Perella Weinberg Partners 10-K

Item 1. BUSINESS Overview We are a blank check company incorporated as a Delaware corporation in November 2018 and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination, with one or more businesses. We have generated no operating revenues to date, and we do not expect that we will generate operating revenues until we consummate our initial business combination. We have concentrated our efforts in identifying businesses which provide technological services to the financial services industry, with particular emphasis on businesses that provide data processing, storage and transmission services, data bases and payment processing services. We have sought to acquire established businesses that we believe are fundamentally sound but potentially in need of financial, operational, strategic or managerial redirection to maximize value. We do not intend to acquire start-up companies, companies with speculative business plans or companies that are excessively leveraged. At December 31, 2020, we had not yet commenced operations. All activity through December 31, 2020 relates to the Company’s formation and its initial public offering, and identifying a target company for our initial business combination. The registration statement for our initial public offering was declared effective on September 24, 2020. On September 29, 2020, we consummated the initial public offering of 23,000,000 units generating gross proceeds of $230,000,000. Simultaneously with the closing of the initial public offering, we consummated the sale of 610,000 placement units at a price of $10.00 per unit in a private placement to our sponsor, generating gross proceeds of $6,100,000. Following the closing of the initial public offering on September 29, 2020, an amount of $230,000,000 ($10.00 per unit) from the net proceeds of the sale of the units in the initial public offering and the placement units was placed in a trust account and invested in U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations, as determined by the Company, until the earlier of: (i) the consummation of a business combination, (ii) the redemption of any public shares in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete a business combination within 24 months from the consummation of the initial public offering; or (iii) the distribution of the trust account, if we are unable to complete a business combination within the combination period or upon any earlier liquidation of us. Business Combination Agreement On December 29, 2020, we entered into a Business Combination Agreement (the “Business Combination Agreement”), by and among us, our sponsor, PWP Holdings LP, a Delaware limited partnership (“PWP”), PWP GP LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and the general partner of PWP (“PWP GP”), PWP Professional Partners LP, a Delaware limited partnership and a limited partner of PWP (“Professionals”), and Perella Weinberg Partners LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and the general partner of Professionals (“Professionals GP”) pursuant to which, among other things, we will acquire interests in PWP, which will become jointly-owned by us, Professionals, and certain existing partners of PWP and following the closing will serve as our operating partnership as part of an umbrella limited partnership C-corporation (Up-C) structure. 1 Pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement, subject to certain conditions set forth therein, in connection with the closing of the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement (the “Closing”): (i) We will acquire newly-issued common units of PWP in exchange for cash in an amount equal to the outstanding excess cash balances of us (including the proceeds from the PIPE equity financing that will close contemporaneously with the Business Combination) as of Closing net of redemptions elected by our public stockholders pursuant to their redemption rights, with the number of such interests to be issued to be calculated based on the formula set forth in the Business Combination Agreement; (ii) Professionals will contribute the equity interests of PWP GP, the general partner of PWP, to us; (iii) We will issue (A) to Professionals, new shares of Class B-1 common stock, which will have 10 votes per share (for so long as Professionals or its limited partners as of the Closing maintain ownership of at least 10% of the issued and outstanding Class A common units of PWP, otherwise such Class B-1 common stock shall have one vote per share) and (B) to investor limited partners of PWP, new shares of Class B-2 common stock, which will have one vote per share, with the number of shares of such common stock to be issued to equal the number of common units of PWP that will be held by Professionals and such investor limited partners, respectively, following the Closing; and (iv) We will repay certain indebtedness of PWP, pay certain expenses, retain up to $10 million of cash on our balance sheet, and subject to the availability of transaction proceeds, we will first redeem certain limited partnership interests held by certain electing third party investor limited partners of PWP and second redeem certain electing non-working limited partners of Professionals (collectively with the other transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement, the “Business Combination”). The Business Combination Agreement may be terminated at any time prior to the consummation of the Business Combination by mutual written consent of the parties and in certain other limited circumstances, including if the Business Combination has not been consummated by June 30, 2021. The Business Combination is expected to close in the first half of 2021. Private Placement Subscription Agreements On December 29, 2020, concurrently with the execution of the Business Combination Agreement, we also entered into subscription agreements (“Subscription Agreements”) with certain investors (collectively, the “PIPE Investors”) pursuant to, and on the terms and subject to the conditions of which, the PIPE Investors have collectively subscribed for 12,500,000 shares of our Class A common stock for an aggregate purchase price equal to $125,000,000 (the “PIPE Investment”), a portion of which is expected to be funded by one or more affiliates of our sponsor. The Subscription Agreements for the PIPE Investors (other than the sponsor-related PIPE Investors, whose registration rights are governed by the Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement described below (the “Non-Sponsor PIPE Investors”), and other than the subscribing Perella executives) provide for certain registration rights. In particular, we are required to, as soon as practicable but no later than 30 calendar days following the closing date of the Business Combination file with the SEC (at our sole cost and expense) a registration statement registering the resale of such shares, and will use our commercially reasonable efforts to have such registration statement declared effective as soon as practicable after the filing thereof, but no later than the earlier of (i) the 50th calendar day after the filing thereof (or the 90th calendar day after the closing of the Business Combination if the SEC notifies us that it will “review” such registration statement) and (ii) the fifth business day after the date we are notified in writing by the SEC that such registration statement will not be “reviewed” or will not be subject to further review. Such registration statement is required to be kept effective for at least three years after effectiveness or, if earlier, until either (i) the shares thereunder have been sold by the Non-Sponsor PIPE Investors or (ii) the shares may be sold without restriction under Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act. The Subscription Agreements will terminate with no further force and effect upon the earliest to occur of: (a) such date and time as the Business Combination Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms; (b) upon the mutual written agreement of the parties to such Subscription Agreement; (c) if any of the conditions to closing set forth in such Subscription Agreement are not satisfied on or prior to the closing and, as a result thereof, the closing of the transactions contemplated by the Subscription Agreement fails to occur; and (d) June 30, 2021 (as may be extended as described therein) if the closing of the Business Combination has not occurred on or before such date. 2 Tax Receivable Agreement At the Closing, we will enter into a tax receivable agreement with PWP, Professionals and certain other partners party thereto (the “Tax Receivable Agreement,” and such partners, “Partners”). The Tax Receivable Agreement will generally provide for the payment by us to Partners of 85% of the cash tax savings realized (or deemed realized) in periods after the Closing as a result of certain pre-existing tax assets and attributes of PWP and its subsidiaries. We expect to retain the benefit of the remaining 15% of these cash tax savings. Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement At the Closing, we will enter into the Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement (the “Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement”), with our sponsor, Professionals, and the third party investor limited partners of PWP (other than Professionals) (each such limited partner, an “ILP”) under the limited partnership agreement of PWP (collectively, with each other person who has executed and delivered a joinder thereto, the “RRA Parties”), pursuant to which the RRA Parties will be entitled to registration rights in respect of certain shares of our Class A common stock and certain other of our equity securities that are held by the RRA Parties from time to time. The Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement provides that we will as soon as practicable but no later than 30 business days following the closing date of the Business Combination, file with the SEC a shelf registration statement pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) registering the resale of certain shares of our Class A common stock and certain of our other equity securities held by the RRA Parties and will use our commercially reasonable efforts to have such shelf registration statement declared effective as soon as practicable after the filing thereof, but no later than the earlier of (i) the 60th calendar day following the actual filing date (or the 80th calendar day following the actual filing date if the SEC notifies us that it will “review” such registration statement) and (ii) the fifth business day after the date we are notified in writing by the SEC that such registration statement will not be “reviewed” or will not be subject to further review. Each of our sponsor, Professionals, the ILPs and their respective transferees will be entitled to certain demand registration rights in connection with an underwritten shelf takedown offering, in each case subject to certain offering thresholds, applicable lock-up restrictions, issuer suspension periods and certain other conditions. Our sponsor and their permitted transferees are limited to three demand registrations and the ILPs and their permitted transferees are limited to one demand registration, in each case, for the term of the Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement. Professionals and its permitted transferees are limited to four demand registrations per twelve-month period. In addition, the RRA Parties have certain “piggy-back” registration rights, subject to customary underwriter cutbacks, issuer suspension periods and certain other conditions. The Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement includes customary indemnification provisions. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any registration statements filed pursuant to the terms of the Amended and Restated Registration Rights Agreement, including the fees of one legal counsel to each of our sponsor, Professionals and the ILPs. Stockholders Agreement At the Closing, we and Professionals will enter into a stockholders agreement (the “Stockholders Agreement”), providing for certain approval and director nomination rights in favor of Professionals. The Stockholders Agreement provides that for so long as Professionals or its limited partners as of the date of Closing (or their permitted successors or assigns) continue to hold securities representing at least five percent of our outstanding Class A common stock on an as-exchanged basis (the “5% Condition”), our board of directors may not approve, absent the prior consent of Professionals, any amendment to our certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or the limited partnership agreement of PWP, that would materially and adversely affect in a disproportionate manner the rights of Professionals or its limited partners. 3 In addition, for so long as Professionals or its limited partners as of the date of Closing (or their permitted successors or assigns) continue to hold securities representing at least 10 percent of our outstanding Class A common stock on an as-exchanged basis (the “10% Condition”), our board of directors may not approve, absent the prior consent of Professionals, a number of ordinary course operating activities in respect of us, PWP and PWP’s subsidiaries, including, among other things: (i) any incurrence of indebtedness (other than inter-company indebtedness) in an amount in excess of $25 million; (ii) any issuance of equity or equity-related securities which would represent more than five percent of the total number of votes that may be cast in the election of directors of us (subject to certain customary exceptions); (iii) the authorization or issuance of any preferred stock; (iv) any equity or debt commitment to invest or investment or series of related equity or debt commitments to invest or investments in an amount greater than $25 million; (v) any entry into a new line of business that requires an initial investment in excess of $25 million; (vi) any disposition or divestment of any asset or business unit with a value in excess of $25 million; (vii) the adoption of a stockholder rights plan by us; (viii) any removal, change of duty or appointment of any officer of us that is, or would be, subject to Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”); (ix) any amendment to our certificate of incorporation or bylaws; (x) any amendment to the limited partnership agreement of PWP; (xi) the renaming of our company; (xii) the adoption of our annual budget and business plans and any material amendments thereto; (xiii) the declaration and payment of any dividend or other distribution (subject to certain customary exceptions); (xiv) the entry into any merger, consolidation, recapitalization, liquidation or sale of all or substantially all of our assets (subject to certain customary exceptions) or entering into any agreement providing therefor; (xv) voluntarily initiating any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of us or PWP or permitting the commencement of a proceeding for bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar action; (xvi) the entry into, termination of or material amendment of any Material Contract (as defined in the Business Combination Agreement); (xvii) the entry into of any transaction or agreement that would be required to be disclosed by us under Item 404 of Regulation S-K under the Exchange Act; (xviii) the initiation or settlement of any material litigation or similar proceeding; or (xix) changes to our taxable year or fiscal year. The Stockholders Agreement further provides that the parties to the Stockholders Agreement will take all reasonable actions to provide that (a) for so long as the 5% Condition is satisfied, there will be not more than 15 members of our board of directors, and that Professionals will have the right to designate one-third of the nominees for election to such board, (b) for so long as the 10% Condition is satisfied, Professionals will have the right to designate a majority of the nominees for election to our board of directors, and (c) any nominee designated by Professionals will be removed from office upon notice from Professionals to that effect. We are also required to take all reasonable actions to provide that any committee of our board of directors include a proportionate number of individuals that were designated for nomination by Professionals (subject to compliance with requirements of applicable laws and national securities exchange regulations). The Stockholders Agreement will terminate once the 5% Condition is no longer satisfied. Sponsor Share Surrender and Share Restriction Agreement Concurrently with the execution and delivery of the Business Combination Agreement, our sponsor entered into a Sponsor Share Surrender and Share Restriction Agreement (the “Sponsor Share Cancellation Agreement”) with us, PWP and the other parties to that certain letter agreement, dated as of September 24, 2020, by and among our sponsor, us and such other parties, pursuant to which our sponsor has agreed that, concurrent with and contingent upon the Closing, it will forfeit an aggregate of 1,023,333 shares of Class B common stock for no consideration and agrees that 610,000 shares of Class A common stock and 6,846,667 shares of Class B common stock held thereby be subject to transfer restrictions for six months following the Closing and that 80% of the shares of Class B common stock also be subject to vesting conditions based on certain closing share price thresholds of our common stock for 20 out of any 30 consecutive trading days. Business Combination Structure We anticipate structuring our initial business combination to acquire 100% of the equity interest or assets of the target business or businesses. Nasdaq rules require that our initial business combination must be with one or more target businesses that together have a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the balance in the trust account (less any deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest earned) at the time of our signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. The fair market value of the target or targets will be determined by our board of directors. If our board of directors is not able to independently determine the fair market value of our initial business combination, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. 4 Business Strategy We will seek to capitalize on the significant financial services, financial technology and banking experience and contacts of Daniel G. Cohen, our Chief Executive Officer, Betsy Z. Cohen, the Chairman of our Board of Directors, James J. McEntee, III, our President, and our board of directors to identify, evaluate, acquire and operate a financial technology business. If we elect to pursue an investment outside of the financial technology industry, our management’s expertise related to that industry may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information regarding that industry might not be relevant to an understanding of the business that we elect to acquire. Several members of our management team, including our Chairman, served as executive officers and/or directors of FinTech Acquisition Corp., or FinTech I, a former blank check company which raised $100.0 million in its initial public offering in February 2015 and completed its initial business combination when it acquired FTS Holding Corporation in July 2016, which we refer to as the FinTech I Acquisition. Several members of our management team also served as executive officers and/or directors of FinTech Acquisition Corp. II, or FinTech II, a blank check company which raised $175.0 million in its initial public offering in January 2017 and completed its initial business combination when it acquired Intermex Holdings II in July 2018, which we refer to as the FinTech II Acquisition, in connection with which FinTech II changed its name to International Money Express, Inc. The common stock of International Money Express, Inc. is currently traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “IMXI.” Certain members of our management team served as executive officers and/or directors of FinTech Acquisition Corp. III, or FinTech III, a blank check company which raised $345.0 million in its initial public offering in November 2018 and completed its initial business combination with Paya, Inc. in October 2020, which we refer to as the FinTech III Acquisition. The common stock of Paya Holdings, Inc. is currently traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “PAYA.” Additionally, members of our board of directors and management team also currently serve as executive officers, directors and/or advisors of: FTAC Olympus Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: FTOC), or FTAC Olympus, a blank check company which raised $754.7 million in its initial public offering in August 2020; FinTech Acquisition Corp. V (NASDAQ: FTCV), or FinTech V, a blank check company which raised $250.0 million in its initial public offering in December 2020; FTAC Athena Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: FTAA), or FTAC Athena, a blank check company which raised $250.0 million in its initial public offering in February 2021; FTAC Hera Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: HERA), or FTAC Hera, a blank check company which raised $800 million in its initial public offering in March 2021; FTAC Parnassus Acquisition Corp., or FTAC Parnassus, a blank check company currently in registration with the SEC; FinTech Acquisition Corp. VI, or FinTech VI, a blank check company currently in registration with the SEC; INSU Acquisition Corp. IV, or INSU IV, a blank check company currently in registration with the SEC; and FTAC Zeus Acquisition Corp., or FTAC Zeus, a blank check company currently in registration with the SEC. We believe that potential sellers of target businesses will view the fact that members of our board of directors and management team have successfully closed multiple business combinations with vehicles similar to our company as a positive factor in considering whether or not to enter into a business combination with us. However, past performance is not a guarantee of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. Daniel G. Cohen, our Chief Executive Officer, Betsy Z. Cohen, our Chairman of the Board, and James J. McEntee, III, our President, have extensive experience in the financial services industry generally, and the financial technology industry in particular, as well as extensive experience in operating financial services companies in a public company environment. 5 Mr. Cohen, with over 22 years of experience in financial services and financial technology, is the Chairman of the Board of Directors and of the Board of Managers of Cohen & Company, LLC, and serves as the President and Chief Executive of the European Business of Cohen and Company, Inc. (NYSE American: COHN), a financial services company with approximately $2.65 billion in assets under management as of September 30, 2020, and as President, a director and the Chief Investment Officer of Cohen and Company Inc.’s indirect majority owned subsidiary, Cohen & Company Financial Limited (formerly known as EuroDekania Management Limited), a Financial Conduct Authority regulated investment advisor and broker dealer focusing on the European capital markets (“CCFL”). Mr. Cohen previously served as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors and of the Board of Managers of Cohen & Company, LLC. Mr. Cohen served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Cohen and Company, Inc. from December 2009 to September 2013 and as the Chairman of the Board of Directors from October 2006 to September 2013. Mr. Cohen served as the executive Chairman of Cohen and Company, Inc. from October 2006 to December 2009. In addition, Mr. Cohen served as the Chairman of the Board of Managers of Cohen & Company, LLC from 2001 to September 2013, as the Chief Investment Officer of Cohen & Company, LLC from October 2008 to September 2013, and as Chief Executive Officer of Cohen & Company, LLC from December 2009 to September 2013. Mr. Cohen served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of J.V.B. Financial Group, LLC (formerly C&Co/PrinceRidge Partners LLC), the Company’s indirect broker dealer subsidiary (“JVB”), from July 2012 to September 2013. Mr. Cohen is also a founder, the former Chief Executive Officer and the current Chairman of The Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: TBBK), which we refer to as Bancorp, a financial holding company with over $6.3 billion of total assets as of December 31, 2020. Bancorp’s principal subsidiary is The Bancorp Bank, a state chartered bank that provides a wide range of commercial and retail banking products and services to both regional and national markets. Mr. Cohen currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of FinTech V and FinTech VI, as Chief Executive Officer and President of FTAC Hera and as Chairman of the Board of INSU Acquisition Corp. III (NASDAQ: IIII), or INSU III, INSU IV, FTAC Parnassus and FTAC Zeus. Until October 2020, Mr. Cohen served as the Chief Executive Officer of FinTech III and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Insurance Acquisition Corp., or INSU I. Until February 2021, Mr. Cohen served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of INSU Acquisition Corp. II, or INSU II. Mr. Cohen also served as Chief Executive Officer, President and a director of FinTech I until the FinTech I Acquisition, and as Chief Executive Officer and a director of FinTech II until the FinTech II Acquisition. He is also a past Chief Executive Officer of RAIT Financial Trust, which we refer to as RAIT, formerly a publicly traded real estate finance company focused on the commercial real estate industry, from December 2006 when it merged with Taberna Realty Finance Trust, to February 2009, and served as a trustee from the date RAIT acquired Taberna in February 2009 until his resignation from that position in February 2010. From 1998 to 2000, Mr. Cohen served as the Chief Operation Officer of Resource America, Inc., formerly a publicly traded asset management company with interests in energy, real estate and financial services. Mr. Cohen was also a past director of Jefferson Bank of Pennsylvania, a commercial bank and subsidiary of JeffBanks, Inc., a publicly traded bank holding company, which we refer to as JeffBanks, acquired by Hudson United Bancorp in 1999. Ms. Cohen, with over 42 years of experience, was a founder of Bancorp and served as Bancorp’s Chief Executive Officer from September 2000 through December 2014. Ms. Cohen served as Chairman of the board of directors of FinTech III until the FinTech III Acquisition, as Chairman of the board of directors of FinTech II until the FinTech II Acquisition, and also served as the Chairman of the board of directors of FinTech I until the Fintech I Acquisition and, following the FinTech I Acquisition, served on the post-business combination board of directors until May 2017. She is currently the Chairman of the Board of FinTech V, FinTech VI, FTAC Olympus, FTAC Athena and FTAC Hera. Ms. Cohen is also a founder of RAIT and was its Chairman until December 2010 and its Chief Executive Officer until December 2006. She was also the founder and Chief Executive Officer of JeffBanks and its subsidiary banks from 1974 until the merger of JeffBanks into Hudson United Bancorp in 1999. Mr. McEntee, with over 22 years of experience, is a director of Bancorp and The Bancorp Bank, was previously the Chief Executive Officer of Alesco Financial, an investment firm specializing in credit related fixed income investment, until it merged with Cohen & Company and was the Chief Operating Officer of Cohen & Company. Mr. McEntee served as President and Chief Financial Officer of FinTech III until the FinTech III Acquisition, Chief Financial Officer of FinTech II until the FinTech II Acquisition, and also served as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of FinTech I until the Fintech I Acquisition. He is currently President and Secretary of FinTech V and FinTech VI. 6 We have identified the following criteria that we intend to use in evaluating business transaction opportunities. We expect that no individual criterion will entirely determine a decision to pursue a particular opportunity. Further, any particular business transaction opportunity which we ultimately determine to pursue may not meet one or more of these criteria: ● History of free cash flow generation . We have sought to acquire one or more businesses or assets that have a history of, or potential for, strong, stable free cash flow generation, with predictable and recurring revenue streams. ● Strong management team . We have sought to acquire one or more businesses or assets that have strong, experienced management teams or those that provide a platform for us to assemble an effective and experienced management team. We have focused on management teams with a proven track record of driving revenue growth, enhancing profitability and creating value for their stockholders. ● Opportunities for add-on acquisitions . We have sought to acquire one or more businesses or assets that we can grow both organically and through acquisitions. In addition, we believe that our ability to source proprietary opportunities and execute transactions will help the business we acquire grow through acquisition, and thus serve as a platform for further add-on acquisitions. ● Defensible business niche . We have sought to acquire on one or more businesses or assets that have a leading or niche market position and that demonstrate advantages when compared to their competitors, which may help to create barriers to entry against new competitors. We anticipate that these barriers to entry will enhance the ability of these businesses or assets to generate strong profitability and free cash flow. ● Diversified customer and supplier base . We have sought to acquire one or more businesses or assets that have a diversified customer and supplier base, which are generally better able to endure economic downturns, industry consolidation, changing business preferences and other factors that may negatively impact their customers, suppliers and competitors. Competitive Strengths We believe we have the following competitive strengths: ● Management Operating and Investing Experience . Our directors and executive officers have significant experience in the financial services and financial technology industries. Daniel G. Cohen, with over 22 years’ experience in the financial services industry, is a founder of Bancorp, the Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of an investment bank and is an affiliate of a broker-dealer subsidiary of the investment bank. Betsy Z. Cohen has over 42 years’ experience in the financial services industry and is a founder of and, until her retirement in December 2014, served as chief executive officer of, The Bancorp, Inc., a financial holding company whose banking subsidiary, The Bancorp Bank, provides banking services principally through the internet. James J. McEntee, III, with over 22 years of experience in the financial services industry, is a director of The Bancorp, Inc. and The Bancorp Bank, was previously the Chief Executive Officer of an investment firm specializing in credit related fixed income investment, a managing director of COHN and the Vice-Chairman and Co-Chief Operating Officer of JVB Financial. Additionally, each of Mr. Cohen, Mrs. Cohen and Mr. McEntee served as an executive officer and/or director of FinTech I, FinTech II and FinTech III and currently serves as an executive officer and/or director of FinTech V and FinTech VI. We believe that this breadth of experience provides us with a competitive advantage in evaluating businesses and acquisition opportunities in our target industry. 7 ● Established Deal Sourcing Network . As a result of their extensive experience in the financial services industry, our management team members have developed a broad array of contacts in the industry. We believe that these contacts will be important in generating acquisition opportunities for us. ● Strong Financial Position and Flexibility . With a trust account initially in the amount of $230,000,000 and a public market for our common stock, we offer a target business a variety of options to facilitate a future business transaction and fund the growth and expansion of business operations. Because we are able to consummate an initial business transaction using our capital stock, debt, cash or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to design an acquisition structure to address the needs of the parties. We have not, however, taken any steps to secure third party financing and would only do so simultaneously with the consummation of our initial business transaction. Accordingly, our flexibility in structuring an initial business transaction may be constrained by our ability to arrange third-party financing, if required. ● Status as a Public Company . We believe our structure makes us an attractive business transaction partner to prospective target businesses. As an existing public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business transaction with us. In this situation, the owners of the target business would exchange their shares of stock in the target business for shares of our stock. Once public, we believe the target business would have greater access to capital and additional means of creating management incentives that are better aligned with stockholders’ interests than it would as a private company. We believe that being a public company can also augment a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid it in attracting and retaining talented employees. Effecting Our Initial Business Combination General We are not presently engaged in, and we will not engage in, any operations until our initial business combination. We intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of the initial public offering and the private placement, our capital stock, debt or a combination of these as the consideration to be paid in our initial business combination. If we pay for our initial business combination using stock or debt securities, or we do not use all of the funds released from the trust account for payment of the purchase price in connection with our business combination or for redemptions or purchases of our common stock, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of acquired businesses, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in consummating our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other companies or for working capital. While we have not contacted any of the prospective target businesses that FinTech I, FinTech II or FinTech III had considered and rejected while searching for target businesses to acquire, we may do so in the future if we become aware that the valuations, operations, profits or prospects of such target business, or the benefits of any potential transaction with such target business, would be attractive. Accordingly, there is no current basis for stockholders to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the target business with which we may ultimately complete our initial business combination. Although our management will assess the risks inherent in a particular target business with which we may combine, we cannot assure you that this assessment will result in our identifying all risks that a target business may encounter. Furthermore, some of those risks may be outside of our control, meaning that we can do nothing to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. 8 Nasdaq rules require that our initial business combination be with one or more target businesses that together have a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the balance in the trust account (less any deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest earned) at the time of our signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. However, if our securities are not listed on Nasdaq or another securities exchange, we will no longer be subject to that requirement. We may seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity securities to finance our initial business combination, and we may effectuate an initial business combination using the proceeds of such offering rather than using the amounts held in the trust account. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would consummate such financing only simultaneously with the consummation of our business combination. In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the trust account assets, our tender offer documents or proxy materials disclosing the business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by law or Nasdaq, we would seek stockholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. At this time, we are not a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities or otherwise. Sources of Acquisition Candidates We anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment bankers, attorneys, accountants, venture capital funds, private equity funds, leveraged buyout funds, management buyout funds, brokers and other members of the financial community and corporate executives. These target candidates may present solicited or unsolicited proposals. Such sources became aware that we were seeking a business combination candidate by a variety of means, including publicly available information relating to the initial public offering, public relations and marketing efforts or direct contact by management following the completion of the initial public offering. Our officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates of which they become aware through their contacts. While we do not presently anticipate engaging the services of professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions on any formal basis, we may engage these firms or other individuals in the future, in which event we may pay a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation to be determined in an arm’s length negotiation based on the terms of the transaction. We will engage a finder only if our management determines that the use of a finder may bring opportunities to us that may not otherwise be available to us or if finders approach us on an unsolicited basis with a potential transaction that our management determines is in our best interest to pursue. Payment of finder’s fees is customarily tied to completion of a transaction, in which case any such fee will be paid out of the funds held in the trust account. In no event, however, will our sponsor or any of our officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is), other than (i) repayment of loans made to us prior to the date of the initial public offering by our sponsor to cover offering-relating and organization expenses, (ii) repayment of loans that our sponsor, members of our management team or any of their respective affiliates or other third parties may make to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination (provided that if we do not consummate an initial business combination, we may use working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts, but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment), (iii) payments to our sponsor or its affiliate of a total of $20,000 per month for office space, utilities, and shared personnel services, (iv) at the closing of our initial business combination, a customary advisory fee to an affiliate of our sponsor, in an amount that constitutes a market standard advisory fee for comparable transactions and services provided, and (v) to reimburse our sponsor for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigation and completing an initial business combination. None of the initial holders, our officers, our directors or any entity with which they are affiliated will be allowed to receive any compensation, finder’s fees or consulting fees from a prospective acquisition target in connection with a contemplated acquisition of such target by us. Although some of our officers and directors may enter into employment or consulting agreements with the acquired business following our initial business combination, the presence or absence of any such arrangements will not be used as a criterion in our selection process of an acquisition candidate. 9 We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates. Additionally, we are not prohibited from partnering, submitting joint bids, or entering into any similar transaction with such persons in the pursuit of an initial business combination. If we seek to complete an initial business combination with such a company or we partner with such persons in our pursuit of an initial business combination, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm, and reasonably acceptable to the representatives, that such an initial business combination is fair to our stockholders from a financial point of view. Generally, such opinion is rendered to a company’s board of directors and investment banking firms may take the view that stockholders may not rely on the opinion. Such view will not impact our decision on which investment banking firm to hire. Unless we consummate our initial business combination with an affiliated entity, we are not required to obtain a financial fairness opinion from an independent investment banking firm. If we do not obtain such an opinion, our stockholders will be relying on the judgment of our board of directors, who will determine fair market value and fairness based on standards generally accepted by the financial community. The application of such standards would involve a comparison, from a valuation standpoint, of our business combination target to comparable public companies, as applicable, and a comparison of our contemplated transaction with such business combination target to other then-recently announced comparable private and public company transactions, as applicable. The application of such standards and the basis of our board of directors’ determination will be discussed and disclosed in our tender offer or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination. Selection of a target business and structuring of our initial business combination Nasdaq rules require that we must complete one or more business combinations having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the value of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the interest earned on the trust account) at the time of our signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. The fair market value of our initial business combination will be determined by our board of directors based upon one or more standards generally accepted by the financial community, such as discounted cash flow valuation, a valuation based on trading multiples of comparable public businesses or a valuation based on the financial metrics of M&A transactions of comparable businesses. If our board of directors is not able to independently determine the fair market value of our initial business combination, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. While we consider it unlikely that our board of directors will not be able to make an independent determination of the fair market value of our initial business combination, it may be unable to do so if it is less familiar or experienced with the business of a particular target or if there is a significant amount of uncertainty as to the value of a target’s assets or prospects. We do not intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with our initial business combination. Subject to this requirement, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting one or more prospective target businesses, although we will not be permitted to effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations. In any case, we will only complete an initial business combination in which we own or acquire 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquire a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. If we own or acquire less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses, the portion of such business or businesses that are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company is what will be taken into account for purposes of Nasdaq’s 80% fair market value test. There is no basis for stockholders to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any target business with which we may ultimately complete our initial business combination. To the extent we effect our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in such company or business. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors. 10 In evaluating a prospective business target, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review, which may encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial and other information that will be made available to us. The time required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which our initial business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination. Lack of business diversification For an indefinite period of time after consummation of our initial business combination, the prospects for our success may depend entirely on the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities that have the resources to complete business combinations with multiple entities in one or several industries, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations and mitigate the risks of being in a single line of business. By consummating a business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may: ● subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we operate after our initial business combination, and ● cause us to depend on the marketing and sale of a single product or limited number of products or services. Limited ability to evaluate the target’s management team Although we closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating a target business, our assessment of the target business’ management may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of members of our management team or of our board, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. While it is possible that one or more of our directors will remain associated in some capacity with us following our business combination, it is presently unknown if any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that members of our management team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business. The determination as to whether any members of our board of directors will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination. Following a business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management team of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management. Stockholders may not have the ability to approve a business combination We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC. However, we will seek stockholder approval if it is required by law or Nasdaq, or we may decide to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons. Presented in the table below is a graphic explanation of the types of initial business combinations we may consider and whether stockholder approval is currently required under Delaware law for each such transaction. Type of Transaction Whether Stockholder Approval is Required Purchase of assets No Purchase of stock of target not involving a merger with the company No Merger of target into a subsidiary of the company No Merger of the company with a target Yes 11 Under NASDAQ’s listing rules, stockholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example: ● we issue shares of Class A common stock that will be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of our Class A common stock then outstanding; ● any of our directors, officers or substantial stockholders (as defined by Nasdaq rules) has a 5% or greater interest (or such persons collectively have a 10% or greater interest), directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired or otherwise and the present or potential issuance of common stock could result in an increase in outstanding common shares or voting power of 5% or more; or ● the issuance or potential issuance of common stock will result in our undergoing a change of control. Permitted purchases of our securities If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the consummation of our initial business combination, although as of the date of this Annual Report they have no commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares in such transactions. They will not make any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Although they do not currently anticipate paying any premium purchase price for such public shares, there is no limit on the price they may pay. They may also enter into transactions to provide such holders with incentives to acquire shares or vote their shares in favor of an initial business combination. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. In the event that our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will comply with such rules. The purpose of such purchases would be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or (ii) to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of the business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. This may result in the consummation of a business combination that may not otherwise have been possible. As a consequence of any such purchases, the public “float” of our common stock may be reduced and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, which may make it difficult to obtain the continued listing of our securities on Nasdaq or another national securities exchange in connection with our initial business combination. Our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the stockholders with whom they may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the stockholders contacting us directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by stockholders following our mailing of tender offer or proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling stockholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the trust account or vote against the business combination. Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and other federal securities laws. 12 Any purchases by our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates who are affiliated purchasers under Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act will only be made to the extent such purchases are able to be made in compliance with Rule 10b-18, which is a safe harbor from liability for manipulation under Section 9(a)(2) and Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Rule 10b-18 has certain technical requirements that must be complied with in order for the safe harbor to be available to the purchaser. Our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates will not make purchases of common stock if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Redemption rights for public stockholders upon consummation of our initial business combination We will provide our stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the consummation of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination, including any amounts representing deferred underwriting commissions and interest earned on the trust account not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is approximately $10.00 per public share (based on the trust account balance as of December 31, 2020). There will be no redemption rights upon the consummation of our initial business combination with respect to our warrants. The initial holders, our officers and directors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and placement shares, as applicable, (i) in connection with the consummation of a business combination, (ii) in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 29, 2022 and (iii) if we fail to consummate a business combination by September 29, 2022 or if we liquidate prior to September 29, 2022. The initial holders and our directors and officers have also agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to public shares in connection with the consummation of a business combination and in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 29, 2022. However, the initial holders and our directors and officers will be entitled to redemption rights with respect to any public shares held by them if we fail to consummate a business combination or liquidate by September 29, 2022. Manner of Conducting Redemptions We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would require us to seek stockholder approval under the law or stock exchange listing requirement. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require stockholder approval while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding common stock or seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation would require stockholder approval. If we structure a business combination transaction with a target company in a manner that requires stockholder approval, we will not have discretion as to whether to seek a stockholder vote to approve the proposed business combination. We intend to conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC unless stockholder approval is required by law or stock exchange listing requirements or we choose to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons. So long as we obtain and maintain a listing for our securities on Nasdaq, we will be required to comply with such rules. If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation: ● conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and ● file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to consummating our initial business combination that will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies. 13 Upon the public announcement of our initial business combination, we and our sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market if we elect to redeem our public shares through a tender offer, to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act. In the event we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to consummate our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public stockholders not tendering more than a specified number of public shares, which number will be based on the requirement that we may not redeem public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets, to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules), or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete our initial business combination. If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law or Nasdaq, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation: ● conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules, and ● file proxy materials with the SEC. In the event that we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination. If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our sponsor, officers and directors will count toward this quorum and have agreed to vote their founder shares, private placement shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. We expect that at the time of any stockholder vote relating to our initial business combination, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees will own at least 26.9% of our outstanding shares of common stock entitled to vote thereon. These quorum and voting thresholds and agreements may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and, in any event, the terms of the proposed business combination may require our net tangible assets to be greater than $5,000,001. For example, the proposed business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. If the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly tendered for redemption plus the amount of any cash payments required pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceeds the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not consummate the business combination or redeem any shares and all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof. 14 Limitation on redemption upon consummation of our initial business combination if we seek stockholder approval Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to an more than aggregate of 15.0% of the shares sold in the initial public offering without our prior consent. We believe the restriction described above will discourage stockholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to exercise their redemption rights as a means to force us or management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15.0% or more of the shares sold in the initial public offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights against a business combination if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15.0% of the shares sold in the initial public offering, we believe we will limit the ability of a small number of stockholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our initial business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation does not restrict our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including all shares held by those stockholders that hold more than 15.0% of the shares sold in the initial public offering) for or against our business combination. Tendering stock certificates in connection with redemption rights We may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve our initial business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using The Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option. The tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate whether we are requiring public stockholders to satisfy such delivery requirements. Accordingly, a public stockholder would have from the time we send out our tender offer materials until the close of the tender offer period, or up to two days prior to the vote on the business combination if we distribute proxy materials, as applicable, to tender its shares if it wishes to seek to exercise its redemption rights. There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced tendering process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker $100.00 and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the redeeming holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise redemption rights to tender their shares. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising redemption rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated. The foregoing is different from the procedures used by many blank check companies. In order to perfect redemption rights in connection with their business combinations, many blank check companies would distribute proxy materials for the stockholders’ vote on an initial business combination, and a holder could simply vote against a proposed business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was seeking to exercise his redemption rights. After the business combination was approved, the company would contact such stockholder to arrange for him to deliver his certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the stockholder then had an “option window” after the consummation of the business combination during which he could monitor the price of the company’s stock in the market. If the price rose above the redemption price, he could sell his shares in the open market before actually delivering his shares to the company for cancellation. As a result, the redemption rights, to which stockholders were aware they needed to commit before the stockholder meeting, would become “option” rights surviving past the consummation of the business combination until the redeeming holder delivered its certificate. The requirement for physical or electronic delivery prior to the meeting ensures that a redeeming holder’s election to redeem is irrevocable once the business combination is approved. 15 Any request to redeem such shares, once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the date set forth in the tender offer materials or the date of the stockholder meeting set forth in our proxy materials, as applicable. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivers its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to the applicable date not to elect to exercise such rights, such holder may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically). It is anticipated that the funds to be distributed to holders of our public shares electing to redeem their shares will be distributed promptly after the completion of our business combination. If the initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their redemption rights would not be entitled to redeem their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any certificates delivered by public holders who elected to redeem their shares. If our initial business combination is not consummated, we may continue to try to consummate a business combination with a different target until 24 months from the completion of the initial public offering. Redemption of public shares and liquidation if no initial business combination Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we will have only until September 29, 2022 to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to consummate our initial business combination by September 29, 2022, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including any amounts representing interest earned on the trust account not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes and up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our initial business combination within such completion window. Our sponsor, officers and directors have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares and placement shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination by September 29, 2022. However, if our sponsor, officers or directors acquire public shares in or after the initial public offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination by September 29, 2022. Our sponsor, executive officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a letter agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that (i) would modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 29, 2022 or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. However, we may not redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). If this optional redemption right is exercised with respect to an excessive number of public shares such that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement (described above) we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares. We expect that all costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from amounts remaining out of the approximately $1,250,000 of proceeds held outside the trust account, although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. However, if those funds are not sufficient to cover the costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, to the extent that there is any interest accrued in the trust account not required to pay taxes on interest income earned on the trust account balance, we may request the trustee to release to us an additional amount of up to $100,000 of such accrued interest to pay those costs and expenses. 16 If we were to expend all of the net proceeds of the initial public offering and the sale of the placement units, other than the proceeds deposited in the trust account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the trust account, the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders upon our dissolution would be approximately $10.00. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority than the claims of our public stockholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by stockholders will not be substantially less than the $10.00. Under Section 281(b) of the DGCL, our plan of dissolution must provide for all claims against us to be paid in full or make provision for payments to be made in full, as applicable, if there are sufficient assets. These claims must be paid or provided for before we make any distribution of our remaining assets to our stockholders. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims. Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (except our Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest and claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. WithumSmith+Brown, PC, our independent registered public accounting firm will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party (other than our independent registered public accountants) for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims We have not independently verified whether FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we cannot assure you that FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses. In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, and FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. We have not asked FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC to reserve for such indemnification obligations and we cannot assure you that FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC would be able to satisfy those obligations. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be less than $10.00 per public share. 17 We will seek to reduce the possibility that FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC will have to indemnify the trust account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the trust account. At December 31, 2020, we had access to up to $1,158,934 from the proceeds of the initial public offering held outside the trust account with which to pay any such potential claims (including costs and expenses incurred in connection with our liquidation). In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, stockholders who received funds from our trust account could be liable for claims made by creditors. Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares if we do not consummate our initial business combination by September 29, 2022 may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not consummate our initial business combination by September 29, 2022 is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidation distribution. If we have not consummated our business combination by September 29, 2022, or earlier at the discretion of our board, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including any amounts representing interest earned on the trust account, less any interest released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes and up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following September 29, 2022 and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date. Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the subsequent 10 years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. As described above, pursuant to the obligation contained in our underwriting agreement, we will seek to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account. As a result of this obligation, the claims that could be made against us are significantly limited and the likelihood that any claim that would result in any liability extending to the trust account is remote. Further, FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC may be liable only to the extent necessary to ensure that the amounts in the trust account are not reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest withdrawn to pay taxes and will not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, FinTech Investor Holdings IV, LLC will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. 18 If we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, we cannot assure you we will be able to return $10.00 per share to our public stockholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. Furthermore, our board may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and our company to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons. Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only (i) in the event of the redemption of our public shares if we do not complete our business combination by September 29, 2022, subject to applicable law, (ii) in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (a) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination by September 29, 2022 or (b) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity or (iii) our completion of an initial business combination, and then only in connection with those shares of our common stock that such stockholder properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described in this annual report. In no other circumstances will a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. In the event we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a stockholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a stockholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the trust account. Such stockholder must have also exercised its redemption rights as described above. Competition In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our business combination, we encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds and operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than we do. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash to our public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights will reduce the resources available to us for an initial business combination and our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination. Facilities We currently maintain our executive offices at 2929 Arch Street, Suite 1703, Philadelphia, PA 19104-2870. The cost for our use of this space is included in the $20,000 per month fee we pay to our sponsor or its affiliate for office space, utilities, and shared personnel services. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations. Employees We currently have three executive officers. These individuals are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time they devote in any time period varies based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the stage of the initial business combination process we are in. We do not intend to have any full time employees prior to the consummation of our initial business combination. 19 Periodic Reporting and Financial Information We have registered our units, Class A common stock and warrants under the Exchange Act and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accountants. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. We will provide stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. In all likelihood, these financial statements will need to be prepared in accordance with GAAP. We cannot assure you that any particular target business selected by us as a potential acquisition candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP or that the potential target business will be able to prepare its financial statements in accordance with GAAP. To the extent that this requirement cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential acquisition candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material. We will be required to evaluate our internal control procedures for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2021 as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to have our internal control procedures audited. A target company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition. We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act. As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some stockholders find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile. In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We intend to take advantage of the benefits of this extended transition period. We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of the initial public offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our Class A common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30 th , and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period. References herein to “emerging growth company” shall have the meaning associated with it in the JOBS Act. 20