Document:

ecig_ex41.htm

Exhibit 4.1

 

NEITHER THIS SECURITY NOR THE SECURITIES INTO WHICH THIS SECURITY IS EXERCISABLE HAVE BEEN REGISTERED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR THE SECURITIES COMMISSION OF ANY STATE IN RELIANCE UPON AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), AND, ACCORDINGLY, MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR PURSUANT TO AN AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE STATE SECURITIES LAWS AS EVIDENCED BY A LEGAL OPINION OF COUNSEL TO THE TRANSFEROR TO SUCH EFFECT, THE SUBSTANCE OF WHICH SHALL BE REASONABLY ACCEPTABLE TO THE COMPANY.

 

COMMON STOCK PURCHASE WARRANT

 

No. VECC 414-

Dated: April 30, 2014

THIS COMMON STOCK PURCHASE WARRANT (the “Warrant”) certifies that, for value received, __________ (the “Holder”), is entitled, upon the terms and subject to the limitations on exercise and the conditions hereinafter set forth, at any time on or after the date hereof (the “Initial Exercise Date”) and on or prior to the close of business on the fifth (5th) year anniversary of the Initial Exercise Date (the “Termination Date”), to subscribe for and purchase from Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corporation, a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), up to ________ shares (the “Warrant Shares”) of Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share, of the Company (the “Common Stock”).  The purchase price of one share of Common Stock under this Warrant shall be equal to the Exercise Price, as defined in Section 2(b).

 

1.           Definitions.  In addition to the terms defined above and herein, the following terms used in this Agreement shall be construed to have the meanings set forth or referenced below.

 

(a)           “Affiliate” means, with respect to any specified Person, any other Person who directly or indirectly, controls, is controlled by or is under common control with such Person.

 

(b)           “Business Day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banks in the State of Nevada are authorized or required by law or executive order to close.

 

(c)           “Commission” means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

(d)           “Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

 

(e)           “Offering” has the same meaning as that term is used in the Placement Agent Agreement.

 

(f)           “Person” means any individual, corporation, partnership, trust, limited liability company, association or other entity.

 

(g)           “Placement Agent Agreement” means the Placement Agent Agreement by and between the Company and ________________.

 

(h)           “Prospectus” means the prospectus related to any Registration Statement (whether preliminary or final or any prospectus supplement, including, without limitation, a prospectus or prospectus supplement that discloses information previously omitted from a prospectus filed as part of an effective registration statement in reliance on Rule 415, 424, 430A, 430B or 430C under the Securities Act, as amended or supplemented by any amendment or prospectus supplement), including post-effective amendments, and all materials incorporated by reference in such prospectus.

 

(i)           “Registration Rights Agreement” means the Registration Rights Agreement by and among the Company and the Holders thereto, dated as of the date hereof.

 

(j)           “Registration Statement” means any registration statement filed pursuant to the Securities Act.

 

(k)           “Securities Purchase Agreement” means the Securities Purchase Agreement by and among the Company and the Investors thereto, dated as of the date hereof.

 

  

1

  

(l)           “Trading Day” means (a) any day on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted and traded on its primary trading market and/or quotation system, as the case may be, (b) if the Common Stock is not then listed or quoted and traded on any trading market, then a day on which trading occurs on the OTC Bulletin Board (or any successor thereto), or (c) if trading does not occur on the OTC Bulletin Board (or any successor thereto), any Business Day.

 

(m)           “Trading Market” means any of the following markets or exchanges on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted for trading on the date in question: the NYSE MKT, the Nasdaq Capital Market, the Nasdaq Global Market, the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the New York Stock Exchange, the OTC Bulletin Board, the OTCQX, OTCQB or OTC Pink (or any successors to any of the foregoing).

 

(n)           “Transaction Documents” means the Placement Agent Agreement, each Warrant issued pursuant to the Offering and the Registration Rights Agreement.

 

(o)           “Transfer Agent” means Nevada Agency and Transfer Company.

 

2.           Exercise.

 

(a)           Exercise of Warrant.  Exercise of the purchase rights represented by this Warrant may be made, in whole or in part, at any time or times on or after the Initial Exercise Date and on or before the Termination Date by delivery to the Company (or such other office or agency of the Company as it may designate by notice in writing to the registered Holder at the address of the Holder appearing on the books of the Company) of a duly executed facsimile or electronic mail copy of the Notice of Exercise form annexed hereto. Within three (3) Trading Days following the date of exercise as aforesaid, the Holder shall deliver the aggregate Exercise Price for the shares specified in the applicable Notice of Exercise by wire transfer or cashier’s check drawn on a United States bank unless the cashless exercise procedure specified in Section 2(c) below is specified in the applicable Notice of Exercise. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Holder shall not be required to physically surrender this Warrant to the Company until the Holder has purchased all of the Warrant Shares available hereunder and the Warrant has been exercised in full, in which case, the Holder shall surrender this Warrant to the Company for cancellation within three (3) Trading Days of the date the final Notice of Exercise is delivered to the Company. Partial exercises of this Warrant resulting in purchases of a portion of the total number of Warrant Shares available hereunder shall have the effect of lowering the outstanding number of Warrant Shares purchasable hereunder in an amount equal to the applicable number of Warrant Shares purchased.  The Holder and the Company shall maintain records showing the number of Warrant Shares purchased and the date of such purchases. The Company shall deliver any objection to any Notice of Exercise Form within one (1) Business Day of receipt of such notice.  The Holder and any assignee, by acceptance of this Warrant, acknowledge and agree that, by reason of the provisions of this paragraph, following the purchase of a portion of the Warrant Shares hereunder, the number of Warrant Shares available for purchase hereunder at any given time may be less than the amount stated on the face hereof.

 

(b)           Exercise Price.  The exercise price of the Common Stock under this Warrant shall be equal to $6.50 per full share of Common Stock subject to adjustment hereunder (the “Exercise Price”).

 

(c)           Cashless Exercise.  If at any time of exercise by the Holder after the sixth month anniversary of the Initial Exercise Date and until the earlier of (i) the date all of the Warrant Shares have been sold pursuant to a registration statement or under Rule 144, (ii) the date any of the Warrant Shares may be sold pursuant to Rule 144 without volume or manner of sale restrictions, or (iii) the Termination Date, there is no effective Registration Statement registering, or no current prospectus available for the resale of the Warrant Shares by the Holder, but excluding the period of any Allowed Delay (as defined below) then this Warrant may be exercised, in whole or in part, at such time by means of a “cashless exercise” in which the Holder shall be entitled to receive a certificate for the number of Warrant Shares equal to the quotient obtained by dividing [(A-B) (X)] by (A), where:

 

(A) = the VWAP on the Trading Day immediately preceding the date on which Holder elects to exercise this Warrant by means of a “cashless exercise,” as set forth in the applicable Notice of Exercise;

 

(B) = the Exercise Price of this Warrant, as adjusted hereunder; and

 

(X) = the number of Warrant Shares that would be issuable upon exercise of this Warrant in accordance with the terms of this Warrant if such exercise were by means of a cash exercise rather than a cashless exercise.

 

“VWAP” means, for any date, the price determined by the first of the following clauses that applies: (a) if the Common Stock is then listed or quoted on primary trading market and/or quotation system, as the case may be, the daily volume weighted average price of the Common Stock for such date (or the nearest preceding date) on which such primary trading market and/or quotation system on which the Common Stock is then listed or quoted for trading as reported by Bloomberg, L.P. (“Bloomberg”) (based on a Trading Day from 9:30 a.m. (New York City time) to 4:02 p.m. (New York City time); (b) if the Common Stock is not then listed or quoted and traded on any trading market, the volume weighted average price of the Common Stock for such date (or the nearest preceding date) on the OTC Bulletin Board; (c) if the Common Stock is not then quoted for trading on the OTC Bulletin Board and if prices for the Common Stock are then reported in the “Pink Sheets” published by Pink Sheets, LLC (or a similar organization or agency succeeding to its functions of reporting prices), the most recent bid price per share of the Common Stock so reported; or (d) in all other cases, the fair market value of a share of Common Stock as determined by an independent appraiser to be mutually agreed upon by (i) the Company and (ii) the Holders of a majority of the aggregate Warrants Shares (assuming, for this purpose only, the exercise of all Warrants) then outstanding, the fees and expenses of which shall be paid by the Company.

 

For purposes of clarity, in the event that a Registration Statement covering the resale of the Warrant Shares is effective at any time after the Effectiveness Deadline (as such term is used in the Registration Rights Agreement) and is effective at the time a notice of exercise is delivered to the Company by Holder this Warrant shall be exercisable only for cash with respect to such notice.

 

  

2

  

(d)           Mechanics of Exercise.

 

(i)           Delivery of Certificates Upon Exercise.  Certificates for shares purchased hereunder shall be transmitted by the Transfer Agent to the Holder by crediting the account of the Holder’s prime broker with The Depository Trust Company through its Deposit or Withdrawal at Custodian system (“DWAC”) if the Company is then a participant in such system and either (A) there is an effective registration statement permitting the issuance of the Warrant Shares to or resale of the Warrant Shares by the Holder or (B) the shares are eligible for resale by the Holder without volume or manner-of-sale limitations pursuant to Rule 144, and otherwise by physical delivery to the address specified by the Holder in the Notice of Exercise by the date that is three (3) Trading Days after  the delivery to the Company of the Notice of Exercise, provided that the Holder shall have surrendered  this Warrant (if required) and  paid  the aggregate Exercise Price as set forth above (including by cashless exercise, if permitted) (such date, the “Warrant Share Delivery Date”) on or prior to the Warrant Share Delivery Date.   The Warrant Shares shall be deemed to have been issued, and Holder or any other person so designated to be named therein shall be deemed to have become a holder of record of such shares for all purposes, as of the date the Holder has delivered the Notice of Exercise, with payment to the Company of the Exercise Price (or by cashless exercise, if permitted)  prior to the delivery  of such shares, having been satisfied.  If the Company fails for any reason to deliver to the Holder certificates evidencing the Warrant Shares subject to a Notice of Exercise by the Warrant Share Delivery Date, the Company shall pay to the Holder, in cash, as liquidated damages and not as a penalty, for each $1,000 of Warrant Shares subject to such exercise (based on the VWAP of the Common Stock on the date of the applicable Notice of Exercise), $10 per Trading Day (increasing to $20 per Trading Day on the fifth Trading Day after such liquidated damages begin to accrue) for each Trading Day after such Warrant Share Delivery Date commencing five (5) Trading Days following written notification to the Company until such certificates are delivered or Holder rescinds such exercise.

 

(ii)           Delivery of New Warrants Upon Exercise.  If this Warrant shall have been exercised in part, the Company shall, at the request of a Holder and upon surrender of this Warrant certificate, at the time of delivery of the certificate or certificates representing Warrant Shares, deliver to the Holder a new Warrant evidencing the rights of the Holder to purchase the unpurchased Warrant Shares called for by this Warrant, which new Warrant shall in all other respects be identical with this Warrant.

 

(iii)           Rescission Rights.  If the Company fails to cause the Transfer Agent to transmit to the Holder a certificate or the certificates representing the Warrant Shares pursuant to Section 2(d)(i) by the Warrant Share Delivery Date, then the Holder will have the right to rescind such exercise.

 

(iv)           Buy-In Rights.  In addition to any other rights available to the Holder, if the Company fails to cause the Transfer Agent to transmit to the Holder a certificate or the certificates representing the Warrant Shares pursuant to an exercise on or before the Warrant Share Delivery Date, and if after such date the Holder is required by its broker to purchase (in an open market transaction or otherwise) or the Holder’s brokerage firm otherwise purchases, shares of Common Stock to deliver in satisfaction of a sale by the Holder of the Warrant Shares which the Holder anticipated receiving upon such exercise (a “Buy-In”), then the Company shall (A) pay in cash to the Holder the amount, if any, by which (x) the Holder’s total purchase price (including brokerage commissions, if any) for the shares of Common Stock so purchased exceeds (y) the amount obtained by multiplying (1) the number of Warrant Shares that the Company was required to deliver to the Holder in connection with the exercise at issue times (2) the price at which the sell order giving rise to such purchase obligation was executed, and (B) at the option of the Holder, either reinstate the portion of the Warrant and equivalent number of Warrant Shares for which such exercise was not honored (in which case such exercise shall be deemed rescinded) or deliver to the Holder the number of shares of Common Stock that would have been issued had the Company timely complied with its exercise and delivery obligations hereunder.  For example, if the Holder purchases Common Stock having a total purchase price of $11,000 to cover a Buy-In with respect to an attempted exercise of shares of Common Stock with an aggregate sale price giving rise to such purchase obligation of $10,000, under clause (A) of the immediately preceding sentence the Company shall be required to pay the Holder $1,000. The Holder shall provide the Company written notice indicating the amounts payable to the Holder in respect of the Buy-In and, upon request of the Company, evidence of the amount of such loss.  Nothing herein shall limit a Holder’s right to pursue any other remedies available to it hereunder, at law or in equity including, without limitation, a decree of specific performance and/or injunctive relief with respect to the Company’s failure to timely deliver certificates representing shares of Common Stock upon exercise of the Warrant as required pursuant to the terms hereof.

 

(v)           No Fractional Shares or Scrip.  No fractional shares or scrip representing fractional shares shall be issued upon the exercise of this Warrant.  As to any fraction of a share which the Holder would otherwise be entitled to purchase upon such exercise, the Company shall, at its election, either pay a cash adjustment in respect of such final fraction in an amount equal to such fraction multiplied by the Exercise Price or round up to the next whole share.

 

(vi)           Charges, Taxes and Expenses.  Issuance of certificates for Warrant Shares shall be made without charge to the Holder for any issue or transfer tax or other incidental expense in respect of the issuance of such certificate, all of which taxes and expenses shall be paid by the Company, and such certificates shall be issued in the name of the Holder or in such name or names as may be directed by the Holder; provided, however, that in the event certificates for Warrant Shares are to be issued in a name other than the name of the Holder, this Warrant when surrendered for exercise shall be accompanied by the Assignment Form annexed hereto duly executed by the Holder.

 

(vii)           Closing of Books.  The Company will not close its stockholder books or records in any manner which prevents the timely exercise of this Warrant, pursuant to the terms hereof.

 

  

3

  

(e)           Holder’s Exercise Limitations.  The Company shall not effect any exercise of this Warrant, and a Holder shall not have the right to exercise any portion of this Warrant, pursuant to Section 2 or otherwise, to the extent that after giving effect to such issuance after exercise as set forth on the applicable Notice of Exercise, the Holder (together with the Holder’s Affiliates, and any other Persons acting as a group together with the Holder or any of the Holder’s Affiliates), would beneficially own in excess of the Beneficial Ownership Limitation (as defined below).  For purposes of the foregoing sentence, the number of shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by the Holder and its Affiliates shall include the number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of this Warrant with respect to which such determination is being made, but shall exclude the number of shares of Common Stock which would be issuable upon (i) exercise of the remaining, nonexercised portion of this Warrant beneficially owned by the Holder or any of its Affiliates and (ii) exercise or conversion of the unexercised or nonconverted portion of any other securities of the Company (including, without limitation, any other  equivalents to Common Stock (“Common Stock Equivalents”)) subject to a limitation on conversion or exercise analogous to the limitation contained herein beneficially owned by the Holder or any of its Affiliates.  Except as set forth in the preceding sentence, for purposes of this Section 2(e), beneficial ownership shall be calculated in accordance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, it being acknowledged by the Holder that the Company is not representing to the Holder that such calculation is in compliance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act and the Holder is solely responsible for any schedules required to be filed in accordance therewith.   To the extent that the limitation contained in this Section 2(e) applies, the determination of whether this Warrant is exercisable (in relation to other securities owned by the Holder together with any Affiliates) and of which portion of this Warrant is exercisable shall be in the sole discretion of the Holder, and the submission of a Notice of Exercise shall be deemed to be the Holder’s determination of whether this Warrant is exercisable (in relation to other securities owned by the Holder together with any Affiliates) and of which portion of this Warrant is exercisable, in each case subject to the Beneficial Ownership Limitation, and the Company shall have no obligation to verify or confirm the accuracy of such determination.   In addition, a determination as to any group status as contemplated above shall be determined in accordance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. For purposes of this Section 2(e), in determining the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock, a Holder may rely on the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock as reflected in (A) the Company’s most recent periodic or annual report filed with the Commission, as the case may be, (B) a more recent public announcement by the Company or (C) a more recent written notice by the Company or the Transfer Agent setting forth the number of shares of Common Stock outstanding.  Upon the written or oral request of a Holder, the Company shall within two Trading Days confirm orally and in writing to the Holder the number of shares of Common Stock then outstanding.  In any case, the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock shall be determined after giving effect to the conversion or exercise of securities of the Company, including this Warrant, by the Holder or its Affiliates since the date as of which such number of outstanding shares of Common Stock was reported.  The “Beneficial Ownership Limitation” shall be 4.99% of the number of shares of the Common Stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to the issuance of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of this Warrant. The Holder, upon not less than 61 days’ prior notice to the Company or notice made prior to the date hereof, may increase or decrease the Beneficial Ownership Limitation provisions of this Section 2(e), provided that the Beneficial Ownership Limitation in no event exceeds 9.99% of the number of shares of the Common Stock outstanding (the “Maximum Percentage”) immediately after giving effect to the issuance of shares of Common Stock upon exercise of this Warrant held by the Holder and the provisions of this Section 2(e) shall continue to apply.  Any such increase or decrease will not be effective until the 61st day after such notice is delivered to the Company.  The provisions of this paragraph shall be construed and implemented in a manner otherwise than in strict conformity with the terms of this Section 2(e) to correct this paragraph (or any portion hereof) which may be defective or inconsistent with the intended Beneficial Ownership Limitation herein contained or to make changes or supplements necessary or desirable to properly give effect to such limitation. The limitations contained in this paragraph shall apply to a successor holder of this Warrant.

 

(f)           Allowed Delay.  For not more than ten (10) consecutive business days, and for not more than an aggregate of twenty (20) business days in any twelve (12) month period, the Company may suspend the use of any Prospectus included in any Registration Statement that covers the resale of Warrant Shares in the event that the Company determines in good faith that such suspension is necessary (A) to delay the disclosure of material non-public information concerning the Company, the disclosure of which at the time would be, in the good faith opinion of the Company, materially detrimental to the Company or (B) to amend or supplement the affected Registration Statement or the related Prospectus so that such Registration Statement or Prospectus shall not include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the case of the Prospectus in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading (an “Allowed Delay”); provided, that the Company shall promptly (i) notify each Holder in writing of the commencement of and the reasons for an Allowed Delay, but shall not (without the prior written consent of a Holder) disclose to such Holder any material non-public information giving rise to an Allowed Delay, (ii) advise the Holders in writing to cease all sales under the Registration Statement until the end of the Allowed Delay and (iii) use commercially reasonable best efforts to terminate an Allowed Delay as promptly as practicable.

 

 

(g)           Rights Upon Distribution of Assets.  If the Company shall declare or make any dividend or other distribution of its assets (or rights to acquire its assets) to any or all holders of shares of Common Stock, by way of return of capital or otherwise (including, without limitation, any distribution of cash, stock or other securities, property or options by way of a dividend, spin off, reclassification, corporate rearrangement, scheme of arrangement or other similar transaction) (a “Distribution”), at any time after the issuance of this Warrant, then, in each such case, upon an exercise of this Warrant, in whole or in part, the Holder shall be entitled to receive the amount of any such Distribution to the same extent that the Holder would have received if the Holder had held, immediately before the date on which a record is taken for such Distribution, or, if no such record is taken, the date as of which the record holders of shares of Common Stock are to be determined for the participation in such Distribution, the number of shares of Common Stock that the Holder is entitled to receive upon such exercise (provided, however, that to the extent that the Holder’s right to participate in any such Distribution would result in the Holder exceeding the Maximum Percentage, then the Holder shall not be entitled to participate in such Distribution to such extent (or in the beneficial ownership of any shares of Common Stock as a result of such Distribution to such extent) and the portion of such Distribution shall be held in abeyance for the benefit of the Holder until such time or times as its right thereto would not result in the Holder exceeding the Maximum Percentage, at which time or times the Holder shall be granted such Distribution (and any Distributions declared or made on such initial Distribution or on any subsequent Distribution to be held similarly in abeyance) to the same extent as if there had been no such limitation).  From the time of any Distribution until this Warrant is exercised or expires, the Company shall hold such Distribution for the benefit of the Holder.

 

  

4

  

(h)           Exercise Disputes.  In the case of any dispute with respect to the number of shares to be issued upon exercise of this Warrant, the Company shall promptly issue such number of shares of Common Stock that is not disputed and shall provide the Holder notice of the disputed determinations or arithmetic calculations within five (5) Business Days of receipt of the Notice of Exercise.  If the Holder and the Company are unable to agree as to the determination of the number of share to be issued within five (5) Business Days of such disputed determination or arithmetic calculation being submitted to the Holder, then the Company shall in accordance with this Section, submit the disputed determination to its independent auditor.  The Company shall cause its independent auditor to perform the determinations or calculations and notify the Company and the Holder of the results promptly, in writing and in sufficient detail to give the Holder and the Company a clear understanding of the issue.  The determination by the Company’s independent auditor shall be binding upon all parties absent manifest error.  The Company shall then on the next Business Day instruct its Transfer Agent to issue certificate(s) representing the appropriate number of Warrant Shares of Common Stock in accordance with the independent auditor’s determination and this Section.  The prevailing party shall be entitled to reimbursement of all fees and out-of-pocket expenses actually incurred in such determination and calculation.

 

3.           Certain Adjustments.

 

(a)           Stock Dividends and Splits. If the Company, at any time while this Warrant is outstanding: (i) pays a stock dividend or otherwise makes a distribution or distributions on shares of its Common Stock or any other equity or equity equivalent securities payable in shares of Common Stock (which, for avoidance of doubt, shall not include any shares of Common Stock issued by the Company upon exercise of this Warrant), (ii) subdivides outstanding shares of Common Stock into a larger number of shares, (iii) combines (including by way of reverse stock split) outstanding shares of Common Stock into a smaller number of shares or (iv) issues by reclassification of shares of the Common Stock any shares of capital stock of the Company, then in each case the Exercise Price shall be multiplied by a fraction of which the numerator shall be the number of shares of Common Stock (excluding treasury shares, if any) outstanding immediately before such event and of which the denominator shall be the number of shares of Common Stock outstanding immediately after such event, and the number of shares issuable upon exercise of this Warrant shall be proportionately adjusted such that the aggregate Exercise Price of this Warrant shall remain unchanged.  Any adjustment made pursuant to this Section 3(a) shall become effective immediately after the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to receive such dividend or distribution and shall become effective immediately after the effective date in the case of a subdivision, combination or re-classification.

 

(b)           Fundamental Transaction. If at any time while this Warrant is outstanding, (i) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions effects any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another Person, (ii) the Company, directly or indirectly, effects any sale, lease, license, assignment, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of all or substantially all of its assets in one or a series of related transactions, (iii) any, direct or indirect, purchase offer, tender offer or exchange offer (whether by the Company or another Person) is completed pursuant to which holders of Common Stock are permitted to sell, tender or exchange their shares for other securities, cash or property and has been accepted by the holders of 50% or more of the outstanding Common Stock, (iv) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions effects any reclassification, reorganization or recapitalization of the Common Stock or any compulsory share exchange pursuant to which the Common Stock is effectively converted into or exchanged for other securities, cash or property, or (v) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions consummates a stock or share purchase agreement or other business combination (including, without limitation, a reorganization, recapitalization, spin-off or scheme of arrangement) with another Person or group of Persons whereby such other Person or group acquires more than 50% of the outstanding shares of Common Stock (not including any shares of Common Stock held by the other Person or other Persons making or party to, or associated or affiliated with the other Persons making or party to, such stock or share purchase agreement or other business combination) (each a “Fundamental Transaction”), then, upon any subsequent exercise of this Warrant, the Holder shall have the right to receive, for each Warrant Share that would have been issuable upon such exercise immediately prior to the occurrence of such Fundamental Transaction, at the option of the Holder (without regard to any limitation in Section 2(e) on the exercise of this Warrant), the number of shares of Common Stock of the successor or acquiring corporation or of the Company, if it is the surviving corporation, and any additional consideration (the “Alternate Consideration”) receivable as a result of such Fundamental Transaction by a holder of the number of shares of Common Stock for which this Warrant is exercisable immediately prior to such Fundamental Transaction (without regard to any limitation in Section 2(e) on the exercise of this Warrant).  For purposes of any such exercise, the determination of the Exercise Price shall be appropriately adjusted to apply to such Alternate Consideration based on the amount of Alternate Consideration issuable in respect of one share of Common Stock in such Fundamental Transaction, and the Company shall apportion the Exercise Price among the Alternate Consideration in a reasonable manner reflecting the relative value of any different components of the Alternate Consideration.  If holders of Common Stock are given any choice as to the securities, cash or property to be received in a Fundamental Transaction, then the Holder shall be given the same choice as to the Alternate Consideration it receives upon any exercise of this Warrant following such Fundamental Transaction.  Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, in the event of a Fundamental Transaction that is (1) an all cash transaction, (2) a “Rule 13e-3 transaction” as defined in Rule 13e-3 under the Exchange Act, or (3) a Fundamental Transaction involving a person or entity not traded on a national securities exchange, the Company or any Successor Entity (as defined below) shall, at the Holder’s option, exercisable at any time concurrently with, or within 30 days after, the consummation of the Fundamental Transaction, purchase this Warrant from the Holder by paying to the Holder an amount of cash equal to the Black Scholes Value of the remaining unexercised portion of this Warrant on the date of the consummation of such Fundamental Transaction.  “Black Scholes Value” means the value of this Warrant based on the Black and Scholes Option Pricing Model obtained from the “OV” function on Bloomberg determined as of the day of consummation of the applicable Fundamental Transaction for pricing purposes and reflecting (A) a risk-free interest rate corresponding to the U.S. Treasury rate for a period equal to the time between the date of the public announcement of the applicable Fundamental Transaction and the Termination Date, (B) an expected volatility equal to the greater of 100% and the 100 day volatility obtained from the HVT function on Bloomberg as of the Trading Day immediately following the public announcement of the applicable Fundamental Transaction, (C) the underlying price per share used in such calculation shall be the sum of the price per share being offered in cash, if any, plus the value of any non-cash consideration, if any, being offered in such Fundamental Transaction and (D) a remaining option time equal to the time between the date of the public announcement of the applicable Fundamental Transaction and the Termination Date.  The Company shall cause any successor entity in a Fundamental Transaction in which the Company is not the survivor (the “Successor Entity”) to assume in writing all of the obligations of the Company under this Warrant and the other Transaction Documents in accordance with the provisions of this Section 3(b) pursuant to written agreements in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Holder and approved by the Holder (without unreasonable delay) prior to such Fundamental Transaction and shall, at the option of the Holder, deliver to the Holder in exchange for this Warrant a security of the Successor Entity evidenced by a written instrument substantially similar in form and substance to this Warrant which is exercisable for a corresponding number of shares of capital stock of such Successor Entity (or its parent entity) equivalent to the shares of Common Stock acquirable and receivable upon exercise of this Warrant (without regard to any limitations on the exercise of this Warrant) prior to such Fundamental Transaction, and with an exercise price which applies the exercise price hereunder to such shares of capital stock (but taking into account the relative value of the shares of Common Stock pursuant to such Fundamental Transaction and the value of such shares of capital stock, such number of shares of capital stock and such exercise price being for the purpose of protecting the economic value of this Warrant immediately prior to the consummation of such Fundamental Transaction), and which is reasonably satisfactory in form and substance to the Holder. Upon the occurrence of any such Fundamental Transaction, the Successor Entity shall succeed to, and be substituted for (so that from and after the date of such Fundamental Transaction, the provisions of this Warrant and the other Transaction Documents referring to the “Company” shall refer instead to the Successor Entity), and may exercise every right and power of the Company and shall assume all of the obligations of the Company under this Warrant and the other Transaction Documents with the same effect as if such Successor Entity had been named as the Company herein.

 

  

5

  

(c)           Subsequent Equity Sales. Beginning on the effective date of this Warrant and terminating at 5:00PM New York time on the date that marks the 2nd anniversary of its issuance, if the Company shall sell or grant any option to purchase, or sell or grant any right to reprice, or otherwise dispose of or issue any Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents, at an effective price per share less than the Exercise Price then in effect (such lower price, the “Base Share Price” and such issuances collectively, a “Dilutive Issuance”) (it being understood and agreed that if the holder of the Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents so issued shall at any time, whether by operation of purchase price adjustments, reset provisions, floating conversion, exercise or exchange prices or otherwise, or due to warrants, options or rights per share which are issued in connection with such issuance, be entitled to receive shares of Common Stock at an effective price per share that is less than the Exercise Price, such issuance shall be deemed to have occurred for less than the Exercise Price on such date of the Dilutive Issuance at such effective price), then simultaneously with the consummation of each Dilutive Issuance the Exercise Price shall be reduced and only reduced to equal the Base Share Price and the number of Warrant Shares issuable hereunder shall be increased such that the aggregate Exercise Price payable hereunder, after taking into account the decrease in the Exercise Price, shall be equal to the aggregate Exercise Price prior to such adjustment.  Such adjustment shall be made whenever such Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents are issued; provided that if such Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents are issued in tranches such adjustment shall be made at the first closing of such issuance.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, no adjustments shall be made, paid or issued under this Section 3(c) in respect of an Exempt Issuance (as defined below).  The Company shall notify the Holder, in writing, no later than the Trading Day following the issuance or deemed issuance of any Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents subject to this Section 3(c), indicating therein the applicable issuance price, or applicable reset price, exchange price, conversion price and other pricing terms (such notice, the “Dilutive Issuance Notice”).  For purposes of clarification, whether or not the Company provides a Dilutive Issuance Notice pursuant to this Section 3(c), upon the occurrence of any Dilutive Issuance, the Holder is entitled to receive a number of Warrant Shares based upon the Base Share Price regardless of whether the Holder accurately refers to the Base Share Price in the Notice of Exercise.  “Exempt Issuance” means the issuance of (a) shares of Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents to employees, officers or directors of the Company pursuant to any stock or option plan duly adopted for such purpose, by a majority of the non-employee members of the Board of Directors or a majority of the members of a committee of non-employee directors established for such purpose, and (b) securities upon the exercise or exchange of or conversion of any Securities issued hereunder and/or other securities exercisable or exchangeable for or convertible into shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding on the date of this Agreement, provided that such securities have not been amended since the date of this Agreement to increase the number of such securities or to decrease the exercise price, exchange price or conversion price of such securities.

(d)           Calculations. All calculations under this Section 3 shall be made to the nearest cent or the nearest 1/100th of a share, as the case may be. For purposes of this Section 3, the number of shares of Common Stock deemed to be issued and outstanding as of a given date shall be the sum of the number of shares of Common Stock (excluding treasury shares, if any) issued and outstanding.

 

(e)           Notice to Holders.

 

(i)           Adjustment to Exercise Price. Whenever the Exercise Price is adjusted pursuant to any provision of this Section 3, the Company shall promptly mail to the Holder a notice setting forth the Exercise Price after such adjustment and any resulting adjustment to the number of Warrant Shares and setting forth a brief statement of the facts requiring such adjustment.

 

(ii)           Notice to Allow Exercise by Holder. If (A) the Company shall declare a dividend (or any other distribution) on the Common Stock; (B) the Company shall declare a special nonrecurring cash dividend on or a redemption of the Common Stock; (C) the Company shall authorize the granting to all holders of the Common Stock rights or warrants to subscribe for or purchase any shares of capital stock of any class or of any rights; (D) the approval of any stockholders of the Company shall be required in connection with any reclassification of the Common Stock, any consolidation or merger to which the Company is a party, any sale or transfer of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, or any compulsory share exchange whereby the Common Stock is converted into other securities, cash or property; (E) the Company shall authorize the voluntary or involuntary dissolution, liquidation or winding up of the affairs of the Company; then, in each case, the Company shall cause to be mailed to the Holder at its last address as it shall appear upon the Warrant Register (as defined in Section 4(c)), at least twenty (20) calendar days prior to the applicable record or effective date hereinafter specified, a notice stating (x) the date on which a record is to be taken for the purpose of such dividend, distribution, redemption, rights or warrants, or if a record is not to be taken, the date as of which the holders of the Common Stock of record to be entitled to such dividend, distributions, redemption, rights or warrants are to be determined or (y) the date on which such reclassification, consolidation, merger, sale, transfer or share exchange is expected to become effective or close, and the date as of which it is expected that holders of the Common Stock of record shall be entitled to exchange their shares of the Common Stock for securities, cash or other property deliverable upon such reclassification, consolidation, merger, sale, transfer or share exchange; provided, that the failure to mail such notice or any defect therein or in the mailing thereof shall not affect the validity of the corporate action required to be specified in such notice.  To the extent that any notice provided hereunder constitutes, or contains, material, non-public information regarding the Company or any of the subsidiaries of the Company, the Company shall simultaneously file such notice with the Commission pursuant to a Current Report on Form 8-K. The Holder shall remain entitled to exercise this Warrant during the period commencing on the date of such notice to the effective date of the event triggering such notice  except as may otherwise be expressly set forth herein.

 

4.           Transfer of Warrant.

 

(a)           Transferability.  Subject to compliance with any applicable securities laws and the conditions set forth in Section 4(d) hereof, this Warrant and all rights hereunder (including, without limitation, any registration rights) are transferable, in whole or in part, upon surrender of this Warrant at the principal office of the Company or its designated agent, together with a written assignment of this Warrant substantially in the form attached hereto duly executed by the Holder or its agent or attorney and funds sufficient to pay any transfer taxes payable upon the making of such transfer.  Upon such surrender and, if required, such payment, the Company shall execute and deliver a new Warrant or Warrants in the name of the assignee or assignees, as applicable, and in the denomination or denominations specified in such instrument of assignment, and shall issue to the assignor a new Warrant evidencing the portion of this Warrant not so assigned, and this Warrant shall promptly be cancelled.  The Warrant, if properly assigned in accordance herewith, may be exercised by a new holder for the purchase of Warrant Shares without having a new Warrant issued.  

 

  

6

  

(b)           New Warrants.  This Warrant may be divided or combined with other Warrants upon presentation hereof at the aforesaid office of the Company, together with a written notice specifying the names and denominations in which new Warrants are to be issued, signed by the Holder or its agent or attorney.  Subject to compliance with Section 4(a), as to any transfer which may be involved in such division or combination, the Company shall execute and deliver a new Warrant or Warrants in exchange for the Warrant or Warrants to be divided or combined in accordance with such notice. All Warrants issued on transfers or exchanges shall be dated the Initial Exercise Date and shall be identical with this Warrant except as to the number of Warrant Shares issuable pursuant thereto.

 

(c)           Warrant Register. The Company shall register this Warrant, upon records to be maintained by the Company for that purpose (the “Warrant Register”), in the name of the record Holder hereof from time to time.  The Company may deem and treat the registered Holder of this Warrant as the absolute owner hereof for the purpose of any exercise hereof or any distribution to the Holder, and for all other purposes, absent actual notice to the contrary.

 

(d)           Transfer Restrictions. If, at the time of the surrender of this Warrant in connection with any transfer of this Warrant, the transfer of this Warrant shall not be either (i) registered pursuant to an effective registration statement under the Securities Act and under applicable state securities or blue sky laws or (ii) eligible for resale without volume or manner-of-sale restrictions or current public information requirements pursuant to Rule 144, the Company may require, as a condition of allowing such transfer (i) that the Holder or transferee of this Warrant, as the case may be, furnish to the Company a written opinion of counsel (which opinion shall be in form, substance and scope customary for opinions of counsel in comparable transactions) to the effect that such transfer may be made without registration under the Securities Act and under applicable state securities or blue sky laws, including, without limitation, a so-called “4(1) and a half” transaction, (ii) that the holder or transferee execute and deliver to the Company an investment letter in form and substance acceptable to the Company and (iii) that the transferee be an “accredited investor” as defined in Rule 501 promulgated under the Securities Act or a qualified institutional buyer as defined in Rule 144A(a) under the Securities Act.

 

(e)           Representation by the Holder. For transfers pursuant to Section 4(d) above, the Holder, by the acceptance hereof, represents and warrants that it is acquiring this Warrant and, upon any exercise hereof, will acquire the Warrant Shares issuable upon such exercise, for its own account and not with a view to or for distributing or reselling such Warrant Shares or any part thereof in violation of the Securities Act or any applicable state securities law, except pursuant to sales registered or exempted under the Securities Act.

 

5.           Miscellaneous.

 

(a)           No Rights as Shareholder Until Exercise.  Except as otherwise specifically provided herein, the Holder, solely in such Person's capacity as a holder of this Warrant, shall not be entitled to vote or receive dividends or be deemed the holder of share capital of the Company for any purpose, nor shall anything contained in this Warrant be construed to confer upon the Holder, solely in such Person's capacity as the Holder of this Warrant, any of the rights of a stockholder of the Company or any right to vote, give or withhold consent to any corporate action (whether any reorganization, issue of stock, reclassification of stock, consolidation, merger, conveyance or otherwise), receive notice of meetings, receive dividends or subscription rights, or otherwise, prior to the issuance to the Holder of the Warrant Shares which such Person is then entitled to receive upon the due exercise of this Warrant.  In addition, nothing contained in this Warrant shall be construed as imposing any liabilities on the Holder to purchase any securities (upon exercise of this Warrant or otherwise) or as a stockholder of the Company, whether such liabilities are asserted by the Company or by creditors of the Company.  Notwithstanding this Section 5(a), the Company shall provide the Holder with copies of the same notices and other information given to the stockholders of the Company generally, contemporaneously with the giving thereof to the stockholders.

 

(b)           Loss, Theft, Destruction or Mutilation of Warrant. The Company covenants that upon receipt by the Company of evidence reasonably satisfactory to it of the loss, theft, destruction or mutilation of this Warrant or any stock certificate relating to the Warrant Shares, and in case of loss, theft or destruction, of indemnity or security reasonably satisfactory to it (which, in the case of the Warrant, shall not include the posting of any bond), and upon surrender and cancellation of such Warrant or stock certificate, if mutilated, the Company will make and deliver a new Warrant or stock certificate of like tenor and dated as of such cancellation, in lieu of such Warrant or stock certificate.

 

(c)           Saturdays, Sundays, Holidays, etc.  If the last or appointed day for the taking of any action or the expiration of any right required or granted herein shall be a Saturday, Sunday or a legal holiday, then such action may be taken or such right may be exercised on the next succeeding day not a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday.

 

(d)           Authorized Shares.  The Company covenants that, during the period the Warrant is outstanding, it will reserve from its authorized and unissued Common Stock a sufficient number of shares to provide for the issuance of the Warrant Shares upon the exercise of any purchase rights under this Warrant.  The Company further covenants that its issuance of this Warrant shall constitute full authority to its officers who are charged with the duty of executing stock certificates to execute and issue the necessary certificates for the Warrant Shares upon the exercise of the purchase rights under this Warrant.  The Company will take all such reasonable action as may be necessary to assure that such Warrant Shares may be issued as provided herein without violation of any applicable law or regulation, or of any requirements of any Trading Market upon which the Common Stock may be listed.  The Company covenants that all Warrant Shares which may be issued upon the exercise of the purchase rights represented by this Warrant will, upon exercise of the purchase rights represented by this Warrant and payment for such Warrant Shares in accordance herewith, be duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable and free from all taxes, liens and charges created by the Company in respect of the issue thereof (other than taxes in respect of any transfer occurring contemporaneously with such issue).  

 

  

7

  

Except and to the extent as waived or consented to by the Holder, the Company shall not by any action, including, without limitation, amending its articles of incorporation or through any reorganization, transfer of assets, consolidation, merger, dissolution, issue or sale of securities or any other voluntary action, avoid or seek to avoid the observance or performance of any of the terms of this Warrant, but will at all times in good faith assist in the carrying out of all such terms and in the taking of all such actions as may be necessary or appropriate to protect the rights of Holder as set forth in this Warrant against impairment.  Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Company will (i) not increase the par value of any Warrant Shares above the amount payable therefor upon such exercise immediately prior to such increase in par value, (ii) take all such action as may be necessary or appropriate in order that the Company may validly and legally issue fully paid and nonassessable Warrant Shares upon the exercise of this Warrant and (iii) use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain all such authorizations, exemptions or consents from any public regulatory body having jurisdiction thereof, as may be, necessary to enable the Company to perform its obligations under this Warrant.

 

Before taking any action which would result in an adjustment in the number of Warrant Shares for which this Warrant is exercisable or in the Exercise Price, the Company shall obtain all such authorizations or exemptions thereof, or consents thereto, as may be necessary from any public regulatory body or bodies having jurisdiction thereof.

 

(e)           Governing Law; Venue; Waiver Of Jury Trial.  This Warrant shall be governed by and construed exclusively in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Nevada without regard to the conflicts of laws principles thereof. The Company and Holders hereby waive all rights to a trial by jury.

 

(f)           Restrictions.  The Holder acknowledges that the Warrant Shares acquired upon the exercise of this Warrant, if not registered and the Holder does not utilize cashless exercise, will have restrictions upon resale imposed by state and federal securities laws.

 

(g)           Nonwaiver and Expenses.  No course of dealing or any delay or failure to exercise any right hereunder on the part of Holder shall operate as a waiver of such right or otherwise prejudice the Holder’s rights, powers or remedies, notwithstanding the fact that all rights hereunder terminate on the Termination Date.  If the Company willfully and knowingly fails to comply with any provision of this Warrant, which results in any material damages to the Holder, the Company shall pay to the Holder such amounts as shall be sufficient to cover any costs and expenses including, but not limited to, reasonable attorneys’ fees, including those of appellate proceedings, incurred by the Holder in collecting any amounts due pursuant hereto or in otherwise enforcing any of its rights, powers or remedies hereunder.

 

(h)           Notices.  Any and all notices or other communications or deliveries hereunder (including without limitation any Notice of Exercise) shall be in writing and shall be deemed given and effective on the earliest of (i) the date of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via facsimile or electronic mail at the facsimile number or electronic mail address, as applicable, specified in the Securities Purchase Agreement prior to 5:00 p.m. (New York City time) on a Trading Day, (ii) the next Trading Day after the date of transmission, if such notice or communication is delivered via facsimile or electronic mail at the facsimile number or electronic mail address, as applicable, specified in the Securities Purchase Agreement on a day that is not a Trading Day or later than 5:00 p.m. (New York City time) on any Trading Day, (iii) the Trading Day following the date of mailing if sent by nationally recognized overnight courier service, or (iv) upon actual receipt by the party to whom such notice is required to be given.  The address for such notices or communications shall be as set forth in the Securities Purchase Agreement.

 

(i)           Limitation of Liability.  No provision hereof, in the absence of any affirmative action by the Holder to exercise this Warrant to purchase Warrant Shares, and no enumeration herein of the rights or privileges of the Holder, shall give rise to any liability of the Holder for the purchase price of any Common Stock or as a stockholder of the Company, whether such liability is asserted by the Company or by creditors of the Company.

 

(j)           Remedies.  The Holder, in addition to being entitled to exercise all rights granted by law, including recovery of damages, will be entitled to specific performance of its rights under this Warrant.  The Company agrees that monetary damages would not be adequate compensation for any loss incurred by reason of a breach by it of the provisions of this Warrant and hereby agrees to waive and not to assert the defense in any action for specific performance that a remedy at law would be adequate.

 

(k)           Successors and Assigns.  Subject to applicable securities laws, this Warrant and the rights and obligations evidenced hereby shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the successors and permitted assigns of the Company and the successors and permitted assigns of Holder.  The provisions of this Warrant are intended to be for the benefit of any Holder from time to time of this Warrant and shall be enforceable by the Holder or holder of Warrant Shares.

 

(l)           Amendment.  This Warrant may be modified or amended or the provisions hereof waived with the written consent of the Company and the Holder.

 

(m)           Severability.  Wherever possible, each provision of this Warrant shall be interpreted in such manner as to be effective and valid under applicable law, but if any provision of this Warrant shall be prohibited by or invalid under applicable law, such provision shall be ineffective to the extent of such prohibition or invalidity, without invalidating the remainder of such provisions or the remaining provisions of this Warrant.

 

(n)           Construction; Headings.  This Warrant shall be deemed to be jointly drafted by the Company and all the Holders and shall not construed against any Person as the drafter hereof.  The headings used in this Warrant are for the convenience of reference only and shall not, for any purpose, be deemed a part of this Warrant.

 

[Remainder of page left intentionally blank]

  

8

  

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this Warrant to be executed by its officer thereunto duly authorized as of the date first set forth above.

 

	 	VICTORY ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES CORPORATION
	  	  	  
	  	
By:

	  
	  	  	  
	  	
Print Name:

	  
	  	  	  
	  	
Title:

	  

 

 

  

9

  

 

NOTICE OF EXERCISE

 

TO: VICTORY ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES CORPORATION  

(1)           The undersigned hereby elects to purchase ________ Warrant Shares of the Company pursuant to the terms of the attached Warrant (only if exercised in full), and tenders herewith payment of the exercise price in full, together with all applicable transfer taxes, if any.

(2)           Payment shall take the form of (check applicable box):

[  ] in lawful money of the United States; or

 

[  ] [if permitted] the cancellation of such number of Warrant Shares as is necessary, in accordance with the formula set forth in subsection 2(c), to exercise this Warrant with respect to the maximum number of Warrant Shares purchasable pursuant to the cashless exercise procedure set forth in subsection 2(c).

 

(3)           Please issue a certificate or certificates representing said Warrant Shares in the name of the undersigned or in such other name as is specified below:

 

	  	  	  

 

The Warrant Shares shall be delivered to the following DWAC Account Number or by physical delivery of a certificate to:

	  	  	  

 

	  	  	  

 

	  	  	  

 

(4)  Accredited Investor.  The undersigned is an “accredited investor” as defined in Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

SIGNATURE OF HOLDER]

	
Name of Investing Entity:

 

	  	  

 

	
Signature of Authorized Signatory of Investing Entity:

	  	  

 

	
Name of Authorized Signatory:

	  	  

 

	
Title of Authorized Signatory:

	  	  

a

	
Date:

	  	  

 

  

10

  

 

ASSIGNMENT FORM

 

(To assign the foregoing warrant, execute

this form and supply required information.

Do not use this form to exercise the warrant.)

 

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, the foregoing Warrant and all rights evidenced thereby are hereby assigned to

 

_______________________________________________ whose address is

_______________________________________________________________.

_______________________________________________________________

Dated:  ______________, _______

	  	
Holder’s Signature:

 

	  	  
	  	  	  	  
	  	
Holder’s Address:

 

	  	  
	  	  	  	  
	  	  	  	  

 

NOTE:  The signature to this Assignment Form must correspond with the name as it appears on the face of the Warrant, without alteration or enlargement or any change whatsoever, and must be guaranteed by a bank or trust company.  Officers of corporations and those acting in a fiduciary or other representative capacity should file proper evidence of authority to assign the foregoing Warrant.

 

 11ecig_ex101.htm

Exhibit 10.1

 

SECURITIES PURCHASE AGREEMENT

 

THIS SECURITIES PURCHASE AGREEMENT (the “Agreement”) is made as of the __ day of April, 2014, by and among Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corporation, a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), and the investors listed on the Schedule of Investors attached hereto and the additional investors who become parties to this Agreement as provided below (each an “Investor” and collectively, the “Investors”).

 

W I T N E S S E T H:

 

WHEREAS, the Company and each Investor is executing and delivering this Agreement in reliance upon the exemption from securities registration afforded by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and Rule 506 of Regulation D (“Regulation D”) as promulgated by the Commission under the Securities Act; and

 

WHEREAS, the Company desires to issue and sell to the Investors (the “Offering”), and the Investors desire to purchase from the Company units (the “Units”) consisting of shares (the “Shares”) of the Company’s common stock, par value $.001 per share (“Common Stock”), and warrants (the “Warrants”) to purchase shares of Common Stock (the “Warrant Shares”), with a Warrant to purchase one-quarter share of Common Stock being included for every one Share sold in the Offering and included within the Units.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements set forth in this Agreement, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties do hereby agree as follows:

 

1            Purchase and Sale of Units.

 

1.1              Issuance and Sale of Units. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the Investors severally and not jointly agree to purchase in one or more Closings (as defined below), and the Company agrees to issue and sell to the Investors, the amount of Units set forth opposite each Investor’s name on the Signature Page hereto (sometimes collectively referred to herein as the “Securities”) at a purchase price of Six Dollars, Fifty Cents ($6.50) per Unit, for an aggregate purchase price of Three Million ($3,000,000) Dollars (the “Minimum Amount”), a maximum of up to Five Million ($5,000,000) Dollars and with an over-allotment of up to a maximum of Nine Million ($9,000,000) Dollars (such aggregate purchase price, the “Offering Amount”).  The Closing of the initial purchase and sale of Units to the investors listed on the Schedule of Investors, attached hereto, which shall be for at least the Minimum Amount, will occur at the “Initial Closing.”  After the Initial Closing, the Company may sell at one or more additional closings (each, an “Additional Closing” and together with the Initial Closing, the “Closings”), on the same terms and conditions as those contained in this Agreement, additional Units up to the Offering Amount, to one or more investors (“Additional Investors”), provided that each Additional Purchaser, to the extent not a party hereto, shall become a party to this Agreement as an “Investor” by signing a joinder to this Agreement in form and substance acceptable to the Company (a “Joinder”) and shall become a party to the Registration Rights Agreement, by executing and delivering a joinder as provided therein.

 

1.2              Payment.  The Investor is enclosing with its delivery of its Signature Page hereto a check payable to, or will promptly make a wire transfer payment in the full amount of the purchase price of the Units being subscribed for (the “Purchase Price”).  Wire instructions are as follows:

 

Bank Name: Chase Bank

ABA Number: CHASUS33

Name: Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corporation

A/C Number: 195-892-772

FBO: Investor Name

Social Security Number

Address

All payments made by check as provided in this Section 1.2 shall be promptly deposited by the Company or ____________ (in its capacity as the “Placement Agent”).

 

1.3              Closings.

 

(a)           Each Closing of the purchase and sale of Units under this Agreement shall be held at the offices of Robinson Brog PC, counsel to the Company, 875 Third Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, New York 10022 (or remotely via the exchange of documents and signatures), on or before April 30, 2014, which period may be extended by the Company and the Placement Agent.

 

  

1

  

(b)           At each Closing, the Company shall deliver the Units to the Investors against payment of the Purchase Price to the Company as described above, along with delivery by the Investors of an Accredited Investor Certification and Investor Profile to the Placement Agent. The Accredited Investor Certification and Investor Profile are included in the Investor Instructions booklet provided to Investors separately.

 

(c)           The Initial Closing is expressly conditioned upon the Company receiving subscriptions to the Offering for at least the Minimum Amount.

 

1.4              Additional Definitions.  For purposes of this Agreement, certain capitalized terms are defined under Appendix A.

2            Representations and Warranties of the Company.   The Company has delivered to each Investor concurrently herewith a Disclosure Schedule (the “Disclosure Schedule”) that corresponds to the section numbers of the following representations and warranties.  The Company hereby represents and warrants to each Investor that:

 

2.1              Subsidiaries.  All of the direct and indirect subsidiaries of the Company are set forth on Section 2.1 of the Disclosure Schedule.  Except as set forth on Section 2.1 of the Disclosure Schedule, the Company owns, directly or indirectly, all of the capital stock or other equity interests of each Subsidiary free and clear of any Liens, and all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of each Subsidiary are validly issued and are fully paid, non-assessable and free of preemptive and similar rights to subscribe for or purchase securities.

 

2.2              Organization and Qualification.  The Company and each of the Subsidiaries is an entity duly incorporated or otherwise organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation or organization, with the requisite power and authority to own and use its properties and assets and to carry on its business as currently conducted.  Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is in violation or default of any of the provisions of its respective certificate or articles of incorporation, bylaws or other organizational or charter documents.  Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries is duly qualified to conduct business and is in good standing as a foreign corporation or other entity in each jurisdiction in which the nature of the business conducted or property owned by it makes such qualification necessary, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing, as the case may be, could not have or reasonably be expected to result in: (i) a material adverse effect on the legality, validity or enforceability of any Transaction Document, (ii) a material adverse effect on the results of operations, assets, business, prospects or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or (iii) a material adverse effect on the Company’s ability to perform in any material respect on a timely basis its obligations under any Transaction Document (any of (i), (ii) or (iii), a “Material Adverse Effect”) and no Proceeding has been instituted in any such jurisdiction revoking, limiting or curtailing or seeking to revoke, limit or curtail such power and authority or qualification.

 

2.3              Authorization; Enforcement.  The Company has the requisite corporate power and authority to enter into and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and each of the other Transaction Documents and otherwise to carry out its obligations hereunder and thereunder.  The execution and delivery of each of this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents by the Company and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Company and no further action is required by the Company, the Board of Directors or the Company’s stockholders in connection herewith or therewith other than in connection with the Required Approvals (as defined below).  This Agreement and each other Transaction Document to which it is a party has been (or upon delivery will have been) duly executed by the Company and, when delivered in accordance with the terms hereof and thereof, will constitute the valid and binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except: (i) as limited by general equitable principles and applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general application affecting enforcement of creditors’ rights generally, (ii) as limited by laws relating to the availability of specific performance, injunctive relief or other equitable remedies and (iii) insofar as indemnification and contribution provisions may be limited by applicable law.

 

2.4              No Conflicts.  The execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents to which it is a party, the issuance and sale of the Securities and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby do not and will not: (i) conflict with or violate any provision of the Company’s or any Subsidiary’s certificate or articles of incorporation, bylaws or other organizational or charter documents, (ii) conflict with, or constitute a default (or an event that with notice or lapse of time or both would become a default) under, result in the creation of any Lien upon any of the properties or assets of the Company or any Subsidiary, or give to others any rights of termination, amendment, acceleration or cancellation (with or without notice, lapse of time or both) of, any agreement, credit facility, debt or other instrument (evidencing a Company or Subsidiary debt or otherwise) or other understanding to which the Company or any Subsidiary is a party or by which any property or asset of the Company or any Subsidiary is bound or affected, or (iii) subject to the Required Approvals, conflict with or result in a violation of any law, rule, regulation, order, judgment, injunction, decree or other restriction of any court or governmental authority to which the Company or a Subsidiary is subject (including federal and state securities laws and regulations), or by which any property or asset of the Company or a Subsidiary is bound or affected.

 

2.5              Filings, Consents and Approvals.  The Company is not required to obtain any consent, waiver, authorization or order of, give any notice to, or make any filing or registration with, any court or other federal, state, local or other governmental authority or other Person in connection with the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of the Transaction Documents, other than: (i) the filings required pursuant to this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents and (ii) the filing of Form D with the Commission and such filings as are required to be made under applicable state and federal securities laws (collectively, the “Required Approvals”).

 

2.6              Issuance of the Securities.  The Units, Shares and Warrants are duly authorized and, when issued and paid for in accordance with the applicable Transaction Documents at each Closing, will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, free and clear of all Liens imposed by the Company other than restrictions on transfer provided for in the Transaction Documents.  The Warrant Shares are duly authorized and, upon exercise of the Warrants in accordance with their terms, the Warrant Shares, when issued, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, free and clear of all Liens imposed by the Company other than restrictions on transfer provided for in the Transaction Documents, with the holders of the Warrant Shares being entitled to all rights accorded to a holder of Common Stock.  The Company has reserved from its duly authorized capital stock not less than 100% of the maximum number of Warrant Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants.

 

  

2

  

2.7              Capitalization.  The capitalization of the Company is as set forth in its SEC Filings, with specific reference to the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, and filed on March 31, 2014.  Except as set forth in Section 2.7 of the Disclosure Schedule and pursuant to this Agreement no Person has any right of first refusal, preemptive right, right of participation, or any similar right to participate in the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.  Except as a result of the purchase and sale of the Securities, there are no outstanding options, warrants, scrip rights to subscribe to, calls or commitments of any character whatsoever relating to, or securities, rights or obligations convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for, or giving any Person any right to subscribe for or acquire any shares of Common Stock, or contracts, commitments, understandings or arrangements by which the Company or any Subsidiary is or may become bound to issue additional shares of Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents.  Except as set forth in Section 2.7 of the Disclosure Schedule, the issuance and sale of the Securities will not obligate the Company to issue shares of Common Stock or other securities to any Person (other than the Investors) and will not result in a right of any holder of Company securities to adjust the exercise, conversion, exchange or reset price under any of such securities. All of the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, have been issued in compliance with all federal and state securities laws, and none of such outstanding shares was issued in violation of any preemptive rights or similar rights to subscribe for or purchase securities.  No further approval or authorization of any stockholder, the Board of Directors or others is required for the issuance and sale of the Securities.  Except as set forth in Section 2.7 of the Disclosure Schedule or the SEC Documents, there are no stockholders agreements, voting agreements or other similar agreements with respect to the Company’s capital stock to which the Company is a party or, to the knowledge of the Company, between or among any of the Company’s stockholders other than the Registration Rights Agreement.

 

2.8              SEC Documents; Financial Statements.  Since December 31, 2013, the Company has filed when due (including any applicable extensions) all reports, schedules, forms, statements and other documents required to be filed by it with the Commission pursuant to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act (all of the foregoing filed prior to the date hereof and all exhibits included therein and financial statements, notes and schedules thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein being hereinafter referred to as the “SEC Documents”).  Except to the extent that any SEC Document has been revised or superseded by a later-filed SEC Document, as of their respective dates: (i) the SEC Documents complied in all material respects with the requirements of the Exchange Act; (ii) none of the SEC Documents, when filed, contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; and (iii) the financial statements of the Company included in the SEC Documents complied in all material respects with applicable accounting requirements and the published rules and regulations of the Commission with respect thereto as in effect as of the time of filing.  The financial statements of the Company included in the SEC Documents have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, consistently applied, during the periods involved (except (x) as may be otherwise indicated in such financial statements or the notes thereto, or (y) in the case of unaudited interim statements, to the extent they may exclude footnotes or may be condensed or summary statements) and fairly present in all material respects the financial position of the Company as of the dates thereof and the results of its operations and cash flows for the periods then ended (subject, in the case of unaudited statements, to normal year-end audit adjustments which will not be material, either individually or in the aggregate).

 

2.9              Material Changes; Undisclosed Events, Liabilities or Developments.  Since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the SEC Documents, except as specifically disclosed in Section 2.9 of the Disclosure Schedule or a subsequent SEC Document filed prior to the date hereof:  (i) there has been no event, occurrence or development that has had or that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, (ii) the Company has not incurred any liabilities (contingent or otherwise) other than (A) trade payables and accrued expenses incurred in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and (B) liabilities not required to be reflected in the Company’s financial statements pursuant to GAAP or disclosed in filings made with the Commission, (iii) the Company has not altered its method of accounting, (iv) the Company has not declared or made any dividend or distribution of cash or other property to its stockholders or purchased, redeemed or made any agreements to purchase or redeem any shares of its capital stock and (v) the Company has not issued any equity securities to any officer, director or Affiliate, except pursuant to existing Company stock option plans.  Except for the issuance of the Securities contemplated by this Agreement or as set forth in Section 2.9 of the Disclosure Schedule and the matters to be disclosed pursuant to Section 4.2 , no event, liability, fact, circumstance, occurrence or development has occurred or exists, or is reasonably expected to occur or exist, with respect to the Company or its Subsidiaries or their respective businesses, properties, operations, assets or financial condition, that would be required to be disclosed by the Company under applicable securities laws at the time this representation is made.

 

2.10              Litigation.  Except as set forth in the SEC Documents or in Section 2.10 of the Disclosure Schedule, there is no action, suit, inquiry, notice of violation, proceeding or investigation pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened against or affecting the Company, any Subsidiary or any of their respective properties before or by any court, arbitrator, governmental or administrative agency or regulatory authority (federal, state, county, local or foreign) (collectively, an “Action”) which (i) adversely affects or challenges the legality, validity or enforceability of any of the Transaction Documents or the Securities or (ii) could, if there were an unfavorable decision, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.  Except as set forth in Section 2.10 of the Disclosure Schedule, neither the Company nor any Subsidiary, nor any director or officer thereof, is or has been the subject of any Action involving a claim of violation of or liability under federal or state securities laws or a claim of breach of fiduciary duty which could, if there were an unfavorable decision, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

 

2.11                       Labor Relations.  No labor dispute exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent with respect to any of the employees of the Company, which could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.  None of the Company’s or its Subsidiaries’ employees is a member of a union that relates to such employee’s relationship with the Company or such Subsidiary, and neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is a party to a collective bargaining agreement, and the Company and its Subsidiaries believe that their relationships with their employees are good.  To the knowledge of the Company, no executive officer of the Company or any Subsidiary is, or is now expected to be, in violation of any material term of any employment contract, confidentiality, disclosure or proprietary information agreement or non-competition agreement, or any other contract or agreement or any restrictive covenant in favor of any third party, and the continued employment of each such executive officer does not subject the Company or any of its Subsidiaries to any liability with respect to any of the foregoing matters.  The Company and its Subsidiaries are in compliance with all U.S. federal, state, local and foreign laws and regulations relating to employment and employment practices, terms and conditions of employment and wages and hours, except where the failure to be in compliance could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

2.12              Dilutive Effect.  The Company understands and acknowledges that the number of Warrant Shares may increase in certain circumstances. The Company further acknowledges that its obligation to issue the Warrant Shares upon exercise of the Warrants in accordance with this Agreement and the Warrants is absolute and unconditional, regardless of the dilutive effect that such issuance may have on the ownership interests of other stockholders of the Company.

 

  

3

  

2.13              Conduct of Business; Regulatory Permits. The Company is not in material violation of (a) any term of or in default under its Organizational Documents or (b) any Applicable Laws. The Common Stock is listed or designated for quotation on the Principal Market, trading in the Common Stock has not been suspended by the Commission or the Principal Market and the Company has received neither any written communication nor, to the Company’s knowledge, oral communication from the Commission or the Principal Market regarding the suspension or delisting of the Common Stock from the Principal Market.  The Company and the Subsidiaries possess all certificates, authorizations and permits issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory authorities necessary to conduct their respective businesses as described in the Company’s SEC filings, except where the failure to possess such permits could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect (“Material Permits”), and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any Material Permit.

 

2.14              Title to Assets.  The Company and the Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property owned by them and good and marketable title in all personal property owned by them that is material to the business of the Company and the Subsidiaries, in each case free and clear of all Liens, except for (i) Liens as do not materially affect the value of such property and do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and the Subsidiaries and (ii) Liens for the payment of federal, state or other taxes, for which appropriate reserves have been made therefor in accordance with GAAP and the payment of which is neither delinquent nor subject to penalties.  Any real property and facilities held under lease by the Company and the Subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with which the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance.

 

2.15              Intellectual Property.  The Company and the Subsidiaries have, or have rights to use, all patents, patent applications, trademarks, trademark applications, service marks, trade names, trade secrets, inventions, copyrights, licenses and other intellectual property rights and similar rights as described in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, as necessary or required for use in connection with their respective businesses and which the failure to so have could have a Material Adverse Effect (collectively, the “Intellectual Property Rights”).  None of, and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received a notice (written or otherwise) that any of, the Intellectual Property Rights has expired, terminated or been abandoned, or is expected to expire or terminate or be abandoned, within two (2) years from the date of this Agreement.  Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included within the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, a written notice of a claim or otherwise has any knowledge that the Intellectual Property Rights violate or infringe upon the rights of any Person, except as could not have or reasonably be expected to not have a Material Adverse Effect.  To the knowledge of the Company, all such Intellectual Property Rights are enforceable and there is no existing infringement by another Person of any of the Intellectual Property Rights.  The Company and its Subsidiaries have taken reasonable security measures to protect the secrecy, confidentiality and value of all of their intellectual properties, except where failure to do so could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

2.16              Insurance.  The Company and the Subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent and customary in the businesses in which the Company and the Subsidiaries are engaged, including, but not limited to, directors and officers insurance coverage at least equal to the Offering Amount.  Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has any reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business without a significant increase in cost.

 

2.17              Transactions With Affiliates and Employees.  Except as set forth in the SEC Reports or Section 2.17 of the Disclosure Schedule, none of the officers or directors of the Company or any Subsidiary and, to the knowledge of the Company, none of the employees of the Company or any Subsidiary is presently a party to any transaction with the Company or any Subsidiary (other than for services as employees, officers and directors), including any contract, agreement or other arrangement providing for the furnishing of services to or by, providing for rental of real or personal property to or from, providing for the borrowing of money from or lending of money to or otherwise requiring payments to or from any officer, director or such employee or, to the knowledge of the Company, any entity in which any officer, director, or any such employee has a substantial interest or is an officer, director, trustee, stockholder, member or partner, in each case in excess of $120,000 other than for: (i) payment of salary or consulting fees for services rendered, (ii) reimbursement for expenses incurred on behalf of the Company and (iii) other employee benefits, including stock option agreements under any stock option plan of the Company.

 

2.18              Environmental Laws. To the knowledge of the Company, no facts or circumstances exist which could give rise to any material liabilities with respect to the violation (whether by the Company or any other Person) of any Environmental Laws.

 

2.19              Certain Fees.  Other than the fees payable to the Placement Agent pursuant to the Placement Agent Agreement as disclosed under Section 8.7, no brokerage or finder’s fees or commissions are or will be payable by the Company or any Subsidiary to any broker, financial advisor or consultant, finder, placement agent, investment banker, bank or other Person with respect to the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.  The Investors shall have no obligation with respect to any fees or with respect to any claims made by or on behalf of other Persons for fees of a type contemplated in this Section that may be due in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.

 

2.20              Investment Company. The Company is not, and is not an Affiliate of, and immediately after receipt of payment for the Securities, will not be or be an Affiliate of, an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.  The Company shall conduct its business in a manner so that it will not become an “investment company” subject to registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

 

2.21              Acknowledgement Regarding Investors’ Trading Activity.  It is understood and acknowledged by the Company that (i) following the public disclosure of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents in accordance with the terms thereof, none of the Investors have been asked by the Company to agree, nor has any Investor agreed with the Company, to desist from effecting any transactions in or with respect to (including, without limitation, purchasing or selling, long and/or short) any securities of the Company, or “derivative” securities based on securities issued by the Company or to hold any of the Securities for any specified term; (ii) any Investor, and counterparties in “derivative” transactions to which any such Investor is a party, directly or indirectly, presently may have a “short” position in the Common Stock which was established prior to such Investor’s knowledge of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents; and (iii) each Investor shall not be deemed to have any affiliation with or control over any arm’s length counterparty in any “derivative” transaction.  The Company further understands and acknowledges that following the public disclosure of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents pursuant to a press release one or more Investors may engage in hedging and/or trading activities at various times during the period that the Securities are outstanding, including, without limitation, during the periods that the value and/or number of Warrant Shares deliverable with respect to the Securities are being determined and such hedging and/or trading activities, if any, can reduce the value of the existing stockholders’ equity interest in the Company both at and after the time the hedging and/or trading activities are being conducted. The Company acknowledges that such aforementioned hedging and/or trading activities do not constitute a breach of this Agreement or any other Transaction Document or any of the documents executed in connection herewith or therewith.

  

4

  

2.22              Manipulation of Price.  Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any Person acting on its behalf has, directly or indirectly, (i) taken any action designed to cause or to result in the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of any of the Securities, (ii) sold, bid for, purchased, or paid any compensation for soliciting purchases of, any of the Securities (other than to the Placement Agent), or (iii) paid or agreed to pay to any Person any compensation for soliciting another to purchase any other securities of the Company.

 

2.23              No Additional Agreements. The Company does not have any agreement or understanding with any Investor with respect to the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents other than as specified in the Transaction Documents.

 

2.24              Off Balance Sheet Arrangements.  There is no transaction, arrangement, or other relationship between the Company and an unconsolidated or other off balance sheet entity that is required to be disclosed by the Company in its Exchange Act filings and is not so disclosed and could be reasonably likely to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

2.25              Internal Accounting and Disclosure Controls. The Company maintains internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(f) under the Exchange Act) that is effective to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP, including that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations, (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain asset and liability accountability, (iii) access to assets or incurrence of liabilities is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets and liabilities is compared with the existing assets and liabilities at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any difference.  The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act) that are effective in ensuring that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the rules and forms of the Commission, including, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including its principal executive officer or officers and its principal financial officer or officers, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

 

2.26              Application of Takeover Protections.  The Company and the Board of Directors have taken all necessary action, if any, in order to render inapplicable any control share acquisition, business combination, poison pill (including any distribution under a rights agreement) or other similar anti-takeover provision under the Company’s Organizational Documents or the laws of its state of incorporation that is or could become applicable to the Investors as a result of the Investors and the Company fulfilling their obligations or exercising their rights under the Transaction Documents, including without limitation as a result of the Company’s issuance of the Securities and the Investors’ ownership of the Securities.

2.27              No Integrated Offering. Assuming the accuracy of the Investors’ representations and warranties set forth in Section 3 , neither the Company, nor any of its Affiliates, nor any Person acting on its or their behalf has, directly or indirectly, made any offers or sales of any security or solicited any offers to buy any security, under circumstances that would cause this offering of the Securities to be integrated with prior offerings by the Company for purposes of the Securities Act which would require the registration of any such securities under the Securities Act.

 

2.28              Solvency.  Based on the consolidated financial condition of the Company as of the date of each Closing, after giving effect to the receipt by the Company of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities hereunder: (i) the fair saleable value of the Company’s assets exceeds the amount that will be required to be paid on or in respect of the Company’s existing debts and other liabilities (including known contingent liabilities) as they mature, (ii) the Company’s assets do not constitute unreasonably small capital to carry on its business as now conducted and as proposed to be conducted, including its capital needs taking into account the particular capital requirements of the business conducted by the Company, and (iii) the current cash flow of the Company, together with the proceeds the Company would receive, were it to liquidate all of its assets, after taking into account all anticipated uses of the cash, would be sufficient to pay all amounts on or in respect of its liabilities when such amounts are required to be paid.  The Company does not intend to incur debts beyond its ability to pay such debts as they mature (taking into account the timing and amounts of cash to be payable on or in respect of its debt).  The Company has no knowledge of any facts or circumstances which lead it to believe that it will file for reorganization or liquidation under the bankruptcy or reorganization laws of any jurisdiction within one year from the date of the Initial Closing.   Section 2.28 of the Disclosure Schedule sets forth as of the date hereof all outstanding secured and unsecured Indebtedness of the Company or any Subsidiary, or for which the Company or any Subsidiary has commitments.  For the purposes of this Agreement, “Indebtedness” means (x) any liabilities for borrowed money or amounts owed in excess of $250,000 (other than trade accounts payable incurred in the ordinary course of business), (y) all guaranties, endorsements and other contingent obligations in respect of indebtedness of others, whether or not the same are or should be reflected in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet (or the notes thereto), except guaranties by endorsement of negotiable instruments for deposit or collection or similar transactions in the ordinary course of business; and (z) the present value of any lease payments in excess of $250,000 due under leases required to be capitalized in accordance with GAAP.  Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is in default with respect to any Indebtedness.

 

2.29              Tax Status.  Except for matters that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have or reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and its Subsidiaries each (i) has made or filed all United States federal, state and local income and all foreign income and franchise tax returns, reports and declarations required by any jurisdiction to which it is subject, (ii) has paid all taxes and other governmental assessments and charges that are material in amount, shown or determined to be due on such returns, reports and declarations and (iii) has set aside on its books provision reasonably adequate for the payment of all material taxes for periods subsequent to the periods to which such returns, reports or declarations apply.  There are no unpaid taxes in any material amount claimed to be due by the taxing authority of any jurisdiction, and the officers of the Company or of any Subsidiary know of no basis for any such claim.

2.30              No General Solicitation.  Neither the Company nor any person acting on behalf of the Company has offered or sold any of the Securities by any form of general solicitation or general advertising.  The Company has offered the Securities for sale only to the Investors and certain other “accredited investors” within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act.

 

  

5

  

2.31              Foreign Corrupt Practices.   Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary, to the knowledge of the Company or any Subsidiary, any agent or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiary, has: (i) directly or indirectly, used any funds for unlawful contributions, gifts, entertainment or other unlawful expenses related to foreign or domestic political activity, (ii) made any unlawful payment to foreign or domestic government officials or employees or to any foreign or domestic political parties or campaigns from corporate funds, (iii) failed to disclose fully any contribution made by the Company or any Subsidiary (or made by any person acting on its behalf of which the Company is aware) which is in violation of law or (iv) violated in any material respect any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended.

 

2.32              Accountants.  The Company’s accounting firm is set forth in a Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 2, 2014.  To the knowledge and belief of the Company, such accounting firm is a registered public accounting firm as required by the Exchange Act.

 

2.33              No Disagreements with Accountants and Lawyers.  There are no disagreements of any kind presently existing, or reasonably anticipated by the Company to arise, between the Company and the accountants and lawyers formerly or presently employed by the Company and, except as set forth in Section 2.33 of the Disclosure Schedule, the Company is current with respect to any fees owed to its accountants and lawyers which could affect the Company’s ability to perform any of its obligations under any of the Transaction Documents.

 

2.34              Acknowledgment Regarding Investors’ Purchase of Securities.  The Company acknowledges and agrees that to its knowledge each of the Investors is acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length purchaser with respect to the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby. The Company further acknowledges that no Investor is acting as a financial advisor or fiduciary of the Company (or in any similar capacity) with respect to the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby and any advice given by any Investor or any of their respective representatives or agents in connection with the Transaction Documents and the transactions contemplated thereby is merely incidental to the Investors’ purchase of the Securities.  The Company further represents to each Investor that the Company’s decision to enter into this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents has been based solely on the independent evaluation of the transactions contemplated hereby by the Company and its representatives.

 

2.35              Stock Option Plans. Each stock option granted by the Company under the Company’s stock option plan(s) was granted (i) in accordance with the terms of such stock option plan and (ii) with an exercise price at least equal to the fair market value of the Common Stock on the date such stock option would be considered granted under GAAP and applicable law. No stock option granted under the Company’s stock option plan has been backdated.  The Company has not knowingly granted, and there is no and has been no Company policy or practice to knowingly grant, stock options prior to, or otherwise knowingly coordinate the grant of stock options with, the release or other public announcement of material information regarding the Company or its Subsidiaries or their financial results or prospects.

 

2.36              Office of Foreign Assets Control.  Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary  nor, to the Company's knowledge, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any Subsidiary is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”).

 

2.37              U.S. Real Property Holding Corporation.  The Company is not and has never been a U.S. real property holding corporation within the meaning of Section 897 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the Company shall so certify upon Purchaser’s request.

 

2.38              Bank Holding Company Act.  Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates is subject to the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHCA”) and to regulation by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”).  Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates owns or controls, directly or indirectly, five percent (5%) or more of the outstanding shares of any class of voting securities or twenty-five percent or more of the total equity of a bank or any entity that is subject to the BHCA and to regulation by the Federal Reserve.  Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates exercises a controlling influence over the management or policies of a bank or any entity that is subject to the BHCA and to regulation by the Federal Reserve.

 

2.39              Money Laundering.  The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial record-keeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, applicable money laundering statutes and applicable rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”), and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any Subsidiary with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company or any Subsidiary, threatened.

 

2.40              Disclosure.  All of the disclosure furnished by or on behalf of the Company to the Investors regarding the Company and its Subsidiaries, their respective businesses and the transactions contemplated hereby, including each of the Transaction Documents and the Disclosure Schedule to this Agreement, is true and correct in all material respects and does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements made therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.  The press releases disseminated by the Company during the twelve months preceding the date of this Agreement taken as a whole do not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made and when made, not misleading.  The Company acknowledges and agrees that no Investor makes or has made any representations or warranties with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby other than those specifically set forth in Section 3 hereof.

  

6

  

3            Representations and Warranties of the Investors.   Each of the Investors, severally and not jointly, hereby represents and warrants that:

 

3.1              Authorization.  Investor (i) if a natural person, represents that Investor has reached the age of 21 and has full power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement and all other Transaction Documents and to carry out the provisions hereof and thereof; (ii) if a corporation, partnership, or limited liability company or partnership, or association, joint stock company, trust, unincorporated organization or other entity, represents that such entity was not formed for the specific purpose of acquiring the Securities, such entity is duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the state of its organization, the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby is authorized by, and will not result in a violation of state law or its charter or other organizational documents, such entity has full power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement and all other Transaction Documents and to carry out the provisions hereof and thereof and to purchase and hold the Securities the execution and delivery of this Agreement has been duly authorized by all necessary action, this Agreement has been duly executed and delivered on behalf of such entity and is a legal, valid and binding obligation of such entity; or (iii) if executing this Agreement in a representative or fiduciary capacity, represents that it has full power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement in such capacity and on behalf of the subscribing individual, ward, partnership, trust, estate, corporation, or limited liability company or partnership, or other entity for whom Investor is executing this Agreement, and such individual, partnership, ward, trust, estate, corporation, or limited liability company or partnership, or other entity has full right and power to perform pursuant to this Agreement and make an investment in the Company, and represents that this Agreement constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of such entity.  The execution and delivery of this Agreement will not violate or be in conflict with any order, judgment, injunction, agreement or controlling document to which Investor is a party or by which it is bound.

 

3.2              Purchase Entirely for Own Account.  The Securities to be purchased by the Investor will be acquired for investment for the Investor’s own account and not with a view to the resale or distribution of any part thereof, and such Investor has no present intention of selling, granting any participation in, or otherwise distributing the same.  Such Investor does not have any contract, undertaking, agreement, or arrangement with any person to sell, transfer, or grant participation to any person with respect to any of the Securities.

 

3.3              Disclosure of Information.  The Investor acknowledges that it has received all the information that it has requested relating to the Company and the purchase of the Securities.  The Investor further represents that it has had an opportunity to ask questions and receive answers from the Company regarding the terms and conditions of the Offering of the Securities.  The Investor acknowledges having been referred to the Company’s SEC EDGAR filings and represents that it has reviewed the same.  The foregoing, however, does not limit or modify the representations and warranties of the Company in Section 2 of this Agreement or the right of the Investor to rely thereon.

 

3.4              Investment Experience.  Investor is an investor in securities of companies in the development stage and acknowledges that it is able to fend for itself, and has such knowledge and experience in financial or business matters that it is capable of evaluating the merits and risks of the investment in the Securities.  Investor is able to bear the economic risk of an investment in the Securities and, at the present time, is able to afford a complete loss of such investment.

3.5              Accredited Investor.  The Investor meets the requirements of at least one of the suitability standards for an “accredited investor” within the meaning of Rule 501 of Regulation D and as set forth on the Accredited Investor Certification.

 

3.6              Restricted Securities.  Investor understands that the Securities that it is purchasing are characterized as “restricted securities” under the federal securities laws inasmuch as they are being acquired from the Company in a transaction not involving a public offering, and that under such laws and applicable regulations such securities may be resold without registration under the Act, only in certain limited circumstances.  In this connection, the Investor represents that it is familiar with Commission Rule 144, as presently in effect, and understands the resale limitations imposed thereby and by the Act.

 

3.7              High Risk and Speculative Investment.  Investor recognizes that the purchase of the Securities involves a high degree of risk including, but not limited to, the risk factors set forth in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and the following: (a) the Company requires funds in addition to the proceeds of the Offering; (b) an investment in the Company is highly speculative, and only investors who can afford the loss of their entire investment should consider investing in the Company and the Securities; (c) the Investor may not be able to liquidate its investment; (d) transferability of the Securities is extremely limited; (e) the Company may issue additional securities in the future which have rights and preferences that are senior to those of the Common Stock; and (f) that the Common Stock may not successfully become actively traded.  Investor has reviewed the Risk Factors which are set forth in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, and other SEC Documents.

 

3.8              Use of Proceeds.  Investor acknowledges and understands that the proceeds from the sale of the Securities are expected to be used by the Company for general working capital and operational purposes.

 

3.9              General Solicitation. Investor is not purchasing the Securities as a result of any advertisement, article, notice, or other communication regarding the Securities published in any newspaper, magazine or similar media or broadcast over television or radio or presented in any seminar or any other general solicitation or general advertisement.

 

3.10              Fees.  Other than the fees payable to the Placement Agent as described in Section 8.7 below or the fees set forth on Section 2.19 of the Disclosure Schedule, including the fees due the Placement Agent, no brokerage or finder’s fees or commissions are or will be payable by the Company or  any Subsidiary to any broker, financial advisor or consultant, finder, placement agent, investment banker, bank or other person with respect to the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.   The Investors shall have no obligation with respect to any fees or with respect to any claims made by or on behalf of other persons for fees of a type contemplated in this Section that may be due in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.

 

  

7

  

3.11              Legends.  It is understood that the certificates evidencing the Common Stock will bear the following legend:

 

“THE SECURITIES REPRESENTED BY THIS CERTIFICATE HAVE NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE " ACT "), AND ARE SUBJECT TO RESTRICTIONS ON TRANSFERABILITY AS SET FORTH IN THIS CERTIFICATE.  THE SECURITIES REPRESENTED HEREBY MAY NOT BE SOLD, TRANSFERRED, OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF IN THE ABSENCE OF AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE ACT OR AN OPINION OF COUNSEL, REASONABLY ACCEPTABLE TO COUNSEL FOR THE COMPANY, TO THE EFFECT THAT THE PROPOSED SALE, TRANSFER, OR DISPOSITION MAY BE EFFECTUATED WITHOUT REGISTRATION UNDER THE ACT.”

And that the certificates evidencing the Warrants will bear the following legend:

NEITHER THIS SECURITY NOR THE SECURITIES INTO WHICH THIS SECURITY IS EXERCISABLE HAVE BEEN REGISTERED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR THE SECURITIES COMMISSION OF ANY STATE IN RELIANCE UPON AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), AND, ACCORDINGLY, MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR PURSUANT TO AN AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE STATE SECURITIES LAWS AS EVIDENCED BY A LEGAL OPINION OF COUNSEL TO THE TRANSFEROR TO SUCH EFFECT, THE SUBSTANCE OF WHICH SHALL BE REASONABLY ACCEPTABLE TO THE COMPANY.

3.12              For ERISA plans only.  The fiduciary of the ERISA plan (the “Plan”) represents that such fiduciary has been informed of and understands the Company’s investment objectives, policies and strategies, and that the decision to invest “plan assets” (as such term is defined in ERISA) in the Company is consistent with the provisions of ERISA that require diversification of plan assets and impose other fiduciary responsibilities.  Investor fiduciary or Plan (a) is responsible for the decision to invest in the Company; (b) is independent of the Company or any of its affiliates; (c) is qualified to make such investment decision; and (d) in making such decision, Investor fiduciary or Plan has not relied primarily on any advice or recommendation of the Company or any of its affiliates

 

3.13              OFAC.

 

(a)           Investor should check the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) website at http://www.treas.gov/ofac before making the following representations. Investor represents that the amounts invested by it in the Company in the Offering were not and are not directly or indirectly derived from activities that contravene federal, state or international laws and regulations, including anti-money laundering laws and regulations. Federal regulations and Executive Orders administered by OFAC prohibit, among other things, the engagement in transactions with, and the provision of services to, certain foreign countries, territories, entities and individuals.  The lists of OFAC prohibited countries, territories, persons and entities can be found on the OFAC website at http://www.treas.gov/ofac.  In addition, the programs administered by OFAC (the “OFAC Programs”) prohibit dealing with individuals1 or entities in certain countries regardless of whether such individuals or entities appear on the OFAC lists;

 

(b)           To the Investor’s knowledge, none of: (1) Investor; (2) any person controlling or controlled by Investor; (3) if Investor is a privately-held entity, any person having a beneficial interest in Investor; or (4) any person for whom Investor is acting as agent or nominee in connection with this investment is a country, territory, individual or entity named on an OFAC list, or a person or entity prohibited under the OFAC Programs.  Please be advised that the Company may not accept any amounts from a prospective investor if such prospective investor cannot make the representation set forth in the preceding paragraph.  Investor agrees to promptly notify the Company and the Placement Agent should Investor become aware of any change in the information set forth in these representations.  Investor understands and acknowledges that, by law, the Company may be obligated to “freeze the account” of Investor, either by prohibiting additional subscriptions from Investor, declining any redemption requests and/or segregating the assets in the account in compliance with governmental regulations, and the Placement Agent may also be required to report such action and to disclose Investor’s identity to OFAC.  Investor further acknowledges that the Company may, by written notice to Investor, suspend the redemption rights, if any, of Investor if the Company reasonably deems it necessary to do so to comply with anti-money laundering regulations applicable to the Company and the Placement Agent or any of the Company’s other service providers.  These individuals include specially designated nationals, specially designated narcotics traffickers and other parties subject to OFAC sanctions and embargo programs.

 

(c)           To the Investor’s knowledge, none of: (1) Investor; (2) any person controlling or controlled by Investor; (3) if Investor is a privately-held entity, any person having a beneficial interest in Investor; or (4) any person for whom Investor  is  acting  as  agent or  nominee  in connection with this investment is a senior foreign political figure,2   or any immediate family3 member   or close associate4   of a senior foreign political figure, as such terms are defined in the footnotes below.

 

(d)           If Investor is affiliated with a non-U.S. banking institution (a “Foreign Bank”), or if Investor receives deposits from, makes payments on behalf of, or handles other financial transactions related to a Foreign Bank, Investor represents and warrants to the Company that: (1) the Foreign Bank has a fixed address, other than solely an electronic address, in a country in which the Foreign Bank is authorized to conduct banking activities; (2) the Foreign Bank maintains operating records related to its banking activities; (3) the Foreign Bank is subject to inspection by the banking authority that licensed the Foreign Bank to conduct banking activities; and (4) the Foreign Bank does not provide banking services to any other Foreign Bank that does not have a physical presence in any country and that is not a regulated affiliate.

 

3.14             The Investor, if a corporation, partnership, trust or other form of business entity, (1) is authorized and otherwise duly qualified to purchase and hold the Units, Shares, Warrants, and Warrant Shares, (2) has its principal place of business at its residence address set forth on the Signature Page hereof, (3) has not been formed for the specific purpose of acquiring the Units, Shares, Warrants, and Warrant Shares, and (4) has submitted and executed all documents required pursuant to this Agreement.  In the event that the Investor has been formed for the specific purpose of acquiring the Units, Shares, Warrants, and Warrant Shares, all of the equity owners of the Investor qualify as accredited investors under such other definition of an “accredited investor” under Rule 501 of Regulation D. 

 

1 These individuals include specially designated nationals, specially designated narcotics traffickers and other parties subject to OFAC sanctions and embargo programs.

  

2 A “senior foreign political figure” is defined as a senior official in the executive, legislative, administrative, military or judicial branches of a foreign government (whether elected or not), a senior official of a major foreign political party, or a senior executive of a foreign government-owned corporation. In addition, a “senior foreign political figure” includes any corporation, business or other entity that has been formed by, or for the benefit of, a senior foreign political figure.

  
3 “Immediate family” of a senior foreign political figure typically includes the figure’s parents, siblings, spouse, children and in-laws.

  
4 A “close associate” of a senior foreign political figure is a person who is widely and publicly known to maintain an unusually close relationship with the senior foreign political figure, and includes a person who is in a position to conduct substantial domestic and international financial transactions on behalf of the senior foreign political figure.

  

8

  

The person executing this Agreement and all other documents related to the offering hereby represents that he is duly authorized to execute and deliver all such documents on behalf of the entity.  IF THE INVESTOR IS ONE OF THE AFOREMENTIONED ENTITIES, IT HEREBY AGREES TO SUPPLY ANY ADDITIONAL WRITTEN INFORMATION THAT MAY BE REQUIRED BY THE COMPANY.

4            Covenants.

 

4.1              Reporting Status. Until the later of (i) such date as the Investors have sold all Warrant Shares issued to the Investors or (ii) the Warrants no longer remain outstanding, the Company shall timely file with the Commission all Company SEC Documents as are specified in the Securities Act or the Exchange Act and the Company shall not terminate its status as an issuer required to file reports under the Exchange Act even if the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder would no longer require or otherwise permit such termination.  Each SEC Document to be filed by the Company, when filed with the Commission, will comply with all applicable requirements of the Securities Act or the Exchange Act and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.  The financial statements of the Company to be included in each SEC Document to be filed by the Company will comply as to form, as of the date of its filing with the Commission, with applicable accounting requirements and the published rules and regulations of the Commission with respect thereto, will be prepared in accordance with GAAP (except, in the case of unaudited statements, as permitted by the Commission) and will fairly present in all material respects the consolidated financial position of the Company as of the dates thereof and the consolidated results of its operations and cash flows for the periods then ended, subject, in the case of unaudited statements, to normal year-end audit adjustments, which will not be material, consistent with past practices and consistently applied.

 

4.2              Disclosure of Transactions and Other Material Information.  The Company shall, on or before 9:30 a.m., New York time, on the Business Day after the date of this Agreement, (x) issue a press release (the “Press Release”) disclosing all the material terms of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents and (y) file a Current Report on Form 8-K (the “8-K Filing”) describing all the material terms of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents in the form and to the extent required by the Exchange Act and attaching all the material Transaction Documents (including, without limitation, this Agreement, the form of the Registration Rights Agreement and the form of the Warrants).  From and after the issuance of the Press Release, the Company shall have disclosed all material, non-public information (if any) delivered to any of the Investors by the Company, or any of its officers, directors, employees or agents in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents.  The Company shall not, and the Company shall cause each of its officers, directors, employees and agents not to, provide any Investor with any material, non-public information regarding the Company from and after the issuance of the Press Release without the express prior written consent of such Investor.  Neither the Company nor any Investor shall issue any other press releases or any other public statements with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby; provided , however , the Company shall be entitled, without the prior approval of any Investor, to make any press release or other public disclosure with respect to such transactions (i) in substantial conformity with the 8-K Filing and contemporaneously therewith and (ii) as is required by Applicable Law and regulations (provided that in the case of clause (i) each Investor shall be consulted by the Company in connection with any such press release or other public disclosure prior to its release).  Without the prior written consent of the applicable Investor, the Company shall not disclose the name of such Investor in any filing (other than the 8-K Filing or as otherwise required by Applicable Law), announcement, release or otherwise.

 

4.3               Form D and Blue Sky.  The Company shall file a Form D with respect to the Securities as required under Regulation D and to provide a copy thereof to each Investor promptly after such filing. The Company shall, on or before the date of each Closing, take such action as the Company shall reasonably determine is necessary in order to obtain an exemption for, or to, qualify the applicable number of Securities for sale to the Investors at such Closing pursuant to this Agreement under applicable securities or “Blue Sky” laws of the states of the United States (or to obtain an exemption from such qualification), and shall provide evidence of any such action so taken to the Investors on or prior to the date of such Closing.  Without limiting any other obligation of the Company under this Agreement, the Company shall timely make all filings and reports relating to the offer and sale of the Securities required under all applicable securities laws (including, without limitation, all applicable federal securities laws and all applicable “Blue Sky” laws), and the Company shall comply with all applicable federal, foreign, state and local laws, statutes, rules, regulations and the like relating to the offering and sale of the Securities to the Investors.

 

4.4              Reservation of Shares. From and after the date hereof until the date the Warrants are no longer outstanding, the Company shall take all action necessary to at all times have authorized, and reserved for the purpose of issuance, no less than 100% of the maximum number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of all the Warrants (without regard to any limitations on the exercise of the Warrants set forth therein).

 

5            Conditions of the Investors’ Obligations at Closings.   The obligations of the Investors under subsection 1.2 of this Agreement are subject to the fulfillment on or before the applicable Closing of each of the following conditions:

 

5.1              Representations and Warranties.  The representations and warranties of the Company contained in Section 2, as qualified by the Disclosure Schedule (as the same may be updated by the Company prior the applicable Closing), shall be true and correct as of such applicable Closing with the same effect as though such representations and warranties had been made on and as of the date of such Closing.

 

5.2              Performance.  The Company shall have performed and complied with all agreements, obligations, and conditions contained in this Agreement that are required to be performed or complied with by it on or before the applicable Closing.

 

5.3              Suspension of Offering.  No order suspending or enjoining the Offering or sale of the Securities has been issued, and no proceedings for that purpose or a similar purpose have been initiated or are pending, or, to the Company’s knowledge, are contemplated or threatened.

 

5.4              No Material Adverse Effect.  There shall have been no Material Adverse Effect with respect to the Company since the date hereof.

 

  

9

  

5.5              Compliance Certificate.  The President or Chief Executive Officer of the Company shall deliver to the Placement Agent on behalf of the Investors, at the applicable Closing, a certificate certifying that the conditions specified in Sections 5.1, 5.2 , 5.3 and 5.4 have been fulfilled.

 

5.6              Closing Documents. The Company shall have duly executed and delivered to such Investor each of the Transaction Documents to which it is a party and the Company shall have duly executed and delivered to such Investor a Warrant (for the appropriate number of Warrant Shares based upon the amount of Units purchased by such Investor hereunder, as set forth on the signature page hereto) being purchased by such Investor at the applicable Closing pursuant to this Agreement.

5.7              Good Standing. The Company shall have delivered to such Investor a certificate evidencing the incorporation and good standing of the Company in such entity’s jurisdiction of formation issued by the Secretary of State (or comparable office) of such jurisdiction of formation as of a date within thirty (30) days of the date of the applicable Closing.

 

5.8              Minimum Amount.  The Company shall have received subscriptions to the Offering for at least the Minimum Amount.

 

5.9              Delivery of Securities. The Company shall have delivered the certificates representing the Shares and Warrants to the Investors, as specified in Section 1.

 

6            Conditions of the Company’s Obligations at Closings.  The obligations of the Company to the Investors under this Agreement are subject to the fulfillment on or before the applicable Closing of each of the following conditions by the Investors:

 

6.1              Representations and Warranties.  The representations and warranties of the Investors contained in Section 3 shall be true and correct as of such applicable Closing with the same effect as though such representations and warranties had been made on and as of such Closing.

 

6.2              Payment of Purchase Price.  The Investors shall have delivered the purchase price specified in Section 1.2.

 

6.3              Minimum Amount.  The Company shall have received subscriptions to the Offering for at least the Minimum Amount.

7            Indemnification.  The Investors, severally and not jointly, agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, the Placement Agent, and their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, control persons and affiliates from and against all losses, liabilities, claims, damages, costs, fees and expenses whatsoever (including, but not limited to, any and all expenses incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation commenced or threatened) based upon or arising out of any actual or alleged false acknowledgment, representation or warranty, or misrepresentation or omission to state a material fact, or breach by the Investor of any covenant or agreement made by the Investor herein or in any other document delivered in connection with this Agreement.

 

The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Investors and any of Investors’ general partners, employees, officers, directors, members, agents and other representatives from and against all losses, liabilities, claims, damages, costs, fees and expenses whatsoever (including, but not limited to, any and all expenses incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation commenced or threatened) based upon or arising out of any actual or alleged false acknowledgment, representation or warranty, or misrepresentation or omission to state a material fact, or breach by the Company of any covenant or agreement made by the Company herein or in any other document delivered in connection with this Agreement.

 

8            Miscellaneous.

 

8.1              Survival of Warranties.  All of the representations and warranties made herein shall survive the execution and delivery of this Agreement for a period of one year.  The Investors are entitled to rely, and the parties hereby acknowledge that the Investors have so relied, upon the truth, accuracy and completeness of each of the representations and warranties of the Company contained herein, irrespective of any independent investigation made by Investors.  The Company is entitled to rely, and the parties hereby acknowledge that the Company has so relied, upon the truth, accuracy and completeness of each of the representations and warranties of the Investors contained herein, irrespective of any independent investigation made by the Company.

 

8.2              Successors and Assigns.  Except as otherwise provided herein, the terms and conditions of this Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the respective successors and assigns of the parties (including transferees of any Securities sold hereunder.  Nothing in this Agreement, express or implied, is intended to confer upon any party other than the parties hereto or their respective successors and assigns any rights, remedies, obligations, or liabilities under or by reason of this Agreement, except as expressly provided in this Agreement.

 

  

10

  

8.3              Governing Law.  This Agreement shall be governed by and construed under the laws of the State of New York.  The parties hereto (1) agree that any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement shall be instituted exclusively within the federal courts located in the State of New York or the courts of the State of New York, (2) waives any objection which the Company may have now or hereafter to the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding, and (3) irrevocably consents to the jurisdiction of such federal or state court, as the case may be, located within the State of New York in any such suit, action or proceeding.  The Company further agrees to accept and acknowledge service of any and all process which may be served in any such suit, action or proceeding in the federal courts located in the State of New York or the courts of the State of New York and agrees that service of process upon the Company mailed by certified mail to the Company's address shall be deemed in every respect effective service of process upon the Company, in any such suit, action or proceeding.  THE PARTIES HERETO AGREE TO WAIVE THEIR RESPECTIVE RIGHTS TO A JURY TRIAL OF ANY CLAIM OR CAUSE OF ACTION BASED UPON OR ARISING OUT OF THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY DOCUMENT OR AGREEMENT CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.

 

8.4              Counterparts.  This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument. This Agreement may also be executed via facsimile or by e-mail delivery of a “.pdf” format data file, either of which shall create a valid and binding obligation of the party executing (or on whose behalf such signature is executed) this Agreement with the same force and effect as if such facsimile or “.pdf” signature page were an original thereof.

 

8.5              Titles and Subtitles.  The titles and subtitles used in this Agreement are used for convenience only and are not to be considered in construing or interpreting this Agreement.

 

8.6              Notices.  Unless otherwise provided, any notice, authorization, request or demand required or permitted to be given under this Agreement shall be given in writing and shall be deemed effectively given upon personal delivery to the party to be notified or three (3) days following deposit with the United States Post Office, by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, or two days after it is sent by an overnight delivery service, or when sent by facsimile with machine confirmation of delivery addressed as follows:

 

If to the Investors to:

 

The addresses sent forth on the signature pages attached.

 

If to Company, to:

 

Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corporation

11335 Apple Drive

Nunica, Michigan 49448

Fax:  (616) XXX-XXX

Tel:  (616) 384-3272

Attention:  Chief Financial Officer

  

With a copy to:

 

Robinson Brog Leinwand Green Genovese & Gluck PC

875 3rd Avenue – 9th Floor

New York, NY 10022

Tel: (212) 603-6300

Attention:  David E. Danovitch, Esq.- ded@robinsonbrog.com

 

Any party may change its address for such communications by giving notice thereof to the other parties in conformity with this Section.

 

8.7              Compensation of Placement Agent.  Each Investor acknowledges that it is aware that the Placement Agent will receive from the Company, in consideration of its services as Placement Agent in respect of the transactions contemplated hereby, selling commissions aggregating 10% of the Purchase Price of the Securities sold at each Closing to Investors first introduced to the Company by the Placement Agent, payable in cash (the “Cash Commissions”), and Warrants in an amount equal to 10% of the Purchase Price of the Securities sold at each Closing to Investors first introduced to the Company by the Placement Agent.

  

11

  

8.8              Transaction Expenses; Enforcement of Transaction Documents.  The Company and each Investor shall pay their respective costs and expenses incurred with respect to the negotiation, execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement.  If any action at law or in equity is necessary to enforce or interpret the terms of the Transaction Documents, the prevailing party shall be entitled to reasonable attorney’s fees, costs, and necessary disbursements in addition to any other relief to which such party may be entitled.

 

8.9              Amendments and Waivers.  This Agreement may be amended or terminated and the observance of any term of this Agreement may be waived with respect to all parties to this Agreement (either generally or in a particular instance and either retroactively or prospectively), with the written consent of the Company and the Common Stock Requisite Holders (as defined below).  Notwithstanding the foregoing, this Agreement may not be amended or terminated and the observance of any term hereunder may not be waived with respect to any Investor without the written consent of such Investor unless such amendment, termination or waiver applies to all Investors in the same fashion.  The Company shall give prompt written notice of any amendment or termination hereof or waiver hereunder to any party hereto that did not consent in writing to such amendment, termination or waiver.  Any amendment, termination or waiver effected in accordance with this Section 8.9 shall be binding on all parties hereto, even if they do not execute such consent.  No waivers of or exceptions to any term, condition or provision of this Agreement, in any one or more instances, shall be deemed to be, or construed as, a further or continuing waiver of any such term, condition or provision.  Any amendment or waiver effected in accordance with this paragraph shall be binding upon each holder of any Securities purchased under this Agreement at the time outstanding each future holder of all such Securities, and the Company. For purposes hereof, “Common Stock Requisite Holder(s)” shall mean holders of Common Stock representing at least 66% of the then outstanding number of shares of Common Stock held by the Investors.

 

8.10              Severability.  If one or more provisions of this Agreement are held to be unenforceable under applicable law, such provision shall be excluded from this Agreement and the balance of this Agreement shall be interpreted as if such provision were so excluded and shall be enforceable in accordance with its terms.

 

8.11              Entire Agreement.  This Agreement and the documents referred to herein constitute the entire agreement among the parties and no party shall be liable or bound to any other party in any manner by any warranties, representations, or covenants except as specifically set forth herein or therein.

 

8.12              Independent Nature of Investors.  The obligations of each Investor under this Agreement or other transaction document are several and not joint with the obligations of any other Investor, and no Investor shall be responsible in any way for the performance of the obligations of any other Investor under this Agreement or any other transaction document.  Each Investor shall be responsible only for its own representations, warranties, agreements and covenants hereunder.  The decision of each Investor to purchase Securities pursuant to this Agreement has been made by such Investor independently of any other Investor and independently of any information, materials, statements or opinions as to the business, affairs, operations, assets, properties, liabilities, results of operations, condition (financial or otherwise) or prospects of the Company which may have been made or given by any other Investor or by any agent or employee of any other Investor, and no Investor or any of its agents or employees shall have any liability to any other Investor (or any other person) relating to or arising from any such information, materials, statements or opinions.  Nothing contained herein or in any other transaction document, and no action taken by any Investor pursuant hereto or thereto, shall be deemed to constitute the Investors as a partnership, an association, a joint venture or any other kind of entity, or create a presumption that the Investors are in any way acting in concert or as a group with respect to such obligations or the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.  Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement or any other transaction document, each Investor shall be entitled to independently protect and enforce its rights arising out of this Agreement or out of the other transaction documents, and it shall not be necessary for any other Investor to be joined as an additional party in any proceeding for such purpose. 

 

 

 

  

12

  

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement as of the date first above written.

 

Company:

VICTORY ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES CORPORATION, a Nevada corporation

By: __________________

Name:

Title:

  

13

  

 

SIGNATURE PAGE

 

By execution and delivery of this signature page, you hereby: (i) agree to become (A) an Investor, as defined in that certain Securities Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”), by and among Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corporation, a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), and the Investors (as defined in the Purchase Agreement), and (B) a Holder, as defined in that certain Registration Rights Agreement (the “Registration Rights Agreement”), by and among the Company and the Holders (as defined in the Registration Rights Agreement), and, in the case of the Purchase Agreement and Registration Rights Agreement, are each dated as of April 29, 2014, (ii) acknowledge that you have read the entire Purchase Agreement, the entire Registration Rights Agreement and reviewed the Company’s SEC Filings referenced in the Purchase Agreement and that you agree to be bound by each of the Purchase Agreement and the Registration Rights Agreement; and (iii) acknowledge that you have reviewed the representations in Section 3 of the Purchase Agreement entitled “Representations and Warranties of the Investors,” and represent that the statements contained in Section 3 of the Purchase Agreement are complete and accurate with respect to the undersigned as an Investor.

 

	
INVESTOR/HOLDER:

 

Print Name: ________________________________

 

Signature:__________________________________

 

Print Name (if joint investment) :___________________

 

Signature:__________________________________

 

Title (if entity) _______________________________

 

Telephone No. ______________________________

 

E-mail Address: _____________________________

 

Social Security # or Fed ID #___________________

 

___________________________________________

Street Address

___________________________________________

Street Address – 2nd line

___________________________________________

City, State, Zip

 

	
NUMBER OF UNITS PURCHASED: ___________

 

AGGREGATE PURCHASE PRICE

($6.50 PER UNIT): $_______________________

 

Date: _____________________________________

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

14

  

 

SCHEDULE OF INVESTORS

 

  

15

  

 

APPENDIX A

 

Additional Definitions

 

For purposes of this Agreement, the following additional capitalized terms shall have the respective definitions set forth below:

 

“Affiliate” means any Person that, directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is controlled by or is under common control with a Person, as such terms are used in and construed under Rule 405 under the Securities Act.

 

“Applicable Laws” means all applicable provisions of all (i) constitutions, treaties, statutes, laws, rules, regulations and ordinances of any Governmental Authority and all common law duties, (ii) Consents of any Governmental Authority and (iii) orders, writs, decisions, rulings, judgments or decrees of any Governmental Authority binding upon, or applicable to, the Company or Investor, as the case may be.

 

“Board of Directors” means the board of directors of the Company.

 

“Business Day” means any day except any Saturday, any Sunday, any day which is a federal legal holiday in the United States or any day on which banking institutions in the State of New York are authorized or required by law or other governmental action to close.

 

“Commission” means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

“Consents” means all consents, approvals, authorizations, waivers, permits, grants, franchises, licenses, findings of suitability, exemptions or orders of, or any registrations, certificates, qualifications, declarations or filings with, or any notices to, any Governmental Authority or other Person.

 

“Eligible Market” means The New York Stock Exchange, the NYSE Amex, the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the Nasdaq Global Market, the Nasdaq Capital Market, the OTC Bulletin Board, or OTCQX.

 

“Environmental Laws” means all Applicable Laws relating to Hazardous Materials or the protection of human health or safety or the environment, including all requirements pertaining to reporting, permitting, investigating or remediating Releases or threatened Releases of Hazardous Materials into the environment, or relating to the manufacture, processing, distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or handling of Hazardous Materials.

 

“Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

“FCPA” means the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended.

 

“GAAP” means U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and practices set forth in the opinions and pronouncements of the Accounting Principles Board and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and statements and pronouncements of the Financial Accounting Standards Board or in such other statements by such other entity as may be approved by a significant segment of the accounting profession, all as in effect on the date in question, applied on a basis consistent with prior periods.

 

“Governmental Authority” means any nation or government, and any state or political subdivision thereof, any entity exercising executive, legislative, judicial, regulatory or administrative functions of or pertaining to government (including the Commission and any court, tribunal or arbitrator(s) of competent jurisdiction, and any other stock exchange or self-regulatory organization, including the OTC Bulletin Board, OTC Markets Inc. and the Pink OTC Markets, Inc.).

 

“Hazardous Materials” means any substance (i) which is regulated or governed under any Environmental Laws; (ii) that is defined or becomes defined as a “hazardous waste” or “hazardous substance” under any Environmental Laws;  (iii) that is otherwise, to the extent not included in clause (i) or (ii)  above, toxic, explosive, corrosive, inflammable, infectious, radioactive, carcinogenic or mutagenic; or (iv) that contains gasoline or other petroleum hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls or asbestos.

 

  

16

  

“Liens” means a lien, charge, pledge, security interest, encumbrance, right of first refusal, preemptive right or other restriction.

 

“Organizational Documents” means, collectively, with respect to any Person that is an entity, the articles of incorporation, certificate of incorporation, certificate of formation, articles of organization, bylaws, limited liability company agreement, operating agreement, partnership agreement and similar organizational documents of such Person, as applicable.

 

“Person” means an individual or corporation, partnership, trust, incorporated or unincorporated association, joint venture, limited liability company, joint stock company, government (or an agency or subdivision thereof) or other entity of any kind.

 

“Principal Market” means the Eligible Market on which the Common Stock is primarily listed on or quoted for trading, which, as of the date of this Agreement and the date of each Closing, shall be the OTC Bulletin Board.

 

“Real Property” means any real property or facility currently or formerly owned, operated, leased or occupied by the Company.

 

“Release” means any release (whether threatened or actual), migration, spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, seeping, leaching, dumping or disposing into the environment or the workplace of any Hazardous Materials, and otherwise as defined in any Environmental Laws.

 

“Registration Rights Agreement” means the Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of April 30, 2014, by and among the Company and the Investors.

 

“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

“Subsidiary” means any subsidiary of the Company as set forth on Section 2.1   of the Disclosure Schedule and shall, where applicable, also include any direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company formed or acquired after the date hereof.

 

“Trading Day” means a day on which the principal Trading Market is open for trading.

 

“Trading Market” means any of the following markets or exchanges on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted for trading on the date in question: the NYSE MKT, the Nasdaq Capital Market, the Nasdaq Global Market, the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the New York Stock Exchange, the OTC Bulletin Board, the OTCQX, OTCQB or OTC Pink (or any successors to any of the foregoing).

 

“Transaction Documents” means this Agreement, the Warrants, and the Registration Rights Agreement, together with all exhibits and schedules thereto and hereto and any other documents or agreements executed in connection with the transactions contemplated hereunder.

17

Source: [{"source": "alea-institute/alea-institute/kl3m-data-edgar-agreements/train-00230-of-00352.parquet"}, [{"source": "alea-institute/alea-institute/kl3m-data-edgar-agreements/train-00230-of-00352.parquet"}]]