NowVertical Group Inc. (TSXV: NOW) (OTCQB: NOWVF)
(“
NOW” or the “
Company”), is
pleased to announce that NOW and Mostafa Hashem, NOW’s EVP Product
& Technology have agreed to amend the outstanding earnout
obligations governing NOW’s acquisition of Smartlytics Consultancy
Limited (“
Smartlytics”). In connection with the
amendment, the incentives that Mr. Hashem would have received as a
former owner of Smartlytics have been adjusted with the objective
of rewarding Mr. Hashem for building an integrated product group
that encompasses all of NOW’s existing software assets; whereas the
former earn-out provisions were based on performance of the
Smartlytics business unit only. Mr. Hashem was promoted to the EVP
Product & Technology role in early 2024.
“With the amendment of the purchase agreement,
we're shifting focus to commercializing NOW's software suite and
capitalizing on cross-selling opportunities across our NA, EMEA,
and LATAM markets. Mr. Hashem's commercial acumen and success in
generating revenue streams by combining NOW's software with
services for tangible business outcomes are commendable. This marks
a major step towards deeper integration within our business, with
NVG software playing a crucial role in expanding our footprint
within strategic accounts," remarked Sandeep Mendiratta, NOW's
CEO.
Transaction Details
In executing its integration strategy, the
Company has amended the share purchase agreement dated December 10,
2022, that governed the acquisition of Smartlytics, restructuring
its ongoing obligations with Mr. Hashem as follows:
- the future earn-out payments for
years 2024 and 2025 will be settled through a payment by the
Company tied to the EBITDA of NOW’s product group payable to Mr.
Hashem equally in cash and through the issuance of Class A
subordinate voting shares in the capital of NOW, subject to TSX
Venture Exchange approval prior to the time of each issuance;
and
- the deferral of the payment of the
previously due holdback amount of $100,000.
Multilateral Instrument 61-101 –
Protection of Minority Security Holders in Related Party
Transactions
Mostafa Hashem is the EVP Product &
Technology of the Company (the “Related Party”).
As a result, the entering into of the Deed and certain of the
transactions contemplated thereby are considered to be “related
party transaction”, subject to Multilateral Instrument 61-101 –
Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions
(“MI 61-101”). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the
Company is exempt from the formal valuation requirement per
sections 5.5(a) and 5.5(b) of MI 61-101, as neither the fair market
value of the subject matter of the transactions, nor the fair
market value of the consideration for the transactions, insofar as
it involves interested parties, exceeds 25% percent of the
Company’s market capitalization and Company is not listed on any of
the exchanges specified in Section 5.5(b) of MI 61-101, and the
Company confirms that it has not obtained any valuations relevant
to the transactions in the 24 months preceding entering into the
Deed. In addition, the Company is exempt from the requirement to
obtain minority shareholder approval per section 5.7(1)(a) of MI
61-101, as neither the fair market value of the subject matter of,
nor the fair market value of the consideration for, the
transaction, insofar as it involves interested parties, exceeds 25%
percent of the Company’s market capitalization.
The terms of the Deed were settled through arm’s
length negotiations between independent representatives of the
Company and the Related Party, with each party separately
represented by legal counsel. The entering into of the Deed and the
transactions contemplated thereby was considered and unanimously
approved by the Company’s board of directors, having regard to,
among other things, the impact of the transactions on the Company’s
balance sheet, liquidity and overall stability.
The Company did not file a material change
report 21 days in advance of implementing the transactions as the
negotiations were only recently concluded.
About NowVertical Group
Inc.
NowVertical Group is a Vertical Intelligence
(VI) software and services provider that delivers
vertically-specific data, technology, and artificial intelligence
(AI) applications to industry and governments through its global
platform. NOW's proprietary solutions sit at the foundation of the
modern enterprise by transforming AI investments into VI, enabling
its customers to minimize their risk, accelerate the time to value,
and reduce costs. NOW is rapidly growing organically and through
targeted acquisitions. For more information about NOW, visit
www.nowvertical.com.
Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that
term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility
for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.For further
information, please contact:
Andre Garber, Chief Development OfficerIR@nowvertical.com
Glen Nelson, Investor Relations and Communicationse:
glen.nelson@nowvertical.com t: (403) 763-9797Non-IFRS
Measures
This news release refers to certain
non-international financial reporting standards
(“IFRS”) measures, including “EBITDA”. For the
purposes of this news release, EBITDA is defined as the
consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization. These measures are not recognized measures under
IFRS, do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are
therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented
by other companies. Rather, these measures are provided as
additional information to complement those IFRS measures by
providing further understanding of the Company’s results of
operations from management’s perspective. The Company’s definitions
of non-IFRS measures used in this news release may not be the same
as the definitions for such measures used by other companies in
their reporting. Non-IFRS measures have limitations as analytical
tools and should not be considered in isolation nor as a substitute
for analysis of the Company’s financial information reported under
IFRS. These non-IFRS measures are used to provide investors with
supplemental measures of our operating performance and to eliminate
items that have less bearing on our operational performance or
operating conditions and thus highlight trends in our core business
that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS
measures. The Company believes that securities analysts, investors
and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS financial
measures in the evaluation of issuers. The Company’s management
also uses non-IFRS financial measures to facilitate operating
performance comparisons from period to period and prepare annual
budgets and forecasts.Forward Looking
Statements
This news release contains forward-looking
information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of
applicable Canadian securities laws (together
“forward-looking statements”), including, without
limitation regarding the settlement of obligations owing to Mr.
Hashem, the form and amount of future payments to be made by the
Company, the number of Class A subordinate voting shares issuable
and the price at which such shares will be issuable, the payment of
the Future Earn-Outs, the alignment of management and the business
unit leaders, the approval of the TSXV and the ability and timing
of certain payments by the Company. Forward-looking statements are
necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that,
while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject
to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties,
and contingencies. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking
statements are not based on historical facts but instead reflect
the Company’s expectations, estimates or projections concerning
future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and
estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the
statements are made. Forward-looking statements generally can
be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “may”,
“should”, “will”, “could”, “intend”, “estimate”, “plan”,
“anticipate”, “expect”, “believe” or “continue”, or the negative
thereof or similar variations. Forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may
cause future results, performance, or achievements to be materially
different from the estimated future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements
and the forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future
performance. Although the Company believes that the expectations
reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such
statements involve risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance
should not be placed thereon, as unknown or unpredictable factors
could have material adverse effects on future results, performance
or achievements of the Company. Among the key factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in
the forward-looking statements are the following: direct and
indirect material adverse effects from the COVID-19 pandemic;
timing and receipt of regulatory approvals, adverse market
conditions; risks inherent in the data analytics and artificial
intelligence sectors in general; regulatory and legislative
changes; that future results may vary from historical results;
inability to obtain any requisite future financing on suitable
terms; any inability to realize the expected benefits and synergies
of acquisitions; that market competition may affect the business,
results and financial condition of the Company and other risk
factors identified in documents filed by the Company under its
profile at www.sedarplus.ca, including the Company’s managements’
discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2022 dated
April 28, 2023 and the prospectus supplement (including all
documents incorporated by reference therein) dated February 22,
2023. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties
materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking
statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from
those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed,
estimated or expected. Although the Company has attempted to
identify important risks, uncertainties and factors which could
cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that
cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended and
such changes could be material. All of the forward-looking
statement contained in this press release are qualified by the
foregoing cautionary statements, and there can be no guarantee that
the results or developments that we anticipate will be realized or,
even if substantially realized, that they will have the expected
consequences or effects on our business, financial condition or
results of operation. Unless otherwise noted or the context
otherwise indicates, the forward-looking statements contained
herein are provided as of the date hereof, and the Company does not
intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update the
forward-looking statements except as otherwise required by
applicable law. Investors are cautioned that trading in the
securities of the Company should be considered highly
speculative.
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