Exhibit 4.1
DESCRIPTION OF OUR SECURITIES
The following summary of the Company’s securities is based on and qualified by the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Certificate of Designation (the “CoD”) thereto and Amended and Restated Bylaw. References to the “Company” and to “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to BurgerFi International, Inc. and its subsidiaries.
Authorized and Outstanding Stock
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation authorizes the issuance of a total number of 110,000,000, shares of all classes of capital stock, of which 100,000,000 shares shall be common stock of the par value $.0001 per share (“Common Stock”) and 10,000,000 shares shall be preferred stock of the par value of $.0001 per share (“Preferred Stock”). Pursuant to the CoD, the Company designated 2,620,000 shares of our Preferred Stock as “Series A Preferred Stock,” as referred to throughout this prospectus. In connection with the Company’s acquisition of Hot Air, Inc. (the “Stock Acquisition”), the Company issued 2,120,000 shares of Series A Junior Preferred Stock.
Common Stock
Voting Power
Except as otherwise required by law or as otherwise provided in any certificate of designation for any series of preferred stock, the holders of the Common Stock shall exclusively possess all voting power and each share of Common Stock shall have one vote. Unless otherwise required by the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), any proposals (other than the election of directors) brought before any meeting of stockholders shall be decided by the vote of the holders of a majority of the stock represented and entitled to vote thereat. At all meetings of stockholders for the election of directors, a plurality of the votes cast shall be sufficient to elect a director. There is no cumulative voting with respect to the Common Stock.
Dividends
Subject to the rights of holders of any series of outstanding Preferred Stock, holders of common stock will be entitled to receive dividends and other distributions, if any, in amounts declared from time to time by our Board of Directors (“Board”) in its discretion out of funds legally available therefor and shall share equally on a per share basis in these dividends and distributions.
Liquidation, Dissolution and Winding Up
In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of Common Stock are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining after payment of liabilities, subject to the prior distribution rights of any outstanding preferred stock.
Other
Our stockholders have no conversion, preemptive or other subscription rights and there are no sinking fund or redemption provisions applicable to the shares of Common Stock.
Preferred Stock
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides the Board is expressly granted authority to issue shares of the Preferred Stock, in one or more series, and to fix for each such series such voting powers, full or limited, and such designations, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other special rights and such qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof as shall be stated and expressed in the resolution or resolutions adopted by the Board providing for the issue of such series (a “Preferred Stock Designation”). The number of authorized shares of Preferred Stock may be increased or decreased (but not below the number of shares thereof then outstanding) by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the voting power of all of the then outstanding shares of the capital stock of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class, without a separate vote of the holders of the Preferred Stock, or any series thereof, unless a vote of any such holders is required pursuant to any Preferred Stock Designation.
Warrants
The warrants (the “Public Warrants”) to purchase shares of Common Stock, at an exercise price of $11.50 per share, issued in connection with the initial public offering (the “IPO”) of OPES Acquisition Corp. (“OPES”) on March 16, 2018 became exercisable 30 days after the completion of the acquisition by OPES of 100% of the membership interests of BurgerFi International, LLC from the members (the “Members”) of BurgerFi International, LLC (the “Business Combination”); provided that the Company has an effective registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available. The Company has agreed that as soon as practicable, the Company will use its best efforts to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants. The Company will use its best efforts to cause the same to become effective and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement, and a current prospectus relating thereto, until the expiration of the Public Warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants is not effective within the specified period following the consummation of Business Combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when the Company shall have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to the exemption provided by Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act, provided that such exemption is available. If that exemption, or another exemption, is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. The Public Warrants will expire five years after the completion of a Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
The Company may redeem the Public Warrants:
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| • | | in whole and not in part; |
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| • | | at a price of $0.01 per warrant; |
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| • | | at any time during the exercise period; |
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| • | | upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption; |
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| • | | if, and only if, the last sale price of the Company’s common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third business day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders; and |
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| • | | if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect with respect to the shares of common stock underlying such warrants. |
If the Company calls the Public Warrants for redemption, management will have the option to require all holders that wish to exercise the Public Warrants to do so on a “cashless basis,” as described in the warrant agreement. The exercise price and number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a stock dividend, or recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the warrants will not be adjusted for issuance of common stock at a price below its exercise price. Additionally, in no event will the Company be required to net cash settle the warrants.
The Private Warrants, consisting of (i) warrants to purchase shares of Common Stock, at an exercise price of $11.50 per share, which consist of warrants that are part of the units issued to Lion Point Capital, L.P. and Lionheart Equities, LLC, under the Amended and Restated Forward Purchase Contracts that the Company entered into, at the time of the Business Combination, with Lion Point Capital, L.P. and Lionheart Equities, LLC, (ii) private placement warrants and (iii) working capital warrants, all of which were issued pursuant to private placement exemptions, are identical to the Public Warrants, except that the Private Warrants and the common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Warrants were not be transferable, assignable or saleable until after the completion of the Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the Private Warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis and be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees. If the Private Warrants are held by someone other than the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees, the Private Warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.
The Company has issued an additional 150,000 warrants in satisfaction of certain working capital loans made by the Company’s officers, directors, initial stockholders and affiliates. The working capital warrants are identical to the Public Warrants, except that the working capital warrants and the common stock issuable upon the exercise of the
working capital warrants were not be transferable, assignable or saleable until after the completion of the Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the working capital warrants may be exercisable on a cash or cashless basis and will be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees. If the working capital warrants are held by someone other than the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees, the working capital warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.
Unit Purchase Option
The Company entered into a Unit Purchase Option Agreement with EarlyBirdCapital pursuant to which EarlyBirdCapital and its designees could purchase up to 750,000 units (each consisting of one share of Common Stock and one Warrant). The unit purchase option expired on March 17, 2023. Prior to expiration, 283,669 shares of Common Stock were issued pursuant to cashless exercises of the unit purchase option. Pursuant to demand and “piggyback” rights for periods of five and seven years, respectively, from March 13, 2018, the 283,669 shares of Common Stock issued pursuant to the cashless exercises and the 75,000 shares and 75,000 shares of Common Stock issuable upon the exercise of the warrants that remained issuable pursuant to the exercise of the units that remained outstanding pursuant to the unit purchase option were registered pursuant to a registration statement filed by the Company with the SEC.
Transfer Agent and Warrant Agent
The transfer agent for our common stock and warrant agent for our warrants is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company. We have agreed to indemnify Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company in its role as transfer agent and warrant agent, its agents and each of its stockholders, directors, officers and employees against all claims and losses that may arise out of acts performed or omitted for its activities in that capacity, except for any liability due to any gross negligence, willful misconduct or bad faith of the indemnified person or entity.
Certain Anti-Takeover Provisions of Delaware Law and our Charter and Bylaws
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation contains provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions may make more difficult the removal of management and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
Staggered Board
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that our Board be classified into three classes of directors of approximately equal size. As a result, in most circumstances, a person can gain control of our Board only by successfully engaging in a proxy contest at two or more annual or special meetings.
Special meeting of stockholders
Our Amended and Restated Bylaws provide that special meetings of stockholders may be called only by a majority vote of our Board or our President or Executive Chairman.
Advance notice requirements for stockholder proposals and director nominations
Our Amended and Restated Bylaws provide that stockholders of record seeking to bring business before an annual meeting of stockholders, or to nominate candidates for election as directors at our annual meeting of stockholders, must provide timely notice of their intent in writing. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice will need to be received at
our principal executive offices not less than sixty (60) days nor more than ninety (90) days prior to the meeting; provided, however, that in the event that less than seventy (70) days’ notice or prior public disclosure of the date of the annual meeting is given or made to stockholders, notice by a stockholder, to be timely, must be received no later than the close of business on the tenth (10th) day following the day on which such notice of the date of the annual meeting was mailed or such public disclosure was made, whichever first occurs. Pursuant to Rule 14a-8 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), proposals seeking inclusion in our annual proxy statement must comply with the notice periods contained therein. Our Amended and Restated Bylaws also specify certain requirements as to the form and content of a stockholders’ meeting. These provisions may preclude our stockholders from bringing matters before the annual meeting of stockholders or from making nominations for directors at our annual meeting of stockholders.
Authorized but unissued shares
Our authorized but unissued Common Stock and Preferred Stock are available for future issuances without stockholder approval and could be utilized for a variety of corporate purposes, including future offerings to raise additional capital, acquisitions and employee benefit plans. The existence of authorized but unissued and unreserved Common Stock and Preferred Stock could render more difficult or discourage an attempt to obtain control of us by means of a proxy contest, tender offer, merger or otherwise.
Stockholder action by written consent
Our Amended and Restated Bylaws provide that any action required or permitted to be a taken by stockholders must be effected at an annual or special meeting, and may not be taken by written consent (subject to the rights of any preferred stock then outstanding).
Exclusive forum selection
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation requires that unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware (or, in the event that the Chancery Court does not have jurisdiction, the federal district court for the District of Delaware or other state courts of the State of Delaware) shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the sole and exclusive forum for (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of us, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any current or former director, officer, employee or agent of us to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our charter or bylaws (as either may be amended from time to time), and (iv) any action asserting a claim against us governed by the internal affairs doctrine. The enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ organizational documents has been challenged in legal proceedings, and it is possible that, in connection with claims arising under federal securities laws, a court could find the choice of forum provisions contained in our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable. If that were the case, because stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder, it would allow stockholders to bring claims for breach of these provisions in any appropriate forum. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction.
Section 203 of the DGCL
We have not opted out of Section 203 of the DGCL under the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation. As a result, pursuant to Section 203 of the DGCL, we are prohibited from engaging in any business combination with any stockholder for a period of three years following the time that such stockholder (the “interested stockholder”) came to own at least 15% of the outstanding voting stock (the “acquisition”), except if:
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| • | | the Board approved the acquisition prior to its consummation; |
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| • | | the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the outstanding voting stock upon consummation of the acquisition; or |
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| • | | the business combination is approved by the Board, and by a 2/3 majority vote of the other stockholders in a meeting. |
Generally, a “business combination” includes any merger, consolidation, asset or stock sale or certain other transactions resulting in a financial benefit to the interested stockholder. Subject to certain exceptions, an “interested stockholder” is a person who, together with that person’s affiliates and associates, owns, or within the previous three years owned, 15% or more of our outstanding voting stock.
Under certain circumstances, declining to opt out of Section 203 of the DGCL will make it more difficult for a person who would be an “interested stockholder” to effect various business combinations with us for a three-year period. This may encourage companies interested in acquiring us to negotiate in advance with the Board because the stockholder approval requirement would be avoided if the Board approves the acquisition which results in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder. This may also have the effect of preventing changes in the Board and may make it more difficult to accomplish transactions which stockholders may otherwise deem to be in their best interests.
Limitation on Liability and Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws limit the personal liability of our directors to our stockholders or us for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except for liability (1) for any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders, (2) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (3) under Section 174 of the DGCL or (4) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit. Our Amended and Restated Bylaws also provide for such limitation of liability with respect to our officers. The DGCL provides that directors of a corporation will not be personally liable for monetary damages for breach of their fiduciary duties as directors, except for liability:
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| • | | for any transaction from which the director derives an improper personal benefit; |
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| • | | for any act or omission not in good faith or that involves intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law; |
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| • | | for any unlawful payment of dividends or redemption of shares; or |
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| • | | for any breach of a director’s duty of loyalty to the corporation or its stockholders. |
If the DGCL is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of directors, then the liability of our directors will be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, as so amended.
Delaware law and our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws provide that, in certain circumstances and subject to certain limitations, we will indemnify our directors and officers and may indemnify other employees and other agents, to the fullest extent permitted by law. Any indemnified person is also entitled, subject to certain limitations, to advancement of expenses (including attorneys’ fees) in advance of the final disposition of the proceeding.
We currently maintain a directors’ and officers’ insurance policy pursuant to which our directors and officers are insured against liability for actions taken in their capacities as directors and officers.
We believe these provisions in the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and in our Amended and Restated Bylaws and these indemnification agreements are necessary to attract and retain qualified persons as directors and officers. However, these provisions may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against directors and officers, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit
us and its stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against directors and officers pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers, or control persons, in the opinion of the SEC, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
Registration Rights
Pursuant to a registration rights agreement, dated as of March 15, 2018 (the “Original Registration Rights Agreement”), those initial stockholders who held founders’ shares (“Founders’ Shares”) issued and outstanding prior to the IPO, as well as the holders of the 45,000 units sold in connection with the underwriter’s over-allotment option in connection with the IPO and any units issued to Lion Point Capital, L.P., the initial stockholders, their affiliates, officers, directors or third parties in payment of working capital loans made to us, were entitled to registration rights.
In connection with the Business Combination, all of the parties to the Original Registration Rights Agreement (and those parties who as a result of the transfer of Founders’ Shares became a party to the Original Registration Rights Agreement), along with the Members and all other holders of certain securities (“Registrable Securities”) (other than the holders of Public Warrants), entered into a new registration rights agreement (the “New Registration Rights Agreement”) covering the registration of Registrable Securities held by such parties. Pursuant to the New Registration Rights Agreement, the Company filed with the SEC a registration statement covering the resale of certain Registrable Securities held by the parties in accordance with SEC guidance and caused the registration statement to be declared effective under the Securities Act, and must use its commercially reasonable efforts to keep such registration statement continuously effective under the Securities Act until all Registrable Securities covered by such registration statement have been sold or may be sold without volume or manner-of-sale restrictions pursuant to Rule 144, without the requirement that the Company be in compliance with the current public information
requirement under Rule 144. Additionally, Lion Point Capital, LLC made a written demand for registration under the Securities Act of all or part of the Lion Point Securities. The Company is not obligated to effect more than two demand registration statements in respect of the Lion Point Securities. The New Registration Rights Agreement also provides the holders of the Registrable Securities with certain piggy-back registration rights.
In connection with the Stock Acquisition, on November 3, 2021, we entered into a registration rights and lock-up agreement with Cardboard (the “the RRA/Lock-Up”) covering certain registrable securities (the “New Registrable Securities”). Pursuant to the RRA/Lock-Up, the Company filed with the SEC a registration statement covering the resale of the New Registrable Securities in accordance with SEC guidance and caused the registration statement to be declared effective under the Securities Act and will use its commercially reasonable efforts to keep such registration statement continuously effective under the Securities Act until all New Registrable Securities covered by such registration statement have been sold or certain other events with respect to the New Registrable Securities have occurred. Additionally, Cardboard is entitled to make, from time to time, a written demand for registration under the Securities Act of all or part of the New Registrable Securities. The Company is not obligated to effect more than three demand registration statements in respect of the New Registrable Securities. The RRA/Lock-Up also provides the holders of the New Registrable Securities with certain piggy-back registration and underwritten shelf offering rights.