Company: PED
Filing Date: 2025-03-31
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001654954-25-003703
Chunk: 463

Company: PEDEVCO CORP
Filing Date: 2025-03-31
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 10
Chunk 463
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co.com/ped/corporate_governance. Unless specifically stated herein, documents and information on our website are not incorporated by reference in this Report.

Outside Advisors

Our Board and each of its committees may retain outside advisors, legal counsel, and consultants of their choosing at our expense. The Board and its committees need not obtain management’s consent to retain such outside advisors, legal counsel, and consultants.

Controlled Company Status

Because Dr. Kukes controls a majority of our outstanding voting power, we are a “controlled company” under the corporate governance rules of the NYSE American. Therefore, we are not required to have a majority of our Board of Directors be independent, nor are we required to have a compensation committee or an independent nominating function. We have nevertheless opted to meet the requirements under the NYSE American listing rules for smaller reporting companies, such as the Company, which requires a Board of Directors be comprised of at least 50% independent directors and to have a compensation, nominating and governance committee comprised of independent directors, as more fully described herein.

Pledging of Shares

The ability of our directors and executive officers to pledge Company stock for personal loans and investments is inherently related to their compensation due to our use of equity awards and promotion of long-termism and an ownership culture. As such, the Company has no policies in place preventing or limiting any officer or directors’ ability to pledge their stock, other than limitations imposed pursuant to our Code of Business Conducts and Ethics and our Insider Trading Policy.

Insider Trading/Anti-Hedging Policies

The Company has an insider trading policy governing the purchase, sale and other dispositions of the Company’s securities that applies to all Company personnel, including directors, officers, employees, and other covered persons. The Company also plans to follow procedures for the repurchase of any shares of its securities. The Company believes that its insider trading policy and planned repurchase procedures are reasonably designed to promote compliance with insider trading laws, rules and regulations, and listing standards applicable to the Company. A copy of the Company’s insider trading policy is filed as Exhibit 19.1 to this Annual Report.

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The policy also prohibits the unauthorized disclosure of any nonpublic information acquired in the workplace and the misuse of material nonpublic information in securities trading and includes specific anti-hedging provisions.

To ensure compliance with the policy and applicable federal and state securities laws, all individuals subject to the policy must refrain from the purchase or sale of our securities except in designated trading windows or pursuant