Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Subsequent Events

v3.21.2
Subsequent Events
12 Months Ended
Aug. 31, 2021
Subsequent Events  
Subsequent Events

Note 17: Subsequent Events

Management has evaluated events that have occurred subsequent to the date of these consolidated financial statements and has determined that, other than those listed below, no such reportable subsequent events exist through the date the financial statements were issued.

Vensure Litigation

On September 7, 2021, Shiftable HR Acquisition, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Vensure, filed a complaint against the Company in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware asserting claims arising from the Asset Purchase Agreement (the “APA”) governing the Vensure Asset Sale described above. The APA provided for Vensure to purchase, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, certain of the Company’s assets for total consideration of $19 million in cash, with $9.5 million to be paid at closing, and the remainder to be paid in 48 equal monthly installments (the “Installment Sum”). The Installment Sum was subject to certain adjustments to account for various post-closing payments made by the parties, and the APA provided for the following procedure to determine the final amount of the Installment Sum: (i) Within 90 days of the effective date, Vensure was required to provide the Company with a “Proposed Closing Statement”, which must detail any adjustments; (ii) Within 30 days of its receipt of Vensure’s Proposed Closing Statement, the Company had the right to challenge any of the proposed adjustments contained therein; and (iii) If the Company disputed Vensure’s Proposed Closing Statement, a 30-day period ensued for the parties to attempt to resolve the dispute, with the Company entitled to examine “such Books and Records of [Vensure] as relate to the specific items of dispute.”

Vensure resisted the Company’s repeated efforts to obtain the Proposed Closing Statement for over one year after the closing of the transaction. Finally, on March 12, 2021, under threat of legal action by the Company, Vensure provided its Proposed Closing Statement, in which it contended for the first time that it owes nothing to the Company, and that the Company actually owes Vensure the sum of $1,519,991. By letter dated April 6, 2021, the Company provided Vensure with its objections to the Proposed Closing Statement, which included Vensure’s gross overstatement of payments it purportedly made on the Company’s behalf, as well as its bad faith actions in obstructing the Company’s efforts to make these payments.

From April 2021 through August 2021, Vensure and the Company engaged in the “30-day negotiation period” referred to above, which was extended multiple times at Vensure’s request to provide Vensure an opportunity to provide evidence supporting its assertions. Over the course of these negotiations, Vensure withdrew its claim for approximately $1.5 million from the Company, and acknowledged that Vensure owed ShiftPixy some portion of the Installment Fund. Nevertheless, in early September 2021, without warning and contrary to the dispute resolution provisions of the APA, Vensure filed suit against the Company in Delaware Chancery Court for breach of contract and declaratory judgment, seeking unspecified damages. The Company vigorously disputes and denies each of Vensure’s claims. Accordingly, on November 4, 2021, the Company filed its Answer and Counterclaim to Vensure’s Complaint, in which it not only denied Vensure’s claims, but also asserted counterclaims for breach of contract and tortious interference with contract. The counterclaim seeks damages from Vensure totaling approximately $9.5 million — the full amount due under the APA — plus an award of attorneys’ fees and expenses. Discovery is expected to commence shortly.

September 2021 Private Placement

On September 3, 2021, the Company closed a $12 million private placement transaction, inclusive of $0.9 million of placement agent fees and costs, with a large institutional investor pursuant to which the Company sold to the investor an aggregate of (i) 2,850,000 shares of Common Stock, together with warrants (the “September 2021 Common Warrants”) to purchase up to  2,850,000 shares of Common Stock, with each September 2021 Common Warrant exercisable for one share of Common Stock at a price per share of $1.595, and (ii) 4,673,511 prefunded warrants (the “September 2021 Prefunded Warrants”), together with the September 2021 Common Warrants to purchase up to 4,673,511 shares of Common Stock, with each September 2021 Prefunded Warrant exercisable for one share of Common Stock at a price per share of $0.0001. Each share of Common Stock and accompanying September 2021 Common Warrant were sold together at a combined offering price of $1.595 and each September 2021 Prefunded Warrant and accompanying September 2021 Common Warrant were sold together at a combined offering price of $1.5949.

The September 2021 Prefunded Warrants are immediately exercisable at a nominal exercise price of $0.0001, and may be exercised at any time until all of the September 2021 Prefunded Warrants are exercised in full. The September 2021 Common Warrants have an exercise price of $1.595 per share, are immediately exercisable, and will expire five years from the date that the registration statement covering the resale of the shares underlying the September 2021 Common Warrants is declared effective (which has not yet occurred). The private placement generated gross proceeds of approximately $12.0 million, prior to deducting $0.89 million of costs consisting of Placement Agent commissions and offering expenses payable by the Company. In addition to the seven percent ( 7%) of the aggregate gross proceeds cash fee, the Company issued to the Placement Agent warrants to purchase an aggregate of up to five percent (5%) of the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the September 2021 Prefunded Warrants sold in the offering (the “September Placement Agent Warrants”). The September Placement Agent Warrants are exercisable for a period commencing on March 3, 2022 (six months after issuance) and expire four years from the effective date (which has not yet occurred) of a registration statement for the resale of the underlying shares, and have an initial exercise price of $1.7545 per share.

Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers

On October 22, 2021, the Company’s board of directors approved annual salary increases for the following named executive officers and related parties, all of which are effective January 1, 2022 unless otherwise indicated: (i) Scott W. Absher, the Company’s board of directors Chair and Chief Executive Officer, to $1,000,000 from $764,673; (ii) Domonic J. Carney, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, to $750,000 from $474,152; Robert S. Gans, the Company’s General Counsel, to $750,000 from $474,152; and (iii) Amanda Murphy, the Company’s current Director of Operations and a member of its board, to $500,000 from $264,152 (to coincide with her promotion to the position of Chief Operating Officer of the Company). In addition, the board of directors approved the following discretionary bonuses to the following named executive officers, all of which are payable January 1, 2022 unless otherwise indicated:  (i) $500,000 to Mr. Absher, (of which 50% was payable upon board of directors approval with the remainder payable January 1); (ii)  $150,000 to Mr. Carney; and (iii)  $150,000 to Mr. Gans. No portion of the discretionary bonuses has been paid as of the date of this Form 10-K.

Cancellation of Preferred Options

On October 22, 2021, the Company cancelled 11,790,000 Preferred Options previously issued to J. Stephen Holmes but never exercised, and severed all business ties with Mr. Homes effective immediately.