SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

NOTE 2 - SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying consolidated audited financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”).

Basis of Consolidation

The consolidated audited financial statements include the accounts of AppTech Payments Corp., Alliance Partners., LLC, and wholly owned subsidiary. All significant inter-company accounts and transactions are eliminated in consolidation.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of the financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period.

The Company makes critical estimates and assumptions in valuing: stock-based awards, intangible assets, identifiable intangible assets from the FinZeo acquisition, and the related goodwill impairment test. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Concentration of Credit Risk

Cash and cash equivalents are maintained at financial institutions and, at times, balances may exceed federally insured limits of $250,000 per institution that pays Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) insurance premiums. The Company has never experienced any losses related to these balances.

The accounts receivable from merchant services are paid by the financial institutions on a monthly basis. As of December 31, 2023, 80% of the accounts receivable balance was generated from two customers. As of December 31, 2022, the same two customers accounted for 85% of total accounts receivable.

For the year ended December 31, 2023, two customers accounted for a significant amount of our revenues at 49% and 31%, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2022, one customer represented 70% of total revenues. The loss of the customer would have a significant impact on the Company's financials.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company's cash consists of cash on deposit at its bank. Cash equivalents, if applicable, represents highly liquid investments with maturities of three months or less at the date of purchase. Management determines the appropriate classification.

Accounts Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

Accounts receivable is recorded net of an allowance for doubtful accounts, when applicable. Historically, the Company has not written off any accounts receivable balances and does not maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts.

Revenue Recognition

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2014-09, codified as Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 606 Revenue from Contracts with Customers, which provides a single comprehensive model for entities to use in accounting for revenue arising from contracts with customers.

The Company provides merchant processing solutions for credit cards and electronic payments. In all cases, the Company acts as an agent between the merchant which generates the credit card and electronic payments, and the bank, which processes such payments.

The Company’s revenue is generated on services priced as a percentage of transaction value or a specified fee transaction, depending on the card or transaction type. Revenue is recorded as services are performed, which is typically when the bank processes the merchant’s credit card and electronic payments. Consideration paid to channel partners are recorded as a reduction to revenues.

Licensing Revenue

The Company is actively pursuing strategic partnership agreements that licenses our portfolio of patents in return for a fee. The licensing fee is deferred and recognized evenly on a monthly basis over the term of the service period or contract.

Accrued Residuals

The Company pays commissions to independent agents which refer merchant accounts. The amounts payable to these independent agents is based upon a percentage of the amounts processed on a monthly basis by these merchant accounts.

Fair Value Measurements

The Company follows FASB ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures (“ASC 820”) to measure and disclose the fair value of its financial instruments. ASC 820 establishes a framework for measuring fair value in U.S. GAAP and expands disclosures about fair value measurements and establishes a fair value hierarchy which prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value into three broad levels. The three levels of fair value hierarchy defined by ASC 820 are described below:

Level 1 Quoted market prices available in active markets for identical assets or liabilities as of the reporting date.

Level 2 Pricing inputs other than quoted prices in active markets included in Level 1, which are either directly or indirectly observable as of the reporting date.

Level 3 Pricing inputs that are generally unobservable inputs and not corroborated by market data.

Financial assets are considered Level 3 when their fair values are determined using pricing models, discounted cash flow methodologies or similar techniques and at least one significant model assumption or input is unobservable.

The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs. If the inputs used to measure the financial assets and liabilities fall within more than one level described above, the categorization is based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement of the instrument.

The carrying amounts reported in the Company’s consolidated financial statements for cash, accounts payable and accrued expenses approximate their fair value because of the immediate or short-term maturity of these financial instruments.

Transactions involving related parties cannot be presumed to be carried out on an arms-length basis, as the requisite conditions of competitive, free-marketing dealings may not exist. Representations about transactions with related parties, if made, shall not imply that the related party transactions were consummated on terms equivalent to those that prevail in arm’s-length transactions unless such representations can be substantiated.

The following table presents financial instruments that are measured and recognized at fair value as of December 31, 2022 on recurring basis (in thousands):

	December 31, 2022
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total Carrying Value
Derivative liabilities	$	–	$	–	$	433	$	433

As of December 31, 2023, the company's financial instruments have a balance of zero.

See Note 7 for discussion of valuation and roll forward related to derivative liabilities.

Business Combination

ASC 805, Business Combinations (“ASC 805”), applies the acquisition method of accounting for business combinations to all acquisitions where the acquirer gains a controlling interest, regardless of whether consideration was exchanged. ASC 805 establishes principles and requirements for how the acquirer: a) recognizes and measures in its financial statements the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, and any non-controlling interest in the acquiree; b) recognizes and measures the goodwill acquired in the business combination or a gain from a bargain purchase; and c) determines what information to disclose to enable users of the financial statements to evaluate the nature and financial effects of the business combination. Accounting for acquisitions requires the Company to recognize, separately from goodwill, the assets acquired, and the liabilities assumed at their acquisition-date fair values. Goodwill as of the acquisition date is measured as the excess of consideration transferred and the net of the acquisition-date fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed. While the Company provided its best estimates and assumptions when accurately valuing assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the acquisition date, the estimates are inherently uncertain and subject to refinement. As a result, during the measurement period, which may be up to one year from the acquisition date, the Company may record adjustments to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed with the corresponding offset to goodwill.

Property and Equipment

Property and equipment are recorded at cost. Expenditures for major additions and improvements are capitalized. Maintenance and repairs are charged to operations as incurred. Depreciation of property and equipment is computed by the straight-line method (after taking into account their respective estimated residual values) over the assets estimated useful life of five (5) years. Upon sale or retirement of equipment, the related cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reflected in the statements of operations.

Intangible Assets and Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property

In April 2022, the Company fully executed a Definitive Agreement to acquire the patents of HotHand Inc. (“HotHand”), a patent-holding company. The transaction was an asset acquisition of HotHand's portfolio of thirteen patents. These patents are focused on the delivery, purchase, or request of any products or services within specific geolocation and time parameters, provided by a consumer’s cell phone anywhere in the United States. Additionally, HotHand’s family of patents includes a patent that protects advertising on a store’s mobile application when the cell phone is in the store and the ads shown are being triggered by geolocation tagging.

We amortize the patents on a straight-line basis from 3 years to 15 years, which approximates the way the economic benefits of the intangible asset will be consumed.

For the FinZeo acquisition, the Company recorded the identifiable intangible assets, which included the acquired technology, intellectual property, and non-competes, at their acquisition-date fair value using a combination of the income and cost approaches. The capitalized asset will also be amortized on a straight line basis over the five years of estimated useful life of the asset.

Capitalized Development Cost

The Company capitalizes certain costs related to the development of its digital payment and banking platform. Costs incurred during the development phase are capitalized only when we believe it is probable the development will result in new or additional functionality. The Company recorded the identifiable intangible assets, which included the acquired technology, intellectual property, and non-competes, at their acquisition-date fair value using a combination of the income and cost approaches. Costs related to the preliminary project planning phase and post implementation phase are expensed as incurred. The capitalized development costs are amortized on a straight line basis over the estimated useful life of the asset.

Goodwill

The Company accounts for goodwill in accordance with ASC 350, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other (“ASC 350”). ASC 350 requires that goodwill and other intangibles with indefinite lives should be tested for impairment annually or on an interim basis if events or circumstances indicate that the fair value of an asset has decreased below its carrying value.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

Long-lived assets are reviewed for impairment when there is evidence that events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset or asset group may not be recoverable. Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by comparing the carrying amount of an asset or asset group to estimated undiscounted future cash flows expected to be generated by the asset or asset group. If the carrying amount of an asset or asset group exceeds its estimated future cash flows, an impairment charge is recognized for the amount by which the carrying amount of the asset or asset group exceeds the estimated fair value of the asset or asset group. Long-lived assets to be disposed of by sale are reported at the lower of their carrying amounts or their estimated fair values less costs to sell and are not depreciated. During the year ended December 31, 2023, there was $6.1 million asset impairment. During the year ended December 31, 2022, there were no asset impairments.

See Notes 4 and 9 for further discussion of the asset impairment recorded during the year ended December 31, 2023.

Lease Commitment

The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception. This determination generally depends on whether the arrangement conveys to the Company the right to control the use of an explicitly or implicitly identified fixed asset for a period of time in exchange for consideration. Control of an underlying asset is conveyed to the Company if the Company obtains the rights to direct the use of and to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits from using the underlying asset. The Company has lease agreements which include lease and non-lease components, which the Company has elected to account for as a single lease component for all classes of underlying assets. Lease expense for variable lease components are recognized when the obligation is probable. Operating lease right of use (“ROU”) assets and lease liabilities are recognized at commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. Operating lease payments are recognized as lease expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The Company primarily leases buildings (real estate) which are classified as operating leases. ASC 842 requires a lessee to discount its unpaid lease payments using the interest rate implicit in the lease or, if that rate cannot be readily determined, its incremental borrowing rate. As an implicit interest rate is not readily determinable in the Company’s leases, the incremental borrowing rate is used based on the information available at commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments.

The lease term for all of the Company’s leases includes the non-cancellable period of the lease plus any additional periods covered by either a Company option to extend (or not to terminate) the lease that the Company is reasonably certain to exercise, or an option to extend (or not to terminate) the lease controlled by the lessor. Options for lease renewals have been excluded from the lease term (and lease liability) for the majority of the Company’s leases as the reasonably certain threshold is not met.

Lease payments included in the measurement of the lease liability are comprised of fixed payments, variable payments that depend on index or rate, and amounts probable to be payable under the exercise of the Company option to purchase the underlying asset if reasonably certain.

Variable lease payments not dependent on a rate or index associated with the Company’s leases are recognized when the event, activity, or circumstance in the lease agreement on which those payments are assessed as probable. Variable lease payments are presented as operating expenses in the Company’s statement of operations in the same line as expense arising from fixed lease payments. As of December 31, 2023, management determined that there were no variable lease costs.

Income Taxes

The Company recognizes deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been included in the consolidated financial statements or tax returns. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are based on the differences between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates in effect for the fiscal year in which the differences are expected to reverse. Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance to the extent management concludes it is more likely than not that the assets will not be realized. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the fiscal years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in the statement of operations in the period that includes the enactment date.

The Company’s income tax returns are based on calculations and assumptions that are subject to examination by the Internal Revenue Service and other tax authorities. In addition, the calculation of the Company’s tax liabilities involves dealing with uncertainties in the application of complex tax regulations. The Company recognizes liabilities for uncertain tax positions based on a two-step process. The first step is to evaluate the tax position for recognition by determining if the weight of available evidence indicates that it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained on audit, including resolution of related appeals or litigation processes, if any. The second step is to measure the tax benefit as the largest amount that is more than 50% likely of being realized upon settlement. While the Company believes it has appropriate support for the positions taken on its tax returns, the Company regularly assesses the potential outcomes of examinations by tax authorities in determining the adequacy of its provision for income taxes. The Company continually assesses the likelihood and amount of potential adjustments and adjusts the income tax provision, income taxes payable and deferred taxes in the period in which the facts that give rise to a revision become known. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company does not believe any provisions are required in connection with uncertain tax positions as there are none.

Research and Development

In accordance with ASC 730, Research and Development (“R&D”) costs are expensed when incurred. R&D costs include costs of acquiring patents and other unproven technologies, contractor fees and other costs associated with the development of the SMS short code texting platform, contract and other outside services. Total R&D costs for the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 were approximately $3.5 million and $7.6 million, respectively.

Per Share Information

Basic net income (loss) per common share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the year. Diluted net income (loss) per common share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the year, increased by the potentially dilutive common shares that were outstanding during the year. Dilutive securities include stock options, warrants granted, convertible debt and convertible preferred stock.

The number of common stock equivalents not included in diluted income per share was 10,216,672 and 5,544,100 for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The weighted average number of common stock equivalents is not included in diluted income (loss) per share, because the effects are anti-dilutive.

	December 31, 2023		December 31, 2022
Series A preferred stock		1,148		1,148
Convertible debt		–		177,620
Warrants		7,489,960		4,275,464
Options		2,725,564		1,089,868
Total		10,216,672		5,544,100

Derivative Liability

The Company issued debts that consist of the issuance of convertible notes with variable conversion provisions. In addition, the Company issued warrants with variable anti-dilution provisions. The conversion terms of the notes and warrants are variable based on certain factors, such as the future price of the Company’s common stock. The number of shares of common stock to be issued is based on the future price of the Company’s common stock. The number of shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the promissory note is indeterminate. Pursuant to ASC 815-15 Embedded Derivatives, the fair values of the variable conversion option and warrants and shares to be issued were recorded as derivative liabilities on the issuance date and at each reporting period.

Stock Based Compensation

The Company recognizes as compensation expense all share-based payment awards made to employees, directors, and consultants including grants of stock, stock options and warrants, based on estimated fair values. Fair value is generally determined based on the closing price of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant and is recognized over the service period. The Company has several consulting agreements that have share based payment awards based on performance. These agreements typically require the Company to issue common stock to the consultants on a monthly basis. The Company records the fair market value of the common stock issuable at each month end when the performance is complete based upon the closing market price of the Company’s common stock.

New Accounting Pronouncements

The FASB issues ASUs to amend the authoritative literature in ASC. There have been a number of ASUs to date that amend the original text of ASC. The Company believes those issued to date either (i) provide supplemental guidance, (ii) are technical corrections, (iii) are not applicable to the Company or (iv) are not expected to have a significant impact on the Company.