RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

9. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Personal Guarantees by Director

As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, a director of the Company had provided personal guarantees amounting to approximately $500,000, respectively, to secure external loans from financial institutions for AEI and the consolidated entities.

Sale of Impact Biomedical to DSS

On April 27, 2020, Global BioMedical Pte Ltd (“GBM”), one of our subsidiaries, entered into a share exchange agreement with DSS BioHealth Security, Inc. (“DBHS”), a wholly owned subsidiary of DSS, Inc. (“DSS”), pursuant to which, DBHS agreed to acquire all of the outstanding capital stock of Impact BioMedical Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of GBM, through a share exchange. It was agreed that the aggregate consideration to be issued to GBM for the Impact BioMedical shares would be the following: (i) 483,334 newly issued shares of DSS common stock; and (ii) 46,868 newly issued shares of a new series of DSS perpetual convertible preferred stock with a stated value of $46,868,000, or $1,000 per share. The convertible preferred stock can be convertible into shares of DSS common stock at a conversion price of $6.48 of preferred stock stated value per share of common stock, subject to a 19.9% beneficial ownership conversion limitation (a so-called “blocker”) based on the total issued outstanding shares of common stock of DSS beneficially owned by GBM. Holders of the convertible preferred stock will have no voting rights, except as required by applicable law or regulation, and no dividends will accrue or be payable on the convertible preferred stock. The holders of convertible preferred stock will be entitled to a liquidation preference of $1,000 per share, and DSS will have the right to redeem all or any portion of the then outstanding shares of convertible preferred stock, pro rata among all holders, at a redemption price per share equal to such liquidation value per share.

Under ASU 2014-08, a disposal transaction meets the definition of a discontinued operation if all of the following criteria are met:

1. The disposal group constitutes a component of an entity or a group of components of an entity

2. The component of an entity (or group of components of an entity) meets the held-for-sale classification criteria, is disposed of by sale, or is disposed of other than by sale (e.g., “by abandonment, in an exchange measured based on the recorded amount of the nonmonetary asset relinquished, or in a distribution to owners in a spinoff”).

3. The disposal of a component of an entity (or group of components of an entity) “represents a strategic shift that has (or will have) a major effect on an entity’s operations and financial results”.

Impact Biomedical Inc. is a group of subsidiaries of AEI and operates independently with its own financial reporting. The transaction is a disposal by sale and has a major effect on AEI’s financial results. Since it meets all above test criteria, we treated this disposal transaction as a discontinued operation in our financial statements.

On August 21, 2020, the transaction closed and Impact BioMedical Inc became a direct wholly owned subsidiary of DBHS. GBM received 483,334 shares of DSS common stock and 46,868 shares of DSS preferred stock, which preferred shares could be converted to 7,232,716 common shares (however, any conversion will be subject to the blocker GBM has agreed to, as described above). After this transaction, we hold 500,001 shares of the common stock of DSS. Additionally, our CEO, Chan Heng Fai is the owner of the common stock of DSS and is the executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of DSS. The Company has elected the fair value option for the DSS common stock that would otherwise be accounted for under the equity method of accounting. ASC 820, Fair Value Measurement and Disclosures, defines the fair value of the financial assets. We value DSS common stock under level 1 category through quoted prices and preferred stock under level 3 category through an Option-Pricing Method valuation model. The quoted price of DSS common stock was $6.95 as of August 21, 2020. The total fair value of DSS common and preferred stocks GBM received as consideration for the disposal of Impact BioMedical was $46,248,171. As of August 21, 2020, the net asset value of Impact BioMedical was $94,011. The difference of $46,154,160 was recorded as additional paid in capital. We did not recognize gain or loss from this transaction as it was a related party transaction. For further details on this transaction, refer to Note 13 – Discontinued Operations.

On October 16, 2020, GBM converted 4,293 shares of DSS Series A Preferred Stock having a par value of $0.02 per share in exchange for 662,500 restricted shares of DSS common stock based upon a liquidation value of $1,000 and a conversion price of $6.48 per share. Our ownership of DSS was 19.9% after the conversion.

Sale of iGalen International Inc. to an officer of the Company

On December 30, 2020, Health, Wealth Happiness Pte Ltd (“HWH Pte Ltd”), a 100% owned subsidiary of the Company, sold 530,000 shares (its 53% ownership) of iGalen International Inc., which owns 100% iGalen Inc., to an officer of the Company for $100. The net asset of iGalen International was $(3,741,065) at the time of sales and $3,741,065 was recorded as additional paid in capital since it was a related party transaction. No gain or loss was recognized.

Under ASU 2014-08, the transaction did not meet the definition of a discontinued operation. For the Company, the disposal of the iGalen does not make a strategic shift on our operations and financial results. The Company did not recognize gain or Loss in the Statement of Operations as this is considered as a related party transaction.

Purchase Shares and Warrants from APW

On July 17, 2020, the Company purchased 122,039,000 shares, approximately 9.99% ownership, and 1,220,390,000 warrants with an exercise price of $0.0001 per share, from APW, for an aggregated purchase price of $122,039. We value APB warrants under level 3 category through a Black Scholes option pricing model and the fair value of the warrants from APW were $860,342 as of July 17, 2020, the purchase date and $1,009,854 and $862,723 as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The difference of $945,769 of fair value of stock and warrants, total $1,067,808 and the purchase price $122,039, was recorded as additional paid in capital as it was a related party transaction.

Sale of Investment in Vivacitas to DSS

On March 18, 2021, the Company sold equity investment in Vivacitas, a U.S.-based biopharmaceutical company, equaling to 2,480,000 shares of common stock and a stock option to purchase 250,000 shares of Vivacitas common stock at $1 per share at any time prior to the date of a public offering, to a subsidiary of DSS for $2,480,000. Chan Heng Fai, CEO and the founder of our Company, holds a director position on both Vivacitas and DSS. After this transaction, we do not own any investment in Vivacitas. Our original cost of common stock and stock option of Vivacitas was $200,128. We did not recognize gain or loss in this transaction. The difference of $2,279,872 between the selling price and our original investment cost was recorded as additional paid capital considering it was a related party transaction.

Purchase of stock in True Partner Capital Holding Limited

On March 12, 2021, the Company purchased 62,122,908 ordinary shares of True Partner Capital Holding Limited for $6,729,629 from a related party. The fair market value of stock on acquisition date was $10,003,689. The difference between purchase price and fair market value of $3,274,060 was recorded as equity transaction on Company’s consolidated statement of stockholders’ equity.

Notes Payable

Chan Heng Fai provided an interest-free, due on demand advance to LiquidValue Development Pte. Ltd. and its subsidiary LiquidValue Development Limited for the general operations. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, the outstanding balance was approximately $820,113 and $823,823, respectively.

Chan Heng Fai provided interest-free due on demand advance to AEI for the general operations. On December 31, 2021 and 2020, the outstanding balance was $0 and $178,400, respectively.

Chan Heng Fai provided an interest-free, due on demand advance to SeD Perth Pty. Ltd. for its general operations. On December 31, 2021 and 2020, the outstanding balance was $13,546 and $14,379, respectively.

On August 20, 2020, the Company acquired 30,000,000 common shares of Alset International Limited from Chan Heng Fai in exchange for a two-year non-interest bearing note of $1,333,429. On December 31, 2021 and 2020 the amount outstanding was $0 and $1,333,429, respectively.

On May 1, 2018, Rajen Manicka, CEO and one of the directors of iGalen International Inc., which holds 100% of iGalen Inc., provided a loan of approximately $367,246 to iGalen Inc. (the “2018 Rajen Manicka Loan”). The term of 2018 Rajen Manicka Loan is ten years. The 2018 Rajen Manicka Loan has an interest rate of 4.7% per annum. On March 8, March 27 and April 23, 2019, iGalen borrowed additional monies of $150,000, $30,000 and $50,000, respectively, from Rajen Manicka, total $230,000 (the “2019 Rajen Manicka Loan”). The 2019 Rajen Manicka Loan is interest free, not tradable, unsecured, and repayable on demand. On December 30, 2020, Company’s subsidiary Health Wealth Happiness Pte. Ltd., sold its 53% interest in iGalen International to an officer of the Company.

On August 13, 2019, iGalen International Inc., which holds 100% of iGalen Inc., borrowed $250,000 from Decentralized Sharing Services, Inc., a company whose sole shareholder and director is Chan Heng Fai, our CEO. The term of the loan is 12 months, with an interest rate of 10% per annum. In addition, Decentralized Sharing Services, Inc. received the right to receive 3% of any revenue received by iGalen International Inc. for 99 years. During the year ended December 31, 2020 the Company incurred $9,729 of interest expense and $0 from the right to receive 3% of revenue. The amount outstanding on the loan as of December 31, 2020 was $0. The principal of $250,000 was paid off in June 2020.

On March 12, 2021, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “SPA”) with Chan Heng Fai, the founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, for four proposed transactions, consisting of (i) purchase of certain warrants (the “Warrants”) to purchase 1,500,000,000 shares of Alset International Limited, which was valued at $28,363,966; (ii) purchase of all of the issued and outstanding stock of LiquidValue Development Pte Ltd. (“LVD”), which was valued at $173,395; (iii) purchase of 62,122,908 ordinary shares in True Partner Capital Holding Limited (HKG: 8657) (“True Partner”), which was valued at $6,729,629; and (iv) purchase of 4,775,523 shares of the common stock of American Pacific Bancorp Inc. (“APB”), which was valued at $28,653,138. The total amount of above four transactions was $63,920,129, payable on the Closing Date by the Company, in the convertible promissory notes (“Alset CPNs”), which, subject to the terms and conditions of the Alset CPNs and the Company’s shareholder approval, shall be convertible into shares of the Company’s common stock (“AEI Common Stock”), at par value of $0.001 per share, at the conversion price of AEI’s Stock Market Price. AEI’s Stock Market Price shall be $5.59 per share, equivalent to the average of the five closing per share prices of AEI Common Stock preceding January 4, 2021 as quoted by Bloomberg L.P. AEI’s stock price was $10.03 on March 12, 2021, the commitment date. The Beneficial Conversion Feature (“BCF”) intrinsic value was $50,770,192 for the four convertible promissory notes and was recorded as debt discount of convertible notes after the transaction. On May 13 and June 14, 2021 all Alset CPNs of $63,920,128 and accrued interests of $306,438 were converted into 2,123 shares of series B preferred stock and 9,163,965 shares of common stock of the Company.

On May 14, 2021, the Company borrowed S$7,395,472 Singapore Dollars (equal to approximately $5,545,495 U.S. Dollars) from Chan Heng Fai. The unpaid principal amount of the Loan shall be due and payable on May 14, 2022 and the Loan shall have no interest. The loan was paid back in full during 2021 and the outstanding balance was $0 as of December 31, 2021.

Chan Heng Fai provided an interest-free, due on demand advance to HengFeng Finance Limited for the general operations. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, the outstanding balance was $0 and $184,250, respectively.

Management Fees

MacKenzie Equity Partners, owned by Charles MacKenzie, a Director of the Company’s subsidiary LiquidValue Development, has had a consulting agreement with the Company since 2015. Per the terms of the agreement, as amended on January 1, 2018, the Company pays a monthly fee of $20,000 for the consulting services. The Company incurred expenses of $360,000 and $240,000 for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively, which were capitalized as part of Real Estate on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheet, as the services relate to property and project management. During 2021, MacKenzie Equity Partners was granted an additional $120,000 bonus payment. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020 the Company owed $80,000 and $0, respectively to this entity.

Consulting Services

A law firm owned by Conn Flanigan, a Director of LiquidValue Development, performs consulting services to LiquidValue Development and some other subsidiaries of the Company. The Company incurred expenses of $0 and $12,645 for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020 there was no outstanding balance due to this entity.

Chan Tung Moe, the consultant engaged with the Company through Pop Motion Consulting Pte. Ltd., is the son of Chan Heng Fai, a director and the CEO of the Company. In August of 2020 this consulting agreement was terminated, and Chan Tung Moe became an employee of Alset International as Chief Development Officer. The Company incurred expense of $140,758 for the years ended December 31, 2020.

Investment in the Global Opportunity Fund

On February 1, 2017, the Company invested $300,000 in Global Opportunity Fund (“Fund”), a mutual fund registered in the Cayman Islands and Chan Heng Fai is one of the directors of this fund. This Fund was closed during November 2019 and is being liquidated. LiquidValue Asset Management Pte. Ltd., one of the subsidiaries of the Company, is the investment manager of the Fund and receives a management fee from the Fund at 2% per annum of the aggregated net asset value of the investments and a performance fee of 20%. As of December 31, 2019, the Company recorded a receivable $307,944 from the Global Opportunity Fund. On January 23, 2020, the Company received $307,944 as a result of the liquidation of Global Opportunity Fund.

Note Receivable from a Related Party Company

On March 2, 2020 and on October 29, 2021, LiquidValue Asset Management Pte. Ltd. (“LiquidValue”) received two $200,000 Promissory Notes and on October 29, 2021 Alset International received $8,350,000 Promissory Note from American Medical REIT Inc. (“AMRE”), a company which is less than 3.5% owned by LiquidValue as of December 31, 2021. Chan Heng Fai and Chan Tung Moe are directors of American Medical REIT Inc. The notes carry interests of 8% and are payable in two, three years and 25 months, respectively. LiquidValue also received warrants to purchase AMRE shares at the exercise price of $5.00 per share. The amount of the warrants equals to the note principle divided by the exercise price. If AMRE goes to IPO in the future and IPO price is less than $10.00 per share, the exercise price shall be adjusted downward to fifty percent (50%) of the IPO price. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, the fair market value of the warrants was $0. The Company accrued $130,000 and $13,431 interest income as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

On January 24, 2017, SeD Capital Pte Ltd, a 100% owned subsidiary of Alset International lent $350,000 to iGalen Inc. The term of the loan was two years, with an interest rate of 3% per annum for the first year and 5% per annum for the second year. The expiration term was renewed as due on demand after two years with 5% per annum interest rate. As of December 31, 2020, the outstanding principle was $350,000 and accrued interest $61,555. On December 31, 2021, the management of the Company evaluated the financial and the operation results of iGalen and concluded that possibility to repay this loan is not probable, and the principal and accrued interests total of $412,754 was recorded as bad debt expense.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company provided advances for operation of $236,699 to HWH World Co., a direct sales company in Thailand of which the Company holds approximately 19% ownership.

On April 20, 2021, SeD Capital Pte Ltd entered into Joint Venture Agreement with Novum Alpha Pte Ltd., pursuant to which, each company owns 50% of the joint venture company Credas Capital Pte Ltd. Based on the agreement, SeD Capital Pte Ltd contributed 90% of the initial $150,000 shareholder loan to the joint venture, with the remaining balance contributed by Novum Alpha. The loan carries 0% interest rate and will be repaid on a “first-in first-out” basis, out of the operating profits of the joint venture, with the immediate partial payment of $100,000 of the initial loan to SeD Capital, once the company achieves profitability. As of December 31, 2021, the outstanding balance was $135,720.

Loan to Employees

On November 24, 2020, American Pacific Bancorp. Inc. lent $560,000 to Chan Tung Moe, an officer of one of the subsidiaries of the Company (who later also became our Co-Chief Executive Officer) and son of Chan Heng Fai, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, bearing interest at 6%, with a maturity date of November 23, 2023. This loan was secured by an irrevocable letter of instruction on 80,000 shares of Alset EHome International. On November 24, 2020, American Pacific Bancorp. Inc. lent $280,000 to Lim Sheng Hon Danny, an employee of one of the subsidiaries of the Company, bearing interest at 6%, with a maturity date of November 23, 2023. This loan was secured by an irrevocable letter of instruction on 40,000 shares of Alset EHome International. Subsequent to the making of these loans, the Company acquired the majority of the issued and outstanding common stock of American Pacific Bancorp. As of December 31, 2021, both principal and interest, $840,000 and $28,031, of both loans to Chan Tung Moe and Lim Sheng Hong, were fully paid off.