Edgemode, Inc. 10-K

Item 1A. Risk Factors Any investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. Investors should carefully consider the risks described below and all of the information contained in this filing before deciding whether to purchase our securities. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected by these risks if any of them actually occur. This filing also contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including the risks we face as described below and elsewhere in this report. There is substantial doubt about our ability to continue operating as a going concern. We have experienced losses from operations since inception and have never generated positive cash flow. The success of our business plan during the next 12 months and beyond will be contingent upon obtaining sufficient financing to cover our operating costs and business plan initiatives. This is because we do not anticipate generating any revenue from operations nor being able to raise capital (prior to consummating a business combination). As of December 31, 2023, the Company had approximately $1,600,000 of outstanding debt, not including interest, penalties and other fees due under the notes. The reports from our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, and prior years include an explanatory paragraph stating the Company has recurring net losses from operations, negative operating cash flows, does not yet generate revenue from operations and will need additional working capital for ongoing operations. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. If we are unable to obtain sufficient funding and/or generate material revenue to fund our operations and business plan, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations will be materially and adversely affected, we may be unable to continue as a going concern in which case you in turn would lose your investment. 2 We currently have no operations, and investors therefore have no basis on which to evaluate the Company ’ s future prospects. We currently have no operations and will be reliant upon a merger with or acquisition of an operating business to commence operations and generate material revenue. Because we have little operations, investors have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of locating and completing a business combination with a target business. We have no current arrangements or understandings with any prospective target business concerning a business combination and may be unable to complete a business combination in a reasonable timeframe, on reasonable terms or at all. If we fail to complete a business combination as planned, we will never generate any operating revenues. We may face difficulties or delays in our search for a business combination, and we may not have access to sufficient capital to consummate a business combination. We may face difficulty identifying a viable business opportunity or negotiating or paying for any resulting business combination. Economic factors that are beyond our control, including the economic downturns, as well as increased competition for acquisitions of operating entities that we expect to encounter as a result thereof, may hinder our efforts to locate and/or obtain a business that is suitable for our business goals at a price we can afford and on terms that will enable us to sufficiently grow our business to generate value to our shareholders. We have no capital, and we may not be able to take advantage of any available business opportunities on favorable terms or at all due to the limited availability of capital. There can be no assurance that we will have sufficient capital to provide us with the necessary funds to successfully develop and implement our plan of operation or acquire a business we deem to be appropriate or necessary to accomplish our objectives, in which case we may be forced to terminate our business plan and your investment in the Company could become worthless. If we are not successful in acquiring a new business and generating material revenues, investors will likely lose their investment. If we are not successful in developing a viable business plan and acquiring a new business through which to implement it, our investors’ entire investment in the Company could become worthless. Even if we are successful in combining with or acquiring the assets of an operating entity, we can provide no assurances that the Company will be able to generate significant revenue therefrom in the short-term or at all or that investors will derive a profit from their investment. If we are not successful, our investors will likely lose their entire investment. Because we have no capital, we may need to raise additional capital in the future by issuing debt or equity securities, the terms of which may dilute our current investors and/or reduce or limit their liquidation or other rights. We may require additional capital to acquire a business. We may not be able to obtain additional capital when required. Future business development activities, as well as administrative expenses such as salaries, insurance, general overhead, legal and compliance expenses and accounting expenses will require a substantial amount of additional capital. The terms of securities we issue in future capital raising transactions may be more favorable to new investors, and may include liquidation preferences, superior voting rights or the issuance of other derivative securities, which could have a further dilutive effect on or subordinate the rights of our current investors. Any additional capital raised through the sale of equity securities will likely dilute the ownership percentage of our shareholders. Additionally, any debt securities we issue would likely create a liquidation preference superior that of our current investors and, if convertible into shares of common stock, would also pose the risk of dilution. We may encounter difficulty locating and consummating a business combination, including as a result of the competitive disadvantages we have. We expect to face intense competition in our search for a revenue-producing business to combine with or acquire. Given the current economic climate, venture capital firms, larger companies, blank check companies such as special purpose acquisition companies and other investors are purchasing operating entities or the assets thereof in high volumes and at relatively discounted prices. These parties may have greater capital or human resources than we do and/or more experience in a particular industry within which we choose to search. Most of these competitors have a certain amount of liquid cash available to take advantage of favorable market conditions for prospective business purchaser such as those caused by the recent pandemic. Any delay or inability to locate, negotiate and enter into a business combination as a result of the relative illiquidity of our current asset or other disadvantages we have relative to our competitors could cause us to lose valuable business opportunities to our competitors, which would have a material adverse effect on our business. 3 We may expend significant time and capital on a prospective business combination that is not ultimately consummated. The investigation of each specific target business and any subsequent negotiation and drafting of related agreements, SEC disclosure and other documents will require substantial amounts of management’s time and attention and material additional costs in connection with outsourced services from accountants, attorneys and other professionals. We will likely expend significant time and resources searching for, conducting due diligence on, and negotiating transaction terms in connection with a proposed business combination that may not ultimately come to fruition. Unanticipated issues which may be beyond our control or that of the seller of the applicable business may arise that force us to terminate discussions with a target company, such as the target’s failure or inability to provide adequate documentation to assist in our investigation, a party’s failure to obtain required waivers or consents to consummate the transaction as required by the inability to obtain the required audits, applicable laws, charter documents and agreements, the appearance of a competitive bid from another prospective purchaser, or the seller’s inability to maintain its operations for a sufficient time to allow the transaction to close. Such risks are inherent in any search for a new business and investors should be aware of them before investing in an enterprise such as ours. We may engage in a business combination that causes tax consequences to us and our shareholders. Federal and state tax consequences will, in all likelihood, be a significant factor in considering any business combination that we may undertake. Under current federal law, such transactions may be subject to significant taxation to the buyer and its shareholders under applicable federal and state tax laws. While we intend to structure any business combination so as to minimize the federal and state tax consequences to the extent practicable in accordance with our business objectives, there can be no assurance that any business combination we undertake will meet the statutory or regulatory requirements of a tax-free reorganization or similar favorable treatment or that the parties to such a transaction will obtain the tax treatment intended or expected upon a transfer of equity interests or assets. A non-qualifying reorganization, combination or similar transaction could result in the imposition of significant taxation, both at the federal and state levels, which may have an adverse effect on both parties to the transaction, including our shareholders. It is unlikely that our shareholders will be afforded any opportunity to evaluate or approve a business combination. It is unlikely that our shareholders will be afforded the opportunity to evaluate and approve a proposed business combination. In most cases, business combinations do not require shareholder approval under applicable law, and our Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws do not afford our shareholders with the right to approve such a transaction. In order to develop and implement our business plan, we may in the future hire lawyers, accountants, technical experts, appraisers, or other consultants to assist with determining the Company’s direction and consummating any transactions contemplated thereby. We may rely on such persons in making difficult decisions in connection with the Company’s future business and prospects. The selection of any such persons will be made by our Board, and any expenses incurred, or decisions made based on any of the foregoing could prove to be adverse to the Company in hindsight, the result of which could be diminished value to our shareholders. We may attempt to complete a business combination with a private target company about which little information is available, and such target entity may not generate revenue as expected or otherwise by compatible with us as expected. In pursuing our search for a business to acquire, we will likely seek to complete a business combination with a privately held company. Very little public information generally exists about private companies, and the only information available to us prior to making a decision may be from documents and information provided directly to us by the target company in connection with the transaction. Such documents or information or the conclusions we draw therefrom could prove to be inaccurate or misleading. As such, we may be required to make our decision on whether to pursue a potential business combination based on limited, incomplete or faulty information, which may result in our subsequent operations generating less revenue than expected, which could materially harm our financial condition and results of operations. Our ability to assess the management of a prospective target business may be limited and, as a result, we may acquire a target business whose management does not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to enable a seamless transition, which could, in turn, negatively impact our results of operations. When evaluating the desirability of a potential business combination, our ability to assess the target business’s management may be limited due to a lack of time, resources or information. Our management’s assessment of the capabilities of the target’s management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities expected. Further, in most cases the target’s management may be expected to want to manage us and replace our Chief Executive Officer. Should the target’s management not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to manage a public company or assist with their former entity’s merger or combination into ours, the operations and profitability of the post-acquisition business may be negatively impacted, and our shareholders could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. 4 Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with the laws and regulations applicable to us, may adversely affect our business, ability to negotiate and complete a business combination, and results of operations. We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by federal, state and local governments. In addition to SEC regulations, any business we acquire in the future may be subject to substantial legal or regulatory oversight and restrictions, which could hinder our growth and expend material amounts on compliance. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application by courts and administrative judges may also change from time to time, and any such changes could be unfavorable to us and could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could result in material defense or remedial costs and/or damages have a material adverse effect on our financial condition. Future issuance of our common stock could dilute the interests of our existing shareholders, particularly in connection with an acquisition and any resulting financing. We may issue additional shares of our common stock in the future. The issuance of a substantial amount of our common stock could substantially dilute the interests of our shareholders. In addition, the sale of a substantial amount of common stock in the public market, either in the initial issuance or in a subsequent resale by the target company in a business combination which received our common stock as consideration or by investors who has previously acquired such common stock could have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock. Our registration under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 could be revoked by the Securities and Exchange Commission if we fail to file required reports. If we fail to file reports as required under the Exchange Act, we may lose our registration. While we intend to comply with the Exchange Act’s reporting requirements moving forward, due to lack of working capital we may be unable to comply in the future as we did in the past. If we are unable to comply with the SEC reporting provisions in the future, such failure will affect the liquidity of our common stock and act as a depressant to the price. Due to recent changes to Rule 15c2-11 under the Exchange Act, our common stock may become subject to limitations or reductions on stock price, liquidity or volume. On September 16, 2020, the SEC adopted amendments to Rule 15c2-11 under the Exchange Act. This Rule applies to broker-dealers who quote securities listed on over-the-counter markets such as our common stock. The Rule as amended prohibits broker-dealers from publishing quotations on OTC markets for an issuer’s securities unless they are based on current publicly available information about the issuer. When it becomes effective, the amended Rule will also limit the Rule’s “piggyback” exception, which allows broker-dealers to publish quotations for a security in reliance on the quotations of a broker-dealer that initially performed the information review required by the Rule, to issuers with current publicly available information or issuers that are up to date in their Exchange Act reports. As of this date, we are uncertain as to what actual effect the Rule may have on us. The Rule changes could harm the liquidity and/or market price of our common stock by either preventing our shares from being quoted or driving up our costs of compliance. We are subject to the “ penny stock ” rules which will adversely affect the liquidity of our common stock. The SEC has adopted regulations which generally define “penny stock” to be an equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share, subject to specific exemptions. We do not expect our stock price to be above $5.00 in the foreseeable future. The “penny stock” designation will require any broker-dealer selling our securities to disclose certain information concerning the transaction, obtain a written agreement from the purchaser and determine that the purchaser is reasonably suitable to purchase the securities. These rules will limit the ability of broker-dealers to solicit purchases of our common stock and therefore reduce the liquidity of the public market for our shares. Broker-dealers are increasingly reluctant to permit investors to buy or sell speculative unlisted stock and often impose costs which make it uneconomical for small shareholders to do so. Moreover, as a result of apparent regulatory pressure from the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), a growing number of broker-dealers decline to permit investors to purchase and sell or otherwise make it difficult to sell shares of penny stocks. The “penny stock” designation may have a depressive effect upon our common stock price. 5 The issuance of shares upon exercise of our outstanding options or warrants or the conversion of the outstanding promissory notes may cause immediate and substantial dilution to our existing shareholders. We presently have options and warrants that if exercised would result in the issuance of an additional 402,814,669 shares of our common stock, and our outstanding convertible notes are presently convertible into approximately 179,123,056 shares of common stock. However, 307,239,206 of the outstanding options are only exercisable upon the company reaching certain capital purchasing requirements. The issuance of shares upon exercise of warrants and options and/or the conversion of shares underlying our convertible notes will result in dilution to the interests of other shareholders. We are a shell company and as such shareholders can only rely on the provisions of Rule 144 for the resale of their shares when certain conditions are met. We are a shell company as defined under Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (“Securities Act”). As securities issued by a former shell company, the securities issued by us can only be resold under Rule 144 when certain conditions are met, including that: (i) we are subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act and (ii) we have filed all required reports under the Exchange Act of the preceding 12 months.