EX1A-2A CHARTER 4 tm218422d1_ex2-1.htm EXHIBIT 2.1

Exhibit 2.1

 

AMENDED AND RESTATED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

OF
APTERA MOTORS CORP.

 

Aptera Motors Corp., a corporation organized and existing under and by virtue of the provisions of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “General Corporation Law”),

 

DOES HEREBY CERTIFY:

 

1.             That the name of this corporation is Aptera Motors Corp., and that this corporation was originally incorporated pursuant to the General Corporation Law on March 4, 2019.

 

2.             That the Board of Directors duly adopted resolutions proposing to amend and restate the Certificate of Incorporation of this corporation, declaring said amendment and restatement to be advisable and in the best interests of this corporation and its stockholders, and authorizing the appropriate officers of this corporation to solicit the consent of the stockholders therefor, which resolution setting forth the proposed amendment and restatement is as follows:

 

RESOLVED, that the Certificate of Incorporation of this corporation be amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

 

ARTICLE I

 

NAME

 

The name of this corporation is Aptera Motors Corp. (the “Company”).

 

ARTICLE II

 

REGISTERED AGENT

 

The address of the registered office of the Company in the 16192 Coastal Highway, in the city of Lewes, County of Sussex, State of Delaware 19958 and the name of the registered agent of the corporation in the State of Delaware at such address is Harvard Business Services, Inc.

 

ARTICLE III

 

PURPOSE

 

The purpose of the Company is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the Delaware General Corporation Law.

 

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ARTICLE IV

 

AUTHORIZED STOCK

 

1. Authorized Shares. The total number of shares of Common Stock authorized to be issued is 190,000,000 shares, $0.0001 par value per share, 75,000,000 of which are designated “Class A Common Stock”, 115,000,000 of which are designated “Class B Common Stock.”

 

ARTICLE V

 

TERMS OF CLASSES AND SERIES

 

The rights, preferences, privileges, restrictions and other matters relating to the Common Stock are as follows:

 

1. Definitions. For purposes of this Article V, the following definitions apply;

 

1.1 “Family Member” shall mean with respect to any natural person who is a Qualified Stockholder, the spouse, parents, grandparents, lineal descendants, siblings and lineal descendants of siblings of such Qualified Stockholder.

 

1.2 “Final Conversion Date” means the date fixed by the Board that is no more than 180 days following the date that no shares of Class A Common Stock are outstanding.

 

1.3 “IPO Date” means the first date that a class of the Company’s shares have been listed for trading on the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ Global Select Market or NASDAQ Global Market or any successor markets or exchanges.

 

1.4 “Qualified Stockholder” shall mean (a) any registered holder of a share of Class A Common Stock and (b) any Permitted Transferee.

 

1.5 “Permitted Entity” shall mean with respect to a Qualified Stockholder (a) a Permitted Trust (as defined below) solely for the benefit of (i) such Qualified Stockholder, (ii) one or more Family Members of such Qualified Stockholder and/or (iii) any other Permitted Entity of such Qualified Stockholder, or (b) any general partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company, corporation or other entity exclusively owned by (i) such Qualified Stockholder, (ii) one or more Family Members of such Qualified Stockholder and/or (iii) any other Permitted Entity of such Qualified Stockholder.

 

1.6 “Transfer” of a share of Class A Common Stock shall mean any sale, assignment, transfer, conveyance, hypothecation or other transfer or disposition of such share or any legal or beneficial interest in such share, whether or not for value and whether voluntary or involuntary or by operation of law, including, without limitation, a transfer of a share of Class A Common Stock to a broker or other nominee (regardless of whether there is a corresponding change in beneficial ownership), or the transfer of, or entering into a binding agreement with respect to, Voting Control (as defined below) over such share by proxy or otherwise; providedhowever, that the following shall not be considered a “Transfer” within the meaning of this Article IV:

 

(a) the granting of a revocable proxy to officers or directors of the Company at the request of the Board of Directors in connection with actions to be taken at an annual or special meeting of stockholders;

 

(b) entering into a voting trust, agreement or arrangement (with or without granting a proxy) solely with stockholders who are holders of Class A Common Stock that (i) is disclosed either in a Schedule 13D filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission or in writing to the Secretary of the Corporation, (ii) either has a term not exceeding one (1) year or is terminable by the holder of the shares subject thereto at any time and (iii) does not involve any payment of cash, securities, property or other consideration to the holder of the shares subject thereto other than the mutual promise to vote shares in a designated manner; or

 

(c) the pledge of shares of Class A Common Stock by a stockholder that creates a mere security interest in such shares pursuant to a bona fide loan or indebtedness transaction for so long as such stockholder continues to exercise Voting Control over such pledged shares; provided, however, that a foreclosure on such shares or other similar action by the pledgee shall constitute a “Transfer” unless such foreclosure or similar action qualifies as a “Permitted Transfer”.

 

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A “Transfer” shall also be deemed to have occurred with respect to a share of Class A Common Stock beneficially held by (i) an entity that is a Permitted Entity, if there occurs any act or circumstance that causes such entity to no longer be a Permitted Entity or (ii) an entity that is a Qualified Stockholder, if there occurs a Transfer on a cumulative basis, from and after the IPO Date, of a majority of the voting power of the voting securities of such entity or any direct or indirect Parent of such entity, other than a Transfer to parties that are, as of the IPO Date, holders of voting securities of any such entity or Parent of such entity. “Parent” of an entity shall mean any entity that directly or indirectly owns or controls a majority of the voting power of the voting securities of such entity.

 

1.7 “Permitted Transfer” shall mean, and be restricted to, any Transfer of a share of Class A Common Stock:

 

(a)           by a Qualified Stockholder to (i) one or more Family Members of such Qualified Stockholder, or (ii) any Permitted Entity of such Qualified Stockholder;

 

(b)           by a Permitted Entity of a Qualified Stockholder to (i) such Qualified Stockholder or one or more Family Members of such Qualified Stockholder, or (ii) any other Permitted Entity of such Qualified Stockholder; or

 

(c)           approved by the Board of Directors.

 

1.8 “Permitted Transferee” shall mean a transferee of shares of Class A Common Stock received in a Transfer that constitutes a Permitted Transfer.

 

1.9 “Permitted Trust” shall mean a bona fide trust where each trustee is (a) a Qualified Stockholder, (b) Family Member or (c) a professional in the business of providing trustee services, including private professional fiduciaries, trust companies and bank trust departments.

 

1.10 “Voting Control” shall mean, with respect to a share of Class A Common Stock, the power (whether exclusive or shared) to vote or direct the voting of such share by proxy, voting agreement or otherwise.

 

2. Identical Rights. Except as otherwise provided in this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (“Restated Certificate”) or required by applicable law, shares of Common Stock shall have the same rights and powers, rank equally (including as to dividends and distributions, and any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the corporation but excluding voting as described in Section 3 below), share ratably and be identical in all respects as to all matters, including:

 

2.1 Subject to the prior rights of holders of all classes and series of stock at the time outstanding having prior rights as to dividends, the holders of the Common Stock shall be entitled to receive, when, as and if declared by the Board, out of any assets of the Company legally available therefor, such dividends as may be declared from time to time by the Board. Any dividends paid to the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be paid pro rata, on an equal priority, pari passu basis, unless different treatment of the shares of each such class is approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of the applicable class of Common Stock treated adversely, voting separately as a class.

 

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2.2 The Company shall not declare or pay any dividend or make any other distribution to the holders of Common Stock payable in securities of the Company unless the same dividend or distribution with the same record date and payment date shall be declared and paid on all shares of Common Stock; provided, however, that (i) dividends or other distributions payable in shares of Class B Common Stock or rights to acquire shares of Class B Common Stock may be declared and paid to the holders of Class B Common Stock without the same dividend or distribution being declared and paid to the holders of the Class A Common Stock if, and only if, a dividend payable in shares of Class A Common Stock or rights to acquire shares of Class A Common Stock are declared and paid to the holders of Class A Common Stock at the same rate and with the same record date and payment date; and (ii) dividends or other distributions payable in shares of Class A Common Stock or rights to acquire shares Class A Common Stock may be declared and paid to the holders of Class A Common Stock without the same dividend or distribution being declared and paid to the holders of the Class B Common Stock if, and only if, a dividend payable in shares of Class B Common Stock or rights to acquire shares of Class B Common Stock are declared and paid to the holders of Class B Common Stock at the same rate and with the same record date and payment date; and provided, further, that nothing in the foregoing shall prevent the Company from declaring and paying dividends or other distributions payable in shares of one class of Common Stock or rights to acquire one class of Common Stock to holders of all classes of Common Stock.

 

2.3 If the Company in any manner subdivides or combines the outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock or Class A Common Stock, then the outstanding shares of all Common Stock will be subdivided or combined in the same proportion and manner.

 

3. Voting Rights.

 

3.1 Common Stock.

 

(a) Class A Common Stock. Each holder of shares of Class A Common Stock will be entitled to one vote for each share thereof held at the record date for the determination of the stockholders entitled to vote on such matters or, if no such record date is established, the date such vote is taken or any written consent of stockholders is solicited.

 

3.2 General. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein or as required by law, the holders of Class B Common Stock and Class A Common Stock will vote together and not as separate series or classes.

 

3.3 Authorized Shares. The number of authorized shares of Common Stock or any class thereof may be increased or decreased (but not below the number of shares of Common Stock then outstanding) by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority Class A Common Stock.

 

3.4 Election of Directors. Subject to any rights of the holders of any series of Preferred Stock to elect directors under specified circumstances, prior to the Final Conversion Date the holders of Class A Common Stock shall be entitled to elect, remove and replace all directors of the Company, and following the Final Conversion Date, the holders of Common Stock, voting together as a single class, shall be entitled to elect, remove and replace all directors of the Company.

 

(b) Class B Common Stock. Except as required by law, the Class B Common Stock will have no voting rights and no holder thereof shall be entitled to vote on any matter; provided, that, upon and following the Final Conversion Date, each holder of a share of Class B Common Stock shall be entitled to one vote for each share thereof held at the record date for the determination of the stockholders entitled to vote on such matters or, if no such record date is established, the date such vote is taken or any written consent of stockholders is solicited.

 

4. Liquidation Rights

 

In the event of a Liquidation Event, subject to the rights of any Preferred Stock that may then be outstanding, the assets of the Company legally available for distribution to stockholders shall be distributed on an equal priority, pro rata basis to the holders of Common Stock, unless different treatment of the shares of each such class is approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock and Class A Common Stock, each voting separately as a class; provided, however, that for the avoidance of doubt, consideration to be paid or received by a holder of Common Stock in connection with any Liquidation Event pursuant to any employment, consulting, severance or similar services arrangement shall not be deemed to be “distribution to stockholders” for the purpose of this Section 4.

 

5. Conversion of the Class A Common Stock. The Class A Common Stock will automatically be converted into one fully paid and nonassessable share of Class B Common Stock, as follows:

 

(a) on the affirmative election of such holder; or

 

(b) on the occurrence of a Transfer of such share of Class A Common Stock, other than a Permitted Transfer.

 

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On the occurrence of the conversion events specified in this Section 5, such conversion will occur automatically without the need for any further action by the holders of such shares and whether or not the certificates representing such shares are surrendered to the Company or its transfer agent; provided, however, that the Company will not be obligated to issue certificates evidencing the shares of Class B Common Stock issuable on such conversion unless the certificates evidencing such shares of Class A Common Stock, if any such certificates have been issued, are either delivered to the Company or its transfer agent as provided below, or the holder notifies the Company or its transfer agent that such certificates have been lost, stolen or destroyed and executes an agreement satisfactory to the Company to indemnify the Company from any loss incurred by it in connection with such certificates. On the occurrence of such automatic conversion of the Class A Common Stock, the holders of Class A Common Stock so converted will surrender the certificates representing such shares at the office of the Company or any transfer agent for the Class B Common Stock. Thereupon, if requested by any holder of Class A Common Stock, there will be issued and delivered to such holder promptly at such office and in its name as shown on such surrendered certificate or certificates, a certificate or certificates for the number of shares of Class B Common Stock into which the shares of Class A Common Stock surrendered were convertible on the date on which such automatic conversion occurred.

 

6. Reservation of Stock Issuable Upon Conversion. The Company will at all times reserve and keep available out of its authorized but unissued shares of Class B Common Stock, solely for the purpose of effecting the conversion of the shares of the Class A Common Stock, such number of its shares of Class B Common Stock as shall from time to time be sufficient to effect the conversion of all outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock and if at any time the number of authorized but unissued shares of Class B Common Stock will not be sufficient to effect the conversion of all then-outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock, the Company will take such corporate action as may, in the opinion of its counsel, be necessary to increase its authorized but unissued shares of Class B Common Stock to such number of shares as will be sufficient for such purpose.

 

7. Miscellaneous.

 

7.1 No Reissuance of Class A Common Stock. No share or shares of Class A Common Stock acquired by the Company by reason of redemption, purchase, conversion or otherwise shall be reissued, and all such shares shall be cancelled, retired and eliminated from the shares that the Company shall be authorized to issue.

 

7.2 Preemptive Rights. No stockholder of the Company shall have a right to purchase shares of capital stock of the Company sold or issued by the Company except to the extent that such a right may from time to time be set forth in a written agreement between the Company and a stockholder.

 

ARTICLE VI

 

LIABILITY

 

1. To the fullest extent permitted by law, a director of the Company shall not be personally liable to the Company or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director. If the General Corporation Law or any other law of the State of Delaware is amended after approval by the stockholders of this Article VI to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of directors, then the liability of a director of the Company shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by the General Corporation Law as so amended.

 

Any repeal or modification of the foregoing provisions of this Section 1 of Article VI by the stockholders of the Company shall not adversely affect any right or protection of a director of the Company existing at the time of, or increase the liability of any director of the Company with respect to any acts or omissions of such director occurring prior to, such repeal or modification.

 

2. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Company is authorized to provide indemnification of (and advancement of expenses to) directors, officers and agents of the Company (and any other persons to which General Corporation Law permits the Company to provide indemnification) through Bylaw provisions, agreements with such agents or other persons, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise, in excess of the indemnification and advancement otherwise permitted by Section 145 of the General Corporation Law.

 

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Any amendment, repeal or modification of the foregoing provisions of this Section 2 of Article VI shall not (a) adversely affect any right or protection of any director, officer or other agent of the Company existing at the time of such amendment, repeal or modification or (b) increase the liability of any director of the Company with respect to any acts or omissions of such director, officer or agent occurring prior to, such amendment, repeal or modification.

 

ARTICLE VII

 

Upon the filing and effectiveness (the “Effective Time”) pursuant to the Delaware General Corporation Law of this Certificate of Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation, each share of Class A Voting Common Stock either issued and outstanding or held by the Corporation in treasury stock immediately prior to the Effective Time shall, automatically and without any action on the part of the respective holders thereof, be combined and converted into thirty (30) shares of Class A Common Stock and each share of Class B Non-Voting Common Stock either issued and outstanding or held by the Corporation in treasury stock immediately prior to the Effective Time shall, automatically and without any action on the part of the respective holders thereof, be combined and converted into thirty (30) shares of Class B Common Stock (the “Stock Split”).

 

ARTICLE VIII

 

For the management of the business and for the conduct of the affairs of the Company, and in further definition, limitation and regulation of the powers of the Company, of its directors and of its stockholders or any class thereof, as the case may be, it is further provided that:

 

1. The management of the business and the conduct of the affairs of the Company shall be vested in its Board. The number of directors that shall constitute the whole Board shall be fixed by the Board in the manner provided in the Bylaws, subject to any restrictions which may be set forth in this Restated Certificate.

 

2. The Board of Directors is expressly empowered to adopt, amend or repeal the Bylaws of the Company, subject to any restrictions that may be set forth in this Restated Certificate. The stockholders shall also have the power to adopt, amend or repeal the Bylaws of the Company, subject to any restrictions that may be set forth in this Restated Certificate.

 

3. The directors of the Company need not be elected by written ballot unless the Bylaws so provide.

 

4. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any annual or special meeting of the stockholders may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote if a consent or consents in writing, setting forth the action so taken, will be signed by the holders of outstanding stock of the Company having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares of stock of the Company entitled to vote thereon were present and voted.

 

5. Meetings of stockholders may be held within or without the State of Delaware, as the Bylaws of the Company may provide. The books of the Company may be kept outside the State of Delaware at such place or places as may be designated from time to time by the Board of Directors or in the Bylaws of the Company.

 

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6. Unless the Corporation consents in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware shall be the sole and exclusive forum for any stockholder (including a beneficial owner) to bring (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of the Corporation, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee of the Corporation to the Corporation or the Corporation’s stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against the Corporation, its directors, officers or employees arising pursuant to any provision of the Delaware General Corporation Law or the Corporation’s certificate of incorporation or bylaws or (iv) any action asserting a claim against the Corporation, its directors, officers or employees governed by the internal affairs doctrine, except for, as to each of (i) through (iv) above, any claim as to which the Court of Chancery determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, or for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. This Section 7 of Article VIII shall not apply to suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. If any provision or provisions of this Section 7 of Article VIII shall be held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable as applied to any person or entity or circumstance for any reason whatsoever, then, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the validity, legality and enforceability of such provisions in any other circumstance and of the remaining provisions of this Section 7 of Article VIII (including, without limitation, each portion of any sentence of this Section 7 of Article VIII containing any such provision held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable that is not itself held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable) and the application of such provision to other persons or entities and circumstances shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.

 

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3.     That the foregoing amendment and restatement was approved by the holders of the requisite number of shares of this corporation in accordance with Section 228 of the General Corporation Law.

 

4.     That this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, which restates and integrates and further amends the provisions of this Corporation’s Certificate of Incorporation, has been duly adopted in accordance with Sections 242 and 245 of the General Corporation Law.

 

5.    That this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and the Stock Split shall be effective upon acceptance thereof by the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware.

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation has been executed by a duly authorized officer of this corporation on this __ day of ______________, 2021.

 

  /s/ Chris Anthony
  Chris Anthony, Chief Executive Officer

 

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