
for tax purposes, so that any dividends our PRC subsidiaries pay to
Universe HK may be regarded as China-sourced income and as a result
may be subject to PRC withholding tax at a rate of up to 10%. See
“Item 10. Additional Information—E. Taxation—People’s Republic of
China Taxation.” in the 2021 Annual Report.
In order for us to pay dividends to our shareholders, we will rely
on payments made from Universe Technology’s subsidiary, Jiangxi
Universe, to Universe Technology and from Universe Technology to
Universe HK and then to our Company. According to the EIT Law, such
payments from subsidiaries to parent companies in China are subject
to the PRC enterprise income tax at a rate of 25%. In addition, if
Jiangxi Universe or its subsidiary or branches incur debt on their
own behalf in the future, the instruments governing the debt may
restrict its ability to pay dividends or make other distributions
to us.
Pursuant to the Double Tax Avoidance Arrangement, the 10%
withholding tax rate may be lowered to 5% if a Hong Kong resident
enterprise owns no less than 25% of a PRC project. The 5%
withholding tax rate, however, does not automatically apply and
certain requirements must be satisfied, including without
limitation that (a) the Hong Kong project must be the beneficial
owner of the relevant dividends; and (b) the Hong Kong project must
directly hold no less than 25% share ownership in the PRC project
during the 12 consecutive months preceding its receipt of the
dividends. In current practice, a Hong Kong project must obtain a
tax resident certificate from the Hong Kong tax authority to apply
for the 5% lower PRC withholding tax rate. As the Hong Kong tax
authority will issue such a tax resident certificate on a
case-by-case basis, we cannot assure you that we will be able to
obtain the tax resident certificate from the relevant Hong Kong tax
authority and enjoy the preferential withholding tax rate of 5%
under the Double Taxation Arrangement with respect to any dividends
paid by our PRC subsidiaries to its immediate holding company,
Universe HK. As of the date of this annual report, we have not
applied for the tax resident certificate from the relevant Hong
Kong tax authority. Universe HK intends to apply for the tax
resident certificate if and when Universe Technology plan to
declare and pay dividends to Universe HK. See “Item 3. Key
Information—D. Risk Factors— There are significant uncertainties
under the Enterprise Income Tax Law, or the EIT Law, relating to
the withholding tax liabilities of our PRC subsidiaries, and
dividends payable by our PRC subsidiaries to our offshore
subsidiaries may not qualify to enjoy certain treaty benefits” in
the 2021 Annual Report.
To the extent cash is located in the PRC or within a PRC domiciled
entity and may need to be used to fund operations outside of the
PRC, the funds may not be available due to limitations placed on us
and our subsidiaries by the PRC government. To the extent cash in
and assets of the business is in the PRC or a PRC entity, the funds
and assets may not be available to fund operations or for other use
outside of the PRC due to interventions in or the imposition of
restrictions and limitations on the ability of us or our
subsidiaries by the PRC government to transfer cash and assets. See
“Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in
China — To the extent cash and assets of in the business is in
the PRC or a PRC entity, the funds may not be available to fund
operations or for other use outside of the PRC due to interventions
in or the imposition of restrictions and limitations on the ability
of our Company or our subsidiaries by the PRC government to
transfer cash and assets.”
As of the date of this prospectus, none of our subsidiaries have
made any dividends or distributions to our Company and our Company
has not made any dividends or distributions to our shareholders. We
intend to keep any future earnings to finance the expansion of our
business, and we do not anticipate that any cash dividends will be
paid in the foreseeable future. If we determine to pay dividends on
any of our ordinary shares in the future, as a holding company, we
will rely on payments from subsidiaries of Jiangxi Universe to
Jiangxi Universe, and from Jiangxi Universe to Universe
Pharmaceuticals Technology Co., Ltd., our indirect wholly owned
subsidiary in China (“Universe Technology”), and the distribution
of such payments to Universe HK, and then to our Company. Our
finance department is supervising cash management, following the
instructions of our management. Our finance department is
responsible for establishing our cash operation plan and
coordinating cash management matters among our subsidiaries and
departments. Each subsidiary and department initiates a cash
request by putting forward a cash demand plan, which explains the
specific amount and timing of cash requested, and submitting it to
our finance department. The finance department reviews the cash
demand plan and prepares a summary for the management of our
Company. Management examines and approves the allocation of cash
based on the sources of cash and the priorities of the needs. Other
than the above, we currently do not have other cash management
policies or procedures that dictate how funds are transferred.
Cash flows have occurred
between our Cayman Islands holding company and our subsidiaries.
The Cayman Islands holding company has not received cash transfer
from its subsidiaries for the years ended September 30, 2019, 2020
and 2021, and from October 1, 2021 to the date of this prospectus.
There was no distribution of earnings by our PRC subsidiaries to
the Cayman Islands holding company during the years ended September
30, 2021, 2020 and 2019, and from October 1, 2021 to the date of
this prospectus. From October 1, 2021 to the date of this
prospectus, Universe Technology transferred cash in the amount of
RMB67,277,244 (approximately $10,460) to Jiangxi Universe. In the
fiscal year ended September 30, 2021, Universe
Pharmaceuticals INC transferred the net proceeds from its initial
public offering, through Universe HK and Universe Technology, to
Jiangxi Universe and its subsidiaries, in the amount of RMB
43,976,156 (approximately $6,807,507), to be used for general
corporate purposes. In the
years ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, there was no cash
transferred from the Cayman Islands holding company to its PRC
subsidiaries. See “Item 8. Financial Information—A.
Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information—Dividend
Policy” in the 2021 Annual Report and our audited consolidated
financial statements for the fiscal years ended September 30,
2021, 2020, and 2019.
Neither the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nor any
state securities commission nor any other regulatory body 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 , 2022.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABOUT THIS
PROSPECTUS
This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed
with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”)
utilizing a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf
registration process, we may, from time to time, sell the
securities described in this prospectus in one or more offerings,
up to a total offering amount of $200,000,000.
This prospectus provides you with a general description of the
securities we may offer. Each time we sell securities under this
shelf registration, we will provide a prospectus supplement that
will contain specific information about the terms of that offering,
including a description of any risks related to the offering. If
there is any inconsistency between the information in this
prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement, you should
rely on the information in the prospectus supplement. This
prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement do not
contain all the information included in the registration statement.
We have omitted parts of the registration statement in accordance
with the rules and regulations of the SEC. Statements in this
prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement about the
provisions or contents of any agreement or other documents are not
necessarily complete. If the SEC rules and regulations require
that an agreement or other document be filed as an exhibit to the
registration statement, please see that agreement or document for a
complete description of the matters. You should read both this
prospectus and any prospectus supplement or other offering
materials together with additional information described under the
headings “Where You Can Find Additional Information” and
“Incorporation of Documents by Reference” before investing in any
of the securities offered.
The information in this prospectus is accurate as of the date on
the front cover. The information incorporated by reference into
this prospectus is accurate as of the date of the document from
which the information is incorporated. You should not assume that
the information contained in this prospectus is accurate as of any
other date.
You should rely only on the information provided or incorporated by
reference in this prospectus or in the prospectus supplement. We
have not authorized anyone to provide you with additional or
different information. This document may only be used where it is
legal to sell these securities.
As permitted by SEC rules and regulations, the registration
statement of which this prospectus forms a part includes additional
information not contained in this prospectus. You may read the
registration statement and the other reports we file with the SEC
at its website or at its offices described under “Where You Can
Find Additional Information.”
COMMONLY USED DEFINED
TERMS
Unless otherwise indicated or the context requires otherwise,
references in this prospectus or in a prospectus supplement to:
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“China” or the “PRC” are to the People’s Republic
of China, excluding Taiwan for the purposes of this prospectus
only; |
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“Exchange Act” are to the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934, as amended; |
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“fiscal year” are to the period from
October 1 to September 30 of the next calendar
year; |
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“Jiangxi Universe” are to Jiangxi Universe
Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., a company with limited liability
organized under the laws of the PRC, which is jointly owned
by Universe Technology (as defined below); |
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“operating entities” are to Jiangxi Universe and
its subsidiaries; |
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“ordinary shares” are to the ordinary shares of
Universe Pharmaceuticals INC, par value US$0.003125 per
share; |
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“RMB”
or “Renminbi” are to the legal currency of China; |
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“SEC”
are to the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission; |
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“Securities Act” are to the Securities Act of
1933, as amended; |
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“Universe Hanhe” are to Guangzhou Universe Hanhe
Medical Research Co., Ltd., a PRC formed on May 12, 2021, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Jiangxi Universe; |
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“Universe HK” are to Universe Pharmaceuticals
INC’s wholly owned subsidiary, Universe Pharmaceuticals Group
(International) Limited, a Hong Kong corporation; |
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“Universe Technology” are to Universe
Pharmaceuticals Technology Co., Ltd., a company with limited
liability organized under the laws of the PRC, which is wholly
owned by Universe HK; |
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“Universe Trade” are to Jiangxi Universe
Pharmaceuticals Trade Co., Ltd., a PRC company formed in 2010, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Jiangxi Universe; |
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“US$,” “$,” and “U.S. dollars” are to the legal
currency of the United States; |
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“U.S.
GAAP” are to generally accepted accounting principles in the United
States; and |
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“We,”
“us,” “our Company,” or the “Company” are to Universe
Pharmaceuticals INC, a company limited by shares organized under
the laws of Cayman Islands. |
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus, an applicable prospectus supplement, and our SEC
filings that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus
contain or incorporate by reference forward-looking statements
within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of and
Section 21E of the Exchange Act. All statements other than
statements of historical fact are “forward-looking statements,”
including any projections of earnings, revenue or other financial
items, any statements of the plans, strategies, and objectives of
management for future operations, any statements concerning
proposed new projects or other developments, any statements
regarding future economic conditions or performance, any statements
of management’s beliefs, goals, strategies, intentions, and
objectives, and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the
foregoing. The words “believe,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,”
“expect,” “intend,” “may,” “could,” “should,” “potential,”
“likely,” “projects,” “continue,” “will,” and “would” and similar
expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements,
although not all forward-looking statements contain these
identifying words. Forward-looking statements reflect our current
views with respect to future events, are based on assumptions, and
are subject to risks and uncertainties. We cannot guarantee that we
actually will achieve the plans, intentions, or expectations
expressed in our forward-looking statements and you should not
place undue reliance on these statements. There are a number of
important factors that could cause our actual results to differ
materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking
statements. These important factors include those discussed under
the heading “Risk Factors” contained or incorporated by reference
in this prospectus and in the applicable prospectus supplement and
any free writing prospectus we may authorize for use in connection
with a specific offering. These factors and the other cautionary
statements made in this prospectus should be read as being
applicable to all related forward-looking statements whenever they
appear in this prospectus. Except as required by law, we undertake
no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of new information, future events, or
otherwise.
Prospectus
Summary
Overview
We are an offshore holding company incorporated in the Cayman
Islands. As a holding company with no operations of our own, our
operations are conducted in China through our wholly owned indirect
PRC subsidiary, Jiangxi
Universe, and its subsidiaries. This is an offering of
securities of the offshore holding company in the Cayman Islands,
instead of securities of the operating entities in China. Investors
in our securities are not purchasing equity interests in our
subsidiaries but instead are purchasing equity interests in the
ultimate Cayman Islands holding company. Therefore, you will not
directly hold any equity interests in the operating entities. The
Chinese regulatory authorities could disallow this structure, which
would likely result in a material change in our operations and/or a
material change in the value of the securities we are registering
for sale, including that it could cause the value of such
securities to significantly decline or become worthless. For risks
facing our Company and this offering as a result of our
organizational structure, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China” in the 2021
Annual Report.
The following diagram illustrates our corporate structure as of the
date of this prospectus.

We are subject to certain legal and operational risks associated
with having the majority of our operations in China, which could
significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer
securities to investors and cause the value of our securities to
significantly decline or be worthless. “Item 3. Key Information—D.
Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China—The PRC
government has significant authority to intervene or influence the
China operations of an offshore holding company, such as ours, at
any time. The PRC government may exert more control over offerings
conducted overseas and/or foreign investment in China-based
issuers. If the PRC government exerts more oversight and control
over offerings that are conducted overseas and/or foreign
investment in China-based issuers and we were to be subject to such
oversight and control, it may result in a material adverse change
to our business operations, significantly limit or completely
hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer securities to
investors, and cause the ordinary shares to significantly decline
in value or become worthless” in the 2021 Annual Report. Recently,
the PRC government adopted a series of regulatory actions and
statements to regulate business operations in China with little
advance notice, including cracking down on illegal activities in
the securities market, adopting new measures to extend the scope of
cybersecurity reviews, and expanding the efforts in anti-monopoly
enforcement. As of the date of this prospectus, we and our
subsidiaries have not been involved in any investigations on
cybersecurity review initiated by any PRC regulatory authority, nor
has any of them received any inquiry, notice, or sanction. As
confirmed by our PRC counsel, AllBright Law Offices, we are not
subject to cybersecurity review by the CAC, since we currently do
not have over one million users’ personal information and do not
anticipate that we will be collecting over one million users’
personal information in the foreseeable future, which we understand
might otherwise subject us to the Cybersecurity Review Measures. We
are not subject to network data security review by the CAC if the
Security Administration Draft is enacted as proposed, because we
currently do not have over one million users’ personal information,
we do not collect data that affect or may affect national security
and we do not anticipate that we will be collecting over one
million users’ personal information or data that affect or may
affect national security in the foreseeable future, which we
understand might otherwise subject us to the Security
Administration Draft. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors—Risks Related
to Doing Business in China—Failure to
comply with cybersecurity, data privacy, data protection, or any
other laws and regulations related to data may materially and
adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of
operations” in the 2021 Annual Report. According to our PRC
counsel, AllBright Law Offices, no relevant laws or regulations in
the PRC explicitly require us to seek approval from the China
Securities Regulatory Commission for our overseas listing. As of
the date of this prospectus, we and our subsidiaries have not
received any inquiry, notice, warning, or sanction regarding our
overseas listing from the CSRC or any other PRC governmental
authorities. However, since these statements and regulatory actions
are newly published, official guidance and related implementation
rules have not been issued. It is highly uncertain what the
potential impact such modified or new laws and regulations will
have on the daily business operations of our subsidiaries, our
ability to accept foreign investments, and our listing on an U.S.
exchange. The SCNPC or PRC regulatory authorities may in the future
promulgate laws, regulations, or implementing rules that
require us or our subsidiaries to obtain regulatory approval from
Chinese authorities for listing in the U.S.
In addition, our ordinary shares may be prohibited from trading on
a national exchange or over-the-counter under the Holding Foreign
Companies Accountable Act, if the PCAOB is unable to inspect our
auditor for three consecutive years beginning in 2021. Our auditor
is headquartered in California and has not been inspected by the
PCAOB, but according to our auditor, it will be inspected by the
PCAOB on a regular basis, and our auditor is not subject to the
determinations announced by the PCAOB on December 16, 2021. If
trading in our ordinary shares is prohibited under the Holding
Foreign Companies Accountable Act in the future because the PCAOB
determines that it cannot inspect or fully investigate our auditor
at such future time, Nasdaq may determine to delist our ordinary
shares and trading in our ordinary shares could be prohibited. On
June 22, 2021, the U.S. Senate passed the Accelerating Holding
Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which, if passed by the U.S.
House of Representatives and signed into law, would reduce the
period of time for foreign companies to comply with PCAOB audits to
two consecutive years instead of three, thus reducing the time
period for triggering the prohibition on trading. On August 26,
2022, the CSRC, the MOF, and the PCAOB signed the Protocol,
governing inspections and investigations of audit firms based in
China and Hong Kong. The Protocol remains unpublished and is
subject to further explanation and implementation. Pursuant to the
fact sheet with respect to the Protocol disclosed by the SEC, the
PCAOB shall have independent discretion to select any issuer audits
for inspection or investigation and has the unfettered ability to
transfer information to the SEC. However, when the PCAOB reassesses
its determinations by the end of 2022, it could determine that it
still unable to inspect and investigate completely audit firms
based in China and Hong Kong. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China—Our ordinary
shares may be delisted or prohibited from being traded
over-the-counter under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable
Act, if the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the
PCAOB, is unable to inspect our auditors. The delisting or the
cessation of trading of our ordinary shares, or the threat of their
being delisted or prohibited from being traded, may materially and
adversely affect the value of your investment. Additionally, the
inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections would deprive our
investors with the benefits of such inspections. Our auditor has
not been inspected by the PCAOB, but according to our auditor, it
will be inspected by the PCAOB on a regular basis” in the 2021
Annual Report.
Our Company
The operating entities are manufacturer and supplier of traditional
Chinese medicine derivatives (“TCMD”), specializing in the
manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution of TCMD products
targeting the elderly with the goal of addressing their physical
conditions in the aging process and to promote their general
well-being.
The operating entities have
registered and obtained approval for 26 varieties of TCMD products
from the National Medical Products Administration (the “NMPA”), and
the operating entities currently produce 13 varieties of TCMD
products, which are sold in approximately 261 cities of 30
provinces in China. In addition, the operating entities
sell not only their own TCMD
products, but also biomedical drugs medical instruments,
Traditional Chinese Medicine Pieces (“TCMPs”), and dietary
supplements manufactured by third-party pharmaceutical companies
(collectively referred to as “third-party products”).
Products manufactured by
the operating entities. The 13 TCMD products currently
manufactured by the operating entities fall into two categories: (1) treatment
and relief for common chronic health conditions in the elderly
designed to achieve physical wellness and longevity (“chronic
condition treatments”), and (2) cold and flu
medications.
|
● |
Chronic condition treatments: Guben
Yanling Pill, Shenrong Weisheng Pill, Quanlu Pill, Yangxue Danggui
Syrup, Wuzi Yanzong Oral Liquid, Fengtong Medicinal Liquor,
Shenrong Medicinal Liquor, Qishe Medicinal Liquor, Fengshitong
Medicinal Liquor, and Shiquan Dabu Medicinal Liquor. |
|
● |
Cold and flu medicines: Paracetamol
Granule for Children, Isatis Root Granule and Qiangli Pipa
Syrup. |
As people age, they have an
increasing risk of developing chronic health conditions. According
to a report published by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and
Prevention in March 2019, 75.8% of seniors have at least one
chronic health condition, and 35.1% of them have two or more.
According to the “Blue Book of Elderly Health (2020-2021)” released
in December 2021 by the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, the
School of Public Health of Peking Union Medical College and the
Social Sciences Literature Publishing House, the prevalence of
hypertension, diabetes and hypercholesterolemia in Chinese
residents aged 60 and above is 58.3%, 19.4% and 10.5%,
respectively, and more than 3/4 of the residents have multiple
disease coexistence, and with the increase of age, the prevalence
of chronic diseases increases. Some of the most common chronic
diseases in the elderly include arthritis, chronic kidney disease,
fatigue, and low back pain. The operating entities’
products under the category
of chronic condition treatments are designed to address some of the
aforementioned diseases. The operating entities’
cold and flu medicines, on
the other hand, include products designed to treat and relieve
symptoms of respiratory illnesses caused by bacteria and
viruses.
The
operating entities’ third-party
products. The operating entities
also distribute and sell
products manufactured by third-party producers, including
biomedical drugs, medical instruments, TCMPs and dietary
supplements. For the six months ended March 31, 2022 and the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2021, the operating entities
distributed around 2,812 and
2,766 types of third-party products, respectively.
The operating entities’ Customers. The
operating entities’ major
customers are pharmaceutical distributors, hospitals, clinics and
drugstore chains, primarily located in Jiangxi Province, Jiangsu
Province, Guangdong Province, Hubei Province, Fujian Province,
Guangxi Province and Shandong Province, and 23 other provinces in
China.
We believe the
operating entities have
implemented a successful business model, and their business has
grown substantially since inception. The operating entities
customer base decreased from
a total of 2,603 customers as of September 30, 2019 decreased to
2,209 as of September 30, 2020 due to the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic. In fiscal year 2021, the operating entities’
business operations gradually
recovered from the negative impact of COVID-19 and the customer
base increased to 2,708 as of September 30, 2021. The operating
entities’ customer base increased from 1,092 as of March 31, 2021
to 1,205 as of March 31, 2022. The revenues from selling the
operating entities’ own products decreased from $20,895,542 for the
fiscal year ended September 30, 2019 to $18,374,751 for the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19
pandemic and strong market competition, and increased to
$29,559,286 for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021. The
revenues from selling the operating entities’ own products
increased from $13,318,921 for the six months ended March 31, 2021
to $15,354,635 for the six months ended March 31, 2022. The
revenues from distributing
and selling third-party products slightly decreased from
$12,333,774 for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2019 to
$12,329,209 for the year ended September 30, 2020, and increased to
$18,422,745 for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021. The
revenues from distributing and selling third-party products
decreased from $10,974,027 in the six months ended March 31, 2021
to $8,847,705 in the six months ended March 31, 2022. Our
net income was $7,551,465 for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2019, $7,558,222 for the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2020, and $11,319,952 for the fiscal year
ended September 30, 2021. Our net income was $7,147,798 for the six
months ended March 31, 2021 and $1,731,735 for the six months ended
March 31, 2022.
Recent Development
Completion of the Initial
Public Offering (“IPO”)
On March 25, 2021, we closed
our IPO of 5,000,000 ordinary shares, par value $0.003125 per share
at a public offering price of $5.00 per share. On March 29, 2021,
the underwriter exercised in full its over-allotment option to
purchase an additional 750,000 ordinary shares. The closing
for the sale of the over-allotment shares took place on March 31,
2021. Gross proceeds of our IPO, including the proceeds from the
sale of the over-allotment shares, totaled $28.75 million, before
deducting underwriting discounts and other related expenses. Net
proceeds of our IPO, including over-allotment shares, were
approximately $25.6 million. In connection with the IPO, our
ordinary shares began trading on the Nasdaq Global
Market under the symbol “UPC” on March 23, 2021.
Newly Established
Subsidiary
On May 12, 2021, through our
PRC subsidiary, Jiangxi Universe, we established a wholly owned
subsidiary, Guangzhou Universe Hanhe Medical Research Co., Ltd.
(“Universe Hanhe”) in Guangzhou City, China, for the purpose of
conducting research and development of new pharmaceutical products
in order to diversify our product offerings in the near future. As
of the date of this prospectus, Universe Hanhe has no active
business operations.
Prepayment for
Construction-in-progress Project (the “CIP Project”)
On June 25, 2021, we entered
into a construction contract with a sub-contractor, Jiangxi
Chenyuan Construction Project Co., Ltd. (“Chenyuan”), pursuant to
which, Chenyuan will construct four manufacturing plants and an
office building with a total maximum budget of RMB165 million
(approximately $25.5 million). The construction work started on
August 8, 2021, with an estimated completion date on August 8,
2023. As of March 31, 2022, we had made prepayment of approximately
RMB69.2 million (approximately $10.4 million) to Chenyuan to start
the construction, including land improvement, building foundation
and the construction of the manufacturing plants. As of March 31,
2022, the $10.4 million prepayment to Chenyuan was recorded as
prepayment for CIP Project on the balance sheets. There was
no additional significant prepayment to the sub-contractor during
the six months ended March 31, 2022.
As of March 31, 2022, future
additional capital expenditure on this CIP Project was estimated to
be approximately RMB95.8 million (equivalent to $15.1 million),
among which approximately $3.9 million is required for the fiscal
year ending September 30, 2023. The Company currently plans to
support its ongoing CIP Project through cash flows from operations,
proceeds received from the IPO, and if necessary, borrowings from
banks. The CIP Project is expected to be fully completed by
December 2025, and the new manufacturing plants and office building
are expected to be put into use by December 2024 and December 2025,
respectively.
For a discussion of potential
risks associated with our construction agreement and the CIP
Project, see “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks
Related to Our Business and Industry — Our future success depends
in part on our ability to increase our production capacity, and we
may not able to do so in a cost-effective manner. We have engaged a
third-party sub-contractor to build manufacturing facilities and an
office building for us, and we may encounter challenges relating to
the construction, management and operation of such
facilities” in the 2021 Annual Report.
Prepayment for
Advertising
On September 6, 2021, we
entered into an advertising service agreement with a third party,
Guangdong Fengyang Legend Consulting Co., Ltd. (“Fengyang Legend”),
pursuant to which Fengyang Legend agreed to assist us in developing
and producing a TV advertisement for promoting our representative
TCMD products, Bai Nian Dan and Guben Yanling Pill, and
coordinating with a TV channel to broadcast the advertisement to
targeted geographic market areas. The total advertising service fee
under this agreement is RMB55 million (approximately $8.5 million)
with a service period of one year, from October 1, 2021 to
September 30, 2022. Pursuant to the terms under this agreement, we
made an advance payment in the amount of 30% of the total
advertising service fee to Fengyang Legend, and we paid Fengyang
Legend another 58% of the total advertising service fee when the TV
channel on which the advertisement is broadcasted was determined.
As of March 31, 2022, a total of RMB48.4 million (approximately
$7.5 million) had been paid to Fengyang Legend and was charged to
advertising expenses during the six months ended March 31,
2022.
For a discussion of potential
risks associated with our advertising service agreement, see “Item
3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our
Business and Industry — We have made substantial investment in
advertising our products in order to improve our brand awareness
and our market position, which efforts may not be successful, and
in such event, our financial position and results of operations may
be materially and negatively affected” in the 2021 Annual
Report.
Entry Into a Strategic
Cooperation Agreement with a Japanese Pharmaceutical
Company
On December 1, 2021, we
entered into certain agreements (the “Agreements”) with Kitanihon
Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Kitanihon”), a Japanese pharmaceutical
company, pursuant to which (i) both parties will build a
manufacturing facility in Ji’an, Jiangxi, China, for the
manufacturing and research and development of traditional Chinese
medicine derivatives products, with an aggregate area of over
430,000 square feet, and the Company will bear the costs associated
with building the facility, and (ii) the Company will purchase 464
shares of Kitanihon for an aggregate of JPY176.32 million
(approximately US$1.56 million). As the date of this prospectus,
the building of manufacturing facility has not started, and the
Company has not acquired the 464 shares of Kitanihon.
In relation to the
Agreements, Sununion Holding Group Limited (“Sununion”), the
controlling shareholder of the Company wholly owned by Mr. Gang
Lai, the chief executive officer and chairman of the board of
directors of the Company, entered into an agreement with Mr. Gang
Lai and Kitanihon on December 1, 2021, pursuant to which Kitanihon
authorizes the Company to use certain of its intangible assets,
including technologies and certain intellectual properties, in
exchange for which Mr. Gang Lai transferred 1,073,280 ordinary
shares of Sununion owned by him and valued at US$2.5 million to
Kitanihon.
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Due to resurgence of COVID-19 pandemic in China in 2022 and related
restrictive measures, including travel restrictions, the PRC
operating entities have experienced delays in purchasing raw
materials from suppliers and in delivering products to customers on
a timely basis. The prices of the raw materials have also increased
by about 5% as compared to the same period of last year. In
addition, we granted some customers extended payment terms of 30
days to 120 days as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However,
based on our present relationship with these customers and our
evaluation of their financial conditions, we do not anticipate any
material collectability problems. Currently, we do not expect the
COVID-19 pandemic will have a material adverse impact on the
business of the PRC operating entities and our financial results.
However, due to the high uncertainty of the evolving situation, we
have limited visibility on how the COVID-19 may affect the
execution of customer contracts, the collection of customer
payments, or disrupt our supply chain, and the continued
uncertainties associated with COVID 19 may cause our revenue and
cash flows to underperform in the next 12 months from the date of
our current report on Form 6-K, filed with the SEC on August 16,
2022. The extent of the future impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on
our business and results of operations is still uncertain.
Permissions Required from PRC Authorities
We believe that we and our subsidiaries have obtained all material
licenses and approvals necessary to operate in China and are not
required to obtain approval from any PRC government authorities,
including the CSRC or the CAC, or any other government entity, to
issue our ordinary shares and the securities we are registering
hereby to foreign investors. Since the recent regulatory actions
are new, however, it is highly uncertain how soon legislative or
administrative regulation making bodies will respond and what
existing or new laws or regulations or detailed implementations and
interpretations will be modified or promulgated, if any, and the
potential impact such modified or new laws and regulations will
have on our daily business operation, ability to accept foreign
investments, and listing on the Nasdaq Stock Market. If we do not
receive or maintain the approvals, or we inadvertently conclude
that such approvals are not required, or applicable laws,
regulations, or interpretations change such that we are required to
obtain approval in the future, we may be subject to an
investigation by competent regulators, fines or penalties, ordered
to suspend our relevant business and rectify, prohibited from
engaging in relevant business, or subject to an order prohibiting
us from conducting an offering, and these risks could result in a
material adverse change in our operations, significantly limit or
completely hinder our ability to continue to offer securities to
investors, or cause such securities to significantly decline in
value or become worthless. See “Item 3. Key Information—Risk
Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—Failure to comply
with cybersecurity, data privacy, data protection, or any other
laws and regulations related to data may materially and adversely
affect our business, financial condition, and results of
operations” in the 2021 Annual Report.
Dividends or Distributions Made to Our Company and U.S.
Investors and Tax Consequences
Cash flows have occurred
between our Cayman Islands holding company and our subsidiaries.
The Cayman Islands holding company has not received cash transfer
from its subsidiaries for the years ended September 30, 2019, 2020
and 2021, and from October 1, 2021 to the date of this prospectus.
There was no distribution of earnings by our PRC subsidiaries to
the Cayman Islands holding company during the years ended September
30, 2021, 2020 and 2019, and from October 1, 2021 to the date of
this prospectus. From October 1, 2021 to the date of this
prospectus, Universe Technology transferred cash in the amount of
RMB67,277,244 (approximately $10,460) to Jiangxi Universe In the
fiscal year ended September 30, 2021, Universe
Pharmaceuticals INC transferred the net proceeds from its initial
public offering, through Universe HK and Universe Technology, to
Jiangxi Universe in the amount of RMB43,976,156 (approximately
$6,807,507), to be used for general corporate purposes.
In the years ended September
30, 2020 and 2019, there was no cash transferred from the Cayman
Islands holding company to its PRC subsidiaries.
As of the date of this prospectus, none of our subsidiaries have
made any dividends or distributions to Universe Pharmaceuticals INC
and Universe Pharmaceuticals INC has not made any dividends or
distributions to U.S. investors. We intend to keep any future
earnings to finance the expansion of our business, and we do not
anticipate that any cash dividends will be paid in the foreseeable
future. Subject to the PFIC rules, the gross amount of
distributions we make to investors with respect to our ordinary
shares (including the amount of any taxes withheld therefrom) will
be taxable as a dividend, to the extent that the distribution is
paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as
determined under U.S. federal income tax principles.
Our board of directors has discretion on whether to distribute
dividends. In addition, our shareholders may by ordinary resolution
declare a dividend, but no dividend may exceed the amount
recommended by our board of directors. In either case, all
dividends are subject to certain restrictions under Cayman Islands
law, namely that the company may only pay dividends out of profits
or share premium, and provided always that in no circumstances may
a dividend be paid if this would result in the company being unable
to pay its debts as they fall due in the ordinary course of
business. Even if we decide to pay dividends, the form, frequency
and amount will depend upon our future operations and earnings,
capital requirements and surplus, general financial condition,
contractual restrictions and other factors that the board of
directors may deem relevant.
We are an exempted company with limited liability incorporated in
the Cayman Islands. We may rely on dividends from our subsidiaries
in China for our cash requirements, including any payment of
dividends to our shareholders. PRC regulations may restrict the
ability of our PRC subsidiaries to pay dividends to us, and as a
holding company, we will be dependent on receipt of funds from our
Hong Kong subsidiary, Universe HK.
Current PRC regulations permit our indirect PRC subsidiaries to pay
dividends to Universe HK only out of their accumulated profits, if
any, determined in accordance with Chinese accounting standards and
regulations. In addition, each of our subsidiaries in China is
required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each
year, if any, to fund a statutory reserve until such reserve
reaches 50% of its registered capital. Each of such entity in China
is also required to further set aside a portion of its after-tax
profits to fund the employee welfare fund, although the amount to
be set aside, if any, is determined at the discretion of its board
of directors. Although the statutory reserves can be used, among
other ways, to increase the registered capital and eliminate future
losses in excess of retained earnings of the respective companies,
the reserve funds are not distributable as cash dividends except in
the event of liquidation.
The PRC government also imposes controls on the conversion of RMB
into foreign currencies and the remittance of currencies out of the
PRC. Therefore, we may experience difficulties in complying with
the administrative requirements necessary to obtain and remit
foreign currency for the payment of dividends from our profits, if
any. Furthermore, if our subsidiaries and affiliates in the PRC
incur debt on their own in the future, the instruments governing
the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other
payments. If we or our subsidiaries are unable to receive all of
the revenue from our operations, we may be unable to pay dividends
on our ordinary shares.
Cash dividends, if any, on our ordinary shares will be paid in U.S.
dollars. Universe HK may be considered a non-resident enterprise
for tax purposes, so that any dividends our PRC subsidiaries pay to
Universe HK may be regarded as China-sourced income and as a result
may be subject to PRC withholding tax at a rate of up to 10%. See
“Item 10. Additional Information—E. Taxation—People’s Republic of
China Taxation.” in the 2021 Annual Report.
In order for us to pay dividends to our shareholders, we will rely
on payments made from Universe Technology’s subsidiary, Jiangxi
Universe, to Universe Technology and from Universe Technology to
Universe HK and then to our Company. According to the EIT Law, such
payments from subsidiaries to parent companies in China are subject
to the PRC enterprise income tax at a rate of 25%. In addition, if
Jiangxi Universe or its subsidiary or branches incur debt on their
own behalf in the future, the instruments governing the debt may
restrict its ability to pay dividends or make other distributions
to us.
Pursuant to the Double Tax Avoidance Arrangement, the 10%
withholding tax rate may be lowered to 5% if a Hong Kong resident
enterprise owns no less than 25% of a PRC project. The 5%
withholding tax rate, however, does not automatically apply and
certain requirements must be satisfied, including without
limitation that (a) the Hong Kong project must be the beneficial
owner of the relevant dividends; and (b) the Hong Kong project must
directly hold no less than 25% share ownership in the PRC project
during the 12 consecutive months preceding its receipt of the
dividends. In current practice, a Hong Kong project must obtain a
tax resident certificate from the Hong Kong tax authority to apply
for the 5% lower PRC withholding tax rate. As the Hong Kong tax
authority will issue such a tax resident certificate on a
case-by-case basis, we cannot assure you that we will be able to
obtain the tax resident certificate from the relevant Hong Kong tax
authority and enjoy the preferential withholding tax rate of 5%
under the Double Taxation Arrangement with respect to any dividends
paid by our PRC subsidiaries to its immediate holding company,
Universe HK. As of the date of this annual report, we have not
applied for the tax resident certificate from the relevant Hong
Kong tax authority. Universe HK intends to apply for the tax
resident certificate if and when Universe Technology plan to
declare and pay dividends to Universe HK. See “Item 3. Key
Information—D. Risk Factors— There are significant uncertainties
under the Enterprise Income Tax Law, or the EIT Law, relating to
the withholding tax liabilities of our PRC subsidiaries, and
dividends payable by our PRC subsidiaries to our offshore
subsidiaries may not qualify to enjoy certain treaty benefits” in
the 2021 Annual Report.
To the extent cash is located in the PRC or within a PRC domiciled
entity and may need to be used to fund operations outside of the
PRC, the funds may not be available due to limitations placed on us
and our subsidiaries by the PRC government. To the extent cash in
and assets of the business is in the PRC or a PRC entity, the funds
and assets may not be available to fund operations or for other use
outside of the PRC due to interventions in or the imposition of
restrictions and limitations on the ability of us or our
subsidiaries by the PRC government to transfer cash and assets. See
“Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in
China — To the extent cash and assets of in the business is in
the PRC or a PRC entity, the funds may not be available to fund
operations or for other use outside of the PRC due to interventions
in or the imposition of restrictions and limitations on the ability
of our Company or our subsidiaries by the PRC government to
transfer cash and assets.”
Summary of Risk Factors
Investing in our securities involves significant risks. You should
carefully consider all of the information in this prospectus before
investing in our securities. Below is a summary of the principal
risks we face. These risks are discussed more fully under “Item 3.
Key Information—D. Risk Factors” in the 2021 Annual Report and in
the “Risk Factors” section of this prospectus beginning on page 13
of this prospectus.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry (for a more
detailed discussion, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry” in the 2021
Annual Report)
Risks and uncertainties related to our business include, but are
not limited to, the following:
|
● |
price
increases in raw materials and sourced products could harm our
financial results. (see page 2 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
high
quality materials for our products may be difficult to obtain or
substantially increase our production costs. (see page 2 of
the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
operate in a highly competitive industry. Our failure to compete
effectively could adversely affect our market share, revenues and
growth prospects. (see page 2 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
high
quality materials for our products may be difficult to obtain or
substantially increase our production costs. (see page 2 of
the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
our
future success depends in part on our ability to increase our
production capacity, and we may not able to do so in a
cost-effective manner. We have engaged a third-party sub-contractor
to build manufacturing facilities and an office building for us,
and we may encounter challenges relating to the construction,
management and operation of such facilities (see page 3 of the
2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
are subject to evolving regulatory requirements, non-compliance
with which, or changes in which, may adversely affect our business
and prospects (see page 4 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
if we
fail to maintain or renew requisite licenses, permits,
registrations and filings applicable to our business operations, or
fail to obtain additional licenses, permits, registrations or
filings that become necessary as a result of new enactment or
promulgation of government policies, laws or regulations or the
expansion of our business, our business and results of operations
may be materially and adversely affected (see page 4 of the
2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
the
global spread of COVID-19 pandemic could materially and adversely
affect our business and results of operations (see page 5 of
the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
our
success depends on our ability to protect our intellectual property
(see page 5 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
because we rely on our manufacturing operations
to produce a significant amount of the products we sell,
disruptions in our manufacturing system or losses of manufacturing
certifications could adversely affect our sales and customer
relationships (see page 6 of the 2021 Annual Report);
and |
|
● |
we
face risks related to our sales of products obtained from
third-party suppliers (see page 6 of the 2021 Annual
Report). |
Risks Related to Doing Business in China (for a more detailed
discussion, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks
Related to Doing Business in China” in the 2021 Annual Report and
“Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China” of this
prospectus)
We face risks and uncertainties relating to doing business in the
PRC in general, including, but not limited to, the following:
|
● |
the
PRC government has significant authority to intervene or influence
the China operations of an offshore holding company, such as ours,
at any time. The PRC government may exert more control over
offerings conducted overseas and/or foreign investment in
China-based issuers. If the PRC government exerts more oversight
and control over offerings that are conducted overseas and/or
foreign investment in China-based issuers and we were to be subject
to such oversight and control, it may result in a material adverse
change to our business operations, significantly limit or
completely hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer
securities to investors, and cause the ordinary shares to
significantly decline in value or become worthless (see page 8
of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
uncertainties arising from the legal system in
China, including uncertainties regarding the interpretation and
enforcement of PRC laws and the possibility that regulations and
rules can change quickly with little advance notice, could hinder
our ability to offer or continue to offer the ordinary shares,
result in a material adverse change to our business operations, and
damage our reputation, which would materially and adversely affect
our financial condition and results of operations and cause the
ordinary shares to significantly decline in value or become
worthless (see page 8 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
our
ordinary shares may be delisted or prohibited from being traded
over-the-counter under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable
Act, if the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the
PCAOB, is unable to inspect our auditors. The delisting or the
cessation of trading of our ordinary shares, or the threat of their
being delisted or prohibited from being traded, may materially and
adversely affect the value of your investment. Additionally, the
inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections would deprive our
investors with the benefits of such inspections. Our auditor has
not been inspected by the PCAOB, but according to our auditor, it
will be inspected by the PCAOB on a regular basis (see page 8
of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
failure to comply with cybersecurity, data
privacy, data protection, or any other laws and regulations related
to data may materially and adversely affect our business, financial
condition, and results of operations (see page 9 of the 2021
Annual Report); |
|
● |
the
approval and/or other requirements of the China Securities
Regulatory Commission, or the CSRC, or other PRC governmental
authorities may be required in connection with an offering under
PRC rules, regulations or policies, and, if required, we cannot
predict whether or how soon we will be able to obtain such approval
(see page 11 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
PRC
regulation of loans to, and direct investments in, PRC entities by
offshore holding companies may delay or prevent us from using
proceeds from our offerings and/or other financing activities to
make loans or additional capital contributions to our PRC operating
subsidiaries (see page 12 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
we
must remit proceeds of any future offerings to China before they
may be used to benefit our business in China, and this process may
take several months to complete (see page 12 of the 2021
Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
may rely on dividends paid by our subsidiaries for our cash needs,
and any limitation on the ability of our subsidiaries to make
payments to us could have a material adverse effect on our ability
to conduct business (see page 13 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
adverse changes in political, economic and social
conditions, as well as government policies in China could have a
material adverse effect on our business results of operations,
financial conditions and prospects (see page 13 of the 2021
Annual Report); |
|
● |
changes to the PRC legal system could have an
adverse effect on us (see page 13 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
labor
Contract Law and other labor-related laws in the PRC may adversely
affect our business and our results of operations. (see
page 14 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
there
are significant uncertainties under the Enterprise Income Tax Law,
or the EIT Law, relating to the withholding tax liabilities of our
PRC subsidiaries, and dividends payable by our PRC subsidiaries to
our offshore subsidiaries may not qualify to enjoy certain treaty
benefits (see page 14 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
failure to qualify for or obtain any preferential
tax treatments that are available in China could adversely affect
our results of operations and financial condition (see page 15
of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
under
the EIT Law, we may be classified as a “Resident Enterprise” of
China. Such classification will likely result in unfavorable tax
consequences to us and our non-PRC shareholders (see page 15
of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
may be exposed to liabilities under the Foreign Corrupt Practices
Act and Chinese anti-corruption law (see page 15 of the 2021
Annual Report); |
|
● |
the
enforcement of stricter advertisement laws and regulations in the
PRC may adversely affect our business and our profitability (see
page 16 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
were not in compliance with the PRC’s regulations relating to
employee’s social insurance and housing funds prior to April 2020,
and as a result, we may be subject to penalties for such
non-compliance (see page 16 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
U.S.
regulatory bodies may be limited in their ability to conduct
investigations or inspections of our operations in China (see
page 17 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
you
may experience difficulty in effecting service of process,
enforcing foreign judgments or bringing actions against our
directors and officers (see page 17 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
because our business is conducted in the RMB and
the price of our ordinary shares is quoted in United States
dollars, changes in currency conversion rates may affect the value
of your investments (see page 17 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
government control in currency conversion may
adversely affect our financial condition, our ability to remit
dividends, and the value of your investment (see page 18 of
the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
our
business may be materially and adversely affected if any of our PRC
subsidiaries declare bankruptcy or become subject a dissolution or
liquidation proceeding (see page 18 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
our
current corporate structure and business operations may be affected
by the newly enacted PRC Foreign Investment Law (see page 19
of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
failure to comply with PRC regulations relating
to the establishment of offshore special purpose companies by PRC
residents may subject our PRC resident shareholders to personal
liability, may limit our ability to acquire PRC companies or to
inject capital into our PRC subsidiaries, may limit the ability of
our PRC subsidiaries to distribute profits to us or may otherwise
materially and adversely affect us (see page 19 of the 2021
Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
may be unable to complete a business combination transaction
efficiently or on favorable terms due to complicated merger and
acquisition regulations and certain other PRC regulations (see
page 20 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
face uncertainties with respect to indirect transfers of equity
interests in PRC resident enterprises by their non-PRC holding
companies (see page 20 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
the
Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings released by the CSRC for
public consultation, while not yet in effect, may cause the Chinese
government to exert more oversight and control over overseas public
offerings conducted by China-based issuers, which could
significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer or
continue to offer our securities to investors and could cause the
value of our securities to significantly decline or become
worthless. (see “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in
China—The Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings were released by
the CSRC for public consultation. While such rules have not yet
come into effect, the Chinese government may exert more oversight
and control over overseas public offerings conducted by China-based
issuers, which could significantly limit or completely hinder our
ability to offer or continue to offer our securities to investors
and could cause the value of our securities to significantly
decline or become worthless” on page 13 of this
prospectus ); |
|
● |
recent greater oversight by the Cyberspace
Administration of China over data security, particularly for
companies seeking to list on a foreign exchange, could adversely
impact our business and our offering (see “Risk Factors—Risks
Related to Doing Business in China—Recent greater oversight by the
Cyberspace Administration of China over data security, particularly
for companies seeking to list on a foreign exchange, could
adversely impact our business and our offering” on page 14 of this
prospectus ); |
|
● |
to
the extent cash and assets of in the business is in the PRC or a
PRC entity, the funds may not be available to fund operations or
for other use outside of the PRC due to interventions in or the
imposition of restrictions and limitations on the ability of our
Company or our subsidiaries by the PRC government to transfer cash
and assets (see “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in
China—To the extent cash and assets of in the business is in the
PRC or a PRC entity, the funds may not be available to fund
operations or for other use outside of the PRC due to interventions
in or the imposition of restrictions and limitations on the ability
of our Company or our subsidiaries by the PRC government to
transfer cash and assets” on page 14 of this
prospectus ). |
Risks Relating to Our Ordinary Shares and the Trading Market
(for a more detailed discussion, see “Item 3. Key Information—D.
Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Ordinary Shares” in the 2021
Annual Report)
In addition to the risks described above, we are subject to general
risks and uncertainties relating to our ordinary shares and the
trading market, including, but not limited to, the following:
|
● |
Our
share price has recently declined substantially, and our ordinary
shares could be delisted from the Nasdaq or trading could be
suspended; |
|
|
|
|
● |
we
may issue additional ordinary shares or other equity securities
without your approval, which would dilute your ownership interests
and may depress the market price of our ordinary shares (see
page 22 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
we
currently do not expect to pay dividends on our ordinary shares in
the foreseeable future (see page 22 of the 2021 Annual
Report); |
|
● |
we
are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the Nasdaq Stock
Market Rules and, as a result, may rely on exemptions from certain
corporate governance requirements that provide protection to
shareholders of other companies (see page 23 of the 2021
Annual Report); |
|
● |
a
sale or perceived sale of a substantial number of our ordinary
shares may cause the price of our ordinary shares to decline (see
page 23 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
for
as long as we are an emerging growth company, we will not be
required to comply with certain reporting requirements, including
those relating to accounting standards and disclosure about our
executive compensation, that apply to other public companies (see
page 24 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
our
ability to produce accurate financial statements have been
materially adversely affected by our failure to establish proper
internal financial reporting controls. If we fail to establish and
maintain proper internal financial reporting controls in a
reasonably timely manner, our ability to produce accurate financial
statements or comply with applicable regulations may continue to be
impaired (see page 25 of the 2021 Annual Report); |
|
● |
as a
foreign private issuer, we are not subject to certain U.S.
securities law disclosure requirements that apply to a domestic
U.S. issuer, which may limit the information publicly available to
our shareholders (see page 25 of the 2021 Annual Report);
and |
|
● |
as a
foreign private issuer, we are permitted to adopt certain home
country practices in relation to corporate governance matters that
differ significantly from the Nasdaq listing standards. These
practices may afford less protection to shareholders than they
would enjoy if we complied fully with corporate governance listing
standards (see page 26 of the 2021 Annual Report). |
Corporate Information
Our principal executive offices are located at 265 Jingjiu Avenue,
Jinggangshan Economic and Technological Development Zone, Ji’an,
Jiangxi Province, People’s Republic of China, and our phone number
is +86-0796-8403309. Our registered office in the Cayman Islands is
located at Vistra (Cayman) Limited, P.O. Box 31119 Grand Pavilion,
Hibiscus Way, 802 West Bay Road, Grand Cayman, KYI – 1205 Cayman
Islands, and the phone number of our registered office is
+1-(345)769-9372. We maintain a corporate website at
http://www.universe-pharmacy.com. The information contained in, or
accessible from, our website or any other website does not
constitute a part of this annual report. Our agent for service of
process in the United States is Cogency Global Inc., located at 122
East 42nd Street, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10168.
RISK FACTORS
Investing in our securities involves risks. Before making an
investment decision, you should carefully consider the risks
described under “Risk Factors” in the applicable prospectus
supplement and under the heading “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors” in the 2021 Annual Report, which is incorporated in this
prospectus by reference, together with any other information
appearing or incorporated by reference in this prospectus and in
any accompanying prospectus supplement, in light of your particular
investment objectives and financial circumstances. In addition to
those risk factors, there may be additional risks and uncertainties
that our management is not aware of or deems immaterial. Our
business, financial condition, or results of operations could be
materially and adversely affected by any of these risks. The
trading price of our securities could decline due to any of these
risks, and you may lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Related to Doing Business in China
The Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings were released by
the CSRC for public consultation. While such rules have not yet
come into effect, the Chinese government may exert more oversight
and control over overseas public offerings conducted by China-based
issuers, which could significantly limit or completely hinder our
ability to offer or continue to offer our securities to investors
and could cause the value of our securities to significantly
decline or become worthless.
On December 24, 2021, the CSRC and relevant departments of the
State Council issued the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings,
which aim to regulate overseas securities offerings and listings by
China-based companies, for public consultation. The Draft Rules
Regarding Overseas Listing aim to lay out the filing regulation
arrangement for both direct and indirect overseas listing and
clarify the determination criteria for indirect overseas listing in
overseas markers. Where an enterprise whose principal business
activities are conducted in mainland China seeks to issue and list
its shares in the name of an overseas enterprise based on equity,
assets, income, or other similar rights and interests of the
relevant domestic enterprise in mainland China, such activities are
deemed an indirect overseas issuance and listing. According to the
Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings, among other things, after
making initial applications with overseas stock markets for initial
public offerings or listings, or after the completion of issuance
of overseas listed securities by the overseas listed issuer, all
China-based companies shall file the required filing materials with
the CSRC within three working days. In addition, overseas offerings
and listings may be prohibited for such China-based companies when
any of the following applies: (i) if the intended securities
offerings and listings are specifically prohibited by the PRC laws
and regulations; (ii) if the intended securities offerings and
listings may constitute a threat to, or endanger national security
as reviewed and determined by competent authorities under the State
Council in accordance with laws; (iii) if there are material
ownership disputes over applicants’ equity interests, major assets,
core technologies, or the others; (iv) if, in the past three years,
applicants’ domestic enterprises, controlling shareholders, or de
facto controllers have committed corruption, bribery, embezzlement,
misappropriation of property, or other criminal offenses disruptive
to the order of the socialist market economy, or are currently
under judicial investigation for suspicion of criminal offenses, or
are under investigation for suspicion of major violations; (v) if,
in the past three years, any directors, supervisors, or senior
executives of applicants have been subject to administrative
punishments for severe violations, or are currently under judicial
investigation for suspicion of criminal offenses, or are under
investigation for suspicion of major violations; or (vi) other
circumstances as prescribed by the State Council. The Draft
Administrative Provisions further stipulate that a fine between
RMB1 million (approximately $157,255) and RMB10 million
(approximately $1,572,550) may be imposed if an applicant fails to
fulfill the filing requirements with the CSRC or conducts an
overseas offering or listing in violation of the Draft Rules
Regarding Overseas Listings, and in cases of severe violations, a
parallel order to suspend relevant businesses or halt operations
for rectification may be issued, and relevant business permits or
operational license revoked.
As of the date of this prospectus, the Draft Rules Regarding
Overseas Listings have been released for public comment only and
have not been formally promulgated, and neither we, our
subsidiaries, nor any of the PRC operating entities have been
required to complete the filing procedures. However, uncertainties
remain as to its enactment or future interpretations and
implementations. Our PRC counsel, AllBright Law Offices, has
advised us that, even if the final rules are promulgated as
proposed in the current Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings,
none of the situations that would clearly prohibit overseas
offering and listings would apply to us. In addition, we would only
need to submit the filing materials and no CSRC approval would be
required under such rules. Notwithstanding the above, our PRC
counsel has further advised us that uncertainties still exist as to
whether we, our subsidiaries, or the PRC operating entities are
required to obtain permissions from the Chinese government that is
required to approve of our operations and/or offering. In the event
that we, our subsidiaries, or the PRC operating entities are
subject to the compliance requirements, we cannot assure you that
any of these entities will be able to receive clearance of such
compliance requirements in a timely manner, or at all. Any failure
of our Company, our subsidiaries, or the PRC operating entities to
fully comply with new regulatory requirements may subject us to
regulatory actions, such as fines, relevant businesses or
operations suspension for rectification, revocation of relevant
business permits or operational license, or other sanctions, which
may significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer
or continue to offer our securities cause significant disruption to
our business operations, severely damage our reputation, materially
and adversely affect our financial condition and results of
operations and cause our securities to significantly decline in
value or become worthless.
Recent greater oversight by the Cyberspace Administration of
China over data security, particularly for companies seeking to
list on a foreign exchange, could adversely impact our business and
our offering.
On December 28, 2021, the CAC and other relevant PRC governmental
authorities jointly promulgated the Cybersecurity Review Measures,
which took effect on February 15, 2022. The Cybersecurity Review
Measures provide that, in addition to CIIOs that intend to purchase
Internet products and services, net platform operators engaging in
data processing activities that affect or may affect national
security must be subject to cybersecurity review by the
Cybersecurity Review Office of the PRC. According to the
Cybersecurity Review Measures, a cybersecurity review assesses
potential national security risks that may be brought about by any
procurement, data processing, or overseas listing. The
Cybersecurity Review Measures require that an online platform
operator which possesses the personal information of at least one
million users must apply for a cybersecurity review by the CAC if
it intends to be listed in foreign countries.
On November 14, 2021, the CAC published the Security Administration
Draft, which provides that data processing operators engaging in
data processing activities that affect or may affect national
security must be subject to network data security review by the
relevant Cyberspace Administration of the PRC. According to the
Security Administration Draft, data processing operators who
possess personal data of at least one million users or collect data
that affects or may affect national security must be subject to
network data security review by the relevant Cyberspace
Administration of the PRC. The deadline for public comments on the
Security Administration Draft was December 13, 2021.
As of the date of this prospectus, we have not received any notice
from any authorities identifying our PRC subsidiaries or the PRC
operating entities as CIIOs or requiring us to go through
cybersecurity review or network data security review by the CAC. As
confirmed by our PRC counsel, AllBright Law Offices, neither the
operations of our PRC subsidiaries, nor of the PRC operating
entities, nor this offering are expected to be affected, and that
we will not be subject to cybersecurity review by the CAC under the
Cybersecurity Review Measures, nor will any such entity be subject
to the Security Administration Draft, if it is enacted as proposed,
given that our PRC subsidiaries and the PRC operating entities
possess personal data of fewer than one million individual clients
and do not collect data that affects or may affect national
security in their business operations as of the date of this
prospectus and do not anticipate that they will be collecting over
one million users’ personal information or data that affects or may
affect national security in the near future. In general, we believe
we are compliant with the regulations or policies that have been
issued by the CAC to date. There remains uncertainty, however, as
to how the Cybersecurity Review Measures and the Security
Administration Draft will be interpreted or implemented and whether
the PRC regulatory agencies, including the CAC, may adopt new laws,
regulations, rules, or detailed implementation and interpretation
related to the Cybersecurity Review Measures and the Security
Administration Draft. If any such new laws, regulations, rules, or
implementation and interpretation come into effect, we will take
all reasonable measures and actions to comply and to minimize the
adverse effect of such laws on us. We cannot assure you that PRC
regulatory agencies, including the CAC, would take the same view as
we do. In the event that we are subject to any mandatory
cybersecurity review and other specific actions required by the
CAC, we face uncertainty as to whether any clearance or other
required actions can be timely completed, or at all. If we
inadvertently conclude that such approval is not required, fail to
obtain and maintain such approvals, licenses, or permits required
for our business or respond to changes in the regulatory
environment, we could be subject to liabilities, penalties and
operational disruption, which may materially and adversely affect
our business, operating results, financial condition, and the value
of our securities, significantly limit or completely hinder our
ability to offer or continue to offer securities to investors, or
cause such securities to significantly decline in value or become
worthless.
To the extent cash in and assets of the business is in the
PRC or a PRC entity, the funds and assets may not be available to
fund operations or for other use outside of the PRC due to
interventions in or the imposition of restrictions and limitations
on the ability of our Company or our subsidiaries by the PRC
government to transfer cash and assets.
Relevant PRC laws and regulations permit the companies in mainland
China to pay dividends only out of their retained earnings, if any,
as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and
regulations. Additionally, each of the companies in mainland China
are required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits
each year, if any, to fund a statutory reserve until such reserve
reaches 50% of its registered capital. The companies in mainland
China are also required to further set aside a portion of their
after-tax profits to fund the employee welfare fund, although the
amount to be set aside, if any, is determined at their discretion.
These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends.
Furthermore, if we determine to pay dividends on any of our
ordinary shares in the future, as a holding company, we will rely
on payments from subsidiaries of Jiangxi Universe to Jiangxi
Universe, and from Jiangxi Universe to Universe Technology, and the
distribution of such payments to Universe HK, and then to our
Company. If our PRC subsidiaries and the PRC operating entities
incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments
governing the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or
make other payments to us.
Our cash dividends, if any, will be paid in U.S. dollars. If we are
considered a tax resident enterprise of mainland China for tax
purposes, any dividends we pay to our overseas shareholders may be
regarded as China-sourced income and as a result may be subject to
PRC withholding tax. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk
Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China—under the EIT Law,
we may be classified as a ‘Resident Enterprise’ of China. Such
classification will likely result in unfavorable tax consequences
to us and our non-PRC shareholders.” of the 2021 Annual Report.
The PRC government also imposes controls on the convertibility of
Renminbi into foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the
remittance of currency out of mainland China. The majority of our
and the PRC operating entities’ income is received in Renminbi and
shortages in foreign currencies may restrict our ability to pay
dividends or other payments, or otherwise satisfy our foreign
currency denominated obligations, if any. Under existing PRC
foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items,
including profit distributions, interest payments and expenditures
from trade-related transactions, can be made in foreign currencies
without prior approval from the State Administration of Foreign
Exchange as long as certain procedural requirements are met.
Approval from appropriate government authorities is required if
Renminbi is converted into foreign currency and remitted out of
mainland China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of
loans denominated in foreign currencies. The PRC government may, at
its discretion, impose restrictions on access to foreign currencies
for current account transactions and if this occurs in the future,
we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our
shareholders.
Any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiaries and the PRC
operating entities to distribute dividends or other payments to
their respective shareholders could materially and adversely limit
our ability to conduct operations, make investments, engage in
acquisitions, or undertake other activities requiring working
capital. However, our operations and business, including investment
and/or acquisitions by our PRC subsidiaries and the PRC operating
entities within mainland China, will not be affected as long as the
capital is not transferred in or out of mainland China.
Risks Relating to Our Ordinary Shares and the Trading
Market
Our share price has recently declined substantially, and our
ordinary shares could be delisted from the Nasdaq or trading could
be suspended.
The listing of our ordinary shares on the Nasdaq Global Market is
contingent on our compliance with the Nasdaq Global Market’s
conditions for continued listing. On July 15, 2022, we received
written notification (the “Notification Letter”) from the Nasdaq
Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq”) that we were not in compliance with the
minimum bid price requirement of US$1.00 per share under the Nasdaq
Listing Rules. In accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rules, we must
regain compliance within 180 calendar days, or until January 11,
2023. To regain compliance, our ordinary shares must have a closing
bid price of at least US$1.00 for a minimum of 10 consecutive
business days. In the event we do not regain compliance by January
11 , 2023, we may be eligible for an additional 180 calendar days
to regain compliance or face delisting. On September 23, 2022, we
held our 2022 annual general meeting of shareholders, during which
our shareholders approved the proposal to authorize our board of
directors to effect a share consolidation at a ratio of no less
than 2-for-1, and no greater than 10-for-1 (the “Share
Consolidation”). As of the date of this prospectus, our board of
directors has not adopted resolutions to effect the Share
Consolidation.
Even if the Share Consolidation is effected, we cannot assure you
that we will be able to regain compliance with the minimum bid
price requirement under the Nasdaq Listing Rules. Even if we are
able to regain compliance, we cannot assure you that we will not
receive other deficiency notifications from Nasdaq in the future. A
decline in the closing price of our ordinary shares could result in
a breach of the requirements for listing on the Nasdaq Global
Market. If we do not maintain compliance, Nasdaq could commence
suspension or delisting procedures in respect of our ordinary
shares. The commencement of suspension or delisting procedures by
an exchange remains at the discretion of such exchange and would be
publicly announced by the exchange. If a suspension or delisting
were to occur, there would be significantly less liquidity in the
suspended or delisted securities. In addition, our ability to raise
additional necessary capital through equity or debt financing would
be greatly impaired. Furthermore, with respect to any suspended or
delisted ordinary shares, we would expect decreases in
institutional and other investor demand, analyst coverage, market
making activity and information available concerning trading prices
and volume, and fewer broker-dealers would be willing to execute
trades with respect to such ordinary shares. A suspension or
delisting would likely decrease the attractiveness of our ordinary
shares to investors and cause the trading volume of our ordinary
shares to decline, which could result in a further decline in the
market price of our ordinary shares.
OFFER STATISTICS AND
EXPECTED TIMETABLE
We may, from time to time, offer and sell any combination of the
securities described in this prospectus up to a total dollar amount
of $200,000,000 in one or more offerings. The securities offered
under this prospectus may be offered separately, together, or in
separate series, and in amounts, at prices, and on terms to be
determined at the time of sale. We will keep the registration
statement of which this prospectus is a part effective until such
time as all of the securities covered by this prospectus have been
disposed of pursuant to such registration statement.
CAPITALIZATION AND
INDEBTEDNESS
Our capitalization will be set forth in the applicable prospectus
supplement or in a report on Form 6-K subsequently furnished
to the SEC and specifically incorporated by reference into this
prospectus.
DILUTION
If required, we will set forth in a prospectus supplement the
following information regarding any material dilution of the equity
interests of investors purchasing securities in an offering under
this prospectus:
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● |
the net tangible book value per share of our
equity securities before and after the offering; |
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● |
the amount of the increase in such net tangible
book value per share attributable to the cash payments made by
purchasers in the offering; and |
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● |
the amount of the immediate dilution from the
public offering price which will be absorbed by such
purchasers. |
USE OF PROCEEDS
We intend to use the net proceeds from the sale of securities we
offer as indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement,
information incorporated by reference, or free writing
prospectus.
DESCRIPTION OF SHARE
CAPITAL
The following description of our share capital and provisions of
our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association are
summaries and do not purport to be complete. References are made to
our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association,
forms of which are filed as an exhibit to the registration
statement of which this prospectus is a part (and which is referred
to in this section as, respectively, the “memorandum” and the
“articles”).
Our authorized share capital is $312,500 divided into 90,000,000
ordinary shares, par value $0.003125 per share and 10,000,000 preferred
shares, par value $0.003125 per share.
Ordinary Shares
As of the date of this prospectus, an aggregate of 21,750,000
ordinary shares are issued and outstanding. All of our issued and
outstanding ordinary shares are fully paid and non-assessable.
Ordinary shares are issued in registered form. Ordinary shares have
the following characteristics:
Voting. Subject to any rights or restrictions as to voting
attached to any shares, unless any share carries special voting
rights, on a show of hands every shareholder who is present in
person and every person representing a shareholder by proxy shall
have one vote per ordinary share. On a poll, every shareholder who
is present in person and every person representing a shareholder by
proxy shall have one vote for each share of which he or the person
represented by proxy is the holder. In addition, all shareholders
holding shares of a particular class are entitled to vote at a
meeting of the holders of that class of shares. Votes may be given
either personally or by proxy.
Dividends. Subject to the provisions of the Companies Act
(Revised) of the Cayman Islands (the “Cayman Companies
Act”) and any rights attaching to any class or classes of
shares under and in accordance with the articles:
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(a) |
the
directors may declare dividends or distributions out of our funds
which are lawfully available for that purpose; and |
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(b) |
the
Company’s shareholders may, by ordinary resolution, declare
dividends but no such dividend shall exceed the amount recommended
by the directors. |
Subject to the requirements of the Cayman Companies Act regarding
the application of a company’s share premium account and with the
sanction of an ordinary resolution, dividends may also be declared
and paid out of any share premium account. The directors when
paying dividends to shareholders may make such payment either in
cash or in specie.
Unless provided by the rights attached to a share, no dividend
shall bear interest.
Cumulative Voting Rights
There is nothing under Cayman Islands law which specifically
prohibits or restrict the creation of cumulative voting rights for
the election of our directors. Our articles do not provide for
cumulative voting for elections of directors.
Variation of Rights of Shares
Whenever our capital is divided into different classes of shares,
the rights attaching to any class of share (unless otherwise
provided by the terms of issue of the shares of that class) may be
varied either with the consent in writing of the holders of not
less than two-thirds of the issued shares of that class, or with
the sanction of a resolution passed by a majority of not less than
two-thirds of the holders of shares of the class present in person
or by proxy at a separate general meeting of the holders of shares
of that class.
Unless the terms on which a class of shares was issued state
otherwise, the rights conferred on the shareholder holding shares
of any class shall not be deemed to be varied by the creation or
issue of further shares ranking pari passu with the existing shares
of that class.
Rights of Non-Resident or Foreign Shareholders
There are no limitations imposed by our memorandum and articles on
the rights of non-resident or foreign shareholders to hold or
exercise voting rights on our shares. In addition, there are no
provisions in our memorandum and articles governing the ownership
threshold above which shareholder ownership must be disclosed.
Redemption and Purchase of Shares
Subject to the Cayman Companies Act and any rights for the time
being conferred on the shareholders holding a particular class of
shares, we may by action of our directors:
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(a) |
issue
shares that are to be redeemed or liable to be redeemed, at our
option or the shareholder holding those redeemable shares, on the
terms and in the manner our directors determine before the issue of
those shares; |
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(b) |
with
the consent by special resolution of the shareholders holding
shares of a particular class, vary the rights attaching to that
class of shares so as to provide that those shares are to be
redeemed or are liable to be redeemed at our option on the terms
and in the manner which the directors determine at the time of such
variation; and |
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(c) |
purchase all or any of our own shares of any
class including any redeemable shares on the terms and in the
manner which the directors determine at the time of such
purchase. |
We may make a payment in respect of the redemption or purchase of
its own shares in any manner authorized by the Companies Act,
including out of any combination of capital, our profits and the
proceeds of a fresh issue of shares.
When making a payment in respect of the redemption or purchase of
shares, the directors may make the payment in cash or in specie (or
partly in one and partly in the other) if so authorized by the
terms of the allotment of those shares or by the terms applying to
those shares, or otherwise by agreement with the shareholder
holding those shares.
Alteration of Share Capital
Subject to the Cayman Companies Act, our shareholders may, by
ordinary resolution:
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(a) |
increase our share capital by new shares of the
amount fixed by that ordinary resolution and with the attached
rights, priorities and privileges set out in that ordinary
resolution; |
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(b) |
consolidate and divide all or any of our share
capital into shares of larger amount than our existing
shares; |
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(c) |
convert all or any of our paid up shares into
stock, and reconvert that stock into paid up shares of any
denomination; |
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(d) |
sub-divide
our shares or any of them into shares of an amount smaller than
that fixed, so, however, that in the sub-division, the proportion
between the amount paid and the amount, if any, unpaid on each
reduced share shall be the same as it was in case of the share from
which the reduced share is derived; and |
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(e) |
cancel
shares which, at the date of the passing of that ordinary
resolution, have not been taken or agreed to be taken by any person
and diminish the amount of our share capital by the amount of the
shares so cancelled or, in the case of shares without nominal par
value, diminish the number of shares into which our capital is
divided. |
Subject
to the Cayman Companies Act and to any rights for the time being
conferred on the shareholders holding a particular class of shares,
our shareholders may, by special resolution, reduce its share
capital in any way.
Calls
on Shares and Forfeiture of Shares
Subject
to the terms of allotment, the directors may make calls on the
shareholders in respect of any monies unpaid on their shares
including any premium and each shareholder shall (subject to
receiving at least 14 clear days’ notice specifying when and where
payment is to be made), pay to us the amount called on his shares.
Shareholders registered as the joint holders of a share shall be
jointly and severally liable to pay all calls in respect of the
share. If a call remains unpaid after it has become due and payable
the person from whom it is due and payable shall pay interest on
the amount unpaid from the day it became due and payable until it
is paid at the rate fixed by the terms of allotment of the share or
in the notice of the call or if no rate is fixed, at the rate of
ten percent per annum. The directors may, at their discretion,
waive payment of the interest wholly or in part.
We
have a first and paramount lien on all shares (whether fully paid
up or not) registered in the name of a shareholder (whether solely
or jointly with others). The lien is for all monies payable to us
by the shareholder or the shareholder’s estate:
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(a) |
either
alone or jointly with any other person, whether or not that other
person is a shareholder; and |
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(b) |
whether
or not those monies are presently payable. |
At
any time the directors may declare any share to be wholly or partly
exempt from the lien on shares provisions of the
articles.
We
may sell, in such manner as the directors may determine, any share
on which the sum in respect of which the lien exists is presently
payable, if due notice that such sum is payable has been given (as
prescribed by the articles) and, within 14 days of the date on
which the notice is deemed to be given under the articles, such
notice has not been complied with.
Listing
On
March 23, 2021, our ordinary shares commenced trading on the
Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol “UPC.”
Transfer
Agent and Registrar
The
transfer agent and registrar for our ordinary shares is Transhare
Corporation.
Transfer
of Shares
Provided
that a transfer of ordinary shares complies with applicable rules
of Nasdaq, a shareholder may transfer ordinary shares to another
person by completing an instrument of transfer in a common form or
in a form prescribed by Nasdaq or in any other form approved by the
directors, executed:
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(a) |
where
the ordinary shares are fully paid, by or on behalf of that
shareholder; and |
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(b) |
where
the ordinary shares are partly paid, by or on behalf of that
shareholder and the transferee. |
The
transferor shall be deemed to remain the holder of an ordinary
share until the name of the transferee is entered into the register
of members of the Company.
Our
board of directors may, in its absolute discretion, decline to
register any transfer of any ordinary share that has not been fully
paid up or is subject to a company lien. Our board of directors may
also decline to register any transfer of such ordinary share
unless:
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(a) |
the
instrument of transfer is lodged with the Company, accompanied by
the certificate for the ordinary shares to which it relates and
such other evidence as our board of directors may reasonably
require to show the right of the transferor to make the
transfer; |
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(b) |
the
instrument of transfer is in respect of only one class of ordinary
shares; |
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(c) |
the
instrument of transfer is properly stamped, if
required; |
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(d) |
the
ordinary shares transferred is fully paid and free of any lien in
favor of us; |
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(e) |
any
fee related to the transfer has been paid to us; and |
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(f) |
the
transfer is not to more than four joint holders. |
If
our directors refuse to register a transfer, they are required,
within three months after the date on which the instrument of
transfer was lodged, to send to each of the transferor and the
transferee notice of such refusal.
This,
however, is unlikely to affect market transactions of the ordinary
shares purchased by investors in the public offering. The legal
title to such ordinary shares and the registration details of those
ordinary shares in the Company’s register of members will remain
with Depository Trust Company (“DTC”). All market transactions with
respect to those ordinary shares will then be carried out without
the need for any kind of registration by the directors, as the
market transactions will all be conducted through the DTC
systems.
The
registration of transfers may, on 14 calendar days’ notice being
given by advertisement in such one or more newspapers or by
electronic means, be suspended and our register of members closed
at such times and for such periods as our board of directors may
from time to time determine. The registration of transfers,
however, may not be suspended, and the register may not be closed,
for more than 30 days in any year.
Meetings
of Shareholders
As a
Cayman Islands exempted company, we are not obligated by the Cayman
Companies Act to call shareholders’ annual general meetings.
Accordingly, we may, but shall not be obliged to, in each year hold
a general meeting as an annual general meeting. Any annual general
meeting held shall be held at such time and place as may be
determined by our board of directors. All general meetings other
than annual general meetings shall be called extraordinary general
meetings.
The
directors may convene general meetings whenever they think fit.
General meetings shall also be convened on the written requisition
of one or more of the shareholders entitled to attend and vote at
our general meetings who (together) hold not less than ten percent
of the rights to vote at such general meeting in accordance with
the notice provisions in the articles, specifying the purpose of
the meeting and signed by each of the shareholders making the
requisition. If the directors do not convene such meeting for a
date not later than 21 clear days’ after the date of receipt of the
written requisition, those shareholders who requested the meeting
may convene the general meeting themselves within three months
after the end of such period of 21 clear days in which case
reasonable expenses incurred by them as a result of the directors
failing to convene a meeting shall be reimbursed by us.
At
least 14 days’ notice of an extraordinary general meeting and 21
days’ notice of an annual general meeting shall be given to
shareholders entitled to attend and vote at such meeting. The
notice shall specify the place, the day and the hour of the meeting
and the general nature of that business. In addition, if a
resolution is proposed as a special resolution, the text of that
resolution shall be given to all shareholders. Notice of every
general meeting shall also be given to the directors and our
auditors.
Subject
to the Cayman Companies Act and with the consent of the
shareholders who, individually or collectively, hold at least 90
percent of the voting rights of all those who have a right to vote
at a general meeting, a general meeting may be convened on shorter
notice.
A
quorum shall consist of the presence (whether in person or
represented by proxy) of one or more shareholders holding shares
that represent not less than one-third of the outstanding shares
carrying the right to vote at such general meeting.
If,
within 15 minutes from the time appointed for the general meeting,
or at any time during the meeting, a quorum is not present, the
meeting, if convened upon the requisition of shareholders, shall be
cancelled. In any other case it shall stand adjourned to the same
time and place seven days or to such other time or place as is
determined by the directors.
The
chairman may, with the consent of a meeting at which a quorum is
present, adjourn the meeting. When a meeting is adjourned for seven
days or more, notice of the adjourned meeting shall be given in
accordance with the articles.
At
any general meeting a resolution put to the vote of the meeting
shall be decided on a show of hands, unless a poll is (before, or
on, the declaration of the result of the show of hands) demanded by
the chairman of the meeting or by at least two shareholders having
the right to vote on the resolutions or one or more shareholders
present who together hold not less than ten percent of the voting
rights of all those who are entitled to vote on the resolution.
Unless a poll is so demanded, a declaration by the chairman as to
the result of a resolution and an entry to that effect in the
minutes of the meeting, shall be conclusive evidence of the outcome
of a show of hands, without proof of the number or proportion of
the votes recorded in favor of, or against, that
resolution.
If a
poll is duly demanded it shall be taken in such manner as the
chairman directs and the result of the poll shall be deemed to be
the resolution of the meeting at which the poll was
demanded.
In
the case of an equality of votes, whether on a show of hands or on
a poll, the chairman of the meeting at which the show of hands
takes place or at which the poll is demanded, shall not be entitled
to a second or casting vote.
Powers and Duties of Directors
Subject
to the provisions of the Cayman Companies Act and our memorandum
and articles, our business shall be managed by the directors, who
may exercise all our powers. No prior act of the directors shall be
invalidated by any subsequent alteration of our memorandum or
articles of association. To the extent allowed by the Companies
Act, however, shareholders may by special resolution validate any
prior or future act of the directors which would otherwise be in
breach of their duties.
The
directors may delegate any of their powers to any committee
consisting of one or more persons who need not be shareholders and
may include non-directors so long as the majority of those persons
are directors; any committee so formed shall in the exercise of the
powers so delegated conform to any regulations that may be imposed
on it by the directors. Our board of directors have established an
audit committee, compensation committee, and nomination and
corporate governance committee.
The
board of directors may establish any local or divisional board of
directors or agency and delegate to it its powers and authorities
(with power to sub-delegate) for managing any of our affairs
whether in the Cayman Islands or elsewhere and may appoint any
persons to be members of a local or divisional board of directors,
or to be managers or agents, and may fix their
remuneration.
The
directors may from time to time and at any time by power of
attorney or in any other manner they determine appoint any person,
either generally or in respect of any specific matter, to be our
agent with or without authority for that person to delegate all or
any of that person’s powers.
The
directors may from time to time and at any time by power of
attorney or in any other manner they determine appoint any person,
whether nominated directly or indirectly by the directors, to be
our attorney or our authorized signatory and for such period and
subject to such conditions as they may think fit. The powers,
authorities and discretions, however, must not exceed those vested
in, or exercisable, by the directors under the articles.
The
board of directors may remove any person so appointed and may
revoke or vary the delegation.
The
directors may exercise all of our powers to borrow money and to
mortgage or charge its undertaking, property and assets both
present and future and uncalled capital or any part thereof, to
issue debentures and other securities whether outright or as
collateral security for any debt, liability or obligation of ours
or our parent undertaking (if any) or any subsidiary undertaking of
us or of any third party.
A
director shall not, as a director, vote in respect of any contract,
transaction, arrangement or proposal in which he has an interest
which (together with any interest of any person connected with him)
is a material interest (otherwise than by virtue of his interests,
direct or indirect, in shares or debentures or other securities of,
or otherwise in or through, us) and if he shall do so his vote
shall not be counted, nor in relation thereto shall he be counted
in the quorum present at the meeting, but (in the absence of some
other material interest than is mentioned below) none of these
prohibitions shall apply to:
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(a) |
the
giving of any security, guarantee or indemnity in respect
of: |
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(i) |
money
lent or obligations incurred by him or by any other person for our
benefit or any of our subsidiaries; or |
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(ii) |
a
debt or obligation of ours or any of our subsidiaries for which the
director himself has assumed responsibility in whole or in part and
whether alone or jointly with others under a guarantee or indemnity
or by the giving of security; |
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(b) |
where
we or any of our subsidiaries is offering securities in which offer
the director is or may be entitled to participate as a holder of
securities or in the underwriting or sub-underwriting of which the
director is to or may participate; |
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(c) |
any
contract, transaction, arrangement or proposal affecting any other
body corporate in which he is interested, directly or indirectly
and whether as an officer, shareholder, creditor or otherwise
howsoever, provided that he (together with persons connected with
him) does not to his knowledge hold an interest representing one
percent or more of any class of the equity share capital of such
body corporate (or of any third body corporate through which his
interest is derived) or of the voting rights available to
shareholders of the relevant body corporate; |
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(d) |
any
act or thing done or to be done in respect of any arrangement for
the benefit of the employees of us or any of our subsidiaries under
which he is not accorded as a director any privilege or advantage
not generally accorded to the employees to whom such arrangement
relates; or |
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(e) |
any
matter connected with the purchase or maintenance for any director
of insurance against any liability or (to the extent permitted by
the Companies Act) indemnities in favor of directors, the funding
of expenditure by one or more directors in defending proceedings
against him or them or the doing of anything to enable such
director or directors to avoid incurring such
expenditure. |
A
director may, as a director, vote (and be counted in the quorum) in
respect of any contract, transaction, arrangement or proposal in
which he has an interest which is not a material interest or as
described above.
Inspection
of Books and Records
Holders
of our ordinary shares will have no general right under the Cayman
Companies Act to inspect or obtain copies of our register of
members or our corporate records (other than the register of
mortgages or charges).
Liquidation
If we
are wound up, the shareholders may, subject to the articles and any
other sanction required by the Cayman Companies Act, pass a special
resolution allowing the liquidator to do either or both of the
following:
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(a) |
to
divide in specie among the shareholders the whole or any part of
our assets and, for that purpose, to value any assets and to
determine how the division shall be carried out as between the
shareholders or different classes of shareholders; and |
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(b) |
to
vest the whole or any part of the assets in trustees for the
benefit of shareholders and those liable to contribute to the
winding up. |
The
directors have the authority to present a petition for our winding
up to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands on our behalf without
the sanction of a resolution passed at a general
meeting.
Preferred
Shares
The
directors are empowered to designate and issue from time to time
one or more classes or series of preference shares and to fix and
determine the relative rights, preferences, designations,
qualifications, privileges, options, conversion rights, limitations
and other special or relative rights of each such class or series
so authorized. Such action could adversely affect the voting power
and other rights of the holders of our ordinary shares or could
have the effect of discouraging any attempt by a person or group to
obtain control of us.
As of
the date of this prospectus, no preferred shares are issued and
outstanding.
Differences
in Corporate Law
The
Cayman Companies Act is derived, to a large extent, from the older
Companies Acts of England and Wales but does not follow recent
United Kingdom statutory enactments, and accordingly there are
significant differences between the Cayman Companies Act and the
current Companies Act of the UK. In addition, the Cayman Companies
Act differs from laws applicable to United States corporations and
their shareholders. Set forth below is a summary of certain
significant differences between the provisions of the Cayman
Companies Act applicable to us and the comparable laws applicable
to companies incorporated in the State of Delaware in the United
States.
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Delaware |
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Cayman
Islands |
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Title
of Organizational Documents |
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Certificate
of Incorporation and Bylaws |
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Certificate
of Incorporation and Memorandum and Articles of
Association |
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Duties
of Directors |
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Under
Delaware law, the business and affairs of a corporation are managed
by or under the direction of its board of directors. In exercising
their powers, directors are charged with a fiduciary duty of care
to protect the interests of the corporation and a fiduciary duty of
loyalty to act in the best interests of its shareholders. The duty
of care requires that directors act in an informed and deliberative
manner and inform themselves, prior to making a business decision,
of all material information reasonably available to them. The duty
of care also requires that directors exercise care in overseeing
and investigating the conduct of the corporation’s employees. The
duty of loyalty may be summarized as the duty to act in good faith,
not out of self-interest, and in a manner which the director
reasonably believes to be in the best interests of the
shareholders. |
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As a
matter of Cayman Islands law, a director owes three types of duties
to the company: (i) statutory duties, (ii) fiduciary duties, and
(iii) common law duties. The Cayman Companies Act imposes a number
of statutory duties on a director. A Cayman Islands director’s
fiduciary duties are not codified, however the courts of the Cayman
Islands have held that a director owes the following fiduciary
duties (a) a duty to act in what the director bona fide considers
to be in the best interests of the company, (b) a duty to exercise
their powers for the purposes they were conferred, (c) a duty to
avoid fettering his or her discretion in the future and (d) a duty
to avoid conflicts of interest and of duty. The common law duties
owed by a director are those to act with skill, care and diligence
that may reasonably be expected of a person carrying out the same
functions as are carried out by that director in relation to the
company and, also, to act with the skill, care and diligence in
keeping with a standard of care commensurate with any particular
skill they have which enables them to meet a higher standard than a
director without those skills. In fulfilling their duty of care to
us, our directors must ensure compliance with our amended articles
of association, as amended and restated from time to time. We have
the right to seek damages if a duty owed by any of our directors is
breached. |
Limitations
on Personal Liability of Directors |
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Subject
to the limitations described below, a certificate of incorporation
may provide for the elimination or limitation of the personal
liability of a director to the corporation or its shareholders for
monetary damages for a breach of fiduciary duty as a director. Such
provision cannot limit liability for breach of loyalty, bad faith,
intentional misconduct, unlawful payment of dividends or unlawful
share purchase or redemption. In addition, the certificate of
incorporation cannot limit liability for any act or omission
occurring prior to the date when such provision becomes
effective. |
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Cayman
Islands law does not limit the extent to which a company’s articles
of association may provide for indemnification of officers and
directors, except to the extent any such provision may be held by
the Cayman Islands courts to be contrary to public policy, such as
to provide indemnification against civil fraud or the consequences
of committing a crime. |
Indemnification
of Directors, Officers, Agents, and Others |
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A
corporation has the power to indemnify any director, officer,
employee, or agent of corporation who was, is, or is threatened to
be made a party who acted in good faith and in a manner he believed
to be in the best interests of the corporation, and if with respect
to a criminal proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his
conduct would be unlawful, against amounts actually and reasonably
incurred. |
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Cayman
Islands law does not limit the extent to which a company’s
memorandum and articles of association may provide for
indemnification of directors and officers, except to the extent any
such provision may be held by the Cayman Islands courts to be
contrary to public policy, such as to provide indemnification
against the consequences of committing a crime, or against the
indemnified person’s own fraud or dishonesty.
Our
articles provide to the extent permitted by law, we shall indemnify
each existing or former secretary, director (including alternate
director), and any of our other officers (including an investment
adviser or an administrator or liquidator) and their personal
representatives against: (a) all actions, proceedings, costs,
charges, expenses, losses, damages or liabilities incurred or
sustained by the existing or former director (including alternate
director), secretary or officer in or about the conduct of our
business or affairs or in the execution or discharge of the
existing or former director (including alternate director),
secretary’s or officer’s duties, powers, authorities or
discretions; and (b) without limitation to paragraph (a) above, all
costs, expenses, losses or liabilities incurred by the existing or
former director (including alternate director), secretary or
officer in defending (whether successfully or otherwise) any civil,
criminal, administrative or investigative proceedings (whether
threatened, pending or completed) concerning us or our affairs in
any court or tribunal, whether in the Cayman Islands or
elsewhere.
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No
such existing or former director (including alternate director),
secretary or officer, however, shall be indemnified in respect of
any matter arising out of his own dishonesty.
To
the extent permitted by law, we may make a payment, or agree to
make a payment, whether by way of advance, loan or otherwise, for
any legal costs incurred by an existing or former director
(including alternate director), secretary or any of our officers in
respect of any matter identified in above on condition that the
director (including alternate director), secretary or officer must
repay the amount paid by us to the extent that it is ultimately
found not liable to indemnify the director (including alternate
director), the secretary or that officer for those legal
costs.
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Interested
Directors |
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Under
Delaware law, a transaction in which a director who has an interest
in such transaction would not be voidable if (i) the material facts
as to such interested director’s relationship or interests are
disclosed or are known to the board of directors and the board in
good faith authorizes the transaction by the affirmative vote of a
majority of the disinterested directors, even though the
disinterested directors are less than a quorum, (ii) such material
facts are disclosed or are known to the shareholders entitled to
vote on such transaction and the transaction is specifically
approved in good faith by vote of the shareholders, or (iii) the
transaction is fair as to the corporation as of the time it is
authorized, approved or ratified. Under Delaware law, a director
could be held liable for any transaction in which such director
derived an improper personal benefit. |
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Interested
director transactions are governed by the terms of a company’s
memorandum and articles of association. |
Voting
Requirements |
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The
certificate of incorporation may include a provision requiring
supermajority approval by the directors or shareholders for any
corporate action.
In
addition, under Delaware law, certain business combinations
involving interested shareholders require approval by a
supermajority of the non-interested shareholders.
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For
the protection of shareholders, certain matters must be approved by
special resolution of the shareholders as a matter of Cayman
Islands law, including alteration of the memorandum or articles of
association, appointment of inspectors to examine company affairs,
reduction of share capital (subject, in relevant circumstances, to
court approval), change of name, authorization of a plan of merger
or transfer by way of continuation to another jurisdiction or
consolidation or voluntary winding up of the company.
The
Cayman Companies Act requires that a special resolution be passed
by a majority of at least two-thirds or such higher percentage as
set forth in the memorandum and articles of association, of
shareholders being entitled to vote and do vote in person or by
proxy at a general meeting, or by unanimous written consent of
shareholders entitled to vote at a general meeting.
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Voting
for Directors |
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Under
Delaware law, unless otherwise specified in the certificate of
incorporation or bylaws of the corporation, directors shall be
elected by a plurality of the votes of the shares present in person
or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote on the
election of directors. |
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The
Cayman Companies Act defines “special resolutions” only. A
company’s memorandum and articles of association can therefore
tailor the definition of “ordinary resolutions” as a whole, or with
respect to specific provisions. |
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Cumulative
Voting |
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No
cumulative voting for the election of directors unless so provided
in the certificate of incorporation. |
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No
cumulative voting for the election of directors unless so provided
in the memorandum and articles of association. |
Directors’
Powers Regarding Bylaws |
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The
certificate of incorporation may grant the directors the power to
adopt, amend or repeal bylaws. |
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The
memorandum and articles of association may only be amended by a
special resolution of the shareholders. |
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Nomination
and Removal of Directors and Filling Vacancies on
Board |
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Shareholders
may generally nominate directors if they comply with advance notice
provisions and other procedural requirements in company bylaws.
Holders of a majority of the shares may remove a director with or
without cause, except in certain cases involving a classified board
or if the company uses cumulative voting. Unless otherwise provided
for in the certificate of incorporation, directorship vacancies are
filled by a majority of the directors elected or then in
office. |
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Nomination
and removal of directors and filling of board vacancies are
governed by the terms of the memorandum and articles of
association. |
Mergers
and Similar Arrangements |
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Under
Delaware law, with certain exceptions, a merger, consolidation,
exchange or sale of all or substantially all the assets of a
corporation must be approved by the board of directors and a
majority of the outstanding shares entitled to vote thereon. Under
Delaware law, a shareholder of a corporation participating in
certain major corporate transactions may, under certain
circumstances, be entitled to appraisal rights pursuant to which
such shareholder may receive cash in the amount of the fair value
of the shares held by such shareholder (as determined by a court)
in lieu of the consideration such shareholder would otherwise
receive in the transaction.
Delaware
law also provides that a parent corporation, by resolution of its
board of directors, may merge with any subsidiary, of which it owns
at least 90% of each class of capital stock without a vote by
shareholders of such subsidiary. Upon any such merger, dissenting
shareholders of the subsidiary would have appraisal
rights.
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The
Cayman Companies Act permits mergers and consolidations between
Cayman Islands companies and between Cayman Islands companies and
non-Cayman Islands companies. For these purposes, (a) “merger”
means the merging of two or more constituent companies and the
vesting of their undertaking, property and liabilities in one of
such companies as the surviving company, and (b) a “consolidation”
means the combination of two or more constituent companies into a
consolidated company and the vesting of the undertaking, property
and liabilities of such companies to the consolidated company. In
order to effect such a merger or consolidation, the directors of
each constituent company must approve a written plan of merger or
consolidation, which must then be authorized by (a) a special
resolution of the shareholders of each constituent company, and (b)
such other authorization, if any, as may be specified in such
constituent company’s articles of association. The plan must be
filed with the Registrar of Companies together with a declaration
as to the solvency of the consolidated or surviving company, a list
of the assets and liabilities of each constituent company and an
undertaking that a copy of the certificate of merger or
consolidation will be given to the shareholders and creditors of
each constituent company and that notification of the merger or
consolidation will be published in the Cayman Islands Gazette.
Court approval is not required for a merger or consolidation which
is effected in compliance with these statutory
procedures.
A
merger between a Cayman Islands parent company and its Cayman
Islands subsidiary or subsidiaries does not require authorization
by a resolution of shareholders. For this purpose a subsidiary is a
company of which at least 90% of the issued shares entitled to vote
are owned by the parent company.
The
consent of each holder of a fixed or floating security interest of
a constituent company is required unless this requirement is waived
by a court in the Cayman Islands.
Except
in certain limited circumstances, a dissenting shareholder of a
Cayman Islands constituent company is entitled to payment of the
fair value of his or her shares upon dissenting from a merger or
consolidation. The exercise of such dissenter rights will preclude
the exercise by the dissenting shareholder of any other rights to
which he or she might otherwise be entitled by virtue of holding
shares, except for the right to seek relief on the grounds that the
merger or consolidation is void or unlawful.
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In
addition, there are statutory provisions that facilitate the
reconstruction and amalgamation of companies, provided that the
arrangement is approved by a majority in number of each class of
shareholders and creditors with whom the arrangement is to be made,
and who must, in addition, represent three-fourths in value of each
such class of shareholders or creditors, as the case may be, that
are present and voting either in person or by proxy at a meeting,
or meetings, convened for that purpose. The convening of the
meetings and subsequently the arrangement must be sanctioned by the
Grand Court of the Cayman Islands. While a dissenting shareholder
has the right to express to the court the view that the transaction
ought not to be approved, the court can be expected to approve the
arrangement if it determines that: (a) the statutory provisions as
to the required majority vote have been met; (b) the shareholders
have been fairly represented at the meeting in question and the
statutory majority are acting bona fide without coercion of the
minority to promote interests adverse to those of the class; (c)
the arrangement is such that may be reasonably approved by an
intelligent and honest man of that class acting in respect of his
interest; and (d) the arrangement is not one that would more
properly be sanctioned under some other provision of the Cayman
Companies Act.
When
a takeover offer is made and accepted by holders of 90% of the
shares affected within four months the offeror may, within a
two-month period commencing on the expiration of such four month
period, require the holders of the remaining shares to transfer
such shares on the terms of the offer. An objection can be made to
the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands but this is unlikely to
succeed in the case of an offer which has been so approved unless
there is evidence of fraud, bad faith or collusion.
If an
arrangement and reconstruction is thus approved, or if a takeover
offer is made and accepted, a dissenting shareholder would have no
rights comparable to appraisal rights, which would otherwise
ordinarily be available to dissenting shareholders of Delaware
corporations, providing rights to receive payment in cash for the
judicially determined value of the shares.
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Shareholder
Suits |
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Class
actions and derivative actions generally are available to
shareholders under Delaware law for, among other things, breach of
fiduciary duty, corporate waste and actions not taken in accordance
with applicable law. In such actions, the court generally has
discretion to permit the winning party to recover attorneys’ fees
incurred in connection with such action. |
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In
principle, we will normally be the proper plaintiff and as a
general rule a derivative action may not be brought by a minority
shareholder. However, based on English authorities, which would in
all likelihood be of persuasive authority in the Cayman Islands,
the Cayman Islands courts can be expected to follow and apply the
common law principles (namely the rule in Foss v. Harbottle and the
exceptions thereto) so that a non-controlling shareholder may be
permitted to commence a class action against or derivative actions
in the name of the company to challenge: (a) an act which is
illegal or ultra vires with respect to the company and is therefore
incapable of ratification by the shareholders; (b) an act which,
although not ultra vires, requires authorization by a qualified (or
special) majority (that is, more than a simple majority) which has
not been obtained; and (c) an act which constitutes a “fraud on the
minority” where the wrongdoers are themselves in control of the
company. |
Inspection
of Corporate Records |
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Under
Delaware law, shareholders of a Delaware corporation have the right
during normal business hours to inspect for any proper purpose, and
to obtain copies of list(s) of shareholders and other books and
records of the corporation and its subsidiaries, if any, to the
extent the books and records of such subsidiaries are available to
the corporation. |
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Shareholders
of a Cayman Islands exempted company have no general right under
Cayman Islands law to inspect or obtain copies of a list of
shareholders or other corporate records (other than the register of
mortgages or charges) of the company. However, these rights may be
provided in the company’s memorandum and articles of
association. |
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Shareholder
Proposals |
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Unless
provided in the corporation’s certificate of incorporation or
bylaws, Delaware law does not include a provision restricting the
manner in which shareholders may bring business before a
meeting. |
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The
Cayman Companies Act provides shareholders with only limited rights
to requisition a general meeting, and does not provide shareholders
with any right to put any proposal before a general meeting.
However, these rights may be provided in a company’s articles of
association. Our articles provide that general meetings shall be
convened on the written requisition of one or more of the
shareholders entitled to attend and vote at our general meetings
who (together) hold not less than 10 percent of the rights to vote
at such general meeting in accordance with the notice provisions in
the articles, specifying the purpose of the meeting and signed by
each of the shareholders making the requisition. If the directors
do not convene such meeting for a date not later than twenty-one
clear days’ after the date of receipt of the written requisition,
those shareholders who requested the meeting may convene the
general meeting themselves within three months after the end of
such period of twenty-one clear days in which case reasonable
expenses incurred by them as a result of the directors failing to
convene a meeting shall be reimbursed by us. Our articles provide
no other right to put any proposals before annual general meetings
or extraordinary general meetings. As a Cayman Islands exempted
company, we are not obligated by law to call shareholders’ annual
general meetings. However, our corporate governance guidelines
require us to call such meetings every year. |
Approval
of Corporate Matters by Written Consent |
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Delaware
law permits shareholders to take action by written consent signed
by the holders of outstanding shares having not less than the
minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or
take such action at a meeting of shareholders. |
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The
Cayman Companies Act allows a special resolution to be passed in
writing if signed by all the voting shareholders (if authorized by
the memorandum and articles of association). |
Calling
of Special Shareholders Meetings |
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Delaware
law permits the board of directors or any person who is authorized
under a corporation’s certificate of incorporation or bylaws to
call a special meeting of shareholders. |
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The
Cayman Companies Act does not have provisions governing the
proceedings of shareholders meetings which are usually provided in
the memorandum and articles of association. Please see
above. |
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Dissolution;
Winding Up |
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Under
the Delaware General Corporation Law, unless the board of directors
approves the proposal to dissolve, dissolution must be approved by
shareholders holding 100% of the total voting power of the
corporation. Only if the dissolution is initiated by the board of
directors may it be approved by a simple majority of the
corporation’s outstanding shares. Delaware law allows a Delaware
corporation to include in its certificate of incorporation a
supermajority voting requirement in connection with dissolutions
initiated by the board of directors. |
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Under
the Cayman Companies Act and our articles, the Company may be wound
up by a special resolution of our shareholders, or if the winding
up is initiated by our board of directors, by either a special
resolution of our members or, if our company is unable to pay its
debts as they fall due, by an ordinary resolution of our members.
In addition, a company may be wound up by an order of the courts of
the Cayman Islands. The court has authority to order winding up in
a number of specified circumstances including where it is, in the
opinion of the court, just and equitable to do so. |
Anti-money
Laundering—Cayman Islands
In
order to comply with legislation or regulations aimed at the
prevention of money laundering, we are required to adopt and
maintain anti-money laundering procedures and may require
subscribers to provide evidence to verify their identity and source
of funds. Where permitted, and subject to certain conditions, we
may also delegate the maintenance of our anti-money laundering
procedures (including the acquisition of due diligence information)
to a suitable person.
We
reserve the right to request such information as is necessary to
verify the identity of a subscriber. In some cases the directors
may be satisfied that no further information is required since an
exemption applies under the Anti-Money Laundering Regulations
(Revised) of the Cayman Islands, as amended and revised from time
to time (the “Regulations”). Depending on the circumstances of each
application, a detailed verification of identity might not be
required where:
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(a) |
the
subscriber makes the payment for their investment from an account
held in the subscriber’s name at a recognized financial
institution; or |
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(b) |
the
subscriber is regulated by a recognized regulatory authority and is
based or incorporated in, or formed under the law of, a recognized
jurisdiction; or |
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(c) |
the
application is made through an intermediary which is regulated by a
recognized regulatory authority and is based in or incorporated in,
or formed under the law of a recognized jurisdiction and an
assurance is provided in relation to the procedures undertaken on
the underlying investors. |
For
the purposes of these exceptions, recognition of a financial
institution, regulatory authority, or jurisdiction will be
determined in accordance with the Regulations by reference to those
jurisdictions recognized by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority
as having equivalent anti-money laundering regulations.
In
the event of delay or failure on the part of the subscriber in
producing any information required for verification purposes, we
may refuse to accept the application, in which case any funds
received will be returned without interest to the account from
which they were originally debited.
We
also reserve the right to refuse to make any redemption payment to
a shareholder if our directors or officers suspect or are advised
that the payment of redemption proceeds to such shareholder might
result in a breach of applicable anti-money laundering or other
laws or regulations by any person in any relevant jurisdiction, or
if such refusal is considered necessary or appropriate to ensure
our compliance with any such laws or regulations in any applicable
jurisdiction.
If
any person resident in the Cayman Islands knows or suspects or has
reason for knowing or suspecting that another person is engaged in
criminal conduct or is involved with terrorism or terrorist
property and the information for that knowledge or suspicion came
to their attention in the course of their business in the regulated
sector, or other trade, profession, business or employment, the
person will be required to report such knowledge or suspicion to
(i) a nominated officer (appointed in accordance with the Proceeds
of Crime Act (Revised) of the Cayman Islands) or the Financial
Reporting Authority of the Cayman Islands, pursuant to the Proceeds
of Crime Act (Revised), if the disclosure relates to criminal
conduct or money laundering or (ii) to a police constable or a
nominated officer (pursuant to the Terrorism Act (Revised) of the
Cayman Islands) or the Financial Reporting Authority, pursuant to
the Terrorism Act (Revised), if the disclosure relates to
involvement with terrorism or terrorist financing and terrorist
property. Such a report shall not be treated as a breach of
confidence or of any restriction upon the disclosure of information
imposed by any enactment or otherwise.
Data
Protection in the Cayman Islands – Privacy Notice
This
privacy notice explains the manner in which we collect, process,
and maintain personal data about our investors pursuant to the Data
Protection Act (Revised) of the Cayman Islands, as amended from
time to time and any regulations, codes of practice, or orders
promulgated pursuant thereto (the “DPA”).
We
are committed to processing personal data in accordance with the
DPA. In our use of personal data, we will be characterized under
the DPA as a “data controller,” whilst certain of our service
providers, affiliates, and delegates may act as “data processors”
under the DPA. These service providers may process personal
information for their own lawful purposes in connection with
services provided to us.
By
virtue of your investment in our Company, we and certain of our
service providers may collect, record, store, transfer, and
otherwise process personal data by which individuals may be
directly or indirectly identified.
Your
personal data will be processed fairly and for lawful purposes,
including (a) where the processing is necessary for us to perform a
contract to which you are a party or for taking pre-contractual
steps at your request, (b) where the processing is necessary for
compliance with any legal, tax, or regulatory obligation to which
we are subject, or (c) where the processing is for the purposes of
legitimate interests pursued by us or by a service provider to whom
the data are disclosed. As a data controller, we will only use
your personal data for the purposes for which we collected it. If
we need to use your personal data for an unrelated purpose, we will
contact you.
We
anticipate that we will share your personal data with our service
providers for the purposes set out in this privacy notice. We
may also share relevant personal data where it is lawful to do so
and necessary to comply with our contractual obligations or your
instructions or where it is necessary or desirable to do so in
connection with any regulatory reporting obligations. In
exceptional circumstances, we will share your personal data with
regulatory, prosecuting, and other governmental agencies or
departments, and parties to litigation (whether pending or
threatened), in any country or territory including to any other
person where we have a public or legal duty to do so (e.g. to
assist with detecting and preventing fraud, tax evasion, and
financial crime or compliance with a court order).
Your
personal data shall not be held by our Company for longer than
necessary with regard to the purposes of the data
processing.
We
will not sell your personal data. Any transfer of personal
data outside of the Cayman Islands shall be in accordance with the
requirements of the DPA. Where necessary, we will ensure that
separate and appropriate legal agreements are put in place with the
recipient of that data.
We
will only transfer personal data in accordance with the
requirements of the DPA, and will apply appropriate technical and
organizational information security measures designed to protect
against unauthorized or unlawful processing of the personal data
and against the accidental loss, destruction, or damage to the
personal data.
If
you are a natural person, this will affect you directly. If you are
a corporate investor (including, for these purposes, legal
arrangements such as trusts or exempted limited partnerships) that
provides us with personal data on individuals connected to you for
any reason in relation to your investment into our Company, this
will be relevant for those individuals and you should inform such
individuals of the content.
You
have certain rights under the DPA, including (a) the right to be
informed as to how we collect and use your personal data (and this
privacy notice fulfils our obligation in this respect), (b) the
right to obtain a copy of your personal data, (c) the right to
require us to stop direct marketing, (d) the right to have
inaccurate or incomplete personal data corrected, (e) the right to
withdraw your consent and require us to stop processing or restrict
the processing, or not begin the processing of your personal data,
(f) the right to be notified of a data breach (unless the breach is
unlikely to be prejudicial), (g) the right to obtain information as
to any countries or territories outside the Cayman Islands to which
we, whether directly or indirectly, transfer, intend to transfer,
or wish to transfer your personal data, general measures we take to
ensure the security of personal data, and any information available
to us as to the source of your personal data, (h) the right to
complain to the Office of the Ombudsman of the Cayman Islands, and
(i) the right to require us to delete your personal data in some
limited circumstances.
If
you consider that your personal data has not been handled
correctly, or you are not satisfied with our responses to any
requests you have made regarding the use of your personal data, you
have the right to complain to the Cayman Islands’ Ombudsman. The
Ombudsman can be contacted by email at
info@ombudsman.ky.
History
of Share Capital
We
were incorporated in the Cayman Islands as an exempted company with
limited liability on December 11, 2019. We issued the following
ordinary shares to certain founding shareholders.
Purchaser |
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Date of Issuance |
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Number of
Ordinary Shares
(Note) |
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Sununion Holding Group Limited |
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December 11, 2019 |
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12,480,000 |
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Greatest Group (China) Financial Management Limited |
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December 11, 2019 |
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1,392,000 |
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True Ample Holdings Limited |
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December 11, 2019 |
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768,000 |
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Xingrui Investment Company Limited |
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December 11, 2019 |
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800,000 |
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Bliss International Investment Company Limited |
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December 11, 2019 |
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560,000 |
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Note:
Represents the number of shares after share split, as discussed
below.
On
August 7, 2020, our shareholders approved (i) a forward split of
our outstanding ordinary shares at a ratio of 320-for-1 share, and
(ii) an increase in our authorized shares to 100 million ordinary
shares. Unless otherwise indicated, all references to ordinary
shares, options to purchase ordinary shares, share data, per share
data, and related information have been retroactively adjusted,
where applicable, in this prospectus to reflect the forward split
of our ordinary shares as if it had occurred at the beginning of
the earlier period presented.
On March 25, 2021, we closed our initial public offering of
5,000,000 ordinary shares, par value $0.003125 per share, at a
public offering price of $5.00 per share. On March 29, 2021, the
underwriter exercised in full its over-allotment option to purchase
an additional 750,000 ordinary shares. The closing for the
sale of the over-allotment shares took place on March 31, 2021.
Gross proceeds of our initial public offering, including the
proceeds from the sale of the over-allotment shares, totaled $28.75
million, before deducting underwriting discounts and other related
expenses. Net proceeds of our initial public offering, including
over-allotment shares, were approximately $25.6 million. In
connection with the initial public offering, our ordinary shares
began trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol
“UPC” on March 23, 2021.
As of
the date of this prospectus, our authorized share capital consists
of $312,500 divided into 90,000,000 ordinary shares, par value
$0.003125 per share and 10,000,000 preferred shares, par value
$0.003125 per share. Holders of ordinary shares are entitled to one
vote per share.
As of
the date of this prospectus, none of our outstanding ordinary
shares are held by record holders in the United States.
We
are not aware of any arrangement that may, at a subsequent date,
result in a change of control of the Company.
DESCRIPTION OF DEBT
SECURITIES
General
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 or subordinated debt securities. Debt
securities will be issued under an indenture between us and a
trustee to be named therein. We have filed the forms of indentures
as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus
is a part. We may issue debt securities which may or may not be
converted into our ordinary shares or preferred shares. It is
likely that convertible debt securities will not be issued under an
indenture. We may issue the debt securities independently or
together with any underlying securities, and debt securities may be
attached or separate from the underlying securities.
The
following description is a summary of selected provisions relating
to the debt securities that we may issue. The summary is not
complete. When debt securities are offered in the future, a
prospectus supplement, information incorporated by reference, or a
free writing prospectus, as applicable, will explain the particular
terms of those securities and the extent to which these general
provisions may apply. The specific terms of the debt securities as
described in a prospectus supplement, information incorporated by
reference, or free writing prospectus will supplement and, if
applicable, may modify or replace the general terms described in
this section.
This
summary and any description of debt securities in the applicable
prospectus supplement, information incorporated by reference, or
free writing prospectus is subject to and is qualified in its
entirety by reference to all the provisions of any specific debt
securities document or agreement. We will file each of these
documents, as applicable, with the SEC and incorporate them by
reference as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this
prospectus is a part on or before the time we issue a series of
debt securities. See “Where You Can Find Additional Information”
and “Incorporation of Documents by Reference” below for information
on how to obtain a copy of a debt securities document when it is
filed.
When
we refer to a series of debt securities, we mean all debt
securities issued as part of the same series under the applicable
indenture.
Terms
The
applicable prospectus supplement, information incorporated by
reference, or free writing prospectus, may describe the terms of
any debt securities that we may offer, including, but not limited
to, the following:
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the
title of the debt securities; |
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the
total amount of the debt securities; |
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the
amount or amounts of the debt securities will be issued and
interest rate; |
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the
conversion price at which the debt securities may be
converted; |
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the
date on which the right to convert the debt securities will
commence and the date on which the right will expire; |
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if
applicable, the minimum or maximum amount of debt securities that
may be converted at any one time; |
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if
applicable, a discussion of material federal income tax
consideration; |
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if
applicable, the terms of the payoff of the debt
securities; |
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the
identity of the indenture agent, if any; |
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the
procedures and conditions relating to the conversion of the debt
securities; and |
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any
other terms of the debt securities, including terms, procedure and
limitation relating to the exchange or conversion of the debt
securities. |
Form,
Exchange, and Transfer
We
may issue the debt securities in registered form or bearer form.
Debt securities issued in registered form, i.e., book-entry form,
will be represented by a global security registered in the name of
a depository, which will be the holder of all the debt securities
represented by the global security. Those investors who own
beneficial interests in global debt securities will do so through
participants in the depository’s system, and the rights of these
indirect owners will be governed solely by the applicable
procedures of the depository and its participants. In addition, we
may issue debt securities in non-global form, i.e., bearer form. If
any debt securities are issued in non-global form, debt securities
certificates may be exchanged for new debt securities certificates
of different denominations, and holders may exchange, transfer, or
convert their debt securities at the debt securities agent’s office
or any other office indicated in the applicable prospectus
supplement, information incorporated by reference or free writing
prospectus.
Prior
to the conversion of their debt securities, holders of debt
securities convertible for ordinary shares or preferred shares will
not have any rights of holders of ordinary shares or preferred
shares, and will not be entitled to dividend payments, if any, or
voting rights of the ordinary shares or preferred
shares.
Conversion
of Debt Securities
A
debt security may entitle the holder to purchase, in exchange for
the extinguishment of debt, an amount of securities at a conversion
price that will be stated in the debt security. Debt securities may
be converted at any time up to the close of business on the
expiration date set forth in the terms of such debt security. After
the close of business on the expiration date, debt securities not
exercised will be paid in accordance with their terms.
Debt
securities may be converted as set forth in the applicable offering
material. Upon receipt of a notice of conversion properly completed
and duly executed at the corporate trust office of the indenture
agent, if any, or to us, we will forward, as soon as practicable,
the securities purchasable upon such exercise. If less than all of
the debt security represented by such security is converted, a new
debt security will be issued for the remaining debt
security.
DESCRIPTION OF
WARRANTS
General
We
may issue warrants to purchase our securities. We may issue the
warrants independently or together with any underlying securities,
and the warrants may be attached or separate from the underlying
securities. We may also issue a series of warrants under a separate
warrant agreement to be entered into between us and a warrant
agent. The warrant agent will act solely as our agent in connection
with the warrants of such series and will not assume any obligation
or relationship of agency for or with holders or beneficial owners
of warrants.
The
following description is a summary of selected provisions relating
to the warrants that we may issue. The summary is not complete.
When warrants are offered in the future, a prospectus supplement,
information incorporated by reference, or a free writing
prospectus, as applicable, will explain the particular terms of
those securities and the extent to which these general provisions
may apply. The specific terms of the warrants as described in a
prospectus supplement, information incorporated by reference, or
free writing prospectus will supplement and, if applicable, may
modify or replace the general terms described in this
section.
This
summary and any description of warrants in the applicable
prospectus supplement, information incorporated by reference, or
free writing prospectus is subject to and is qualified in its
entirety by reference to all the provisions of any specific warrant
document or agreement, if applicable. We will file each of these
documents, as applicable, with the SEC and incorporate them by
reference as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this
prospectus is a part on or before the time we issue a series of
warrants. See “Where You Can Find Additional Information” and
“Incorporation of Documents by Reference” below for information on
how to obtain a copy of a warrant document when it is
filed.
When
we refer to a series of warrants, we mean all warrants issued as
part of the same series under the applicable warrant
agreement.
Terms
The
applicable prospectus supplement, information incorporated by
reference, or free writing prospectus, may describe the terms of
any warrants that we may offer, including, but not limited to, the
following:
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the
title of the warrants; |
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the
total number of warrants; |
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the
price or prices at which the warrants will be issued; |
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the
price or prices at which the warrants may be exercised; |
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the
currency or currencies that investors may use to pay for the
warrants; |
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the
date on which the right to exercise the warrants will commence and
the date on which the right will expire; |
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whether
the warrants will be issued in registered form or bearer
form; |
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information
with respect to book-entry procedures, if any; |
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if
applicable, the minimum or maximum amount of warrants that may be
exercised at any one time; |
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if
applicable, the designation and terms of the underlying securities
with which the warrants are issued and the number of warrants
issued with each underlying security; |
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● |
if
applicable, the date on and after which the warrants and the
related underlying securities will be separately
transferable; |
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● |
if
applicable, a discussion of material federal income tax
considerations; |
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● |
if
applicable, the terms of redemption of the warrants; |
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● |
the
identity of the warrant agent, if any; |
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● |
the
procedures and conditions relating to the exercise of the warrants;
and |
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● |
any
other terms of the warrants, including terms, procedures, and
limitations relating to the exchange and exercise of the
warrants. |
Warrant
Agreement
We
may issue the warrants in one or more series under one or more
warrant agreements, each to be entered into between us and a bank,
trust company, or other financial institution as warrant agent. We
may add, replace, or terminate warrant agents from time to time. We
may also choose to act as our own warrant agent or may choose one
of our subsidiaries to do so.
The
warrant agent under a warrant agreement will act solely as our
agent in connection with the warrants issued under that agreement.
Any holder of warrants may, without the consent of any other
person, enforce by appropriate legal action, on its own behalf, its
right to exercise those warrants in accordance with their
terms.
Form,
Exchange, and Transfer
We
may issue the warrants in registered form or bearer form. Warrants
issued in registered form, i.e., book-entry form, will be
represented by a global security registered in the name of a
depository, which will be the holder of all the warrants
represented by the global security. Those investors who own
beneficial interests in a global warrant will do so through
participants in the depository’s system, and the rights of these
indirect owners will be governed solely by the applicable
procedures of the depository and its participants. In addition, we
may issue warrants in non-global form, i.e., bearer form. If any
warrants are issued in non-global form, warrant certificates may be
exchanged for new warrant certificates of different denominations,
and holders may exchange, transfer, or exercise their warrants at
the warrant agent’s office or any other office indicated in the
applicable prospectus supplement, information incorporated by
reference, or free writing prospectus.
Prior
to the exercise of their warrants, holders of warrants exercisable
for ordinary shares or preferred shares will not have any rights of
holders of ordinary shares or preferred shares and will not be
entitled to dividend payments, if any, or voting rights of the
ordinary shares or preferred shares.
Exercise
of Warrants
A
warrant will entitle the holder to purchase for cash an amount of
securities at an exercise price that will be stated in, or that
will be determinable as described in, the applicable prospectus
supplement, information incorporated by reference, or free writing
prospectus. Warrants may be exercised at any time up to the close
of business on the expiration date set forth in the applicable
offering material. After the close of business on the expiration
date, unexercised warrants will become void. Warrants may be
redeemed as set forth in the applicable offering
material.
Warrants
may be exercised as set forth in the applicable offering material.
Upon receipt of payment and the warrant certificate properly
completed and duly executed at the corporate trust office of the
warrant agent or any other office indicated in the applicable
offering material, we will forward, as soon as practicable, the
securities purchasable upon such exercise. If less than all of the
warrants represented by such warrant certificate are exercised, a
new warrant certificate will be issued for the remaining
warrants.
DESCRIPTION OF
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. Each series of rights
will be issued under a separate rights agent agreement to be
entered into between us and one or more banks, trust companies, or
other financial institutions, as rights agent, that we will name in
the applicable prospectus supplement. The rights agent will act
solely as our agent in connection with the rights and will not
assume any obligation or relationship of agency or trust for or
with any holders of rights certificates or beneficial owners of
rights.
The
prospectus supplement relating to any rights that we offer will
include specific terms relating to the offering, including, among
other matters:
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● |
the
date of determining the security holders entitled to the rights
distribution; |
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the
aggregate number of rights issued and the aggregate amount of
securities purchasable upon exercise of the rights; |
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● |
the
exercise price; |
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● |
the
conditions to completion of the rights offering; |
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● |
the
date on which the right to exercise the rights will commence and
the date on which the rights will expire; and |
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any
applicable federal income tax considerations. |
Each
right would entitle the holder of the rights to purchase for cash
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.
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 our security holders, to or through agents,
underwriters, or dealers, or through a combination of such methods,
including pursuant to standby arrangements, as described in the
applicable prospectus supplement.
DESCRIPTION OF
UNITS
We
may issue units composed of any combination of our securities. We
will issue each unit so that the holder of the unit is also the
holder of each security included in the unit. As a result, the
holder of a unit will have the rights and obligations of a holder
of each included security. The unit agreement under which a unit is
issued may provide that the securities included in the unit may not
be held or transferred separately, at any time or at any time
before a specified date.
The
following description is a summary of selected provisions relating
to units that we may offer. The summary is not complete. When units
are offered in the future, a prospectus supplement, information
incorporated by reference, or a free writing prospectus, as
applicable, will explain the particular terms of those securities
and the extent to which these general provisions may apply. The
specific terms of the units as described in a prospectus
supplement, information incorporated by reference, or free writing
prospectus will supplement and, if applicable, may modify or
replace the general terms described in this section.
This
summary and any description of units in the applicable prospectus
supplement, information incorporated by reference, or free writing
prospectus is subject to and is qualified in its entirety by
reference to the unit agreement, collateral arrangements, and
depositary arrangements, if applicable. We will file each of these
documents, as applicable, with the SEC and incorporate them by
reference as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this
prospectus is a part on or before the time we issue a series of
units. See “Where You Can Find Additional Information” and
“Incorporation of Documents by Reference” below for information on
how to obtain a copy of a document when it is filed.
The
applicable prospectus supplement, information incorporated by
reference, or free writing prospectus may describe:
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● |
The
designation and terms of the units and of the securities comprising
the units, including whether and under what circumstances those
securities may be held or transferred separately; |
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Any
provisions for the issuance, payment, settlement, transfer, or
exchange of the units or of the securities composing the
units; |
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Whether
the units will be issued in fully registered or global form;
and |
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Any
other terms of the units. |
The
applicable provisions described in this section, as well as those
described under “Description of Share Capital,” “Description of
Debt Securities,” “Description of Warrants,” and “Description of
Rights” above, will apply to each unit and to each security
included in each unit, respectively.
PLAN OF
DISTRIBUTION
We
may sell the securities offered by this prospectus from time to
time in one or more transactions, including, without
limitation:
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through
agents; |
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to or
through underwriters; |
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through
broker-dealers (acting as agent or principal); |
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directly
by us to purchasers (including our affiliates and shareholders),
through a specific bidding or auction process, a rights offering,
or other method; |
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through
a combination of any such methods of sale; or |
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through
any other methods described in a prospectus supplement. |
The
distribution of securities may be effected, from time to time, in
one or more transactions, including:
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● |
block
transactions (which may involve crosses) and transactions on Nasdaq
or any other organized market where the securities may be
traded; |
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● |
purchases
by a broker-dealer as principal and resale by the broker-dealer for
its own account pursuant to a prospectus supplement; |
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ordinary
brokerage transactions and transactions in which a broker-dealer
solicits purchasers; |
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sales
“at the market” to or through a market maker or into an existing
trading market, on an exchange or otherwise; and |
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sales
in other ways not involving market makers or established trading
markets, including direct sales to purchasers. |
The
securities may be sold at a fixed price or prices, which may be
changed, or at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at
prices relating to the prevailing market prices or at negotiated
prices. The consideration may be cash, extinguishment of debt, or
another form negotiated by the parties. Agents, underwriters, or
broker-dealers may be paid compensation for offering and selling
the securities. That compensation may be in the form of discounts,
concessions, or commissions to be received from us or from the
purchasers of the securities. Dealers and agents participating in
the distribution of the securities may be deemed to be
underwriters, and compensation received by them on resale of the
securities may be deemed to be underwriting discounts and
commissions under the Securities Act. If such dealers or agents
were deemed to be underwriters, they may be subject to statutory
liabilities under the Securities Act.
We
may also make direct sales through subscription rights distributed
to our existing shareholders on a pro rata basis, which may or may
not be transferable. In any distribution of subscription rights to
our shareholders, if all of the underlying securities are not
subscribed for, we may then sell the unsubscribed securities
directly to third parties or may engage the services of one or more
underwriters, dealers, or agents, including standby underwriters,
to sell the unsubscribed securities to third parties.
Some
or all of the securities that we offer through this prospectus may
be new issues of securities with no established trading market. Any
underwriters to whom we sell our securities for public offering and
sale may make a market in those securities, but they will not be
obligated to do so and they may discontinue any market making at
any time without notice. Accordingly, we cannot assure you of the
liquidity of, or continued trading markets for, any securities that
we offer.
Agents
may, from time to time, solicit offers to purchase the securities.
If required, we will name in the applicable prospectus supplement,
document incorporated by reference, or free writing prospectus, as
applicable, any agent involved in the offer or sale of the
securities and set forth any compensation payable to the agent.
Unless otherwise indicated, any agent will be acting on a best
efforts basis for the period of its appointment. Any agent selling
the securities covered by this prospectus may be deemed to be an
underwriter of the securities.
If
underwriters are used in an offering, securities will be acquired
by the underwriters for their own account and may be resold, 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, or under delayed delivery contracts
or other contractual commitments. Securities may be offered to the
public either through underwriting syndicates represented by one or
more managing underwriters or directly by one or more firms acting
as underwriters. If an underwriter or underwriters are used in the
sale of securities, an underwriting agreement will be executed with
the underwriter or underwriters at the time an agreement for the
sale is reached. The applicable prospectus supplement will set
forth the managing underwriter or underwriters, as well as any
other underwriter or underwriters, with respect to a particular
underwritten offering of securities, and will set forth the terms
of the transactions, including compensation of the underwriters and
dealers and the public offering price, if applicable. This
prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement, and any
applicable free writing prospectus will be used by the underwriters
to resell the securities.
If a
dealer is used in the sale of the securities, we, or an
underwriter, will sell the securities to the dealer, as principal.
The dealer may then resell the securities to the public at varying
prices to be determined by the dealer at the time of resale. To the
extent required, we will set forth in the prospectus supplement,
document incorporated by reference, or free writing prospectus, as
applicable, the name of the dealer and the terms of the
transactions.
We
may directly solicit offers to purchase the securities and may make
sales of securities directly to institutional investors or others.
These persons may be deemed to be underwriters with respect to any
resale of the securities. To the extent required, the prospectus
supplement, document incorporated by reference, or free writing
prospectus, as applicable, will describe the terms of any such
sales, including the terms of any bidding or auction process, if
used.
Agents,
underwriters, and dealers may be entitled under agreements which
may be entered into with us to indemnification by us against
specified liabilities, including liabilities incurred under the
Securities Act, or to contribution by us to payments they may be
required to make in respect of such liabilities. If required, the
prospectus supplement, document incorporated by reference, or free
writing prospectus, as applicable, will describe the terms and
conditions of such indemnification or contribution. Some of the
agents, underwriters, or dealers, or their affiliates may be
customers of, engage in transactions with or perform services for
us or our subsidiaries or affiliates in the ordinary course of
business.
Under
the securities laws of some states, the securities offered by this
prospectus may be sold in those states only through registered or
licensed brokers or dealers.
Any
person participating in the distribution of securities registered
under the registration statement that includes this prospectus will
be subject to applicable provisions of the Exchange Act, and the
applicable SEC rules and regulations, including, among others,
Regulation M, which may limit the timing of purchases and sales of
any of our securities by any such person. Furthermore, Regulation M
may restrict the ability of any person engaged in the distribution
of our securities to engage in market-making activities with
respect to our securities.
These
restrictions may affect the marketability of our securities and the
ability of any person or entity to engage in market-making
activities with respect to our securities.
Certain
persons participating in an offering may engage in over-allotment,
stabilizing transactions, short-covering transactions, and penalty
bids in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act that
stabilize, maintain, or otherwise affect the price of the offered
securities. If any such activities will occur, they will be
described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
To
the extent required, this prospectus may be amended or supplemented
from time to time to describe a specific plan of
distribution.
TAXATION
Material
income tax consequences relating to the purchase, ownership, and
disposition of the securities offered by this prospectus are set
forth in “Item 10. Additional Information—E. Taxation” in the 2021
Annual Report, which is incorporated herein by reference, as
updated by our subsequent filings under the Exchange Act that are
incorporated by reference and, if applicable, in any accompanying
prospectus supplement or relevant free writing
prospectus.
EXPENSES
The
following table sets forth the aggregate expenses in connection
with this offering, all of which will be paid by us. All amounts
shown are estimates, except for the SEC registration
fee.
SEC registration fee |
|
$ |
22,040 |
|
FINRA fees |
|
$ |
30,500 |
|
Legal fees and expenses |
|
$ |
* |
|
Accounting fees and expenses |
|
$ |
* |
|
Printing and postage expenses |
|
$ |
* |
|
Miscellaneous
expenses |
|
$ |
* |
|
Total |
|
$ |
* |
|
* |
To be
provided by a prospectus supplement or as an exhibit to a report of
foreign private issuer on Form 6-K that is incorporated by
reference into this registration statement. Estimated solely for
this item. Actual expenses may vary. |
MATERIAL
CONTRACTS
Our
material contracts are described in the documents incorporated by
reference into this prospectus. See “Incorporation of Documents by
Reference” below.
MATERIAL
CHANGES
Except
as otherwise described in the 2021 Annual Report, in our reports of
foreign issuer on Form 6-K filed or submitted under the
Exchange Act and incorporated by reference herein, and as disclosed
in this prospectus or the applicable prospectus supplement, no
reportable material changes have occurred since September 30,
2021.
LEGAL
MATTERS
We
are being represented by Hunter Taubman Fischer & Li LLC
with respect to certain legal matters as to United States federal
securities and New York State law. The validity of the securities
offered in this offering and certain other legal matters as to
Cayman Islands law will be passed upon for us by Ogier, our counsel
as to Cayman Islands law. Legal matters as to PRC law will be
passed upon for us by AllBright Law Offices. If legal matters in
connection with offerings made pursuant to this prospectus are
passed upon by counsel to underwriters, dealers, or agents, such
counsel will be named in the applicable prospectus supplement
relating to any such offering.
EXPERTS
The
consolidated financial statements as of September 30, 2021 and
for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021 included in this
prospectus have been so included in reliance on the report of YCM
CPA INC., an independent registered public accounting firm, given
on the authority of said firm as experts in auditing and
accounting. The office of YCM CPA INC. is located at 2400 Barranca
Pkwy, Suite 300, Irvine, CA 92606.
The
consolidated financial statements as of September 30, 2020,
and for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and 2019
included in this prospectus have been so included in reliance on
the report of Friedman LLP, an independent registered public
accounting firm, given on the authority of said firm as experts in
auditing and accounting. The office of Friedman LLP is located at
One Liberty Plaza, 165 Broadway Floor 21, New York, NY
10006.
INCORPORATION OF
DOCUMENTS BY REFERENCE
The
SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” into this prospectus
certain information we file with the SEC. This means that we can
disclose important information to you by referring you to those
documents. Any statement contained in a document incorporated by
reference in this prospectus shall be deemed to be modified or
superseded for purposes of this prospectus to the extent that a
statement contained herein, or in any subsequently filed document,
which is incorporated by reference herein, modifies or supersedes
such earlier statement. Any such statement so modified or
superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or
superseded, to constitute a part of this prospectus.
We
hereby incorporate by reference into this prospectus the following
documents:
|
1. |
our
annual report on
Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021
filed with the SEC on January 31, 2022; |
|
|
|
|
2. |
our
reports of foreign private issuer on
Form 6-K filed with the SEC on January 31, 2022,
July 19, 2022,
August 16, 2022,
August 29, 2022 and
September 28, 2022; |
|
|
|
|
3. |
the
description of our ordinary shares contained in our registration
statement on
Form 8-A, filed with the SEC on March 17, , 2021, and
any amendment or report filed for the purpose of updating such
description; |
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|
4. |
any
future annual reports on Form 20-F filed with the SEC after
the date of this prospectus and prior to the termination of the
offering of the securities offered by this prospectus;
and |
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|
|
5. |
any
future reports of foreign private issuer on Form 6-K that we
furnish to the SEC after the date of this prospectus that are
identified in such reports as being incorporated by reference into
the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a
part. |
Our
annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2021 filed with the SEC on January 31, 2022
contains a description of our business and audited consolidated
financial statements with a report by our independent auditors.
These financial statements were prepared in accordance with U.S.
GAAP.
Unless
expressly incorporated by reference, nothing in this prospectus
shall be deemed to incorporate by reference information furnished
to, but not filed with, the SEC. Copies of all documents
incorporated by reference in this prospectus, other than exhibits
to those document unless such exhibits are specially incorporated
by reference in this prospectus, will be provided at no cost to
each person, including any beneficial owner, who receives a copy of
this prospectus on the written or oral request of that person made
to:
Universe
Pharmaceuticals INC
265
Jingjiu Avenue, Jinggangshan Economic and Technological Development
Zone
Ji’an,
Jiangxi Province
People’s
Republic of China
+86-0796-8403309
You
should rely only on the information that we incorporate by
reference or provide in this prospectus. We have not authorized
anyone to provide you with different information. We are not making
any offer to sell these securities in any jurisdiction where the
offer or sale is not permitted. You should not assume that the
information contained or incorporated in this prospectus by
reference is accurate as of any date other than the date of the
document containing the information.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
As
permitted by SEC rules, this prospectus omits certain information
and exhibits that are included in the registration statement of
which this prospectus forms a part. Since this prospectus may not
contain all of the information that you may find important, you
should review the full text of these documents. If we have filed a
contract, agreement, or other document as an exhibit to the
registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part, you
should read the exhibit for a more complete understanding of the
document or matter involved. Each statement in this prospectus,
including statements incorporated by reference as discussed above,
regarding a contract, agreement, or other document is qualified in
its entirety by reference to the actual document.
We
are subject to periodic reporting and other informational
requirements of the Exchange Act as applicable to foreign private
issuers. Accordingly, we are required to file reports, including
annual reports on Form 20-F, and other information with the
SEC. All information electronically filed with the SEC can be
inspected over the Internet at the SEC’s website at
www.sec.gov.
As a
foreign private issuer, we are exempt under the Exchange Act from,
among other things, the rules prescribing the furnishing and
content of proxy statements, and our executive officers, directors,
and principal shareholders are exempt from the reporting and
short-swing profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16
of the Exchange Act. In addition, we will not be required under the
Exchange Act to file periodic or current reports and financial
statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S.
companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange
Act.
ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL
LIABILITIES
We
were incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands because
there are certain benefits associated with being a Cayman Islands
company, such as political and economic stability, an effective
judicial system, a favorable tax system, the absence of foreign
exchange control or currency restrictions, and the availability of
professional and support services. The Cayman Islands, however, has
a less developed body of securities laws than the United States and
provides significantly less protection for investors than the
United States.
All
of the operating entities’ operations are conducted in China and
substantially all of our assets are located in the PRC. In
addition, almost all of our directors and officers are nationals or
residents of the PRC, including our chief executive officer and
chairman of the board of directors, Mr. Gang Lai, our chief
financial officer, Ms. Lin Yang, and our directors, Mr. Jiawen Pang
and Mr. Ding Zheng, and all or a substantial portion of their
assets are located outside the United States. As a result, it may
be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the
United States upon us or these persons who are residents of a
foreign country, such as our directors and officers, or to enforce
against us or them judgments obtained in United States courts,
including judgments predicated upon the civil liability provisions
of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the
United States.
We
have appointed Cogency Global Inc. as our agent to receive service
of process with respect to any action brought against us in the
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
under the federal securities laws of the United States or of any
state in the United States or any action brought against us in the
Supreme Court of the State of New York in the County of New York
under the securities laws of the State of New York.
Our
counsel with respect to the laws of the Cayman Islands, Ogier, and
our counsel with respect to PRC law, AllBright Law Offices, have
advised us that there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of
the Cayman Islands or the PRC would (i) recognize or enforce
judgments of United States courts obtained against us or our
directors or officers predicated upon the civil liability
provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state
in the United States or (ii) in original actions brought in
the Cayman Islands or the PRC, to impose liabilities against us or
our directors or officers predicated upon the securities laws of
the United States or any state in the United States, so far as the
liabilities imposed by those provisions are penal in
nature..
Our
Cayman Islands counsel, Ogier, has further advised us that in those
circumstances, although there is no statutory enforcement in the
Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, the
courts of the Cayman Islands will recognize and enforce a foreign
money judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without
retrial on the merits based on the principle that a judgment of a
competent foreign court imposes upon the judgment debtor an
obligation to pay the sum for which judgment has been given
provided certain conditions are met. For a foreign judgment to be
enforced in the Cayman Islands, such judgment must be final and
conclusive, given by a court of competent jurisdiction (the courts
of the Cayman Islands will apply the rules of Cayman Islands
private international law to determine whether the foreign court is
a court of competent jurisdiction), and must not be in respect of
taxes or a fine or penalty, inconsistent with a Cayman Islands
judgment in respect of the same matter, impeachable on the grounds
of fraud or obtained in a manner, and or be of a kind the
enforcement of which is, contrary to natural justice or the public
policy of the Cayman Islands (awards of punitive or multiple
damages may well be held to be contrary to public policy). A Cayman
Islands Court may stay enforcement proceedings if concurrent
proceedings are being brought elsewhere. Ogier has informed us that
there is uncertainty with regard to Cayman Islands law relating to
whether a judgment obtained from the U.S. courts under civil
liability provisions of the securities laws will be determined by
the courts of the Cayman Islands as penal or punitive in
nature.
Our
PRC counsel, AllBright Law Offices, has advised us that the
recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments are provided for
under the PRC Civil Procedure Law. PRC courts may recognize and
enforce foreign judgments in accordance with the requirements of
the PRC Civil Procedure Law based either on treaties between China
and the country where the judgment is made or on reciprocity
between jurisdictions. However, there are no treaties or other
forms of reciprocity between China and the United States for the
mutual recognition and enforcement of court judgments. Further, pursuant to the PRC Civil
Procedures Law, courts in the PRC will not enforce a foreign
judgment against us or our directors and officers if they decide
that the judgment violates the basic principles of PRC law or
national sovereignty, security, or public interest. As a result, it
is uncertain whether and on what basis a PRC court would enforce a
judgment rendered by a court in the United
States.
Our
PRC counsel, AllBright Law Offices, has further advised us that, under the
PRC Civil Procedures Law, foreign shareholders may originate
actions based on PRC laws against us in the PRC, if they can
establish sufficient nexus to the PRC for a PRC court to have
jurisdiction, and meet other procedural requirements, including,
among others, the plaintiff must have a direct interest in the
case, and there must be a concrete claim, a factual basis, and a
cause for the suit. However, it would be difficult for foreign
shareholders to establish sufficient nexus to the PRC by virtue
only of holding our ordinary shares.
PART II
INFORMATION
NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
Item
8. Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Cayman
Islands law does not limit the extent to which a company’s articles
of association may provide for indemnification of officers and
directors, except to the extent any such provision may be held by
the Cayman Islands courts to be contrary to public policy, such as
to provide indemnification against civil fraud or the consequences
of committing a crime. Our articles of association provide that, to
the extent permitted by law, we shall indemnify each existing or
former secretary, director (including alternate director), and any
of our other officers (including an investment adviser or an
administrator or liquidator) and their personal representatives
against:
(a)
all actions, proceedings, costs, charges, expenses, losses,
damages, or liabilities incurred or sustained by the existing or
former director (including alternate director), secretary, or
officer in or about the conduct of our business or affairs or in
the execution or discharge of the existing or former director
(including alternate director)’s, secretary’s, or officer’s duties,
powers, authorities or discretions; and
(b)
without limitation to paragraph (a) above, all costs, expenses,
losses, or liabilities incurred by the existing or former director
(including alternate director), secretary, or officer in defending
(whether successfully or otherwise) any civil, criminal,
administrative or investigative proceedings (whether threatened,
pending or completed) concerning us or our affairs in any court or
tribunal, whether in the Cayman Islands or elsewhere.
No
such existing or former director (including alternate director),
secretary, or officer, however, shall be indemnified in respect of
any matter arising out of his own dishonesty.
To
the extent permitted by law, we may make a payment, or agree to
make a payment, whether by way of advance, loan or otherwise, for
any legal costs incurred by an existing secretary, or any of our
officers in respect of any matter identified in above on condition
that the secretary, or officer must repay the amount paid by us to
the extent that it is ultimately found not liable to indemnify the
secretary or that officer for those legal costs.
Pursuant
to the indemnification agreements entered into with each of our
directors and executive officers, we have agreed to indemnify our
directors and officers against certain liabilities and expenses
incurred by such persons in connection with claims made by reason
of their being such a director or officer.
Insofar
as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act
may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us
pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that in
the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public
policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore
unenforceable.
Item
9. Exhibits
* |
To be
filed, if applicable, by amendment or as an exhibit to a report
filed pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and incorporated
herein by reference. |
|
|
** |
Filed
herewith. |
|
|
*** |
Previously
filed. |
|
|
**** |
To be
filed, if necessary, on electronic Form 305b2 pursuant to
Section 305(b)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act of
1939. |
Item
10 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 Securities and Exchange Commission
pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes
in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the
maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of
Registration Fee” table in the effective registration
statement. |
|
(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 (a)(1)(i), (a)(1)(ii), and
(a)(1)(iii) of this section 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
Securities and Exchange 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).
|
(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) |
To
file a post-effective amendment to the registration statement to
include any financial statements required by Item 8.A. of
Form 20-F at the start of any delayed offering or throughout a
continuous offering. Financial statements and information otherwise
required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of
1933 need not be furnished, provided, that the registrant includes
in the prospectus, by means of a post-effective amendment,
financial statements required pursuant to this paragraph
(4) and other information necessary to ensure that all other
information in the prospectus is at least as current as the date of
those financial statements. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a
post-effective amendment need not be filed to include financial
statements and information required by
Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933 or
Rule 3-19 of Regulation S-K if such financial statements and
information are contained in periodic reports filed with or
furnished to the SEC by the registrant pursuant to Section 13
or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
that are incorporated by reference in this registration
statement. |
|
|
|
|
(5) |
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 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. |
|
(6) |
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) |
That,
for purposes of determining any liability 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) |
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 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 Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such
issue. |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant
certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets
all of the requirements for filing on Form F-3 and has duly
caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by
the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Ji’an,
Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China, on October 27,
2022.
|
Universe
Pharmaceuticals INC |
|
|
|
By: |
/s/
Gang Lai |
|
|
Name: |
Gang
Lai |
|
|
Title: |
Chief
Executive Officer and
Chairman of the Board of Directors |
POWERS OF
ATTORNEY
Each
person whose signature appears below hereby constitutes and
appoints Gang Lai and Lin Yang, and each of them, individually, his
or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full
power of substitution and re-substitution, in his or her name,
place and stead, in any and all capacities (including his/her
capacity as a director and/or officer of the registrant), to sign
any and all amendments and post-effective amendments and
supplements to this registration statement, and including any
registration statement for the same offering that is to be
effective upon filing pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the
U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and to file the same, with
all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith,
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said
attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and
authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite
and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all
intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby
ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents
or any of them, or his substitute, 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.
Name |
|
Title |
|
Date |
|
|
|
|
|
/s/
Gang Lai |
|
Chairman
of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer |
|
October
27, 2022 |
Gang
Lai |
|
(Principal
Executive Officer) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
/s/
Lin Yang |
|
Chief
Financial Officer and Director |
|
October
27, 2022 |
Lin
Yang |
|
(Principal
Accounting and Financial Officer) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
/s/
Jiawen Pang |
|
Independent
Director |
|
October
27, 2022 |
Jiawen
Pang |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
/s/
H. David Sherman |
|
Independent
Director |
|
October
27, 2022 |
H.
David Sherman |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
/s/
Ding Zheng |
|
Independent
Director |
|
October
27, 2022 |
Ding
Zheng |
|
|
SIGNATURE
OF AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE IN THE UNITED STATES
Pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the
undersigned, the duly authorized representative in the United
States of America of Universe Pharmaceuticals INC, has signed this
registration statement thereto in New York, NY on October 27,
2022.
|
Authorized
U.S. Representative |
|
Cogency
Global Inc. |
|
|
|
|
|
By: |
/s/
Colleen A. De Vries |
|
|
Name: |
Colleen
A. De Vries |
|
|
Title: |
Senior
Vice-President on behalf of Cogency Global Inc. |
II-6
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