Document:

ampg_ex101.htm

  EXHIBIT 10.1
   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

  
   
 Jorge Flores
 7 Buck Hill Street 
 Medford, NY 11763
  
 February 21, 2022
  
 Dear Mr. Flores,
  
 We are very pleased to offer you the position of Chief Operating Officer with AmpliTech Group, Inc., a Nevada corporation (the "Company''). This offer of employment is conditioned on your satisfactory completion of certain requirements as explained in this letter (the "Letter''). Your continued employment is subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Letter, which override (i) anything communicated to you, orally or in writing, during your interviews; (ii) as part of any other communication about your employment with the Company; or (iii) as set forth in any and all other employment agreements between you and the Company, which will shall have no further force or effect upon your execution of this Letter. The term of this agreement shall be from February 21, 2022 through March 20, 2023 (the "Employment Period").
  
 Duties and Reporting Position
  
 As Chief Operating Officer, you will be full-time, scheduled to work within the AmpliTech facilities five (5) days a week, at a minimum of normal hours of operation. As Chief Operating Officer, you will be classified as “exempt” under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and New York Labor Law 651(5)(b), which means you are not entitled to overtime pay for working more than 40 hours in a week.
  
 In your capacity as Chief Operating Officer, you will perform duties and responsibilities as are normally associated with and appropriate for such position, and as may be assigned to you from time to time by the Company's President. You will report directly to the Company’s President (currently, Fawad Maqbool) or another individual designated by the Company's Board of Directors (the ''Board''). You recognize that during the Employment Period hereunder, you owe an undivided duty of loyalty to the Company, and you will use your good faith efforts to promote and develop the business of the Company and its subsidiaries (the Company’s subsidiaries from time to time, together with any other affiliates of the Company, the "Affiliates''). You shall devote all of your business time, attention and skills to the performance of your services as Chief Operating Officer. Recognizing and acknowledging that it is essential for the protection and enhancement of the name and business of the Company and the goodwill pertaining thereto, you shall perform your duties under this agreement in accordance with the applicable laws, rules and regulations and such standards, policies and procedures established by the Company.
  
 You shall be entitled to four, non-consecutive weeks of paid vacation per year, on such dates as approved by management.
  
 Compensation
  
 In consideration for your services as Chief Operating Officer, you will be paid an annual salary of $275,000, retroactive to January 1, 2022 (excluding any compensation already paid under your prior employment agreement with the Company), payable in accordance with the standard payroll practices of the Company and subject to all withholdings and deductions as required or permitted by law.
  
 	 
	
	

	 

   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

   
 During the Employment Period, you will be eligible to participate in the AmpliTech Group, Inc. 2020 Equity Incentive Plan or any successor plan (the “2020 Plan”), subject to the terms of 2020 Plan or successor plan, as determined by the Company’s Board of Directors or Compensation Committee, in its discretion.
  
 As Chief Operating Officer, you will be eligible to participate in benefit plans and programs in effect from time to time, including paid vacation/paid sick leave/Paid Time Off (PTO), insurance programs and any applicable benefit plans, and other fringe benefits as are made available to other similarly situated employees of the Company, in accordance with and subject to the eligibility and other provisions of such plans and programs. The Company reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to prospectively modify or terminate any of its benefits plans or programs from time to time/at any time and for any reason, to the extent permitted by applicable law. Please refer to attached Addendum for detail on the benefits.
  
 You will be subject to all applicable employment and other policies of the Company, as outlined in the Company employment handbook and elsewhere.
  
 For Cause Employment
  
 Your employment may be terminated by the Company for Cause (as defined herein) at any time and without prior notice. Your employment may also be terminated by the Company, without Cause at any time and without prior notice, provided, however, if your employment is terminated without cause, you shall be entitled to receive three months of base salary and accrued and unpaid vacation if you sign a release of claims to be provided by the Company on the termination of your employment. For purposes of this Letter, "Cause" shall include:
  
 	  
	 (i)
	 failure to perform your duties (other than any such failure resulting from incapacity due to physical or mental illness);

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (ii)
	 failure to comply with any valid and legal directive of the person or persons to whom you report;

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (iii)
	 engagement in dishonesty, illegal conduct, or misconduct, which is, in each case, injurious to the Company or its Affiliates;

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (iv)
	 embezzlement, misappropriation, or fraud, whether or not related to your employment with the Company;

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (v)
	 conviction of or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to a crime that constitutes a felony (or state law equivalent) or a crime that constitutes a misdemeanor;

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (vi)
	 violation of the Company's written policies or codes of conduct, including written policies related to discrimination, harassment, performance of illegal or unethical activities, and ethical misconduct;

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (vii)
	 unauthorized disclosure of Confidential Information (as defined below);

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (viii)
	 material breach of any material obligation under this Agreement or any other written agreement between you and the Company; or

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (ix)
	 engagement in conduct that brings or is reasonably likely to bring the Company negative publicity or into public disgrace, embarrassment, or disrepute.

   
 	 
	
	

	 

   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

   
 You are free to terminate your employment at any time, so long as you provide a minimum of 30 business days' notice.
  
 Providing notice does not create an express or implied contract for continued employment or employment for a fixed period.
  
 The Company reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to prospectively modify or rescind any of the terms set forth in this Letter at any time during the course of your employment, to the extent permitted by applicable law.
  
 Confidential Information
  
 (a) You recognize, acknowledge and agree that you have had and will continue to have access to secret and confidential information regarding the Company, its Affiliates and their respective businesses (“Confidential Information”), including but not limited to, its products, methods, formulas, software code, patents, sources of supply, customer dealings, data, know-how, trade secrets and business plans, provided such information is not in or does not hereafter become part of the public domain, or become known to others through no fault of you. You acknowledge that such information is of great value to the Company, is the sole property of the Company, and has been and will be acquired by you in confidence. In consideration of the obligations undertaken by the Company herein, you will not, at any time, during or after your employment hereunder, reveal, divulge or make known to any person, any information acquired by you during the course of your employment, which is treated as confidential by the Company, and not otherwise in the public domain. The confidentiality provisions of this Letter shall survive the termination of your employment hereunder.
  
 (b) You affirm that you do not possess and will not rely upon the protected trade secrets or confidential or proprietary information of any prior employer(s) in providing services to the Company or its subsidiaries.
  
 (c) In the event that your employment with the Company terminates for any reason, you shall deliver forthwith, to the Company any and all originals and copies, including those in electronic or digital formats, of Confidential Information; provided, however, you shall be entitled to retain (i) papers and other materials of a personal nature, including, but not limited to, photographs, correspondence, personal diaries, calendars and rolodexes, personal files and phone books, (ii) information showing your compensation or relating to reimbursement of expenses, (iii) information that you reasonably believe may be needed for tax purposes and (iv) copies of plans, programs and agreements relating to your employment, or termination thereof, with the Company. The covenants and agreements in this Letter shall exclude information (A) which is in the public domain through no unauthorized act or omission by you or (B) which becomes available to you on a non-confidential basis from a source other than the Company or its affiliates without breach of such source’s confidentiality or non-disclosure obligations to the Company or any of its Affiliates.
  
 	 
	
	

	 

   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

   
 Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation.
  
 (a) You agree and acknowledge that the Confidential Information that you have already received and will receive is valuable to the Company and that its protection and maintenance constitutes a legitimate business interest of the Company, to be protected by the non-competition restrictions set forth herein. You agree and acknowledge that the non-competition restrictions set forth herein are reasonable and necessary, and do not impose undue hardship or burdens on you. You also acknowledge that the Company's Business (as such term is defined below) is conducted throughout the world (the “Territory'”), and that the Territory, scope of prohibited competition, and time duration set forth in the non-competition restrictions set forth below are reasonable and necessary to maintain the value of the Confidential Information of, and to protect the goodwill and other legitimate business interests of, the Company, its Affiliates and/or its customers and suppliers. The non-competition and non-solicitation provisions of this Letter shall survive the termination of your employment hereunder for a period of one year. For the purposes of this Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation section, "Business" means the design, engineering and assembly of any AmpliTech components that meet individual Company and customer specifications.
  
 (b) You hereby agree and covenant that you shall not without the prior written consent of the Company, directly or indirectly, in any capacity whatsoever, including, without limitation, as an employee, employer, consultant, principal, partner, shareholder, officer, director or any other individual or representative capacity (other than (i) as a holder of less than two (2%) percent of the outstanding securities of a company whose shares are traded on any national securities exchange or (ii) as a limited partner, passive minority interest holder in a venture capital fund, private equity fund or similar investment entity which holds or may hold an equity or debt position in portfolio companies that are competitive with the Company; provided however, that you shall be precluded from serving as an operating partner, general partner, manager or governing board designee with respect to such portfolio companies), or whether on your own behalf or on behalf of any other person or entity or otherwise howsoever, during the Term and thereafter to the extent described below, within the Territory:
  
 (1) Engage, own, manage, operate, control, be employed by, consult for, participate in, or be connected in any manner with the ownership, management, operation or control of any business in competition with the Business of the Company, as defined in the next sentence.
  
 (2) Recruit, solicit or hire, or attempt to recruit, solicit or hire, any employee, or independent contractor of the Company to leave the employment (or independent contractor relationship) thereof, whether or not any such employee or independent contractor is party to an employment agreement, for the purpose of competing with the Business of the Company;
  
 (3) Attempt in any manner to solicit or accept from any customer of the Company, business of the kind or competitive with the business done by the Company with such customer or to persuade or attempt to persuade any such customer to cease to do business or to reduce the amount of business which such customer has customarily done or might do with the Company, or if any such customer elects to move its business to a person other than the Company, provide any services of the kind or competitive with the business of the Company for such customer, or have any discussions regarding any such service with such customer, on behalf of such other person for the purpose of competing with the Business of the Company; or
  
 (4) Interfere with any relationship, contractual or otherwise, between the Company and any other party, including, without limitation, any supplier, distributor, co-venturer, joint venture, investor, investee or strategic partner of the Company, for the purpose of soliciting such other party to discontinue or reduce its business with the Company for the purpose of competing with the Business of the Company.
   
 	 
	
	

	 

   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

   
 Disputes
  
 Any dispute, controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this Letter, its enforcement, arbitrability or interpretation, or because of an alleged breach, default, or misrepresentation in connection with any of its provisions and/or arising out of or relating in any way to your employment, including application for employment, with you or termination of employment, including any alleged violation of statute, common law or public policy shall be submitted to and decided by final and binding arbitration. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, nothing in this Letter shall be interpreted to mean that employees are precluded from filing complaints with the New York Department of Labor and/or federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and National Labor Relations Board.
  
 The arbitration shall be administered by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) in accordance with its then-current Employment Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures, as modified by the terms and conditions contained in this Section, and held in New York, New York, before a single arbitrator. The arbitrator shall be selected by mutual agreement of the parties or, if the parties cannot agree, then by striking from a list of arbitrators supplied by the AAA.
  
 Continuing Obligations
  
 By accepting this offer, you confirm that you are able to accept this job and carry out the work involved without breaching any legal restrictions on your activities, such as restrictions imposed by a current or former employer. You also confirm that you will inform the Company about any such restrictions and provide the Company with as much information about them as possible, including copies of any agreements between you and your current or former employer describing such restrictions on your activities.
  
 You further confirm that you will not remove or copy any documents or proprietary data or materials of any kind, electronic or otherwise, from your current or former employers to the Company without written authorization from your current or former employer. If you have any questions about the ownership of particular documents or other information, discuss such questions with your current or former employers before removing or copying the documents or information.
  
 [signature page follows immediately]
  
 ***
  
 	 
	
	

	 

   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

   
 All of us at the Company are excited about the prospect of having you as our Chief Operating Officer. If you have any questions about the above details, please call me immediately. We look forward to you accepting this position, and request that you sign below and return this Letter to me by February [], 2022.
  
 I look forward to hearing from you.
  
 	Yours sincerely,  
 AMPLITECH GROUP, INC.
	
	 	 	 
	Signed:	/s/ Fawad Maqbool	
	 Name:
	Fawad Maqbool	 
	Title: 	President	 

   
 Acceptance of Offer
  
 I have read and understand all the terms of the offer of employment set forth in this letter and I accept each of those terms. I further understand that this Letter is the Company's complete offer of employment to me and this Letter supersedes all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations, and warranties, both written and oral, with respect to my employment. I have not relied on any agreements or representations, express or implied, that are not set forth expressly in this Letter.
   
 	 	 	 
	Signed:	/s/ Jorge  Flores	
	 Name:
	Jorge Flores	 
	Date: 	February 22, 2022	 

  
 	 
	
	

	 

   
 	 

	  
	  

	  620 Johnson Avenue Bohemia, N.Y.11716
	  (631) 621-7831

   
 ADDENDUM
  
 AmpliTech Benefits Package
  
 We offer:
  
 	  
	 (I)
	 Medical insurance offered through Oxford Health Plan covered by Amplitech.

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (ii)
	 Dental insurance offered through Guardian which includes $25,000 of life insurance and AD&D which is covered by AmpliTech.

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (iii)
	 AFLAC- Accident Plan covered by AmpliTech. We offer dental, hospitalization and cancer plans at the expense of the employee.

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (iv)
	 401K plan pretax salary contributions.

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (v)
	 Vacation and sick time as stipulated per the employment agreement.

	  
	  
	  

	  
	 (vi)
	 VSP eye coverage covered by Amplitech.Document

Exhibit 4.3
DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES
REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

As of December 31, 2021, Tronox Holdings plc (“Tronox Holdings” or the “Company”) had one class of securities registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”): our ordinary shares.

Description of Ordinary Shares

The following description of our ordinary shares, nominal value US$0.01 per share, is a summary and does not purport to be complete. It is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to the applicable laws of England and Wales, the applicable provisions of the UK Companies Act 2006 (the “UK Companies Act”) and our Articles of Association (the “Articles of Association”), which is incorporated by reference as an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this Exhibit 4.3 is a part. We encourage you to read our Articles of Association and the applicable provisions of the UK Companies Act for additional information. 

General

As of the date of this filing, we are authorized to issue up to 500 million of our ordinary shares. Computershare Trust Company, N.A. is the transfer agent and registrar for our ordinary shares, which are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “TROX.”

Dividends and Distributions

Subject to the UK Companies Act, shareholders may declare dividends by ordinary resolution (but no dividend shall exceed any dividend recommended by the Board).  The Board may also pay dividends to shareholders in accordance with their respective rights and interests in the Company. Dividends may be paid only out of “distributable reserves,” defined as “accumulated, realized profits, so far as not previously utilized by distribution or capitalization, less accumulated, realized losses, so far as not previously written off in a reduction or reorganization of capital.” The Company is not permitted to pay dividends out of share capital, which includes share premiums. Realized reserves are determined by reference to qualifying accounts of the Company meeting certain prescribed contents requirements and in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The Company will not be permitted to make a distribution if, at the time, the amount of its net assets is less than the aggregate of its issued and paid-up share capital and undistributable reserves or to the extent that the distribution will reduce the net assets below such amount. The Company is undertaking a reduction of capital with the aim of ensuring that sufficient distributable reserves will be available to permit dividends, distributions or share repurchases.

There are no fixed dates on which entitlement to dividends arise on any of the ordinary shares.

A general meeting declaring a dividend may, upon the recommendation of the Board, by ordinary resolution direct that it be satisfied wholly or partly by the distribution of assets, including shares or securities in any company. The Articles of Association also permit a scrip dividend scheme under which the Board may allot to 

holders of ordinary shares who have elected to receive them, further ordinary shares, credited as fully paid, instead of cash in respect of all or part of a dividend.  Unclaimed dividends and other amounts payable by the Company can be invested or otherwise used by the Board for the benefit of the Company until they are claimed or disposed of in accordance with any applicable law relating to unclaimed monies.

Conversion, Redemption and Residency

There are no conversion rights or redemption provisions relating to the ordinary shares. Under the laws of England and Wales, persons who are neither residents nor nationals of the UK may freely hold, vote and transfer the ordinary shares in the same manner and under the same terms as UK residents or nationals.

Voting Rights

The Articles of Association provide that, for so long as any shares are held by a Depositary (as defined in the Articles of Association), a resolution put to the vote at a general meeting shall be decided on a poll. Subject to the UK Companies Act and to any rights or restrictions as to voting attached to any class of shares, every shareholder present and entitled to vote on the resolution has one vote for every ordinary share of which he, she or it is the holder.  In the case of joint holders of an ordinary share, the vote of the senior holder (determined by the order of the joint holders’ names on the register) who votes (or any proxy duly appointed by the senior holder) shall be accepted to the exclusion of the votes of the other joint holders.

Amendment to the Articles of Association

Under the laws of England and Wales, and subject to a quorum being present, the shareholders may amend the articles of association of the Company by special resolution (i.e., a resolution approved by the holders of at least 75% of the aggregate voting power of the outstanding ordinary shares that, being entitled to vote, vote on the resolution) at a general meeting. The full text of the special resolution must be included in the notice of the meeting.

Winding Up

In the event of a voluntary winding up of the Company, the liquidator may, with the sanction of a special resolution of the Company and any other sanction required by law, divide among the shareholders the whole or any part of the assets of the Company and vest the whole or any part of the assets in trustees upon such trusts for the benefit of the members as the liquidator, with the like sanction, will determine. Upon any such winding up, after payment or provision for payment of the Company’s debts and liabilities, the holders of ordinary shares (and any other shares in issue at the relevant time which rank equally with such shares) will share equally, on a share for share basis, in the Company’s assets remaining for distribution to the holders of ordinary shares.

Pre-emptive Rights and New Issues of ordinary shares

Under the laws of England and Wales, the Board is, with certain exceptions, unable to allot and issue securities without being authorized by the shareholders in a general meeting. In addition, the laws of England and 

Wales require that any issuance of equity securities that are to be paid for wholly in cash must be offered first to the existing holders of equity securities in proportion to the respective nominal amounts (i.e., par values) of their holdings on the same or more favorable terms, unless a special resolution (i.e., a resolution approved by the holders of at least 75% of the aggregate voting power of the outstanding ordinary shares that, being entitled to vote, vote on the resolution) excluding this requirement has been passed in a general meeting of shareholders (which authority can be for a maximum of five years, after which a further shareholder approval would be required to renew the exclusion). In this context, equity securities generally means shares other than shares which, with respect to dividends or capital, carry a right to participate only up to a specified amount in a distribution, which, in relation to the Company, will include the ordinary shares and all rights to subscribe for or convert securities into such shares.

The directors of the Company have been authorized by way of a shareholder resolution passed at a general meeting of the Company held on February 25, 2019, for a period of five years, to allot shares in the Company, or to grant rights to subscribe for or to convert or exchange any security into shares in the Company, up to an aggregate nominal amount (i.e., par value) of US$5,000,000 and pre-emption rights in respect of such allotments have also been excluded.

The laws of England and Wales also prohibit an English company from issuing shares at a discount to nominal amount (i.e., par value) or for no consideration. If the shares are issued upon the lapse of restrictions or the vesting of any restricted stock award or any other share-based grant underlying any ordinary shares, the nominal amount (i.e., par value) of the shares must be paid up in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.

Shareholder Rights Plan

Under the Articles of Association, a shareholder rights plan may be established to prevent an “ownership change” for the purpose of section 382 of the US Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“section 382”).  The purpose of any rights plan will be to preserve the Company’s ability to utilize its net operating loss carry forwards and other tax attributes, which would be substantially limited if the Company experienced an “ownership change” as defined under section 382.  In general, an ownership change would occur under section 382 if the shareholders who are treated as owning 5% or more of ordinary shares for the purposes of section 382 collectively increased their aggregate ownership in ordinary shares by more than 50% over a rolling three-year period.

Effective from the date that a rights plan is introduced, the Board will grant subscription rights to holders of ordinary shares to acquire ordinary shares (or shares of any class as specified in the rights plan) such that, if any person or group acquires 4.5% or more of the ordinary shares, or if a person or group that owns 4.5% or more of ordinary shares acquires additional ordinary shares representing 0.5% or more of the issued ordinary shares, then, subject to certain exceptions, there would be a triggering event under the rights plan.  The rights would then separate from the ordinary shares and would be adjusted to become exercisable so that ordinary shares (or shares of any class as specified in the rights plan) could be acquired by all holders of ordinary shares (other than the person or group that caused the trigger event).  The shares to be acquired would have a market value equal to twice the exercise price, resulting in significant dilution in the ownership interest of the person or group that caused the trigger event.

If a rights plan is established, the Board will have the discretion to exempt any acquisition of ordinary shares from the provisions of the rights plan if it determines that doing so would not jeopardize or endanger the 

Company’s use of its net operating losses.  The Board will also have the ability to terminate any rights plan prior to a triggering event, including, but not limited to, in connection with a transaction.

Rights issued under a rights plan are expected to expire five years after the date on which any rights plan is established.

Disclosure of Interests in Shares

The laws of England and Wales give the Company the power to serve a notice requiring any person whom it knows has, or whom it has reasonable cause to believe has, or within the previous three years has had, any ownership interest in any ordinary shares to disclose specified information regarding those shares. Failure to provide the information requested within the prescribed period (or knowingly or recklessly providing false information) after the date the notice is sent can result in criminal or civil sanctions being imposed against the person in default.

Under the Articles of Association, if any shareholder, or any other person appearing to be interested in ordinary shares held by such shareholder, fails to give the Company the information required by the notice, the Board may withdraw voting and certain other rights, and place restrictions on the rights to receive dividends and to transfer such ordinary shares.

Alteration of Share Capital; Repurchase of ordinary shares

Subject to the provisions of the UK Companies Act, and without prejudice to any relevant special rights attached to any class of shares, the Company may, from time to time:

•increase its share capital by allotting and issuing new shares in accordance with the Articles of Association and any relevant shareholder resolution;

•consolidate all or any of its share capital into shares of a larger nominal amount (i.e., par value) than the existing shares; or

•redenominate its share capital or any class of share capital.
						
		

The laws of England and Wales prohibit the Company from purchasing its own shares unless such purchase has been approved by its shareholders. Shareholders may approve two different types of such share purchases: “on-market” purchases or “off-market” purchases. “On-market” purchases may be made only on a “recognised investment exchange,” which does not include the NYSE, which is the only exchange on which the Company’s Shares are traded. In order to purchase its own shares, the Company must therefore obtain shareholder approval for “off-market” purchases. This requires that the Company’s shareholders pass an ordinary resolution approving the terms of the contract pursuant to which any purchase is to be made. Such approval may be for a specific purchase or constitute a general authority lasting for up to five years after the date of the resolution, and renewal of such approval for additional five-year terms may be sought more frequently. However, shares may be repurchased only 

out of distributable reserves or, subject to certain exceptions, the proceeds of a fresh issue of shares made for that purpose. At a general meeting of the Company held on February 25, 2019, shareholder resolutions were passed authorizing the Company to repurchase ordinary shares for a period of five years through (i) an approved form of share repurchase contract, or (ii) an approved form of share repurchase plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act.  

Transfer of ordinary shares

The Articles of Association allow holders of ordinary shares to transfer all or any of their ordinary shares in the case of ordinary shares held in certificated form by instrument of transfer in writing in any usual form or in any other form which is permitted by the UK Companies Act and is approved by the Board. The instrument of transfer must be executed by or on behalf of the transferor and (in the case of a transfer of a share which is not fully paid) by or on behalf of the transferee.

The Board may, in its absolute discretion, refuse to register a transfer of a certificated ordinary share to any person if it is not fully paid or is an ordinary share on which the Company has a lien. The Board may also refuse to register the transfer of a share in certain other limited circumstances, including if the transfer is not in favor of four or fewer transferees or it is in favor of a minor, bankrupt or person of mental ill health.  If the Board refuses to register the transfer of a share, the instrument of transfer must be returned to the transferee within two months after the date on which the transfer was lodged with the Company with the notice of refusal and reasons for the refusal.

The Company’s share register is maintained by its transfer agent, Computershare Trust Company, N.A.  Registration in this share register is determinative of share ownership. A shareholder who holds ordinary shares through the DTC clearance system is not the holder of record of such shares. Instead, the depositary (for example, Cede & Co., as nominee for DTC) or other nominee is the holder of record of such shares.  Accordingly, a transfer of shares from a person who holds such shares through the DTC clearance system to a person who also holds such shares through the DTC clearance system will not be registered in the Company’s official share register, as the depositary or other nominee will remain the record holder of such shares.

Anti-Takeover Provisions

The UK City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the “Takeover Code”) applies, among other things, to an offer for a public company whose registered office is in the UK (or the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) and whose securities are not admitted to trading on a regulated marked in the UK (or on any stock exchange in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) if the company is considered by the UK Panel on Takeovers and Mergers (the “Takeover Panel”), the regulatory body which issues and administers the Takeover Code, to have its place of central management and control in the UK (or the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man).  This is known as the “residency test”.  Under the Takeover Code, the Takeover Panel will determine whether the Company has its place of central management and control in the UK by looking at various factors, including the structure of the Board, the functions of the directors and where they are resident.

If, at the time of a takeover offer, the Takeover Panel determines that the Company has its place of central management and control in the UK, the Company would be subject to a number of rules and restrictions, including but not limited to the following: (i) the ability of the Company to enter into deal protection arrangements with a bidder would be extremely limited; (ii) the Company might not, without the approval of its shareholders, be able to perform certain actions that could have the effect of frustrating an offer, such as issuing shares or carrying out acquisitions or disposals; and (iii) the Company would be obliged to provide equality of information to all bona fide competing bidders.

It is intended that all of the Company’s directors will reside outside of the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.  Accordingly, for the purposes of the Takeover Code, the Company is expected to be considered to have its place of central management and control outside the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.  Therefore, the Takeover Code is not expected to apply to the Company.  It is possible that in the future circumstances could change that may cause the Takeover Code to apply to the Company.

Although the Company is not expected to be subject to the Takeover Code, the Articles of Association incorporate the protections of mandatory offer provisions substantially similar to the Takeover Code.  Except with the prior consent of the Board or the prior approval of independent shareholders, a shareholder, together with persons acting in concert with it, would be at risk of certain sanctions including disenfranchisement (as regards voting and entitlement to dividends) if they acquired an interest in ordinary shares carrying 30% or more of the voting rights of the Company without making an offer for all of the other issued ordinary shares in cash or accompanied by a cash alternative. These provisions could have the effect of discouraging the acquisition and holding of interests of 30% or more of the voting rights and encouraging those shareholders who may be acting in concert with respect to the acquisition of shares to consult with the Board before effecting any additional purchases.
The mandatory offer provisions in the Articles of Association only apply while the Takeover Code does not apply to the Company.

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