STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2022

STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

NOTE 15 – STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

On May 13, 2021, the Company made effective the 2021 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) for purpose of attracting and retaining employees, consultants and directors of the Company and its affiliates by providing each the opportunity to acquire an equity interest in the Company or other incentive compensation in order to align the interests of such individuals with those of the Company’s stockholders. The Plan provides for a maximum number of shares to be issued, limitations of shares to be delivered for incentive stock options and a maximum compensation amount for any non-employee member of the board of directors, among other provisions. The form of grants under the Plan includes stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock and restricted stock units. No grants were made under the Plan as of December 31, 2021.

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022, stock-based compensation expense was $568,000 and $1.1 million, respectively. The following table summarizes the activities for unvested Company restricted stock units (RSUs) granted to employees and Board of Directors members during the nine months ended September 30, 2022:

	Unvested Restricted Stock Units
	Number of Shares		Weighted-Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Unvested as of December 31, 2021		—		-
Granted		1,931,187		2.87
Vested		—		-
Forfeited/canceled		—		-
Unvested as of September 30, 2022		1,931,187		2.87

As of September 30, 2022, there was $4.5 million of unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested employee and Board of Directors members RSUs.  The amount is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.3 years.  During the nine months ended September 30, 2022, one RSU grant, with an initial fair value of $90,000 and unrecognized compensation of $65,000, was made to a consultant and remains outstanding as of September 30, 2022.