tm2231032-1_f3 - none - 9.4531767s
As filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on November 25, 2022
Registration No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM F-3
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
Lilium N.V.
(Exact Name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
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The Netherlands
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Not Applicable
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(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)
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(I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number)
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Claude Dornier Straße 1
Bldg. 335, 82234
Wessling, Germany
+49 160 9704 6857
(Address and telephone number of Registrant’s principal executive offices)
Roger Franks
c/o Lilium Aviation Inc.
2385 N.W. Executive Center Drive, Suite 300
Boca Raton, Florida 33431
561-526-8460
(Name, address and telephone number of agent for service)
Copies to:
Valerie Ford Jacob
Michael A. Levitt
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP
601 Lexington Avenue
New York, New York 10022
212-277-4000
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: From time to time after the effective date of this registration statement.
If only securities being registered on this Form are being offered pursuant to dividend or interest reinvestment plans, please check the following box. ☐
If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box. ☒
If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a registration statement pursuant to General Instruction I.C. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.C. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933.
Emerging growth company ☒
If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐
The Registrant hereby amends this registration statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this registration statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or until the registration statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.
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The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.
The information in this preliminary prospectus is not complete and may be changed. Neither we nor the selling securityholders may sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This preliminary prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and we are not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED NOVEMBER 25, 2022
PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS
Lilium N.V.
Up to 69,024,938 Class A Shares
Up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares Issuable Upon Exercise of Warrants
Up to 34,512,464 Warrants
This prospectus relates to the offer and sale from time to time by the selling securityholders identified in the “Selling Securityholders” section herein or their permitted transferees (the “selling securityholders”) of (a) up to 103,537,402 of our class A ordinary shares, nominal value €0.12 per share (“Class A Shares”), which consists of up to (i) 69,024,938 Class A Shares issued to certain securityholders in connection with the closing of the private placement described under “Prospectus Summary — Recent Developments — PIPE” (the “PIPE”) and (ii) 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants to purchase Class A Shares at an exercise price of $1.30 per share (the “Warrants”), issued to the selling securityholders in connection with the closing of the PIPE and (b) up to 34,512,464 Warrants. This prospectus also covers any additional securities that may become issuable by reason of share splits, share dividends or other similar transactions. This prospectus also relates to the issuance by us of up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants.
This prospectus provides you with a general description of such securities and the general manner in which the selling securityholders may offer or sell the securities. More specific terms of any securities that the selling securityholders may offer or sell may be provided in a prospectus supplement that describes, among other things, the specific amounts and prices of the securities being offered and the terms of the offering. The prospectus supplement may also add, update or change information contained in this prospectus.
All of the Class A Shares and Warrants offered by the selling securityholders pursuant to this prospectus will be sold by the selling securityholders for their respective accounts. We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of Class A Shares or Warrants by the selling securityholders or the issuance of Class A Shares by us pursuant to this prospectus, except with respect to amounts received by us upon exercise of the Warrants. However, we will pay the expenses, other than any underwriting discounts and commissions, associated with the sale of securities pursuant to this prospectus.
We are registering the securities described above for resale pursuant to the selling securityholders’ registration rights under certain agreements between us and the selling securityholders. Our registration of the securities covered by this prospectus does not mean that either we or the selling securityholders will issue, offer or sell, as applicable, any of the securities. The selling securityholders may offer and sell the securities covered by this prospectus in a number of different ways and at varying prices. We provide more information about how the selling securityholders may sell the securities offered hereby in the section entitled “Plan of Distribution.”
We will pay certain expenses associated with the registration of the securities covered by this prospectus, as described in the section entitled “Plan of Distribution.”
Our Class A Shares are listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (“Nasdaq”) under the symbol “LILM”. On November 23, 2022, the closing sale price as reported on Nasdaq of our Class A Shares was $1.42 per share. The Warrants offered by this prospectus are not and will not be listed on any national securities exchange.
We may amend or supplement this prospectus from time to time by filing amendments or supplements as required. You should read this entire prospectus and any amendments or supplements carefully before you make your investment decision.
We are an “emerging growth company” and “foreign private issuer,” each as defined under the U.S. federal securities laws and, as such, are subject to reduced public company reporting requirements.
Our principal executive offices are located at Claude-Dornier Straße 1, Bldg. 335, 82234 Wessling, Germany.
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. Before buying any of our securities, you should carefully read the discussion of material risks of investing in our securities in “Risk Factors” on page 10 of this prospectus, in any applicable prospectus supplement and as described in certain of the documents we may incorporate by reference herein.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
Prospectus dated , 2022
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus and any amendment or supplement to this prospectus, as well as any information incorporated by reference herein or therein. Neither we, nor the selling securityholders, have authorized any other person to provide you with different or additional information. Neither we, nor the selling securityholders, take responsibility for, nor can we provide assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may provide. The selling securityholders are not making an offer to sell these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted. The information contained in this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement or any documents incorporated by reference herein or therein is accurate only as of the date hereof or thereof or such other date expressly stated herein or therein, and our business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects may have changed since those dates.
Except as otherwise set forth in this prospectus, neither we nor the selling securityholders have taken any action to permit a public offering of these securities outside the United States or to permit the possession or distribution of this prospectus outside the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about and observe any restrictions relating to the offering of these securities and the distribution of this prospectus outside the United States.
ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS
This prospectus is part of a registration statement on Form F-3 that we filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) using a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf registration process, the selling securityholders may, from time to time, offer and sell any combination of the securities described in this prospectus in one or more offerings.
We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of Class A Shares or Warrants to be offered by the selling securityholders pursuant to this prospectus, but we will receive proceeds upon exercise of the Warrants. We will pay the expenses, other than underwriting discounts and commissions, if any, associated with the sale of our Class A Shares and Warrants pursuant to this prospectus. To the extent required, we and the selling securityholders, as applicable, will deliver a prospectus supplement with this prospectus to update the information contained in this prospectus. The prospectus supplement may also add, update or change information included in this prospectus. You should read both this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement, together with additional information described below under the captions “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Documents Incorporated by Reference.” We have not, and the selling securityholders have not, authorized anyone to provide you with information different from that contained in this prospectus. The information contained in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date on the front cover of the prospectus. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus is accurate as of any other date.
No offer of these securities will be made in any jurisdiction where the offer is not permitted.
FREQUENTLY USED TERMS
Unless otherwise stated in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein, or the context otherwise requires, references to:
“Board” means the board of directors of Lilium N.V.
“Business Combination” means the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement.
“Business Combination Agreement” means the Business Combination Agreement, dated March 30, 2021, as amended, by and among Lilium GmbH, Merger Sub, Qell and Lilium.
“Class A Shares” means the ordinary shares A, with a nominal value of €0.12 per share, in the share capital of Lilium.
“Class B Shares” means the ordinary shares B, with a nominal value of €0.36 per share, in the share capital of Lilium.
“Class C Shares” means the ordinary shares C, with a nominal value of €0.24 per share, in the share capital of Lilium.
“Closing Date” means the date of the closing of the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement.
“Code” means the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
“Company” means Lilium, unless the context indicates otherwise.
“COVID-19” means the novel coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19, and any evolutions, mutations thereof or related or associated epidemics, pandemic or disease outbreaks.
“DCGC” means the Dutch Corporate Governance Code 2016.
“eVTOL” means electric vertical take-off-and-landing.
“Exchange Act” means the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
“General Meeting” means a general meeting of the shareholders of the Company.
“IPO” means initial public offering.
“Lilium,” as well as terms such as “we,” “us,” “our” and similar terms, means (i) Lilium N.V., together with its subsidiaries, after conversion into a Dutch public limited liability company and (ii) Lilium B.V. prior to the conversion into a Dutch public liability company. As the context may require, the foregoing terms may also refer to local holders of air operator certificates or similar aviation operating authorities who Lilium anticipates will operate and control Lilium network air carrier operations in certain jurisdictions in order to comply with applicable law.
“Lilium Jet” means the fully electric eVTOL aircraft being developed by Lilium.
“Merger Sub” means Queen Cayman Merger LLC, a Cayman Islands limited liability company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Lilium.
“Nasdaq” means The Nasdaq Global Select Market.
“PIPE” means the subscription for and purchase by the selling securityholders of 69,024,938 Class A Shares and 34,512,464 Warrants for aggregate gross proceeds to the Company of approximately $89.7 million.
“Private Warrants” means the 7,600,000 warrants of Lilium N.V. held by certain former Qell shareholders (which holders were also individuals and entities formerly associated with the Sponsor), purchased by such holders in the private placement that occurred concurrently with the closing of Qell’s IPO.
“Public Warrants” means the 12,650,000 warrants of Lilium N.V. to purchase one Class A Share at a price of $11.50, subject to adjustment, trading on Nasdaq under the symbol “LILMW.”
“Qell” means Qell Acquisition Corp., a Cayman Islands exempted company.
“Qell Class A Ordinary Shares” means Qell’s Class A ordinary shares.
“SEC” means the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
“Securities Act” means the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
“Shares” means the Class A Shares, the Class B Shares and the Class C Shares.
“SPAC Warrants” means, collectively, the Public Warrants and Private Warrants.
“Sponsor” means Qell Partners LLC, a Cayman Islands limited liability company.
“Warrants” means the warrants to purchase up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares at an exercise price of $1.30 per share which were issued in connection with the PIPE.
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY
This summary highlights certain information about us, this offering and selected information contained elsewhere in this prospectus. This summary is not complete and does not contain all of the information that you should consider before deciding whether to invest in the securities covered by this prospectus. This summary is qualified in its entirety by the more detailed information included in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement. For a more complete understanding of the Company and our securities, we encourage you to read in their entirety and consider carefully the more detailed information in this prospectus and any related prospectus supplement, including the documents referred to in “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Documents Incorporated by Reference,” before making an investment decision. Some of the statements in this prospectus constitute, and certain statements in any prospectus supplement or the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein may be, forward-looking statements that involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties as further described in “Forward-Looking Statements.”
Overview
Lilium is a next-generation transportation company. We are focused on developing an electric vertical take-off and landing (“eVTOL”) aircraft for use in a new type of high-speed air transport system for people and goods — one that would (i) offer increased connectivity for communities around the world as well as generate time savings to travelers, (ii) be easily accessible from areas designed specifically for eVTOL aircraft to take off and land (“Vertiports”) close to homes and workplaces, (iii) be affordable for a large part of the population, and (iv) be more environmentally friendly than current regional air transportation.
The products we are developing are fully electric jet aircraft that can take off and land vertically with low noise. Our objective is for the Lilium Jet to be the basis for sustainable, high-speed regional air mobility (“RAM”) networks, which refers to networks that will connect communities and locales within a region directly with one another. We believe such networks will require less infrastructure than traditional airports or railway lines and a fully electric jet aircraft would produce minimal operating emissions. We expect our Lilium Jets will generate zero operating emissions during flight. A single trip might save hours for a traveler; in aggregate, these networks could save our societies millions of travel hours — and significant carbon emissions — each year.
Currently, our development efforts are focused on the detailed design for the Lilium Jet, ongoing certification process for the Lilium Jet with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, and building out our manufacturing capacity. We plan to rely on three business models. First, we intend to target general business aviation customers as a business line that we intend to deploy in tailored offerings through private or fractional ownership sales. Second, we plan to use the Lilium Jet within regional passenger shuttle networks, initially in the U.S. and Europe, that we intend to create and operate with third parties. Third, we plan to provide a turnkey enterprise solution by selling fleets of Lilium Jets and related aftermarket services directly to enterprise and other customers.
The new and developing eVTOL aircraft market has been made possible by a convergence of innovation across battery technology, lightweight materials, sensors, and computing power and propulsion technology. Morgan Stanley has projected that the eVTOL aircraft market could represent $1.0 trillion (in the base case) to $4.5 trillion (in the bull case) in revenues by 2040.
The Lilium Jet architecture is based on our proprietary Ducted Electric Vectored Thrust (“DEVT”) technology, which has been developed and rigorously tested over the last several years. While the majority of our eVTOL competitors leverage open rotor engines, which are based on unducted, counter rotating propeller blades that can have a higher noise profile, DEVT consists of quiet electric turbofans mounted within a cylindrical duct. DEVT offers a number of fundamental advantages over open propeller eVTOL architectures, including higher payload potential, safety, the highest market acceptance and penetration for ducted fans in commercial aviation and potential scalability to larger aircraft in the future.
We believe these technology advantages will enable our regional shuttle service model to carry more passengers (or cargo) per Lilium Jet on longer (regional) trips than open propeller eVTOL aircraft. We are currently developing a lineup of Lilium Jets, including prospective four and six passenger models, that will be based on the same modular architecture but have distinct specifications and design targets based on their
expected commercial use. The Lilium Jet is being designed to be a piloted aircraft with the potential to be an autonomous aircraft in the future. We believe the combination of longer average trip lengths and our anticipated passenger capacity for our lineup of Lilium Jets (and thus a higher load factor, depending on model) will provide greater time savings to customers and more competitive pricing as compared to open propeller eVTOL architecture. We also believe our architectural platform would allow us to create a larger version of the Lilium Jet in the future based on similar architecture and technology. However, our design activities remain in process, and there can be no assurances that such a larger aircraft will be developed or the timing thereof.
We intend for the Lilium Jet to have low take-off and landing noise, with a targeted noise level of 68 dBA at 100 meters (based on current development status and expectations). We are designing the Lilium Jet to be virtually inaudible from the ground during cruise flight.
We believe that our high-speed RAM networks will significantly change the economic calculus of passengers and businesses shipping goods when making transportation and shipping decisions, respectively. We estimate that our Lilium Jets will be able to move people and goods significantly faster than road and rail transport and that our eVTOL network will be significantly less costly and much faster to deploy than equivalent high-speed rail infrastructure and considerably more adaptable to shifting passenger demand.
We believe that our aerospace team is one of the most capable in the eVTOL sector. Collectively, they have held instrumental roles in the delivery of the Airbus A350 XWB, Airbus A380, Airbus A320, the Gulfstream G-650 jet engine and the Eurofighter Typhoon, among others. They are supported by approximately 450 aerospace engineers and a business team with a strong track record in building successful companies in Silicon Valley and Europe. In addition to our Co-Founder and now Chief Engineer for Innovation and Future Programs, Daniel Wiegand, the board of directors of Lilium (the “Board”) includes our Chairman, Dr. Thomas Enders, as well as Henri Courpron, Barry Engle, David Neeleman, Margaret M. Smyth, Gabrielle Toledano, David Wallerstein and Niklas Zennström. Of note, Klaus Roewe, long-time Airbus executive and former head of the A320 program, who joined Lilium in August 2022 to serve as its Chief Executive Officer, was formally approved as an Executive Director on October 27, 2022.
We have an approximately 100,000 square foot technology prototyping and production facility at the Oberpfaffenhofen airfield near our Munich headquarters in Germany, which is currently being expanded by approximately 45,000 square feet. We expect this facility may eventually house our serial aircraft production, including the anticipated manufacturing of the proprietary propulsion and energy systems and the final assembly of the serial aircraft. Other sub-systems and components will be outsourced to Tier 1 aerospace suppliers, such as Toray Industries, Aciturri Aeronáutica, DENSO and Honeywell.
Our Lilium Jet
The Lilium Jet is designed to meet the requirements of high-speed regional air mobility. We have developed a next-generation aircraft architecture based on the combination of DEVT with a fixed-wing aircraft configuration. Our technology demonstrator, Phoenix 2, recently achieved another industry first for an electric jet aircraft, performing full transition from hover to wing-borne flight on both the main and canard wings at an airspeed of approximately 100 kts at our test facility in Atlas, Spain. Transition represents the technically challenging phase (for eVTOL aircraft) between powered vertical lift and the highly efficient wing-borne lift. Based on current development status, we are targeting for the Lilium Jet to achieve a cruise speed of 250 kilometers per hour (assuming flight at 10,000 feet), a physical aircraft range of 250 kilometers (including reserves) and an operating range at full payload (excluding reserves) of 175 kilometers. We expect this range could continue to improve as battery performance improves overtime and, based on current estimates and analyses by our management, we project that the range of the Lilium Jet could increase to 275 kilometers by 2030, 400 kilometers by 2035 and 480 kilometers by 2040.
The Lilium Jet will be a piloted aircraft designed from the ground up using the same underlying technologies as our demonstrator aircraft and optimized for speed, range, passenger comfort, low noise, safety, zero operating emissions and simplicity. Due to the architectural resemblance, we believe many performance parameters of the serial, conforming aircraft can be predicted from the Phoenix demonstrators.
We are designing the Lilium Jet in accordance with the strictest aerospace standards and guidelines established by the relevant regulatory authorities, and consistent with leading original equipment
manufacturers’ (“OEMs”) commercial aerospace programs. The cabin configuration we launch at entry-into- service will be determined by final customer needs, regulatory requirements, and the performance characteristics of the certified aircraft. However, we expect our aircraft architecture will ultimately allow for: (i) a premium four-passenger ‘club cabin’ configuration; (ii) a six-passenger shuttle cabin configuration; and (iii) a cargo cabin configuration.
Our ultimate goal is to achieve annual in-house production capacity of up to approximately 400 Lilium Jets, beyond which we intend to scale further with manufacturing partners. To keep the initial investment low and production flexible, we plan to use a balanced approach of adequate automation for high volume operations and simpler production technology for aircraft assembly. We are also developing a blueprint for a larger scale production system with an annual capacity of approximately 1,200 Lilium Jets, which we target implementing with manufacturing and supply chain partners in due course depending on the ramp-up of our business.
We currently estimate that the first generation Lilium Jet will have a list price of approximately €10 million in the case of private sales and approximately €7 million in the case of OEM sales and sales to lessors in the planned Lilium RAM networks. “List price” is not indicative of sales price and actual sales prices are based on future economic, competitive, regulatory and other considerations, many of which are beyond the control of the Company.
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic
The strict measures to stop the spread of COVID-19 adopted in several countries where we operate initially resulted in the majority of our workforce working from home for much of 2020 and 2021, with a small number of special purpose teams responsible for development of the Lilium Jet remaining onsite. Modern forms of communication enabled contact to be maintained between various members of staff and deadlines defined before the period during which employees were working from home have been complied with. Lilium incurred additional expenses related to the health, safety and transportation of employees onsite; however, the impact of these additional expenses did not materially impact our consolidated financial statements. With COVID-19 vaccines becoming more broadly available, most of our employees have returned to onsite work. However, there can be no assurance that future developments regarding the spread of COVID-19 will not result in a return to working from home for large portions of our workforce and the reinstatement of additional COVID-19 mitigation measures.
Uncertainty regarding the consequences and duration of COVID-19 has negatively impacted the ability to develop a precise forecast for product development. Based on the latest developments, we are expecting that business operations can be continued.
We are monitoring the global outbreak of COVID-19 and have taken steps to identify and mitigate the adverse effects and risks to us as a result of the pandemic. We have continued to implement social distancing and other COVID-19 mitigation practices and are ready to reintroduce additional modifications to our business practices depending on the ongoing development of the COVID-19 pandemic. We expect to continue to take actions as may be required or recommended by government authorities or in the best interests of our employees and business partners. While the pandemic has not resulted in a material slowdown in our engineering, testing, certification and production activities, our operations and the operations of our vendors, suppliers and commercial partners, including infrastructure, airline, training and other business partners, may be adversely impacted. Despite vaccines becoming available, COVID-19’s ongoing economic and health repercussions may also negatively impact our future field engineering, testing and certification processes and manufacturing capacity, as well as our commercial activities, including potential delays and restrictions on our ability to recruit and train staff. COVID-19 could also affect the operations of our suppliers and business partners, which has resulted and may continue to result in delays or disruptions in the supply chain of our components, parts and materials and which could delay the development and rollout of a Vertiport network and our commercial operations. We will continue to closely monitor the effects of the pandemic. For additional information on risks posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, see “Risk Factors.”
Impact of the War in Ukraine
Although we do not have any operations or direct suppliers located in Ukraine or Russia and have not yet experienced any direct impacts from the conflict, we believe our continuing design and development
activities, regulatory certification processes and ability to contract with prospective customers, suppliers and other counterparties, as well as to progress to the production, manufacturing and commercialization of the Lilium Jets, could be adversely affected by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. For example, the continuance or any escalation of the conflict could result in disruptions to our business and operations, increase inflationary pressures and adversely affect our anticipated unit and production costs, increase raw material costs and cause further disruption to supply chains, impacting our ability to successfully contract with suppliers, and have other adverse impacts on our anticipated costs and commercialization timeline.
Existing or additional government actions, including sanctions, taken in response to the conflict could also adversely impact the commercial and regulatory environment in which we operate. Such disruptions could similarly impact our data protection and design efforts, including if there are any increased cyberattacks or data security incidents as a result of the conflict, and negatively impact our corporate, research and development and production efforts and result in us incurring increased cybersecurity costs.
We continue to closely monitor the possible effects of the conflict in Europe and general economic factors on our business and planning. These factors put pressure on our costs for employees and materials and services we procure from our suppliers, as well as affecting other stakeholders and regulatory agencies.
Additional information on risks posed by the conflict in Europe and general economic factors is described in the risk factors set forth in the documents incorporated by reference herein. See “Risk Factors” and “Documents Incorporated by Reference.”
Recent Developments
Memoranda of Understanding
Lilium currently has non-binding memoranda of understanding for the potential sale of up to 583 Lilium Jets. Lilium’s memoranda of understanding are with key partners in the U.S., Brazil, Spain, France, Italy, Benelux, Norway and Saudi Arabia.
Developing, Manufacturing and Recycling Battery Cells
We believe the circular battery economy and renewable electric infrastructure present opportunities for Lilium in the future. Following best practice in the electric vehicle industry, we are currently exploring additional opportunities to develop, manufacture and recycle battery cells with a second source, InoBat Auto. Our current target is to build our first flight battery pack in 2023. Our goal is for our used battery cells to have approximately 80% of storage capacity, which we expect will make them suitable for micro-grid applications. We also estimate that approximately 95% of the valuable raw materials in our battery cells are potentially recoverable. Consequently, we are currently working to build relevant partnerships to explore these opportunities further (including our ongoing partnership with ABB E-mobility to develop and implement charging infrastructure for regional air travel).
Patent Protection
Lilium continues its efforts to protect the results of its product development. As of the end of October 2022, Lilium had filed a total of 73 patent applications, with 42 patent applications published. A key focus of Lilium’s innovation has been propulsion and energy systems, which are core to our competitive advantage. Additionally, Lilium continues to file patent applications in jurisdictions supplementary to the European Patent Organization member states, e.g., in the U.S. and China.
PIPE
In November 2022, we entered into securities purchase agreements with a number of investors, including LGT Global Invest Limited, Lightrock LLP and their respective affiliated entities, and Tencent Mobility (Luxembourg) S.à r.l. (“Tencent”), each of which are existing shareholders of the Company; Barry Engle, David Wallerstein (who is affiliated with Tencent) and Niklas Zennström, three of our non-executive directors; and Klaus Roewe, our chief executive officer and executive director, for the purchase and
sale of 69,024,938 Class A Shares and warrants to purchase up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares at $1.30 per share. Citigroup Global Markets Inc., B. Riley Securities, Inc. and Piper Sandler & Co. acted as placement agents with respect to the PIPE.
Investors in the PIPE also include a number of the Company’s suppliers, vendors and other business partners. The Company has agreed with these suppliers that payables of the Company to those suppliers in respect of services to be provided by these suppliers to the Company and/or its subsidiaries shall be settled against an aggregate subscription price of $20.2 million for the issuance of 15,544,173 Class A Shares and warrants to purchase up to 7,772,086 Class A Shares at $1.30 per Class A Share.
The securities purchase agreements contain customary registration rights in respect of the securities issued in connection with the PIPE, which provide that, among other things, within five business days of the closing of the PIPE, we are required to file this registration statement to register for resale the Class A Shares and warrants to purchase Class A Shares issued in the PIPE, as well as the Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of such warrants. We have also agreed to use our commercially reasonable efforts to have this registration statement declared effective under the Securities Act as soon as practicable after the filing hereof, but no later than the earlier of (i) the 30th calendar day (or 60th calendar day if the SEC notifies us that it will review the registration statement) following the closing date of the PIPE and (ii) the 5th business day after the date we are notified by the SEC that this registration statement will not be reviewed or will not be subject to further review (the “Effectiveness Deadline”) (provided, that if the Effectiveness Deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or other day that the SEC is closed for business, the Effectiveness Deadline will be the next business day on which the SEC is open for business).
The closing of the first portion of the PIPE occurred on November 22, 2022 and the second portion will close as of a date hereafter.
Registered Direct Offering
On November 18, 2022, we entered into securities purchase agreements with certain investors in a registered direct offering for the purchase and sale of 22,499,997 Class A Shares and warrants to purchase up to 11,249,997 Class A Shares for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $29.2 million (the “Registered Direct Offering”). The warrants offered in the Registered Direct Offering are substantially identical to the Warrants offered in the PIPE, except that the latter have registration rights as described under the caption “— PIPE” above. Citigroup Global Markets Inc., B. Riley Securities, Inc. and Piper Sandler & Co. acted as placement agents with respect to the Registered Direct Offering.
The closing of the Registered Direct Offering occurred on November 22, 2022.
Funding Needs
After giving effect to our concurrent Registered Direct Offering and PIPE we expect that the Company will have approximately $273 million of cash available (calculated based on a one euro to 0.97 U.S. dollar exchange rate as of November 11, 2022). This reflects approximately €160 million of cash, cash equivalents and other financial assets as of September 30, 2022, approximately $29.2 million of gross proceeds expected to be raised in the Registered Direct Offering, and approximately $89.7 million of gross proceeds expected to be raised in the concurrent PIPE (which includes approximately $20.2 million of Class A Shares and Warrants offered to certain suppliers, of which $19.2 million will be received in cash and used to settle certain payables of Lilium) after deduction of estimated fees and expenses of the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE.
With the goal of securing type certification of the Lilium Jet, the Company estimates that it will require an additional approximately $540 million (calculated based on a one euro to one U.S. dollar exchange rate) to fund its operations until type certification. In view of the foregoing, in the future, the Company is expected to generate cash from pre-delivery payments from customers, the issuance of additional equity securities, and grants and subsidies from governmental authorities. The Company is also considering establishing an “at-the-market” equity program that would allow the issuance and sale of Class A Shares from time to time through one or more sales agents. Any future financing is subject to market conditions and other factors, many of which are outside of the control of the Company.
Implications of Being an Emerging Growth Company and a Foreign Private Issuer
We qualify as an “emerging growth company” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012. As an emerging growth company, we intend to take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to most other public companies. The exemptions include, but are not limited to:
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an exemption from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requiring that our independent registered public accounting firm provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting;
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reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation; and
•
not being required to hold a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation or to seek shareholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.
We will remain an “emerging growth company” until the earliest to occur of (i) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the closing of the Business Combination, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.235 billion or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of equity securities held by our non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the last business day of our prior second fiscal quarter, and (ii) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period.
We are also considered a “foreign private issuer” subject to reporting requirements under the Exchange Act, as a non-U.S. company with foreign private issuer status. As a “foreign private issuer,” we will be subject to different U.S. securities laws than domestic U.S. issuers. The rules governing the information that we must disclose differ from those governing U.S. corporations pursuant to the Exchange Act. This means that, even after we no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, as long as we qualify as a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, we will be exempt from certain provisions of the Exchange Act that are applicable to U.S. domestic public companies, including:
•
the rules under the Exchange Act prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements to shareholders and requirements that the proxy statements conform to Schedule 14A of the proxy rules promulgated under the Exchange Act;
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the sections of the Exchange Act regulating the solicitation of proxies, consents or authorizations in respect of a security registered under the Exchange Act;
•
the sections of the Exchange Act requiring insiders (i.e., officers, directors and holders of more than 10% of our issued and outstanding equity securities) to file public reports of their stock ownership and trading activities and liability for insiders who profit from trades made in a short period of time;
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the rules under the Exchange Act requiring the filing with the SEC of quarterly reports on Form 10-Q containing unaudited financial and other specified information, or current reports on Form 8-K upon the occurrence of specified significant events; and
•
the SEC rules on disclosure of compensation on an individual basis unless individual disclosure is required in our home country (the Netherlands) and is not otherwise publicly disclosed by us.
Additionally, as a “foreign private issuer,” as defined by the SEC, we are permitted to follow home country corporate governance practices, instead of certain corporate governance standards required by Nasdaq for U.S. companies. Accordingly, we follow Dutch corporate governance rules in lieu of certain of Nasdaq’s corporate governance requirements.
We may take advantage of these exemptions until such time as we are no longer a foreign private issuer.
We would cease to be a foreign private issuer at such time as more than 50% of our outstanding voting securities are held by U.S. residents and any of the following three circumstances applies: (i) the majority of our executive officers or directors are U.S. citizens or residents, (ii) more than 50% of our assets are located in the United States or (iii) our business is administered principally in the United States.
We may choose to take advantage of some but not all of these reduced reporting requirements of which we have taken advantage of in this prospectus. Accordingly, the information contained herein may be different
from the information you receive from our competitors that are U.S. domestic filers or other U.S. domestic public companies in which you have made an investment.
Risk Factors
Investing in our securities entails a high degree of risk as discussed in the “Risk Factors” section beginning on page 10 of this prospectus and in the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus. You should carefully consider such risks before deciding to invest in our securities.
Corporate Information
We were incorporated as a Dutch private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) under the name Qell DutchCo B.V. on March 11, 2021, solely for the purpose of effectuating the business combination pursuant to the business combination agreement, dated March 30, 2021, as amended (the “Business Combination”), by and among Lilium GmbH, Queen Cayman Merger LLC, Qell Acquisition Corp. and Lilium. Prior to the Business Combination, Qell DutchCo B.V. did not conduct any material activities other than those incidental to its formation and certain matters related to the Business Combination, such as the making of certain required securities law filings. Our name was changed from Qell DutchCo B.V. to Lilium B.V. on April 8, 2021. In connection with the closing of the Business Combination on September 10, 2021, we converted into a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) as Lilium N.V. In connection with the Business Combination and a contemporaneous private placement of Class A Shares, we received $464 million in proceeds.
We are registered in the Commercial Register of the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel) under number 82165874. Our official seat (statutaire zetel) is in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and the mailing and business address of our principal executive office is Claude-Dornier Straße 1, Bldg. 335, 82234, Wessling, Germany. Our telephone number is +49 160 9704 6857.
We maintain a website at www.lilium.com, where we regularly post copies of our press releases as well as additional information about us. From time to time, we may also use our website for disclosure of material information about our business and operations. We have included our website as an inactive textual reference only. Our filings with the SEC are available free of charge through the website as soon as reasonably practicable after being electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. Information contained in our website is not a part of, nor incorporated by reference into, this prospectus or our other filings with the SEC and should not be relied upon.
The Lilium name, logos
and other trademarks and service marks of Lilium appearing in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein are the property of Lilium. Solely for convenience, some of the trademarks, service marks, logos and trade names referred to in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein are presented without the ® and ™ symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that we will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, our rights or the rights of the applicable licensors to these trademarks, service marks and trade names. This prospectus, any prospectus supplement and/or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein may contain additional trademarks, service marks and trade names of others which are, to our knowledge, the property of their respective owners. We do not intend our use or display of other companies’ trademarks, service marks, copyrights or trade names to imply a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of us by, any other companies.
THE OFFERING
Lilium N.V.
Issuance of Class A Shares
Class A Shares offered by us
Up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants.
Class A Shares outstanding prior to exercise of Warrants
368,539,630 Class A Shares.(1)
Class A Shares outstanding assuming exercise of all Warrants
414,302,091 Class A Shares (or 438,185,156 Class A Shares, assuming conversion of all issued and outstanding Class B Shares as of November 11, 2022 and giving effect to the consummation of the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE).(2)
Exercise Price of Warrants
The exercise price of each Class A Share underlying a Warrant is $1.30, subject to adjustments described in “Description of Securities — Warrants.”
We will receive up to an aggregate of approximately $44.9 million from the exercise of the Warrants. We intend to use such proceeds, if any, to continue to fund the development and operations of the Company and for general corporate purposes, which may include payment of the Company’s suppliers and working capital uses. See “Use of Proceeds.”
Resale of Class A Shares and Warrants
Class A Shares that may be offered and sold from time to time by the selling securityholders
103,537,402 of our Class A Shares, consisting of up to (i) 69,024,938 Class A Shares issued in the PIPE and (ii) 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants.
Warrants offered by the selling securityholders
Warrants to purchase up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares.
The Warrants are redeemable in certain circumstances. See “Description of Securities — Warrants” for further discussion.
All of the Class A Shares and Warrants offered by the selling securityholders pursuant to this prospectus will be sold by the selling securityholders for their respective accounts. We will not receive any of the proceeds from such sales.
(1)
Unless the context otherwise requires, references throughout this prospectus (including in the summary above) to the number of Class A Shares outstanding upon consummation of the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE is based on 277,014,695 shares outstanding as of November 11, 2022, includes the aggregate 91,524,935 Class A Shares issued in the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE and excludes:
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the 28,689,157 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of outstanding stock options or settlement of outstanding restricted stock units;
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the 11,249,997 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants issued in the Registered Direct Offering;
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the 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants issued in the PIPE;
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the 12,649,936 Class A Shares underlying the Company’s equivalent number of outstanding publicly listed warrants (trading on Nasdaq under the symbol “LILMW”); and
•
the 7,060,000 Class A Shares underlying the Company’s equivalent number of outstanding warrants issued in a private placement.
(2)
The number of Class A Shares outstanding presented here includes the (i) the 277,014,695 Class A Shares outstanding as of November 11, 2022, (ii) the aggregate 91, 524,935 Class A Shares offered in the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE, (iii) the 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants issued in the PIPE and (i) the 11,249,997 Class A Shares issuable upon the exercise of the warrants offered in the Registered Direct Offering. It does not give effect to the exercise of any of the Company’s other outstanding warrants to purchase Class A Shares.
RISK FACTORS
An investment in our securities carries a significant degree of risk. Before you decide to purchase our securities, you should carefully consider all risk factors set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement and the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein. See “Documents Incorporated by Reference.” These risk factors are not exhaustive, and investors are encouraged to perform their own investigation with respect to our business, financial condition and prospects. You should carefully consider these risk factors in addition to the other information included in this prospectus, including matters addressed in the section entitled “Forward-Looking Statements.” We may face additional risks and uncertainties that are not presently known to us, or that we currently deem immaterial, which may also impair our business or financial condition. The risk factors should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and notes to the financial statements incorporated by reference herein. If any of these risks actually occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects could be materially affected. As a result, the trading prices of our securities could decline and you could lose part or all of your investment.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus contains, and any prospectus supplement or documents incorporated by reference herein may contain, forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Forward-looking statements provide our current expectations or forecasts of future events and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Lilium’s proposed business and business model, the markets and industry in which Lilium operates or intends to operate, and the anticipated timing of the commercialization and launch of Lilium’s business.
Forward-looking statements include statements about our expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, intentions, assumptions and other statements that are not historical facts. Words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “future,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “objective,” “ongoing,” “opportunity,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “result,” “should,” “strategy,” “target,” “will” and “would,” or similar words or phrases, or the negatives of those words or phrases, may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not necessarily mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Examples of forward-looking statements in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement or documents incorporated by reference herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our operations, cash flows, financial position and dividend policy.
Lilium operates and will continue to operate in a rapidly changing emerging industry. New risks emerge daily. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not rely on or place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, including any statements regarding when or whether any strategic collaboration between Lilium and the respective collaborator will be effected, the number, price or timing of any Lilium Jets to be acquired (or if any such Lilium Jets will be acquired at all), the price to be paid therefor and the timing of launch or manner in which any proposed eVTOL network or anticipated commercial activities will operate, statements regarding the Lilium’s business and product development strategies or certification program, or the Company’s funding requirements.
Actual events or results may differ materially from those contained in our forward-looking statements. Many factors could cause actual future events and operating results to differ materially from the forward looking statements contained herein, including, but not limited to, the following risks:
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the eVTOL market may not continue to develop, or eVTOL aircraft may not be adopted by the transportation market;
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Lilium’s eVTOL aircraft may not be certified by transportation and aviation authorities, including EASA or the FAA;
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the Lilium Jet may not deliver the expected reduction in operating costs or time savings that Lilium anticipates;
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adverse developments regarding the perceived safety and positive perception of the Lilium Jets, the convenience of Lilium’s expected future Vertiports, and Lilium’s ability to effectively market and sell regional air mobility services and aircraft;
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challenges in developing, certifying, manufacturing and launching Lilium’s services in a new industry (urban and regional air transportation services);
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a delay in or failure to launch commercial services as anticipated;
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the RAM market for eVTOL passenger and goods transport services does not exist, whether and how it develops is based on assumptions, and the RAM market may not achieve the growth potential Lilium’s management expects or may grow more slowly than expected;
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if Lilium is unable to adequately control the costs associated with pre-launch operations and/or its costs when operations are commenced (if ever);
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difficulties in managing growth and commercializing operations;
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failure to commercialize Lilium’s strategic plans;
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any delay in completing testing and certification, and any design changes that may be required to be implemented in order to receive certification;
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any delays in the development, certification, manufacture and commercialization of the Lilium Jets and related technology, such as battery technology or electric motors;
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any failure of the Lilium Jets to perform as expected or an inability to market and sell the Lilium Jets;
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any failure to manage coordination with vendors and suppliers to achieve serial production of complex software, battery technology and other technology systems still in development;
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reliance on third-party suppliers for the provision and development of key emerging technologies, components and materials used in the Lilium Jet, such as the lithium-ion batteries that will power the jets, a significant number of which may be single or limited source suppliers, and the related risk that any of these prospective suppliers or strategic parties may choose to not do business with us at all, or may insist on terms that are commercially disadvantageous, and as a result we may have significant difficulty procuring and producing our jets;
•
if any of Lilium’s suppliers become financially distressed or go bankrupt, Lilium may be required to provide substantial financial support or take other measures to ensure supplies of components or materials, which could increase costs, adversely affect liquidity and/or cause production disruptions;
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third-party air carriers are expected to operate Lilium Network services in the U.S., Europe and Brazil using the Lilium Jets, and these third-parties, as well as Lilium, are subject to substantial regulation and complex laws, and unfavorable changes to, or the third-party air carriers’ or Lilium’s failure to comply with, these regulations and/or laws could substantially harm Lilium’s business and operating results;
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any inability to operate the Lilium network services after commercial launch at the anticipated flight rate, on the anticipated routes or with the anticipated Vertiports could adversely impact Lilium’s business, financial condition and results operations;
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potential customers may not generally accept the RAM industry or Lilium’s passenger or goods transport services;
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any adverse publicity stemming from any incident involving Lilium or its competitors, or an incident involving any air travel service or unmanned flight based on autonomous technology;
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if competitors obtain certification and commercialize their eVTOL vehicles more quickly than Lilium;
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Lilium’s future funding requirements and any inability to raise necessary capital on favorable terms (if at all);
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business disruptions and other risks arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical events, including related inflationary pressures, may impact Lilium’s ability to successfully contract with its supply chain and have adverse impacts on anticipated costs and commercialization timeline;
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Lilium’s inability to deliver Lilium Jets with the specifications and on the timelines anticipated in any non-binding memorandums of understanding or term sheets we have entered into or any binding contractual agreements with customers or suppliers we may enter into in the future; and/or
•
The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should also consider carefully the statements set forth in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in this prospectus as well as those discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in any prospectus supplement or the documents incorporated by reference herein. You should not rely on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. We undertake no obligation to publicly revise any forward-looking statement to reflect circumstances or events after the date such forward-looking statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. You should, however, review the factors and risks we describe in the reports we will file from time to time with the SEC after the date of this prospectus.
Additionally, statements that “Lilium believes” or “we believe” and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based on information available to us as of the date they are made, and while we believe that information provides a reasonable basis for these statements, that information may be limited or incomplete. Our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain, and you are cautioned not to unduly rely on these statements.
Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements were reasonable at the time made, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Moreover, neither Lilium nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. You should carefully consider the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section and similarly titled sections in the documents incorporated by reference herein in connection with the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein and any subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements that may be issued by Lilium or persons acting on our behalf.
USE OF PROCEEDS
All of the Class A Shares and Warrants offered by the selling securityholders pursuant to this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement will be sold by the selling securityholders for their respective accounts. We will not receive any of the proceeds from such sales. We will pay certain expenses associated with the registration of the securities covered by this prospectus, as described in the section titled “Plan of Distribution.”
We will receive up to an aggregate of approximately $44.9 million from the exercise of the Warrants, assuming the exercise in full of all of the Warrants. We expect to use the net proceeds from the exercise of the Warrants to continue to fund the development and operations of the Company and for general corporate purposes, which may include payment of the Company’s suppliers and working capital uses. We will have broad discretion over the use of proceeds from the exercise of the Warrants. There is no assurance that the holders of the Warrants will elect to exercise any or all of such Warrants.
DIVIDEND POLICY
We have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our Class A Shares, and we do not anticipate paying any dividends on our Class A Shares for the foreseeable future. We currently intend to retain any earnings for future operations.
Under Dutch law, we may only pay dividends to the extent our shareholders’ equity (eigen vermogen) exceeds the sum of the paid-up and called-up share capital plus the reserves required to be maintained by Dutch law or by our articles of association and (if it concerns a distribution of profits) after adoption of the annual accounts by our General Meeting from which it appears that such distribution is allowed. Our Board shall make a proposal to the General Meeting which amount of the profit shall be allocated to the Company’s profit reserves and which amount of the profit shall be available for distribution. Our Board is permitted, subject to certain requirements, to declare interim dividends without the approval of the General Meeting.
Subject to such restrictions, any future determination or recommendation to pay (interim) dividends will depend on a number of factors, including our results of operations, earnings, cash flow, financial condition, future prospects, contractual restrictions, capital investment requirements, restrictions imposed by applicable law and other factors considered relevant by the Board.
Our Board may decide that all or part of our remaining profits shall be added to our reserves. After such reservation, any remaining profit will be at the disposal of the General Meeting at the proposal of our Board, subject to the applicable restrictions of Dutch law.
Dividends and other distributions shall be made payable not later than the date determined by the corporate body that declares the (interim) dividend. Claims to dividends and other distributions not made within five years from the date that such dividends or distributions became payable will lapse and any such amounts will be considered to have been forfeited to us (verjaring).
DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES
This section of the prospectus includes a description of the material terms of our articles of association and of applicable Dutch law as well as a description of the Warrants. The following description is intended as a summary only and does not constitute legal advice regarding those matters and should not be regarded as such. The description is qualified in its entirety by reference to the complete text of our articles of association and form of warrant, each of which has been filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. We urge you to read the full text of our articles of association and the form of warrant for a complete description of the rights and preferences of our securityholders.
Overview
We were incorporated as Qell DutchCo B.V. on March 11, 2021 as a private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) under Dutch law and were renamed Lilium B.V. by separate deed of amendment of the articles of association on April 8, 2021. In connection with the consummation of the Business Combination, we converted into a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap), Lilium N.V., pursuant to a deed of conversion and amendment of our articles of association adopted on September 10, 2021 (as so amended, the “articles of association”). We are registered in the Commercial Register of the Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel) in the Netherlands under number 82165874.
Our ordinary shares are subject to, and have been created under, Dutch law. Set forth below is a summary of relevant information concerning the material provisions of the articles of association and applicable Dutch law.
Lilium is a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap). Lilium has a one-tier board structure, which consists of ten members, two executive directors and eight non-executive directors, as discussed in more detail under “Management — Executive Officers and Directors” in our Annual Report on Form 20-F, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2022 and incorporated by reference herein.
Share Capital
Authorized Share Capital
Under Dutch law, the authorized share capital of a public limited liability company is the maximum capital that we may issue without amending the articles of association and may be a maximum of five times the issued capital. The articles of association provide for an authorized share capital in the amount of €194,454,208.32.
Our authorized share capital is divided into:
1,498,386,411 Class A ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.12 per share;
24,413,065 Class B ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.36 per share; and
24,413,065 Class C ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.24 per share.
As of the moment the Company’s issued and outstanding share capital amounts to €175,000,000, the authorized share capital shall automatically increase to €399,999,999.60, which will be divided into:
3,277,268,005 Class A ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.12 per share;
24,413,065 Class B ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.36 per share; and
24,413,065 Class C ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.24 per share.
Issued Share Capital
Our issued and outstanding share capital as of November 11, 2022 consists of:
277,014,695 Class A ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.12 each; and
23,883,065 Class B ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.36 each.
We also held in treasury (i) 425,000 Class B ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.36 each and (ii) 105,000 issued Class C ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.24 each.
Lilium held a General Meeting on October 27, 2022. At this General Meeting, the cancellation of 375,000 Class B ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.36 each held in treasury by the Company was approved, subject to the mandatory two-month objection period. The two-month objection period commenced on October 29, 2022, and will lapse on December 29, 2022. Assuming no creditor objects to the cancellation, the cancellation of 375,000 Class B ordinary shares with a nominal value of €0.36 each will be effected as soon as possible after expiry of the two-month objection period.
Authorization of Issuance of Shares
Under Dutch law, shares are issued and rights to subscribe for shares are granted pursuant to a resolution of the General Meeting. The articles of association provide that Shares may be issued pursuant to (i) a resolution proposed by the Board and adopted by the General Meeting or (ii) a resolution of the Board if, pursuant to a resolution of the General Meeting, the Board has been authorized for a specific period not exceeding five years to issue Shares. Pursuant to the articles of association, the General Meeting may authorize the Board to issue Shares or grant rights to subscribe for Shares. The authorization can be granted and extended, in each case for a period not exceeding five years. For as long as, and to the extent that, such authorization is effective, the General Meeting will not have the power to issue Shares or grant rights to subscribe for Shares. Pursuant to the articles of association, Shares shall be issued up to the amount of the authorized share capital (from time to time).
Currently, the Board is irrevocably authorized to (i) issue Class A Shares and Class B Shares and to grant rights to subscribe for Class A Shares and Class B Shares for a period of five years following September 10, 2021, in an amount up to 25% of the issued share capital calculated as from the date of the completion of the Business Combination, (ii) issue Class A Shares and to grant rights to subscribe for Class A Shares, all to the extent the Company has committed itself in connection with the employee stock option program implemented by Lilium GmbH in 2017, the Lilium 2021 Equity Incentive Plan and the Lilium 2021 Employee Share Purchase Plan for a period of five years as of September 10, 2021, in an amount up to a maximum of 46,725,378 Class A Shares and (iii) issue Class A Shares and to grant rights to subscribe for Class A Shares for a period of two years following October 27, 2022, up to 25% of the issued share capital calculated as of October 27, 2022 (the “Issuance Delegation”).
Conversion of Class B Shares
Class B Shares may only be Transferred (as defined in the articles of association) to (i) Permitted Transferees (as defined in the articles of association) or (ii) Lilium. A Class B Share will be converted into one Class A Share and one Class C Share (in accordance with the articles of association) upon the occurrence of a Conversion Event or a Shares B Compulsory Conversion Event (each as defined in the articles of association). If a Class C Share is held by anyone other than Lilium (whether or not as a consequence of conversion), such holder of Class C Shares (a Transferor) must notify Lilium of this fact by written notice within three days after the occurrence of such event, following the failure of which Lilium is irrevocably empowered and authorized to offer and transfer the relevant Class C Shares. The Transferor, other than Lilium itself, must transfer such Class C Shares to Lilium for no consideration. The end result of the conversion of Class B Shares is that a Lilium shareholder will acquire one Class A Share for each converted Class B Share. If Lilium fails to accept the offered Class C Shares from the Transferor within three months after receipt of notice, the Transferor’s dividend rights attached to its Class C Shares will revive.
In addition, an Initial Qualified Holder (as defined in the articles of association) may convert its Class B Shares into one Class A Share and one Class C Share for each Class B Share. Such Initial Qualified Holder must notify the non-executive directors of the Board of such conversion by written notice. The business day following the date of such written notice shall be considered as the date of the conversion.
Pre-emptive Rights
Under the articles of association, each holder of Class A Shares or Class B Shares (as applicable) shall have a pre-emption right pro rata to the total number of (in aggregate) Class A Shares and Class B Shares
(whereby the Class A Shares and Class B Shares shall, for the purposes hereof, be treated as a single class of shares) held by such person on the date of the resolution to issue the Class A Shares and/or Class B Shares, it being understood that this pre-emption right shall not apply to an issuance of Class A Shares:
•
to employees of Lilium or employees of a Lilium group company; and
•
to a person exercising a previously obtained right to acquire Class A Shares or Class B Shares, in accordance with the provisions of the articles of association.
No pre-emption rights shall apply in respect of an issuance of Class C Shares. The pre-emptive rights in respect of newly issued Class A Shares or Class B Shares may be restricted or excluded by a resolution of the General Meeting, upon proposal by the Board. Pursuant to the articles of association, the General Meeting may authorize the Board to limit or exclude the pre-emptive rights in respect of newly issued Class A Shares or Class B Shares. Such authorization for the Board can be granted and extended, in each case for a period not exceeding five years. A resolution of the General Meeting to restrict or exclude the pre-emptive right or to authorize the Board to limit or exclude the pre-emptive rights requires a majority of at least two-thirds of the votes cast, if less than half of the issued capital is represented at the General Meeting.
Currently, the Board is irrevocably authorized (i) for a period of five years following September 10, 2021, to limit or exclude pre-emptive rights in relation to the issuance of Class A Shares and Class B Shares or rights to subscribe for Class A Shares and Class B Shares and (ii) for a period of two years following October 27, 2022, to limit or exclude pre-emptive rights in relation to the issuance of Class A Shares or rights to subscribe for Class A Shares, in each case, under the respective Issuance Delegation.
Transfer of Shares
Under Dutch law, transfers of Shares (other than in book-entry form) require a written deed of transfer and, unless Lilium is a party to the deed of transfer, an acknowledgement by or proper service upon Lilium to be effective.
Under the articles of association, if one or more Shares are admitted to trading on Nasdaq or any other Regulated Market (as defined in the articles of association), Lilium may, by Board resolution, determine that the laws of the State of New York will apply to the property law aspects of the Shares included in the part of the register of shareholders kept by the relevant transfer agent. Such resolution, as well as the revocation thereof, must be made public as required by law and be made available for inspection at our office and the Dutch trade register. The Board adopted such a resolution effective as of the closing of the Business Combination.
There are no restrictions on the transferability of the Shares in the articles of association or under Dutch law, with the proviso that (i) Class B Shares can only be transferred to (a) Permitted Transferees (as defined in the articles of association) and/or (b) the Company and (ii) if at any time a Class C Shares are held by anyone other than the Company (regardless as a consequence of conversion), such holder of Class C Shares (a “Transferor”) must notify Lilium of this fact by written notice within three days after the occurrence of such event, following the failure of which Lilium is irrevocably empowered and authorized to offer and transfer the relevant Class C Shares. The Transferor, other than Lilium itself, must transfer such Class C Shares to Lilium for no consideration. However, the issuance and offering of Shares to persons located or resident in, or who are citizens of, or who have a registered address in certain countries, and the transfer of Shares into certain jurisdictions, may be subject to specific regulations or restrictions.
Form of Shares
Pursuant to the articles of association, Shares are registered shares.
Purchase and Repurchase of Shares
Under Dutch law, Lilium may not subscribe for newly issued Shares. Lilium may acquire Shares, subject to applicable provisions and restrictions of Dutch law and the articles of association, to the extent that:
•
such Shares are fully paid-up;
•
our equity capital, reduced by the acquisition price of the Shares, is not less than the sum of the issued and paid-up capital and the reserves to be maintained pursuant to Dutch law or the articles of association;
•
following the transaction contemplated, at least one Share remains outstanding and is not held by Lilium; and
•
if Lilium is admitted to trading on a Regulated Market (as defined in the articles of association), the nominal value of the Shares to be acquired, already held by Lilium or already held by Lilium as pledgee or that are held by Lilium subsidiaries, does not exceed 50% of our issued capital.
Other than Shares acquired gratuitously (om niet) or under universal title of succession (onder algemene titel) (e.g., through a merger or demerger) under statutory Dutch or other law, Lilium may acquire Shares pursuant to the restrictions set out above only if the General Meeting has authorized the Board to do so. An authorization by the General Meeting for the acquisition of Shares can be granted for a maximum period of 18 months. Such authorization must specify the number of Shares that may be acquired, the manner in which these shares may be acquired and the price range within which the shares may be acquired. No authorization of the General Meeting is required if Shares are acquired by Lilium on Nasdaq with the intention of transferring such Shares to our employees or employees of a group company pursuant to an arrangement applicable to them. The General Meeting has adopted a resolution, with effect as of September 10, 2021, to authorize the Board to repurchase Class A Shares and Class B Shares for a period of 18 months permitted under Dutch law and the articles of association. For each annual General Meeting, Lilium expects that the Board will place on the agenda a proposal to re-authorize the Board to repurchase Class A Shares and Class B Shares for a period of 18 months from the date of the resolution. Lilium cannot derive any right to any distribution from Shares or voting rights attached to Shares acquired by it.
Capital Reduction
The General Meeting may resolve to reduce our issued share capital by (i) cancelling Shares or (ii) reducing the nominal value of the Shares by amending the articles of association (provided that the nominal value of a Share cannot be less than €0.01). In either case, this reduction would be subject to applicable statutory provisions. A resolution to cancel Shares may only relate to Shares held by Lilium itself or in respect of which Lilium holds the depository receipts. Under Dutch law, a resolution of the General Meeting to reduce the number of Shares must designate the Shares to which the resolution applies and must lay down rules for the implementation of the resolution. A resolution of the General Meeting to reduce the capital requires a majority of at least two-thirds of the votes cast, if less than half of the issued capital is represented at the General Meeting.
A reduction of the nominal value of Shares without repayment and without release from the obligation to pay up the Shares must be effectuated proportionally on shares of the same class (unless all affected shareholders agree to a disproportional reduction).
A resolution that would result in a reduction of capital requires approval by a majority of the votes cast of each group of shareholders of the same class whose rights are prejudiced by the reduction. In addition, a reduction of capital involves a two-month waiting period during which creditors have the right to object to a reduction of capital under specified circumstances.
General Meetings and Voting Rights
General Meetings
General Meetings are held in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht, the Hague or in Haarlemmermeer (Schiphol Airport), the Netherlands. All of our shareholders and others entitled to attend the General Meetings are authorized to address the meeting and, in so far as they have such right, to vote, either in person or by proxy.
We shall hold at least one General Meeting each year, to be held within six months after the end of our financial year, or later, as may be permitted by Dutch law. A General Meeting shall also be held within three months after the Board has determined it to be likely that our equity has decreased to an amount equal
to or lower than half of its paid up and called up capital, in order to discuss the measures to be taken if so required. If the Board fails to hold such General Meeting in a timely manner, each shareholder and other person entitled to attend the General Meeting may be authorized by the Dutch court to convene the General Meeting. We held a General Meeting on October 27, 2022.
The Board may convene additional extraordinary General Meetings at its discretion, subject to the notice requirements described below. Pursuant to Dutch law, one or more shareholders, alone or jointly representing at least 10% of our issued share capital, may request that a General Meeting be convened, the request setting out in detail the matters to be considered. If no General Meeting has been held within eight weeks of the shareholder(s) making such request, that/those shareholder(s) will be authorized to request in summary proceedings a Dutch district court to convene a General Meeting.
The General Meeting is convened by a notice, which includes an agenda stating the items to be discussed and the location and time of the General Meeting. For the annual General Meeting, the agenda will generally include, among other things, the management report (as far as required by law), the adoption of our annual accounts and the granting of discharge from liability to members of the Board for actions in respect of their management during the preceding financial year. In addition, the agenda for a General Meeting includes such additional items as determined by the Board. Pursuant to Dutch law, one or more shareholders and/or others entitled to attend General Meetings, alone or jointly representing at least 3% of the issued share capital, have the right to request the inclusion of additional items on the agenda of General Meetings. Such requests must be made in writing, and may include a proposal for a shareholder resolution, and must be received by us no later than on the 60th day before the day the relevant General Meeting is scheduled to be held. In accordance with the DCGC, a shareholder is expected to exercise the right of putting an item on the agenda only after consulting the Board in that respect. If one or more shareholders intend to request that an item be put on the agenda that may result in a change in the Company’s strategy, the Board may invoke a response time of a maximum of 180 days from the moment the Board is informed of the request. No resolutions may be adopted on items other than those that have been included in the agenda (unless the resolution would be adopted unanimously during a meeting where the entire issued capital of the Company is present or represented).
On May 1, 2021, a new legislative amendment to the Dutch Civil Code entered into force pursuant to which the Board may invoke a statutory cooling-off period up to a maximum of 250 days (wettelijke bedenktijd). For the Company, this means that the new rules will apply in case:
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shareholders requesting the Board to have the General Meeting consider a proposal for the appointment, suspension or dismissal of one or more directors, or a proposal for the amendment of one or more provisions in the articles of association relating thereto; or
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a public offer for shares in the capital of the Company is announced or made without the bidder and the Company having been reached agreement about the offer; and
•
only if the Board also considers the relevant situation to be substantially contrary to the interests of the Company and its affiliated enterprises.
If the Board invokes such cooling-off period, this causes the powers of the General Meeting to appoint, suspend or dismiss directors (and to amend the articles of association in this respect) being suspended.
The Board must use the reflection period to obtain all necessary information for a careful determination of policy it wishes to pursue in the given situation. The Board shall thereby, in any event, consult those shareholders that represent at least 3% of the issued capital at the time the cooling-off period is invoked and the works council (to the extent established). The position of these shareholders and the works council shall, but only with their approval, be published on the Company’s website. The Board shall report on the course of events and the policy that has been pursued since the cooling-off period was invoked. No later than one week after the last day of the cooling-off period, the Company shall have to publicly disclose the report. The report shall also be discussed at the first General Meeting after the expiry of the cooling-off period.
The cooling-off period has a maximum term of 250 days, calculated from:
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the day after the latest date on which shareholders may request an item to be placed on the agenda of the next General Meeting (which is 60 days before the day of the meeting);
•
the day after the day on which the public offer is made; or
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the day the court in preliminary relief proceedings has granted authority to shareholders holding at least 10% of the issued share capital to convoke a General Meeting.
All shareholders who solely or jointly hold 3% of the issued share capital may request the Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Appeal in Amsterdam (Ondernemingskamer van het Gerechtshof te Amsterdam) (the “Enterprise Chamber”) to terminate the cooling-off period. The Enterprise Chamber must rule in favor of the request if the shareholders can demonstrate that:
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the Board, in light of the circumstances at hand when the cooling-off period was invoked, could not reasonably have concluded that the relevant proposal or hostile offer constituted a material conflict with the interests of our Company and its business;
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the Board cannot reasonably believe that a continuation of the cooling-off period would contribute to careful policy-making; and
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other defensive measures, having the same purpose, nature and scope as the cooling-off period, have been activated during the cooling-off period and have not since been terminated or suspended within a reasonable period at the relevant shareholders’ request (i.e., no ‘stacking’ of defensive measures).
We will give notice of each General Meeting by publication on our website and, to the extent required by applicable law, in a Dutch daily newspaper with national distribution and in any other manner that we may be required to follow in order to comply with Dutch law and applicable stock exchange and SEC requirements. We will observe the statutory minimum convening notice period for a General Meeting.
Holders of registered shares may further be provided notice of the meeting in writing at their addresses as stated in our shareholders’ register.
Pursuant to the articles of association and Dutch law, the Board may determine a record date (registratiedatum) of 28 calendar days prior to a General Meeting to establish which shareholders and others with meeting rights are entitled to attend and, if applicable, vote at the General Meeting. The record date, if any, and the manner in which shareholders can register and exercise their rights will be set out in the notice of the General Meeting.
Pursuant to the articles of association, the General Meeting is presided over by the Chairman of the Board or, if he is absent, by one of the other non-executive directors designated for that purpose by the Board.
Voting Rights and Quorum
In accordance with Dutch law and the articles of association, and in each case without prejudice to the Voting Cap (as defined hereinafter) being applicable to any shareholder:
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each Class A Share confers the right to cast 12 votes in a General Meeting;
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each Class B Share confers the right to cast 36 votes in a General Meeting; and
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each Class C Share confers the right to cast 24 votes in a General Meeting.
No votes may be cast at a General Meeting in respect of Shares that are held by the Company or any subsidiary, nor in respect of Shares for which the Company or any subsidiary holds depositary receipts. However, holders of a right of pledge or a right of usufruct on Shares held by the Company or a subsidiary are not excluded from voting, if the right of pledge or the usufruct was created before the Share belonged to the Company or the subsidiary. The Company or the subsidiary may not cast a vote in respect of a Share on which it holds a right of pledge or a right of usufruct.
Voting rights may be exercised by shareholders or by a duly appointed proxy holder (the written proxy being acceptable to the chairman of the General Meeting) of a shareholder, which proxy holder does not need to be a shareholder. Only the holder of a usufruct or pledge on Class A Shares shall have the voting rights attached thereto if so transferred and provided for when the usufruct or pledge was created.
The voting of any shareholder who opts in for the Shareholders’ Covenant (as defined in the articles of association) and is in breach of its commitment not to hold and/or acquire more than 24.9% of the total voting rights exercisable in the General Meeting, is capped at 24.9% of the votes that may be issued in the relevant General Meeting (the “Voting Cap”). The foregoing is subject to the Board determining that the relevant shareholder is in breach of its Shareholders’ Covenant.
Each of our shareholders is obliged to provide the Board with all information relevant to assess the applicability of the Voting Cap to the number of votes in the General Meeting available to such shareholder.
Under the articles of association, blank votes (votes where no choice has been made) and invalid votes shall not be counted as votes cast.
Resolutions of the shareholders are adopted at a General Meeting by a majority of votes cast, except where Dutch law or the articles of association provide for a special majority in relation to specified resolutions. Subject to any provision of mandatory Dutch law, the articles of association do not provide for a quorum requirement other than for the following:
(i)
a resolution to amend the articles of association as result of which one or more of the following articles is amended or abolished requires the prior approval of the Class A Shares, which approval can only be granted by a majority of the votes cast in a meeting in which at least 50% of the issued and outstanding Class A Shares are present or represented:
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article 1 subsections j, n, s, aa, bb, dd, mm or nn;
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article 4 paragraph 2, to the extent it concerns a change of the nominal value of the Shares;
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article 4A;
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article 7 paragraph 1 or paragraph 2;
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article 16 paragraph 10, paragraph 11 or paragraph 12;
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article 22 paragraph 5;
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article 26 paragraph 4; and
(ii)
a resolution to amend the articles of association as a result of which article 14 paragraph 3 or article 28 paragraph 5 is amended or abolished, which requires within the first three years after the Closing Date a majority of at least 85% of the votes cast in a meeting in which at least 85% of the issued and outstanding share capital is present of represented.
Subject to certain restrictions in the articles of association, the determination during the General Meeting made by the chairman of that General Meeting with regard to the results of a vote shall be decisive. The Board will keep a record of the resolutions taken at each General Meeting.
Amendment of Articles of Association
At a General Meeting, at the proposal of the Board, the General Meeting may resolve to amend the articles of association. A resolution to amend the articles of association that negatively impacts the rights of holders of Class B Shares requires the prior approval of the Class B Shares voting as a separate class.
Merger, Demerger and Dissolution
At a General Meeting, at the proposal of the Board, the General Meeting may resolve to dissolve, or to legally merge or demerge the Company within the meaning of Title 7, Book 2 of the Dutch Civil Code. Such resolution requires a majority of at least two-thirds the votes cast, if less than half of the issued capital is represented at the General Meeting.
In the event of dissolution of the Company and unless Dutch law provides otherwise, the liquidation shall be effected by the Board unless the General Meeting appoints one or more other persons for this purpose.
Squeeze Out
A shareholder who for its own account (or together with its group companies) holds at least 95% of our issued share capital may institute proceedings against the other shareholders jointly for the transfer of their shares to the shareholder who holds such 95% majority. The proceedings are held before the Enterprise Chamber and can be instituted by means of a writ of summons served upon each of the minority shareholders in accordance with the provisions of the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure (Wetboek van Burgerlijke Rechtsvordering). The Enterprise Chamber may grant the claim for squeeze-out in relation to all minority shareholders and will determine the price to be paid for the shares, if necessary after appointment of one or three expert(s) who will offer an opinion to the Enterprise Chamber on the value of the shares of the minority shareholders. Once the order to transfer by the Enterprise Chamber becomes final and irrevocable, the majority shareholder that instituted the squeeze-out proceedings shall give written notice of the date and place of payment and the price to the holders of the shares to be acquired whose addresses are known to the majority shareholder.
Unless the addresses of all minority shareholders are known to the majority shareholder acquiring the shares, the majority shareholder is required to publish the same in a newspaper with a national circulation.
Any sale or transfer of all of our assets (see “— Certain Other Major Transactions” below) and our dissolution or liquidation is subject to approval by a majority of the votes cast in our General Meeting (see “— Merger, Demerger and Dissolution” above).
Certain Other Major Transactions
The articles of association and Dutch law provide that resolutions of the Board concerning a material change in our identity, character or business are subject to the approval of the General Meeting. Such changes include:
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a transfer of all or materially all of our business/enterprise to a third party;
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the entry into or termination of a long-lasting cooperation of the Company or of a subsidiary either with another legal person or company, or as a fully liable general partner of a limited partnership or a general partnership, if this cooperation or termination is of essential importance to the Company; and
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the acquisition or disposition of a participating interest in the capital of a company by the Company or by one of our subsidiaries with a value of at least one third of the value of our assets, according to the balance sheet with explanatory notes or, if we prepare a consolidated balance sheet, according to the consolidated balance sheet with explanatory notes in our most recently adopted annual accounts.
Notices
We will give notice of each General Meeting by publication on our website and, to the extent required by applicable law, in a Dutch daily newspaper with national distribution, and in any other manner that we may be required to follow to comply with Dutch law and applicable stock exchange and SEC requirements. Holders of registered shares may further be provided notice of the meeting in writing at their addresses as stated in our shareholders’ register.
Dividends and Other Distributions
We may only make distributions to our shareholders if our shareholders’ equity exceeds the sum of the paid-up and called-up share capital and the reserves that must be maintained under Dutch law or by the articles of association.
Distribution of profits shall be made after the adoption of the financial statements from which it appears that the distribution is allowed. The holders of Class A Shares and Class B Shares shall be entitled
pari passu to the profits of the Company, pro rata to the total number of Class A Shares and Class B Shares held, provided that out of the profit of any financial year, the holders of Class C Shares shall be entitled to a maximum amount per financial year equal to 0.1% of the nominal value of such Class C Shares. The Board is permitted to declare interim dividends without the approval of the General Meeting. Interim dividends may be declared as provided in the articles of association and may be distributed to the extent that our shareholders’ equity, based on interim financial statements, exceeds the sum of the paid-up and called-up share capital and the reserves that must be maintained under Dutch law or the articles of association. We may reclaim any distributions, whether interim or not interim, made in contravention of Dutch law or the articles of association from our shareholders that knew or should have known that such distribution was not permissible. In addition, on the basis of Dutch case law, if after a distribution we are not able to pay our due and collectable debts, then our shareholders or directors who at the time of the distribution knew or reasonably should have foreseen that result may be liable to our creditors.
Shares owned by the Company shall not bear any dividend rights unless rights of usufruct are created in respect of such Shares prior to the acquisition by the Company, in which case the holder of usufruct shall be entitled to any dividends on the underlying Shares.
The corporate body that declares the (interim) dividend may determine that distributions shall be made in whole or in part in a currency other than the Euro. The Board will set the record date to establish which shareholders (or usufructuaries or pledgees, as the case may be) are entitled to the distribution, such date not being earlier than the date on which the distribution was announced. Claims for payment of dividends and other distributions not made within five years from the date that such dividends or distributions became payable will lapse, and any such amounts will be considered to have been forfeited to us (verjaring). Unless the General Meeting resolves, at the proposal of the Board, upon a different term for that purpose, dividends shall be made payable within 30 days after they are declared.
The General Meeting declaring a dividend may, upon proposal of the Board, decide that such dividend will be distributed, wholly or partly, other than in cash.
We do not anticipate paying any dividends on Shares for the foreseeable future. See the section entitled “Dividend Policy.”
Exchange Controls and other Provisions relating to non-Dutch Shareholders
Under Dutch law, subject to the 1977 Sanction Act (Sanctiewet 1977) or otherwise by international sanctions, there are no exchange control restrictions on investments in, or payments on, Shares (except as to cash amounts). There are no special restrictions in the articles of association or Dutch law that limit the right of shareholders who are not citizens or residents of the Netherlands to hold or vote Shares.
Warrants
The following description of the Warrants issued in connection with the PIPE is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Warrants, furnished as Exhibit 4.1 of the Report on Form 6-K furnished by the Company to the SEC on November 22, 2022.
Exercise and Duration
Subject to certain adjustments described herein, the Warrants offered hereby are exercisable into Class A Shares at an initial exercise price equal to $1.30 per Class A Share. The Warrants are immediately exercisable and will expire four years from the date of issuance.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company shall not be required to issue fractions of shares issuable upon any exercise of the Warrants. In lieu of any such fractional share, an exercising holder shall receive, at the Company’s election, (i) an amount in cash equal to the same fraction of the current market value of a whole Class A Share or (ii) a whole Class A Share.
Optional Redemption
If any time after the second anniversary of the date of issuance, but before the expiration date of the Warrants, the last reported sale price per share of the Class A Shares, as reported by Nasdaq, equals or
exceeds $2.60 per share for at least 20 trading days (whether or not consecutive) during a 30 consecutive trading days period, then the Company, on at least 20 trading days’ prior written notice to holders of the Warrants, may redeem the Warrants by paying the holders $0.01 per Class A Share issuable upon the exercise thereof, subject to the provisions described under “— Anti-dilution Adjustments” below and subject to prior exercise by the holder. The Warrants will remain exercisable by the holders (in whole or in part, in its entirety or in such increments, at any time and from time to time, as in each case the holder may in its sole discretion elect) for the duration of the 20 trading days’ prior written notice period.
Fundamental Transactions
If, at any time while the Warrants are outstanding, (i) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions effects any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another Person, (ii) the Company, directly or indirectly, effects any sale, lease, license, assignment, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of all or substantially all of its assets in one or a series of related transactions, (iii) any, direct or indirect, purchase offer, tender offer or exchange offer (whether by the Company or another Person) is completed pursuant to which holders of Class A Shares are permitted to sell, tender or exchange their Class A Shares for other securities, cash or property and has been accepted by the holders of 50% or more of the outstanding Class A Shares, (iv) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions effects any reclassification, reorganization or recapitalization of the Class A Shares or any compulsory share exchange pursuant to which the Class A Shares are effectively converted into or exchanged for other securities, cash or property (other than as a result of a stock split, combination or reclassification of Class A Shares), or (v) the Company, directly or indirectly, in one or more related transactions consummates a stock or share purchase agreement or other business combination (including, without limitation, a reorganization, recapitalization, spin-off, merger or scheme of arrangement) with another Person or group (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 13d-5) of Persons whereby such other Person or group (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 13d-5) acquires more than 50% of the outstanding Class A Shares (not including any Class A Shares held by the other Person or other Persons making or party to, or associated or affiliated with the other Persons making or party to, such stock or share purchase agreement or other business combination) (each a “Fundamental Transaction”), then, upon any subsequent exercise of the Warrant, the holder shall have the right to receive, for each Class A Share that would have been issuable upon such exercise immediately prior to the occurrence of such Fundamental Transaction, at the option of the holder, the number of shares of capital stock of the successor or acquiring corporation or of the Company, if it is the surviving corporation, and any additional consideration (as determined in accordance with the terms of the Warrant) receivable as a result of such Fundamental Transaction by a holder of the number of Class A Shares for which the Warrant is exercisable immediately prior to such Fundamental Transaction.
For purposes of the foregoing paragraph, “Person” means an individual or corporation, partnership, trust, incorporated or unincorporated association, joint venture, limited liability company, joint stock company, government (or an agency or subdivision thereof) or other entity of any kind.
In the event of a Fundamental Transaction in which at least 10% of the consideration received by the holders of Class A Shares does not consist of common stock in the successor entity (which entity may be the Company following such Fundamental Transaction) listed on a trading market, or is to be so listed for trading immediately following such event, the Company or any successor entity shall, at the Warrant holder’s option, exercisable at any time concurrently with, or within 30 days after, the consummation of the Fundamental Transaction (or, if later, the date of the public announcement of the applicable Fundamental Transaction), purchase the Warrant from the holder by paying to the holder an amount of cash equal to the Black Scholes Value (as defined in the Warrants) of the remaining unexercised portion of the Warrants on the date of the consummation of such Fundamental Transaction (subject to certain conditions).
Anti-dilution Adjustments
In the event the Company engages in certain dilutive or concentrative transactions, including share dividends, share splits and consolidations and reclassifications, the exercise price and the number of Class A Shares underlying the then-outstanding Warrants will be proportionately increased or decreased.
In the event the Company engages in certain transactions that result in the Company issuing equity at an effective price per share that is less than the exercise price of the Warrants then in effect, then simultaneously
with the consummation of each such transaction the exercise price of the Warrants will be correspondingly reduced, subject to specified exempt issuances.
Subsequent Rights Offerings
In the event the Company issues equity or rights to purchase equity to holders of Class A Shares on a pro rata basis, each Warrant holder will be entitled to acquire a pro rata number of Class A Shares as if such holder had exercised its Warrant into Class A Shares.
No Right as a Shareholder
Except as otherwise provided in the Warrants or by virtue of such holder’s ownership of Class A Shares, the holders of the Warrants do not have the rights or privileges of holders of our Class A Shares, including any voting rights, until they exercise their Warrants.
Certain Disclosure Obligations
We are subject to certain disclosure obligations under Dutch and U.S. law and the rules of Nasdaq. The following is a description of the general disclosure obligations of public companies under Dutch and U.S. law and the rules of Nasdaq as such laws and rules exist as of the date of this document and should not be viewed as legal advice for specific circumstances.
Financial Reporting Under Dutch Law
The Dutch Financial Reporting Supervision Act (Wet toezicht financiële verslaggeving, the “FRSA”) applies to our financial reporting. Under the FRSA, the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (Autoriteit Financiële Markten, the “AFM”) supervises the application of financial reporting standards by, among others, companies whose corporate seats are in the Netherlands and whose securities are listed on a regulated market within the EU or on an equivalent third (non-EU) country market. As our corporate seat is in the Netherlands and our Class A Shares are listed on Nasdaq, the FRSA will be applicable to the Company.
Pursuant to the FRSA, the AFM has an independent right to (i) request an explanation from the Company regarding the application of the applicable financial reporting standards if, based on publicly known facts or circumstances, it has reason to doubt our financial reporting meets such standards and (ii) recommend to the Company that we make available further explanations and file these with the AFM. If we do not comply with such a request or recommendation, the AFM may request that the Enterprise Chamber order us to (i) make available further explanations as recommended by the AFM, (ii) provide an explanation of the way we have applied the applicable financial reporting standards to our financial reports or (iii) prepare our financial reports in accordance with the Enterprise Chamber’s instructions.
Periodic Reporting Under U.S. Securities Law
We are a “foreign private issuer” under the securities laws of the United States and the rules of Nasdaq. Under the securities laws of the United States, “foreign private issuers” are subject to different disclosure requirements than U.S. registrants. We intend to take all actions necessary to maintain compliance as a foreign private issuer with the applicable corporate governance requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the rules adopted by the SEC and Nasdaq’s listing standards. Under the Nasdaq rules, a “foreign private issuer” is subject to less stringent corporate governance requirements. Subject to certain exceptions, the Nasdaq rules permit a “foreign private issuer” to comply with our home country rules in lieu of the listing requirements of Nasdaq.
Nasdaq Rules
For so long as our shares are listed on Nasdaq, we will be required to meet certain requirements relating to ongoing communication and disclosure to Lilium shareholders, including a requirement to make any annual report filed with the SEC available on or through our website and to comply with the “prompt disclosure” requirement of Nasdaq with respect to earnings and dividend announcements, combination
transactions, stock splits, major management changes and any substantive items of an unusual or non-recurrent nature. Issuers listing shares on Nasdaq must also meet certain corporate governance standards, such as those relating to annual meetings, board independence, the formation and composition of nominating/corporate governance, compensation and audit committees and shareholder approval of certain transactions.
Certain Insider Trading and Market Manipulation Laws
Dutch and U.S. law each contain rules intended to prevent insider trading and market manipulation. The following is a general description of those laws as such laws exist as of the date of this document and should not be viewed as legal advice for specific circumstances.
In connection with our listing on Nasdaq, we have adopted an insider trading policy. This policy provides for, among other things, rules on transactions by members of the Board and our employees in Shares or in financial instruments the value of which is determined by the value of the shares.
The Netherlands
On July 3, 2016, the Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of April 16, 2014 (the “MAR”) replaced all of the Dutch market abuse rules. It has come to the Company’s attention that some of our Class A Shares are traded on certain open markets (Freiverkehr) in Germany (being a member state of the EU). The trading of these Class A Shares on certain open markets (Freiverkehr) in Germany was implemented and is being conducted without our approval. These open markets in Germany are qualified as multilateral trading facilities (“MTFs”) or organized trading facilities (“OTFs”) within the scope of the MAR.
Under the MAR, certain provisions of the MAR apply to the securities of companies whose securities are traded on MTFs or OTFs irrespective of whether such company has approved the trading of its securities on such open market (for example, the provisions under the MAR relating to unlawful disclosure of inside information and market manipulation). Certain provisions of the MAR are only applicable to the securities of companies who have approved and/or have requested admission to trading of its financial instruments on a regulated market, an MTF or OTF (for example, the provisions under the MAR relating to public disclosure of inside information and notification rules for director dealings), which provisions of the MAR do not apply to the Company given that it did not approve the trading of its securities on certain open markets (Freiverkehr) in Germany.
United States
The United States securities laws generally prohibit any person from trading in a security while in possession of material, non-public information or assisting someone who is engaged in doing the same. The insider trading laws cover not only those who trade based on material, non-public information, but also those who disclose material non-public information to others who might trade on the basis of that information (known as “tipping”). A “security” includes not just equity securities, but any security (e.g., derivatives). Thus, members of the Board, officers and other employees of the Company may not purchase or sell shares or other securities of the Company when in possession of material, non-public information about the Company (including our business, prospects or financial condition), nor may they tip any other person by disclosing material, non-public information about the Company.
We have identified those persons working for us who could have access to inside information on a regular or incidental basis and have informed such persons of the prohibitions on insider trading and market manipulation imposed by U.S. laws, including the sanctions that can be imposed in the event of a violation of those rules.
Certain Disclosure and Reporting Obligations of Directors, Officers and Shareholders of Lilium
Our directors, officers and shareholders are subject to certain disclosure and reporting obligations under Dutch and U.S. law. The following is a description of the general disclosure obligations of directors, officers and shareholders under Dutch law as such laws exist as of the date of this document and should not be viewed as legal advice for specific circumstances.
DCGC
As we have our registered seat in the Netherlands and have our Class A Shares listed on a third (non-EU) country market equivalent to a regulated market (e.g., Nasdaq), we are subject to the Dutch Corporate Governance Code, which was published on December 8, 2016, entered into force on January 1, 2017, and finds its statutory basis in Book 2 of the Dutch Civil Code (the “DCGC”). The DCGC contains both principles and best practice provisions for the Board, shareholders and the General Meeting, financial reporting, auditors, disclosure compliance and enforcement standards.
The DCGC is based on a “comply or explain” principle. Accordingly, we are required to disclose in our management report publicly filed in the Netherlands whether or not we are complying with the various provisions of the DCGC. If we do not comply with one or more of those provisions (e.g., because of a conflicting Nasdaq requirement or U.S. market practice), we are required to explain the reasons for such non-compliance.
Dutch Civil Code
The Dutch Civil Code provides for certain disclosure obligations in our annual accounts. Information on directors’ remuneration and rights to acquire Shares must be disclosed in our annual accounts.
Transfer Agent and Warrant Agent
Under the articles of association, the Board may resolve, with due observation of the statutory requirements, that the laws of the State of New York apply to the property law aspects of the Shares for as long as the Shares are in book-entry form, as included in the part of the register of shareholders kept by the relevant transfer agent and/or listed on a Regulated Market (as defined in our articles of association).
We have listed the Shares in book-entry form and such Shares, through the transfer agent, are not certificated. We have appointed Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company as our agent in New York to maintain our shareholders’ and warrant holders’ register on behalf of the Board and to act as transfer agent and registrar for the Shares. Our Class A Shares and the Public Warrants trade on Nasdaq in book-entry form.
Rule 144
Pursuant to Rule 144, a person who has beneficially owned restricted Shares or Public Warrants for at least six months would be entitled to sell their securities provided that (i) such person is not deemed to have been one of our affiliates at the time of, or at any time during the three months preceding, a sale and (ii) we are subject to the Exchange Act periodic reporting requirements for at least three months before the sale and have filed all required reports under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the 12 months (or such shorter period as we were required to file reports) preceding the sale.
Persons who have beneficially owned restricted Shares or Public Warrants for at least six months but who are our affiliates at the time of, or at any time during the three months preceding, a sale would be subject to additional restrictions, by which such person would be entitled to sell within any three-month period only a number of securities that does not exceed the greater of:
•
1% of the total number of ordinary shares then outstanding; or
•
the average weekly reported trading volume of the ordinary shares during the four calendar weeks preceding the filing of a notice on Form 144 with respect to the sale.
Sales by our affiliates under Rule 144 are also limited by manner of sale provisions and notice requirements and to the availability of current public information about us.
Restrictions on the Use of Rule 144 by Shell Companies or Former Shell Companies
Rule 144 is not available for the resale of securities initially issued by shell companies (other than business combination related shell companies) or issuers that have been at any time previously a shell company. However, Rule 144 also includes an important exception to this prohibition if the following conditions are met:
•
the issuer of the securities that was formerly a shell company has ceased to be a shell company;
•
the issuer of the securities is subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act;
•
the issuer of the securities has filed all Exchange Act reports and materials required to be filed, as applicable, during the preceding 12 months (or such shorter period that the issuer was required to file such reports and materials), other than Current Reports; and
•
at least one year has elapsed from the time that the issuer filed current Form 10 type information with the SEC reflecting its status as an entity that is not a shell company. As a result, our initial shareholders became able to sell their Shares and Warrants pursuant to Rule 144 without registration one year after the Closing Date.
Listing of Securities
Our Class A Shares are listed on Nasdaq under the symbols “LILM.” Holders of our securities should obtain current market quotations for their securities. There can be no assurance that our Class A Shares will remain listed on Nasdaq. If we fail to comply with the Nasdaq listing requirements, our Class A Shares could be delisted from Nasdaq. A delisting of our Class A Shares will likely affect the liquidity of our Class A Shares and could inhibit or restrict our ability to raise additional financing.
There is no trading market available for the Warrants on any securities exchange or nationally recognized trading system. We do not intend to list the Warrants on Nasdaq or any securities exchange or nationally recognized trading system. The Warrants constitute a separate series of warrants as compared to the Public Warrants (which are listed on Nasdaq) and the Private Warrants.
SELLING SECURITYHOLDERS
This prospectus and any supplement hereto relates to the possible offer and sale from time to time of up to 103,537,402 Class A Shares (including the Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants) and up to 34,512,464 Warrants by the selling securityholders. The selling securityholders acquired the securities offered hereby in the PIPE. See “Prospectus Summary — Recent Developments — PIPE.”
The selling securityholders may from time to time offer and sell any or all of the Class A Shares or Warrants set forth below pursuant to this prospectus. When we refer to the “selling securityholders” in this prospectus, we mean the persons or entities listed in the tables below, and the pledgees, donees, transferees, assignees, successors and others who later come to hold any of the selling securityholders’ interest in our securities after the date of this prospectus.
The following table is prepared based on information provided to us by the selling securityholders. It sets forth the names and addresses of the selling securityholders, the aggregate number of Class A Shares and Warrants that the selling securityholders may offer pursuant to this prospectus, and the beneficial ownership of the selling securityholders both before and after the offering. We have based percentage ownership prior to this offering on 368,539,630 Class A Shares outstanding (based on 277,014,695 Class A Shares outstanding as of November 11, 2022 and giving effect to the issuance of an aggregate of 91,524,935 Class A Shares upon consummation of the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE) and outstanding Warrants, upon consummation of the PIPE, representing the right to purchase an aggregate of 34,512,464 Class A Shares. In calculating percentages of Class A Shares owned after the offering described herein is consummated by a particular selling securityholder, we treated as outstanding the number of Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of that particular selling securityholder’s Warrants, if any, and did not assume the exercise of any other selling securityholder’s Warrants.
The individuals and entities listed below have beneficial ownership over their respective securities. The SEC has defined “beneficial ownership” of a security to mean the possession, directly or indirectly, of voting power and/or investment power over such security. A securityholder is also deemed to be, as of any date, the beneficial owner of all securities that such securityholder has the right to acquire within 60 days after that date through (i) the exercise of any option, warrant or right, (ii) the conversion of a security, (iii) the power to revoke a trust, discretionary account or similar arrangement, or (iv) the automatic termination of a trust, discretionary account or similar arrangement. In computing the number of shares beneficially owned by a person and the percentage ownership of that person, ordinary shares subject to options or other rights (as set forth above) held by that person that are currently exercisable, or will become exercisable within 60 days of November 22, 2022, are deemed outstanding, while such shares are not deemed outstanding for purposes of computing percentage ownership of any other person.
We cannot advise you as to whether the selling securityholders will in fact sell any or all of such Class A Shares or Warrants. In addition, the selling securityholders may sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of, at any time and from time to time, and without our prior consent, the Class A Shares or Warrants in transactions exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act after the date of this prospectus, subject to applicable law.
Relevant information for each additional selling securityholder, if any, will be set forth in a prospectus supplement to the extent required prior to the time of any offer or sale of such selling securityholder’s securities pursuant to this prospectus. Any prospectus supplement may add, update, substitute, or change the information contained in this prospectus, including the identity of each selling securityholder and the number of Class A Shares or Warrants registered on its behalf. A selling securityholder may sell all, some or none of such securities in this offering. See “Plan of Distribution.”
Unless otherwise indicated herein, the respective holdings of each selling securityholder is stated as of November 22, 2022 and gives effect to the consummation of the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE. The address of each selling securityholder is Claude-Dornier Straße 1, Bldg. 335, 82234, Wessling, Germany unless otherwise indicated.
Name of Selling Securityholder
|
|
|
Class A
Shares
Beneficially
Owned†
|
|
|
Warrants
Beneficially
Owned
|
|
|
Number
of Class A
Shares
Being
Offered
|
|
|
Number
of
Warrants
Being
Offered
|
|
|
Number
of Class A
Shares
Being
Offered
upon
Exercise
of the
Warrants
|
|
|
Class A Shares
Beneficially
Owned
After the Class A
Shares are Sold
and After the
Class A Shares
Issuable upon
Exercise of the
Warrants are Sold
|
|
|
Warrants
Beneficially
Owned
After the
Warrants
are Sold**
|
|
|
Shares
|
|
|
Percent
|
|
|
Number
|
|
|
Percent
|
|
Tencent Mobility (Luxembourg) S.à r.l(1)
|
|
|
|
|
93,504,306 |
|
|
|
|
|
5,769,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
11,538,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
5,769,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
5,769,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
76,196,615 |
|
|
|
|
|
20.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
LGT Global Invest Limited(2)
|
|
|
|
|
31,885,128 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,692,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
15,384,615 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,692,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,692,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
8,808,206 |
|
|
|
|
|
2.3% |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Lightrock Growth Fund I S.A., SICAV-RAIF(3)(4)
|
|
|
|
|
12,751,787 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,923,076 |
|
|
|
|
|
3,846,153 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,923,076 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,923,076 |
|
|
|
|
|
6,982,558 |
|
|
|
|
|
1.9% |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Lumen Investments Ltd.(5)
|
|
|
|
|
28,846,153 |
|
|
|
|
|
9,615,384 |
|
|
|
|
|
19,230,769 |
|
|
|
|
|
9,615,384 |
|
|
|
|
|
9,615,384 |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Aciturri Aerostructures, S.L.U.(6)
|
|
|
|
|
22,162,414 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,387,471 |
|
|
|
|
|
14,774,943 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,387,471 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,387,471 |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Honeywell International Inc.(7)
|
|
|
|
|
2,153,845 |
|
|
|
|
|
384,615 |
|
|
|
|
|
769,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
384,615 |
|
|
|
|
|
384,615 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,000,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Daniel Simon Aegerter(8)
|
|
|
|
|
6,038,460 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,346,153 |
|
|
|
|
|
2,692,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,346,153 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,346,153 |
|
|
|
|
|
2,000,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Benjamin Eisert(9)
|
|
|
|
|
206,423 |
|
|
|
|
|
67,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
134,615 |
|
|
|
|
|
67,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
67,307 |
|
|
|
|
|
4,501 |
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Barry Engle(10)
|
|
|
|
|
4,356,842 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
76,923 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
4,241,458 |
|
|
|
|
|
1.2% |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Klaus Roewe(11)
|
|
|
|
|
87,450 |
|
|
|
|
|
19,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
19,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
19,230 |
|
|
|
|
|
29,759 |
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
David Wallerstein(1)(12)
|
|
|
|
|
1,746,540 |
|
|
|
|
|
230,769 |
|
|
|
|
|
461,538 |
|
|
|
|
|
230,769 |
|
|
|
|
|
230,769 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,054,233 |
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
Niklas Zennström(13)
|
|
|
|
|
140,556 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
76,923 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
38,461 |
|
|
|
|
|
25,172 |
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
|
|
*
Represents beneficial ownership of less than one percent.
**
Reflects beneficial ownership of the Warrants sold in the PIPE and does not reflect other warrants issued by the Company that may be beneficially owned by the selling securityholders.
†
Amounts in this column include the Class A Shares and the Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants purchased in the PIPE.
(1)
Consists of (i) 87,735,076 Class A Shares held of record, including the 11,538,461 Class A Shares acquired by Tencent in the PIPE and (ii) 5,769,230 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants acquired by Tencent in the PIPE. David Wallerstein is an employee of an affiliate of Tencent. He also serves as a member of the Board, a member of the Company’s Compensation Committee and the Chair of the Company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Tencent expressly disclaims beneficial ownership of any of the Class A Shares beneficially owned by Mr. Wallerstein. The business address of Tencent is 29/F, Three Pacific Place, No. 1 Queen’s Road East, Wanchai, Hong Kong.
(2)
Consists of (i) 8,808,206 Class A Shares held of record and (ii) 15,384,615 Class A Shares and 7,692,307 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. The business address of LGT Global Invest Limited is Grand Pavilion Commercial Centre, 1st Floor, 802 West Bay Road, George Town, Grand Cayman KY1-1207, Cayman Islands.
(3)
Consists of (i) 6,982,558 Class A Shares held of record and (ii) 3,846,153 Class A Shares and 1,923,076 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. The business address of Lightrock Growth Fund I S.A., SICAV-RAIF is 8, rue Lou Hemmer, L-1748 Senningerberg, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
(4)
Lightrock Growth Fund I S.A., SICAV-RAIF entered into a PIPE securities purchase agreement with the Company for the account of its sub-fund Lightrock Global Fund by its alternative investment manager LGT Capital Partners (Ireland) Ltd.
(5)
The business address of Lumen Investments Ltd. is Grand Pavilion Commercial Centre, 1st Floor, 802 West Bay Road, George Town, Grand Cayman KY1-1207, Cayman Islands.
(6)
The Company and Aciturri Aerostructures, S.L.U. (“Aciturri”) have an arm’s-length commercial relationship whereby the Company has contracted with Aciturri to provide certain design, development,
manufacture, supply and support for the fuselage, fairings and doors for the Lilium Jet. The business address of Aciturri is C/Ayuelas No. 22, 09200, Miranda de Ebro, Burgos, Spain.
(7)
Consists of (i) 1,000,000 Class A Shares held of record and (ii) 769,230 Class A Shares and 384,615 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. The Company and Honeywell International Inc. (“Honeywell”) have an arm’s-length commercial relationship whereby the Company has agreed to purchase certain avionics and other systems from Honeywell. In connection with the PIPE, the Company and Honeywell agreed that the securities issued to Honeywell would be issued in settlement of existing liabilities of the Company to Honeywell in an amount equal to the aggregate purchase price of such securities of approximately $1.0 million. The business address of Honeywell is 855 S. Mint Street, Charlotte, NC 28202.
(8)
Consists of (i) 2,000,000 Class A Shares and (ii) 2,692,307 Class A Shares and 1,346,153 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. The business address of Daniel Aegerter is Bellerivestrasse 245, 8008 Zurich, Switzerland.
(9)
Consists of (i) 4,501 Class A Shares and (ii) 134,615 Class A Shares and 67,307 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. The business address of Benjamin Eisert is Seerosenstrasse 3, 8008 Zurich, Switzerland.
(10)
Consists of (i) 917,284 Class A Shares, (ii) 3,298,232 Private Warrants, including 3,298,232 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of such Private Warrants, (iii) 25,942 Class A Shares issuable upon settlement of vested restricted stock units granted under the Lilium 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (another 25,636 Class A Shares are issuable upon settlement of restricted stock units that remain unvested and will not vest within 60 days of October 1, 2022) and (iv) 76,923 Class A Shares and 38,461 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. Mr. Engle is a member of the Board and the chair of the Company’s Audit Committee. In addition, Mr. Engle was a director and the CEO of the Company from its formation on March 11, 2021 until his resignation on September 13, 2021 in connection with the Business Combination. During that period, Mr. Engle also had voting or dispositive control over 100% of the equity securities of the Company by virtue of his relationship with Qell Partners LLC, which owned of record 100% of such securities prior to the Business Combination. Mr. Engle was also a director and the CEO of Qell Acquisition Corp., a predecessor of the Company, until September 13, 2021. Mr. Engle’s business address is c/o Qell Partners LLC, 505 Montgomery Street, Suite 1100, San Francisco, CA 94111 USA.
(11)
Consists of (i) 29,759 Class A Shares issuable upon settlement of restricted stock units granted under the Lilium 2021 Equity Incentive Plan vesting within 60 days of November 22, 2022 and (ii) 38,461 Class A Shares and 19,230 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. Klaus Roewe is the Company’s chief executive officer and an executive director.
(12)
Consists of (i) 1,054,233 Class A Shares held of record and (ii) 461,538 Class A Shares and 230,769 Class A Shares underlying Warrants, in each case held by the David Wallerstein and Jun Yu Living Trust for the benefit of Mr. Wallerstein. Mr. Wallerstein serves as a member of the Board, a member of the Company’s Compensation Committee and the Chair of the Company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
(13)
Consists of (i) 1,214 Class A Shares, (ii) 23,958 Class A Shares issuable upon settlement of restricted stock units granted under the Lilium 2021 Equity Incentive Plan vesting within 60 days of November 22, 2022 and (iii) 76,923 Class A Shares and 38,461 Class A Shares underlying Warrants acquired in the PIPE. Niklas Zennström serves as a member of the Board and the Company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Mr. Zennström is also a director of Atomico Advisors IV, Ltd. (“Atomico”) and entities affiliated with Atomico own approximately 10% of the Company’s Class A Shares as of November 22, 2022, after giving effect to the Registered Direct Offering and the PIPE.
Material Relationships with Selling Securityholders
Please see the section entitled “Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions” in our Annual Report on Form 20-F, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2022 and the section “Related Party Transactions” in our Report on Form 6-K, filed with the SEC on November 18, 2022.
TAXATION
Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations for U.S. Holders
The following is a description of the material U.S. federal income tax consequences to the U.S. Holders (as defined below) described below of acquiring, owning and disposing of our Class A Shares and Warrants, which we refer to collectively as our securities. It is not a comprehensive description of all tax considerations that may be relevant to a particular person’s decision to acquire securities. This discussion applies only to a U.S. Holder that acquires our securities in the offering and that holds our securities as a capital asset (generally, property held for investment). References in this section to “Warrants” refer only to the Warrants sold in the PIPE and not to our Public Warrants or Private Warrants. In addition, this discussion does not describe all of the tax consequences that may be relevant in light of a U.S. Holder’s particular circumstances, including state and local tax consequences, estate tax consequences, alternative minimum tax consequences, the potential application of the Medicare contribution tax, and tax consequences applicable to U.S. Holders subject to special rules, such as:
•
banks, insurance companies, and certain other financial institutions;
•
pension plans;
•
U.S. expatriates and certain former citizens or long-term residents of the United States;
•
dealers or traders in securities who use a mark-to-market method of tax accounting;
•
persons holding Class A Shares or Warrants as part of a hedging transaction, “straddle,” “hedge,” “conversion,” “synthetic security,” “constructive ownership transaction,” “constructive sale” or other integrated transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes;
•
persons whose “functional currency” is not the U.S. dollar;
•
brokers, dealers or traders in securities, commodities or currencies;
•
tax-exempt entities (including private foundations) or government organizations;
•
S corporations, partnerships, or other entities or arrangements classified as partnerships or S corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes;
•
regulated investment companies or real estate investment trusts;
•
trusts and estates;
•
persons who acquired our Class A Shares or Warrants pursuant to the exercise of any employee stock option or otherwise as compensation;
•
persons subject to special tax accounting rules as a result of any item of gross income with respect to our Class A Shares or Warrants being taken into account in an applicable financial statement;
•
persons holding our Class A Shares or Warrants in connection with a trade or business, permanent establishment, or fixed base outside the United States; and
•
persons who own (directly or through attribution) 10% or more (by vote or value) of our outstanding Class A Shares.
If an entity that is classified as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes acquires our securities, the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a partner will generally depend on the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. Partnerships acquiring our securities and partners in such partnerships are encouraged to consult their tax advisors as to the particular U.S. federal income tax consequences of acquiring, holding and disposing of our securities.
The discussion is based on the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), administrative pronouncements, judicial decisions and final, temporary and proposed Treasury Regulations, all as of the date hereof, changes to any of which may affect the tax consequences described herein — possibly with retroactive effect.
For purposes of this discussion, a “U.S. Holder” is a beneficial owner of securities that is, for U.S. federal income tax purposes:
(a)
An individual who is a citizen or individual resident of the United States;
(b)
a corporation, or other entity taxable as a corporation, created or organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia;
(c)
an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income tax without regard to its source; or
(d)
a trust if (1) a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more U.S. persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust or (2) the trust has a valid election to be treated as a U.S. person under applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations.
PERSONS CONSIDERING AN INVESTMENT IN OUR SECURITIES SHOULD CONSULT THEIR OWN TAX ADVISORS AS TO THE PARTICULAR TAX CONSEQUENCES APPLICABLE TO THEM RELATING TO THE ACQUISITION, OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF OUR SECURITIES, INCLUDING THE APPLICABILITY OF U.S. FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL TAX LAWS.
Distributions
Subject to the discussion below under “Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules,” the gross amount of distributions paid on our Class A Shares, other than certain pro rata distributions of Class A Shares or rights to acquire Class A Shares, will generally be treated as dividends to the extent paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits (as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles as of the end of the taxable year in which each distribution is made). Distributions in excess of our current and accumulated earnings and profits will constitute a return of capital that will be applied against and reduce (but not below zero) the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its Class A Shares. Any remaining excess will be treated as gain realized on the sale of Class A Shares and will be treated as described below under “— Sale or Other Taxable Dispositions.” The amount of any such distribution will include any amounts of foreign taxes withheld by us (or another applicable withholding agent). The gross amount of the dividend will be treated as foreign-source dividend income to U.S. Holders and will not be eligible for the dividends-received deduction generally available to U.S. corporations. Subject to applicable limitations, dividends received by certain non-corporate U.S. Holders that satisfy a minimum holding period and certain other requirements may be taxable at preferential rates applicable to “qualified dividend income” if we qualify for the benefits of the income tax treaty between the United States and Germany (the “U.S.-Germany Treaty”) and we are not a PFIC (as defined below) with respect to the U.S. Holder in the taxable year of distribution or the preceding taxable year.
Dividends will generally be included in a U.S. Holder’s income on the date of the U.S. Holder’s receipt of the dividend. Dividends paid in a currency other than U.S. dollars will be included in income by a U.S. Holder in a U.S. dollar amount calculated by reference to the exchange rate in effect on the date of receipt, whether or not the currency received is in fact converted into U.S. dollars at that time. If the dividend is converted into U.S. dollars on the date of receipt, a U.S. Holder should not be required to recognize foreign currency gain or loss in respect of the dividend income. A U.S. Holder’s tax basis in non-U.S. currency that is not converted into U.S. dollars on the date of receipt will equal the U.S. dollar amount included in income. A U.S. Holder would generally have foreign currency gain or loss if the non-U.S. currency received is converted into U.S. dollars after the date of receipt for a different U.S. dollar amount. Such gain or loss would generally be treated as U.S.-source ordinary income or loss. The amount of any distribution of property other than cash (and other than certain pro rata distributions of Class A Shares or rights to acquire Class A Shares) will be the fair market value of such property on the date of distribution.
Subject to generally applicable limitations and provided that German tax withheld from dividends constitutes a “covered withholding tax” within the meaning of final regulations recently adopted by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and the U.S. Treasury Department (the “Regulations”), a U.S. Holder may claim credit for German tax withheld at the appropriate rate against the U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability. However, a U.S. Holder will not be allowed a foreign tax credit for withholding tax it
could have reasonably avoided by claiming benefits under the U.S.-Germany Treaty through appropriate procedures. Each U.S. Holder should consult its own tax advisor about its eligibility for a reduced rate of German withholding tax. For foreign tax credit limitation purposes, dividends received with respect to the Class A Shares will generally constitute “passive category income.” In computing foreign tax credit limitations, non-corporate U.S. Holders eligible for the preferential tax rate applicable to qualified dividend income may take into account only the portion of the dividend effectively taxed at the highest applicable marginal rate. In lieu of claiming a foreign tax credit, a U.S. Holder may deduct foreign taxes in computing their taxable income, subject to generally applicable limitations under U.S. law. An election to deduct foreign taxes instead of claiming foreign tax credits applies to all foreign taxes paid or accrued in the taxable year. The rules governing eligibility for foreign tax credits or deductions are complex and the Regulations have imposed additional requirements that must be met for a foreign tax to be creditable (including requirements that a “covered withholding tax” be imposed on non-residents in lieu of a generally applicable tax that satisfies the definition of an “income tax,” as provided in the Regulations, which may be unclear or difficult to determine). Accordingly, U.S. Holders are urged to consult their tax advisor regarding the availability of foreign tax credits or deductions for foreign taxes withheld with respect to dividends or other distributions on Class A Shares in their particular circumstances.
Sale or Other Taxable Dispositions
Subject to the discussion below under “— Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules,” gain or loss realized on the sale or other taxable disposition of Class A Shares or Warrants will be capital gain or loss and will be long-term capital gain or loss if the U.S. Holder held the Class A Shares or Warrants sold or disposed for more than one year at the time of sale or other taxable disposition. The amount of gain or loss realized will be equal to the difference, if any, between the amount realized on the sale or other taxable disposition of the Class A Shares or Warrants and the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the Class A Shares or Warrants sold or disposed, in each case as determined in U.S. dollars. Long-term capital gains recognized by certain non-corporate U.S. Holders (including individuals) will generally be subject to tax at preferential reduced rates. The deductibility of capital losses is subject to limitations.
A U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its Class A Shares or Warrants generally will be equal to the U.S. Holder’s acquisition cost for the Class A Shares or Warrants which will be the U.S. dollar value of any non-U.S. dollar purchase price paid for the Class A Shares or Warrants determined on the date of purchase, less, in the case of Class A Shares, the U.S. dollar value of any prior distributions treated as a return of capital. A U.S. Holder that receives a currency other than U.S. dollars on the sale or other taxable disposition of Class A Shares or Warrants will realize an amount equal to the U.S. dollar value of the currency received at the spot rate on the date of sale or other taxable disposition. However, if the securities disposed of are treated as traded on an “established securities market” at the time of sale or other taxable disposition, a cash basis U.S. Holder or an accrual basis U.S. Holder that has made a special election (which must be applied consistently from year to year and cannot be changed without the consent of the IRS, will determine the U.S. dollar value of the amount realized by translating the amount of non-U.S. currency received at the spot rate on the settlement date. An accrual basis taxpayer that is not eligible to or does not elect to determine the amount realized using the spot rate on the settlement date, will recognize foreign currency gain or loss to the extent of any difference between the U.S. dollar amount realized on the date of sale or disposition and the U.S. dollar value of the currency received at the spot rate on the settlement date. A U.S. Holder will have a tax basis in the currency received equal to its U.S. dollar value at the spot rate on the settlement date. Any currency gain or loss realized on the settlement date or on a subsequent conversion of the non-U.S. currency for a different U.S. dollar amount generally will be U.S. source ordinary income or loss.
Exercise or Lapse of a Warrant
A U.S. Holder generally will not recognize taxable gain or loss upon the exercise of a Warrant for cash. The U.S. Holder’s initial tax basis in our Class A Shares received upon exercise of the Warrant will generally be an amount equal to the sum of the U.S. Holder’s acquisition cost of the Warrant and the exercise price of such Warrant. It is unclear whether a U.S. Holder’s holding period for the Class A Shares received upon exercise of the Warrant would commence on the date of exercise of the Warrant or the day following the date of exercise of the Warrant; however, in either case the holding period will not include the period during
which the U.S. Holder held the Warrants. If a Warrant is allowed to lapse unexercised, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize a capital loss equal to such holder’s tax basis in the Warrant.
Cash received in lieu of a fractional share of Class A Shares should be treated as a payment in exchange for such fractional share of Class A Shares resulting in gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the amount of cash received and such U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the fractional share of Class A Shares.
Possible Constructive Distributions
The terms of each Warrant provide for an adjustment to the number of Class A Shares for which the Warrant may be exercised or to the exercise price of the Warrant in certain events. An adjustment which has the effect of preventing dilution generally is not taxable. A U.S. Holder would, however, be treated as receiving a constructive distribution from us if, for example, the adjustment increases such U.S. Holder’s proportionate interest in our assets or earnings and profits (e.g., through an increase in the number of common shares that would be obtained upon exercise) as a result of a distribution of cash to the holders of Class A Shares which is taxable to the U.S. Holders of such shares as described under “— Distributions” above. Such constructive distribution would be subject to tax as described under that section in the same manner as if a U.S. Holder received a cash distribution from us equal to the fair market value of such increased interest.
Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules
If we are classified as a passive foreign investment company (a “PFIC”) in any taxable year, a U.S. Holder will be subject to special rules generally intended to reduce or eliminate any benefits from the deferral of U.S. federal income tax that a U.S. Holder could derive from investing in a non-U.S. company that does not distribute all of its earnings on a current basis.
A non-U.S. corporation is classified as a PFIC for any taxable year in which, after applying certain look-through rules and taking into account a pro rata portion of the income and assets of 25% or more owned subsidiaries, either:
•
at least 75% of its gross income is passive income (the “Income Test”); or
•
at least 50% of the average quarterly value of its gross assets is attributable to assets that produce, or are held to produce, passive income or that do not produce income (the “Asset Test”).
It is uncertain whether we or any of our subsidiaries will be treated as a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes for the current or any subsequent tax year. Whether the Company is a PFIC is a factual determination made annually based on principles and methodologies that in some circumstances are unclear and subject to varying interpretation. Under the Income Test, our status as a PFIC depends on the composition of our income, which will depend on the transactions we enter into in the future and our corporate structure. The composition of our income and assets is also affected by the spending of the cash we raise in any offering. Under the Asset Test, the Company’s status as a PFIC will generally depend on the amount of the Company’s goodwill that is characterized as an active asset. The rules for characterizing a corporation’s goodwill as active or passive assets are uncertain. However, one reasonable approach for determining the character of goodwill for purposes of the Asset Test requires identifying goodwill with specific income producing activities and characterizing goodwill as active or passive based on the income derived from each activity. Because PFIC status is based on our income, assets, and activities for the entire taxable year, it is not possible to determine whether we will be classified as a PFIC for the current taxable year or any subsequent year until after the close of the relevant taxable year.
If we are classified as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owns securities, such U.S. Holder would, in that and all subsequent taxable years, be subject to additional taxes on any (i) distributions exceeding 125% of the average amount received during the three preceding taxable years (or, if shorter, the U.S. Holder’s holding period) (such distributions, “excess distributions”) and (ii) gain recognized from the sale or other taxable disposition (including, under certain circumstances, a pledge) of such U.S. Holder’s securities (regardless of whether the Company continued to be a PFIC under either of the tests above) unless (a) such U.S. Holder makes a QEF Election (as defined below) or (b) our securities constitute
“marketable” securities and such U.S. Holder makes a mark-to-market election as discussed below. To compute the tax on excess distributions or any gain, (i) the excess distribution or gain is allocated ratably over the U.S. Holder’s holding period in the securities, (ii) the amount allocated to the current taxable year and any year before we became a PFIC is taxed as ordinary income in the current year and (iii) the amount allocated to each other taxable year is taxed at the highest tax rate in effect for such year for individuals or corporations, as appropriate, and an interest charge is imposed to recover the deemed benefit from the deferred payment of the resulting tax attributable to each such year. The tax liability for amounts allocated to years prior to the year of the excess distribution or disposition cannot be offset by any net operating losses for such years, and gains (but not losses) realized on the sale of the securities cannot be treated as capital, even if a U.S. Holder holds the securities as capital assets. In addition, dividends on the Class A Shares would not be eligible for the preferential tax rate applicable to qualified dividend income received by individuals and certain other non-corporate persons.
If we are classified as a PFIC, a U.S. Holder will generally be subject to similar rules with respect to distributions we receive from, and our dispositions of the stock of, any of our direct or indirect subsidiaries that also are PFICs (such PFIC subsidiaries, “lower-tier PFICs”), as if such distributions were indirectly received by, and/or dispositions were indirectly carried out by, such U.S. Holder. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the application of the PFIC rules to our subsidiaries.
If we are classified as a PFIC in any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owns securities, we will continue to be treated as a PFIC with respect to such U.S. Holder in all succeeding years during which the U.S. Holder owns our securities, regardless of whether we continue to meet either of the tests described above for any succeeding year, unless (i) we cease to be a PFIC and the U.S. Holder has made a “deemed sale” election with respect to our securities or (ii) the U.S. Holder makes a valid QEF Election with respect to all taxable years in such U.S. Holder’s holding period during which we are a PFIC. If the “deemed sale” election is made, a U.S. Holder will be deemed to have sold its securities at their fair market value and any gain from such deemed sale would be subject to the rules described above. After the deemed sale election, so long as we do not become a PFIC in a subsequent taxable year, the U.S. Holder’s securities with respect to which such election was made will not be treated as shares in a PFIC, and the U.S. Holder will not be subject to the rules described above with respect to any “excess distribution” the U.S. Holder receives from us or any gain from an actual sale or other taxable disposition of the securities. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors as to the possibility and consequences of making a deemed sale election if we have been classified as a PFIC in any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owns securities and subsequently cease to be a PFIC.
Certain elections exist that may alleviate some of the adverse consequences of PFIC status and would result in alternative U.S. federal income tax consequences for U.S. Holders owning and disposing of our Class A Shares. A U.S. Holder may avoid the general tax treatment for PFICs described above by electing to treat us as a “qualified electing fund” under Section 1295 of the Code (a “QEF,” and such election, a “QEF Election”) for each of the taxable years during the U.S. Holder’s holding period that we are a PFIC. If a QEF Election is not in effect for the first taxable year in the U.S. Holder’s holding period in which we are a PFIC, a QEF Election generally can only be made if the U.S. Holder elects to make an applicable deemed sale or deemed dividend election on the first day of its taxable year in which we became a QEF pursuant to the QEF Election. The deemed gain or deemed dividend recognized with respect to such an election would be subject to the general tax treatment of excess distributions and disposal gains discussed above. In order to comply with the requirements of a QEF Election, a U.S. Holder must receive a PFIC Annual Information Statement from us. If we determine that we are a PFIC for any taxable year, upon written request, we will endeavor to provide to a U.S. Holder such information with respect to the Company as the IRS may require, including a PFIC Annual Information Statement, in order to enable the U.S. Holder to make and maintain a QEF election, but there is no assurance that we will timely provide such required information. Further, there is no assurance that we will have timely knowledge of our status as a PFIC in the future or of all of the information required to be provided. A QEF Election may not be available for the Warrants regardless of whether we provide such information.
If a U.S. Holder makes a QEF Election with respect to its Class A Shares, it will be taxed currently on its pro rata share of our ordinary earnings and net capital gain (at ordinary income and capital gain rates, respectively) for each taxable year that we are a PFIC, even if no distributions are received. Any distributions
we make out of our earnings and profits that were previously included in such a U.S. Holder’s income as a result of making the QEF Election would not be taxable to such U.S. Holder. Such U.S. Holder’s tax basis in its Class A Shares would be increased by an amount equal to any income included under the QEF Election and decreased by any amount distributed on the Class A Shares that is not included in its income. In addition, a U.S. Holder will recognize capital gain or loss on the disposition of its Class A Shares in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized and its adjusted tax basis in the Class A Shares, each as determined in U.S. dollars. Once made, a QEF Election remains in effect unless invalidated or terminated by the IRS or revoked by the shareholder. A QEF Election can be revoked only with the consent of the IRS. A U.S. Holder that has made a QEF Election will not be currently taxed on our ordinary income and net capital gain for any taxable year for which we are not classified as a PFIC. A separate QEF Election is required for any equity interests in any lower-tier PFICs that we own. There can be no assurance that we will have timely knowledge of the PFIC status of any equity interests in any non-U.S. corporation that we may own or that we will be able to provide all of the information required to make a valid QEF Election for any lower-tier PFIC that we may own. Each U.S. Holder should consult its tax advisor regarding the availability of, and procedure for making, any deemed gain, deemed dividend or QEF Election.
Alternatively, U.S. Holders can avoid the interest charge on excess distributions or gain relating to such U.S. Holder’s Class A Shares and certain other of the adverse impacts of the PFIC rules described above by making a mark-to-market election with respect to such Class A Shares, provided that the Class A Shares constitute “marketable stock.” “Marketable stock” is, generally, stock that is “regularly traded” on certain U.S. stock exchanges or on a foreign stock exchange that meets certain conditions. For these purposes, stock is considered regularly traded during any calendar year during which shares are traded, other than in de minimis quantities, on at least 15 days during each calendar quarter. Any trades that have as their principal purpose meeting this requirement will be disregarded. Our Class A Shares are listed on Nasdaq, which is a qualified exchange for these purposes. Consequently, if our Class A Shares remain listed on Nasdaq and are regularly traded, and you are a U.S. Holder of Class A Shares, we expect the mark-to-market election would be available to you if we are a classified as a PFIC. No assurance can be given that the Class A Shares will be traded in sufficient frequency and quantity to be considered “marketable stock.” Each U.S. Holder should consult its tax advisor as to the whether a mark-to-market election is available or advisable with respect to the securities.
A U.S. Holder that makes a mark-to-market election with respect to its Class A Shares must include in ordinary income for each year an amount equal to the excess, if any, of the fair market value of the Class A Shares at the close of the taxable year over the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis such Class A Shares. An electing holder may also claim an ordinary loss deduction for the excess, if any, of the U.S. Holder’s adjusted basis in its Class A Shares over their fair market value at the close of the taxable year, but this deduction is allowable only to the extent of any unreversed mark-to-market gains included in income in prior taxable years. Gains from an actual sale or other disposition of the Class A Shares will be treated as ordinary income, and any losses incurred on a sale or other disposition of the Class A Shares will be treated as an ordinary loss to the extent of any unreversed mark-to-market gains previously included in income. Once made, a mark-to-market election cannot be revoked without the consent of the IRS, unless our Class A Shares cease to be marketable.
However, a mark-to-market election generally cannot be made for equity interests in any lower-tier PFICs that we own, unless shares of such lower-tier PFIC are themselves “marketable.” As a result, even if a U.S. Holder validly makes a mark-to-market election with respect to our Class A Shares, the U.S. Holder may continue to be subject to the PFIC rules (described above) with respect to its indirect interest in any of our investments that are treated as an equity interest in a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors to determine whether any of these elections would be available and if so, what the consequences of the alternative treatments would be in their particular circumstances.
Unless otherwise provided by the IRS, each U.S. shareholder of a PFIC is required to file an annual report containing such information as the IRS may require. A U.S. Holder’s failure to file the annual report will cause the statute of limitations for such U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax return to remain open with regard to the items required to be included in such report until three years after the U.S. Holder files the annual report, and, unless such failure is due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect, the statute of limitations for the U.S. Holder’s entire U.S. federal income tax return will remain open during such period.
Furthermore, recently proposed Treasury Regulations related to PFICs (which will not be effective until finalized) may affect the taxation and reporting obligations of partners of certain U.S. partnerships that invest in PFICs. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the requirements of filing such information returns under these rules.
WE STRONGLY URGE YOU TO CONSULT YOUR TAX ADVISOR REGARDING THE IMPACT OF OUR PFIC STATUS ON YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE SECURITIES AS WELL AS THE APPLICATION OF THE PFIC RULES TO YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE SECURITIES.
Information Reporting and Backup Withholding
Payments of dividends (including constructive dividends) on Class A Shares and sales proceeds from the sale or other disposition of securities, that are made by a U.S. paying agent or other U.S. intermediary or to an account in the United States, will be reported to the IRS and to the U.S. Holder unless the holder is a corporation or otherwise establishes a basis for exemption. Backup withholding may apply to payments subject to information reporting if the U.S. Holder fails to provide an accurate taxpayer identification number or certification of exempt status. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules from a payment to a U.S. Holder will be refunded (or credited against such U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, if any), provided the required information is furnished to the IRS. Prospective investors should consult their own tax advisors as to their qualification for exemption from backup withholding and the procedure for establishing an exemption.
Certain U.S. Holders may be required to report information relating to their ownership of securities to the IRS, subject to certain exceptions (including an exception for securities held in accounts maintained by certain U.S. financial institutions), by filing IRS Form 8938 (Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets) with their federal income tax return. U.S. Holders who fail to timely furnish the required information may be subject to a penalty. Additionally, if a U.S. Holder does not file the required information, the statute of limitations with respect to tax returns of the U.S. Holder to which the information relates may not close until three years after such information is filed. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding their information reporting obligations with respect to their ownership and disposition of securities.
THE DISCUSSION ABOVE IS A GENERAL SUMMARY OF U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES. IT DOES NOT COVER ALL TAX MATTERS THAT MAY BE OF IMPORTANCE TO A PARTICULAR INVESTOR. ALL PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS SHOULD CONSULT THEIR TAX ADVISORS AS TO THE PARTICULAR TAX CONSEQUENCES TO THEM OF OWNING THE SECURITIES, INCLUDING THE APPLICABILITY AND EFFECT OF STATE, LOCAL, NON-U.S. AND OTHER TAX LAWS AND POSSIBLE CHANGES IN TAX LAW.
Material Dutch Tax Considerations
The following summary outlines certain material Dutch tax consequences in connection with the acquisition, ownership and disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, ownership, disposal and exercise of Warrants. All references in this summary to the Netherlands and Dutch law are to the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and its law, respectively, only. The summary does not purport to present any comprehensive or complete picture of all Dutch tax aspects that could be of relevance to the acquisition, ownership and disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, ownership, disposal and exercise of Warrants by a (prospective) holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who may be subject to special tax treatment under applicable law. The summary is based on the tax laws and practice of the Netherlands as in effect on the date of this prospectus, which are subject to changes that could prospectively or retrospectively affect the Dutch tax consequences.
For purposes of Dutch income and corporate income tax, shares, warrants or certain other assets, which may include depositary receipts in respect of shares, legally owned by a third party such as a trustee, foundation or similar entity or arrangement (a “Third Party”), may under certain circumstances have to be allocated to the (deemed) settlor, grantor or similar originator (the “Settlor”) or, upon the death of the Settlor, such Settlor’s beneficiaries (the “Beneficiaries”) in proportion to their entitlement to the estate of the Settlor of such trust or similar arrangement (the “Separated Private Assets”).
This summary does not address the Dutch tax consequences for a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is considered to be affiliated (gelieerd) to the Company within the meaning of the Dutch Withholding Tax Act 2021 (Wet bronbelasting 2021). Generally, a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants is considered to be affiliated to the Company for these purposes if (i) it has a qualifying interest in the Company, (ii) the Company has a qualifying interest in such party or (iii) a third party has a qualifying interest in both the Company and such party. A party is equated with any collaborating group of parties of which it forms part. A qualifying interest is an interest that allows the holder to have a decisive influence over the other party’s decisions in such a way that it is able to determine the activities of the other party. A party is in any case considered to have a qualifying interest in another party if it (directly or indirectly) owns more than 50% of the voting rights in such other party.
This summary does not address the Dutch tax consequences of a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is an individual and who has a substantial interest (aanmerkelijk belang) in the Company. Generally, a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants will have a substantial interest in the Company if such holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants, whether alone or together with such holder’s spouse or partner and/or certain other close relatives, holds directly or indirectly, or as Settlor or Beneficiary of Separated Private Assets (i) (x) the ownership of, (y) certain other rights, such as usufruct, over or (z) rights to acquire (whether or not already issued, including by way of the Warrants) shares (including Class A Shares) representing 5% or more of the total issued and outstanding capital (or the issued and outstanding capital of any class of shares) of the Company or (ii) (x) the ownership of or (y) certain other rights, such as usufruct, over profit participating certificates (winstbewijzen) that relate to 5% or more of the annual profit of the Company or to 5% or more of the liquidation proceeds of the Company.
Additionally, a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants has a substantial interest in the Company if such holder, whether alone or together with such holder’s spouse or partner and/or certain other close relatives, has the ownership of, or other rights over, shares, or depositary receipts in respect of shares, in, or profit certificates issued by, the Company that represent less than 5% of the relevant aggregate that either (a) qualified as part of a substantial interest as set forth above and where shares, or depositary receipts in respect of shares, profit certificates and/or rights there over have been, or are deemed to have been, partially disposed of or (b) have been acquired as part of a transaction that qualified for non-recognition of gain treatment.
Furthermore, this summary does not address the Dutch tax consequences of a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who:
(a)
is an individual and receives income or realizes capital gains in respect of Class A Shares and/or Warrants in connection with such holder’s employment activities or in such holder’s capacity as a (former) board member or (former) supervisory board member; or
(b)
is a resident of any non-European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
PROSPECTIVE HOLDERS OF CLASS A SHARES AND/OR WARRANTS SHOULD CONSULT THEIR OWN PROFESSIONAL ADVISER WITH RESPECT TO THE DUTCH TAX CONSEQUENCES OF ANY ACQUISITION, OWNERSHIP OR DISPOSAL OF CLASS A SHARES AND/OR THE ACQUISITION, REDEMPTION, DISPOSAL OR EXERCISE OF WARRANTS IN THEIR INDIVIDUAL CIRCUMSTANCES.
Dividend Withholding Tax
General
Pursuant to Dutch domestic law, and subject to tax treaty relief, the Company is generally required to withhold dividend withholding tax imposed by the Netherlands at a rate of 15% on dividends distributed by the Company in respect of Class A Shares and/or Warrants. For so long as the German and Dutch competent authorities consider the Company to be solely resident in Germany for purposes of the DE — NL tax treaty (See “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Shares and Warrants — MLI has effects on tax residency” in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2021, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2022), however, dividends distributed by the
Company to a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants will not be subject to Dutch dividend withholding tax, unless such holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands or such holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants has an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable.
The expression “dividends distributed by the Company” as used herein includes, but is not limited to:
(a)
distributions in cash or in kind, deemed and constructive distributions and repayments of paid-in capital (gestort kapitaal) not recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes;
(b)
liquidation proceeds, proceeds of redemption of Class A Shares or, as a rule, consideration for the repurchase of Class A Shares by the Company in excess of the average paid-in capital recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes;
(c)
the par value of Class A Shares issued to a holder of Class A Shares or an increase of the par value of Class A Shares, to the extent that it does not appear that a contribution, recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes, has been made or will be made;
(d)
partial repayment of paid-in capital, recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes, if and to the extent that there are net profits (zuivere winst), unless (i) the shareholders at the General Meeting have resolved in advance to make such repayment and (ii) the par value of the Class A Shares concerned has been reduced by an equal amount by way of an amendment of our articles of association;
(e)
potentially, payments upon the exercise of Warrants if the exercise price paid in cash plus the purchase price initially paid for the relevant Warrants is lower than the par value of Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of such Warrants, unless and to the extent the par value of Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of such Warrants is charged against the Company’s share premium reserve recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes; and
(f)
potentially, proceeds of the redemption or repurchase of Warrants.
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident in the Netherlands or with a Permanent Establishment (vaste inrichting) or a Permanent Representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands
Dividends distributed by the Company to a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands or that has an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable, will in principle be subject to Dutch dividend withholding tax at a rate of 15%.
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is an individual that is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for Dutch tax purposes is generally entitled, subject to the anti-dividend stripping rules described below, to a full credit against its income tax liability, or a full refund, of the Dutch dividend withholding tax.
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is a legal entity that is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for Dutch tax purposes is generally entitled, subject to the anti-dividend stripping rules described below, to a full credit against its corporate income tax liability of the Dutch dividend withholding tax. If and to the extent such legal entity cannot credit the full amount of Dutch dividend withholding tax in a given year, the Dutch dividend withholding tax may be carried forward and credited against its corporate income tax liability in subsequent years (without any time limitation).
The two previous paragraphs generally apply to holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that are neither resident nor deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for Dutch tax purposes if the Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable to a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands of such non-resident holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants.
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is a legal entity that is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for Dutch tax purposes that is exempt from Dutch corporate income tax is generally entitled, subject to the anti-dividend stripping rules described below, to a full refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax on dividends received.
According to the anti-dividend stripping rules, no exemption, reduction, credit or refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax will be granted if the recipient of the dividend paid by the Company is not considered the beneficial owner (uiteindelijk gerechtigde) of the dividend as defined in these rules. A recipient of a dividend is not considered the beneficial owner of the dividend if, as a consequence of a combination of transactions, (i) a person (other than the holder of the dividend coupon), directly or indirectly, partly or wholly benefits from the dividend, (ii) such person directly or indirectly retains or acquires a comparable interest in Class A Shares and/or Warrants and (iii) such person is entitled to a less favorable exemption, refund or credit of dividend withholding tax than the recipient of the dividend distribution. The term “combination of transactions” includes transactions that have been entered into in the anonymity of a regulated stock market, the sole acquisition of one or more dividend coupons and the establishment of short-term rights or enjoyment on Class A Shares and/or Warrants (e.g., usufruct).
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident Outside the Netherlands
Dividends distributed by the Company to a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants not resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for (corporate) income tax purposes and that does not have an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable will not be subject to any Dutch dividend withholding tax.
The Company will, however, in principle be required to withhold Dutch dividend withholding tax on dividends distributed by the Company to holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that are resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands (or to holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that have an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable). As a result, upon the distribution of a dividend on Class A Shares and/or Warrants, the Company will be required to identify the residency of holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants (as the case may be), which may not always be possible in practice. In such a scenario, a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants not resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for (corporate) income tax purposes and that does not have an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable can submit a digital application for a refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax via http://belastingdienst.nl/refunddividendtax.
Taxes on Income and Capital Gains
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident in the Netherlands: Individuals
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is an individual resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for Dutch tax purposes will be subject to regular Dutch income tax on the income derived from Class A Shares and/or Warrants and the gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants by the holder thereof, if:
(a)
such holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants has an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise, to which enterprise Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable; and/or
(b)
such income or capital gain forms “a benefit from miscellaneous activities” (“resultaat uit overige werkzaamheden”) that, for instance, would be the case if the activities with respect to Class A Shares and/or Warrants exceed “normal active asset management” (“normaal, actief vermogensbeheer”)
or if income and gains are derived from the holding, whether directly or indirectly, of (a combination of) shares, debt claims or other rights (together, a “lucrative interest” (“lucratief belang”)) that the holder thereof has acquired under such circumstances that such income and gains are intended to be remuneration for work or services performed by such holder (or a related person), whether within or outside an employment relation, where such lucrative interest provides the holder thereof, economically speaking, with certain benefits that have a relation to the relevant work or services.
If either of the abovementioned conditions (a) or (b) applies, income derived from Class A Shares and/or Warrants and the gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants will in general be subject to Dutch income tax at the progressive rates up to 49.5%.
If the abovementioned conditions (a) and (b) do not apply, a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is an individual, resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for Dutch tax purposes will not be subject to taxes on income and capital gains in the Netherlands. Instead, such individual is generally taxed at a flat rate of 31% on deemed income from “savings and investments” (“sparen en beleggen”), which deemed income is determined on the basis of the amount included in the individual’s “yield basis” (“rendementsgrondslag”) at the beginning of the calendar year (minus a tax-free threshold). For the 2022 tax year, the deemed income derived from savings and investments will amount to 1.818% of the individual’s yield basis up to and including €50,650, 4.366% of the individual’s yield basis exceeding €50,650 up to and including €962,350 and 5.53% of the individual’s yield basis in excess of €962,350. The tax-free threshold for 2022 is €50,650. The percentages to determine the deemed income will be reassessed every year. In reaction to case law of the Dutch Supreme Court, the Dutch State Secretary for Finance announced in the Decree of 28 June 2022, no. 2022-176296 (Besluit rechtsherstel box 3) that for the year 2022 separate percentages to determine the deemed income will apply if the newly calculated deemed income based on the aforementioned Decree is lower than the deemed income as calculated on the basis of the percentages set out in this paragraph. This may result in a lower amount of income tax due by holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants than under current law.
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident in the Netherlands: Corporate Entities
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for corporate income tax purposes and that is:
•
a corporation;
•
another entity with a capital divided into shares;
•
a cooperative (association); or
•
another legal entity that has an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise to which Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable,
but that is not:
•
a qualifying pension fund;
•
a qualifying investment institution (fiscale beleggingsinstelling) or a qualifying exempt investment institution (vrijgestelde beleggingsinstelling); or
•
another entity exempt from corporate income tax,
will in general be subject to regular Dutch corporate income tax, generally levied at a rate of 25.8% (15% over profits up to and including €395,000) over income derived from Class A Shares and/or Warrants and the gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants, unless, and to the extent that, the participation exemption (deelnemingsvrijstelling) applies.
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident Outside the Netherlands: Individuals
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is an individual not resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands will not be subject to any Dutch taxes on income derived from Class A Shares and/or
Warrants and the gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants, unless:
(a)
such holder has an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable; or
(b)
such income or capital gain forms a “benefit from miscellaneous activities in the Netherlands” (“resultaat uit overige werkzaamheden in Nederland”), which would for instance be the case if the activities in the Netherlands with respect to Class A Shares and/or Warrants exceed “normal active asset management” (“normaal, actief vermogensbeheer” or if such income and gains are derived from the holding, whether directly or indirectly, of (a combination of) shares, debt claims or other rights (together, a “lucrative interest” (“lucratief belang”)) that the holder thereof has acquired under such circumstances that such income and gains are intended to be remuneration for work or services performed by such holder (or a related person), in whole or in part, in the Netherlands, whether within or outside an employment relation, where such lucrative interest provides the holder thereof, economically speaking, with certain benefits that have a relation to the relevant work or services.
If either of the abovementioned conditions (a) or (b) applies, income or capital gains in respect of dividends distributed by the Company or in respect of any gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants will in general be subject to Dutch income tax at the progressive rates up to 49.5%.
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident Outside the Netherlands: Legal and Other Entities
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants that is a legal entity, another entity with a capital divided into shares, an association, a foundation or a fund or trust, not resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands for corporate income tax purposes, will not be subject to any Dutch taxes on income derived from Class A Shares and/or Warrants and the gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants, unless:
(a)
such holder has an enterprise or an interest in an enterprise that is, in whole or in part, carried on through a permanent establishment (vaste inrichting) or a permanent representative (vaste vertegenwoordiger) in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise, as the case may be, Class A Shares and/or Warrants are attributable; or
(b)
such holder has a substantial interest (aanmerkelijk belang) in the Company that (i) is held with the avoidance of Dutch income tax of another person as (one of) the main purpose(s) and (ii) forms part of an artificial structure or series of structures (such as structures that are not put into place for valid business reasons reflecting economic reality).
If one of the abovementioned conditions applies, income derived from Class A Shares and/or Warrants and the gains realized upon the acquisition, redemption and/or disposal of Class A Shares and/or the acquisition, redemption, disposal or exercise of Warrants will, in general, be subject to Dutch regular corporate income tax levied at a rate of 25.8% (15% over profits up to and including €395,000), unless, and to the extent that, with respect to a holder as described under (a), the participation exemption (deelnemingsvrijstelling) applies.
Gift, Estate and Inheritance Taxes
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident in the Netherlands
Gift tax may be due in the Netherlands with respect to an acquisition of Class A Shares and/or Warrants by way of a gift by a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is resident or deemed to be resident of the Netherlands at the time of the gift.
Inheritance tax may be due in the Netherlands with respect to an acquisition or deemed acquisition of Class A Shares and/or Warrants by way of an inheritance or bequest on the death of a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is resident or deemed to be resident of the Netherlands, or in case of a gift by an individual who at the date of the gift was neither resident nor deemed to be resident in the Netherlands, such individual dies within 180 days after the date of the gift, while that individual, at the time of the individual’s death, is resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands.
For purposes of Dutch gift and inheritance tax, an individual with the Dutch nationality will be deemed to be resident in the Netherlands if such individual has been resident in the Netherlands at any time during the ten years preceding the date of the gift or such individual’s death. For purposes of Dutch gift tax, an individual not holding the Dutch nationality will be deemed to be resident of the Netherlands if such individual has been resident in the Netherlands at any time during the twelve months preceding the date of the gift.
Holders of Class A Shares and/or Warrants Resident Outside the Netherlands
No gift, estate or inheritance taxes will arise in the Netherlands with respect to an acquisition of Class A Shares and/or Warrants by way of a gift by, or on the death of, a holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants who is neither resident nor deemed to be resident of the Netherlands, unless, in the case of a gift of Class A Shares and/or Warrants by an individual who at the date of the gift was neither resident nor deemed to be resident in the Netherlands, such individual dies within 180 days after the date of the gift, while being resident or deemed to be resident in the Netherlands.
Certain Special Situations
For purposes of Dutch gift, estate and inheritance tax, (i) a gift by a Third Party will be construed as a gift by the Settlor and (ii) upon the death of the Settlor as a rule, such Settlor’s Beneficiaries will be deemed to have inherited directly from the Settlor. Subsequently, such Beneficiaries will be deemed the settlor, grantor or similar originator of the Separated Private Assets for purposes of Dutch gift, estate and inheritance tax in the case of subsequent gifts or inheritances.
For the purposes of Dutch gift and inheritance tax, a gift that is made under a condition precedent is deemed to have been made at the moment such condition precedent is satisfied. If the condition precedent is fulfilled after the death of the donor, the gift is deemed to be made upon the death of the donor.
Value Added Tax
No Dutch value added tax will arise in respect of or in connection with the subscription, issue, placement, allotment or delivery of Class A Shares and/or the exercise of Warrants.
Other Taxes and Duties
No Dutch registration tax, capital tax, custom duty, transfer tax, stamp duty or any other similar documentary tax or duty, other than court fees, will be payable in the Netherlands in respect of or in connection with the subscription, issue, placement, allotment or delivery of Class A Shares and/or the exercise of Warrants.
Residency
A holder of Class A Shares and/or Warrants will not be treated as a resident, or a deemed resident, of the Netherlands for tax purposes by reason only of the acquisition, or the holding, of Class A Shares and/or Warrants or the performance by the Company under Class A Shares and/or Warrants.
Material German Tax Considerations
The following section is a description of the material German tax considerations that become relevant when acquiring, owning and/or disposing of Class A Shares and Warrants as from the date of this prospectus. It is based on the German tax law applicable as of the date of this prospectus without prejudice to any amendments introduced at a later date and implemented with or without retroactive effect.
This section is intended as general information only and does not purport to be a comprehensive or complete description of all potential German tax effects of the acquisition, ownership or disposal of Class A Shares or Warrants and does not set forth all German tax considerations that may be relevant to a particular person’s decision to acquire Class A Shares or Warrants. It cannot be ruled out that the German tax authorities or courts may consider an alternative interpretation or application to be correct that differs from the one described in this section.
This section does not describe any German tax considerations or consequences that may be relevant to the acquisition, ownership or disposal of Class A Shares or Warrants by a shareholder (i) for whom or for a direct or indirect shareholder or beneficiary of whom the income or capital gains derived from the Class A Shares or Warrants are attributable to employment activities, the income from which is taxable in Germany, or (ii) who exchanges, or has exchanged, other German taxable assets for Class A Shares or Warrants (or vice versa) under a German tax deferral transaction of the German reorganization tax act (Umwandlungssteuergesetz).
This section does not constitute particular German tax advice and potential purchasers of Class A Shares or Warrants are urged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the tax consequences of the acquisition, ownership and/or disposal of Class A Shares or Warrants in light of their particular circumstances with regard to the application of German tax law to their particular situations, in particular with respect to the procedure to be complied with to obtain a relief of withholding tax on dividends and on capital gains (Kapitalertragsteuer) and with respect to the influence of provisions of any applicable income tax treaty on the mitigation of double taxation (each a “tax treaty”), as well as any tax consequences arising under the laws of any state, local or other non-German jurisdiction. A shareholder or holder of Warrants may include an individual who or an entity that does not have the legal title to the Class A Shares or Warrants, but to whom nevertheless the Class A Shares or Warrants are attributed for German tax purposes, based either on such individual or entity owning a beneficial interest in the Class A Shares or Warrants or based on specific statutory provisions.
All of the following is subject to change as from the date of this prospectus. Such changes could apply retroactively and could affect the consequences set forth below. This section does neither refer to any German filing, notification or other German tax compliance aspects nor to foreign account tax compliance act (“FATCA”) aspects.
Lilium’s Tax Residency Status
We have our statutory seat in the Netherlands and our sole place of management in Germany and are therefore tax resident in Germany as from the date of this prospectus (both under German domestic law and for purposes of the German-Dutch tax treaty). Thus, we qualify as a corporation subject to German unlimited liability for corporate income tax purposes and are treated as a resident of Germany under the Dutch-German tax treaty. However, because our tax residency depends on future facts regarding our place of management the German unlimited liability for corporate income tax purposes may change in the future. We assume for all purposes herein that we shall be tax resident in Germany at all relevant points in time when taxable events may occur.
German Taxation of Holders of Class A Shares
Taxation of Dividends
Withholding Tax on Dividend Payments
Dividends distributed from Lilium to our shareholders are generally subject to German withholding tax, except for certain scenarios in which a dividend is either excluded from the scope of German withholding tax (for example, repayments of capital from the tax contribution account (steuerliches Einlagekonto)) or fully or partially withholding tax exempt, as further described. The withholding tax rate is 25% plus a 5.5% solidarity surcharge (Solidaritätszuschlag) thereon, totaling 26.375% of the gross dividend amount and potentially church withholding tax for shareholders who are private individuals in certain cases (see below). Withholding tax is to be withheld and passed on for the account of the shareholders, depending on the specific circumstances, by a domestic branch of a domestic or foreign credit or financial services institution
(Kredit- oder Finanzdienstleistungsinstitut) or by the domestic securities institution (inländisches Wertpapierinstitut) that keeps and administers the Class A Shares and disburses or credits the dividends or disburses the dividends to a foreign agent, or by the securities custodian bank (Wertpapiersammelbank) to which the Class A Shares were entrusted for custody if the dividends are distributed to a foreign agent by such securities custodian bank (each of which is referred to as the “Dividend Paying Agent”). or, in case the Class A Shares are not held in deposit with a Dividend Paying Agent, Lilium is responsible for withholding and remitting the tax to the competent tax office. Such withholding tax is generally levied and withheld irrespective of whether and to what extent the dividend distribution is taxable at the level of the shareholder and whether the shareholder is a person residing in Germany or in a foreign country.
In the case of dividends distributed to a parent company within the meaning of Art. 3 para. 1 lit. a of the amended EU Directive 2011/96/EU of the Council of November 30, 2011 (the “EU Parent Subsidiary Directive”) domiciled in another Member State of the European Union, withholding tax may be refunded or not levied upon application and subject to further conditions (as set out below). This also applies to dividends distributed to a permanent establishment located in another Member State of the European Union of such a parent company or of a parent company tax resident in Germany if the participation in Lilium is effectively connected with and actually attributed to this permanent establishment. The key prerequisite for the application of the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive is that the shareholder has held a direct participation in the share capital of Lilium of at least 10% for an uninterrupted period of at least twelve months. Further, the foreign resident shareholder must be eligible for purposes of the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive (as set out above) to invoke the reduction, and in addition, no German anti-directive/treaty shopping provision of Section 50d paragraph 3 of the German Income Tax Act (Einkommensteuergesetz) must be applicable.
The withholding tax on dividends distributed to other foreign resident shareholders may be refunded or not levied upon application (as set out below) in accordance with an applicable tax treaty (to 15%, 5% or 0% depending on certain prerequisites) if Germany has concluded such tax treaty with the country of residence of the shareholder and if the shareholder does not hold the Class A Shares either as part of the assets of a permanent establishment or a fixed place of business in Germany or as business assets for which a permanent representative has been appointed in Germany. Further, the foreign resident shareholder must be eligible for tax treaty purposes, and in addition, no limitation of benefits provision in a tax treaty and no German anti-directive/treaty shopping provision of Section 50d paragraph 3 of the German Income Tax Act (Einkommensteuergesetz) must be applicable.
In the case of dividends received by corporate bodies (Körperschaften) who are not tax resident in Germany, i.e., corporate bodies with no registered office or place of management in Germany and if the shares neither belong to the assets of a permanent establishment or fixed place of business in Germany nor are part of business assets for which a permanent representative in Germany has been appointed, two-fifths of the withholding tax deducted and remitted may be refunded or not levied upon application (as set out below) without the need to fulfill all prerequisites required for such refund under the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive or under a tax treaty or if no tax treaty has been concluded between the state of residence of the shareholder, however, likewise subject to the conditions of the aforementioned German anti-directive/treaty shopping provision.
The application for a refund of withholding tax under the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive, a tax treaty or the aforementioned option for foreign corporate bodies is to be filed with the German Federal Central Tax Office (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern) within four years following the end of the calendar year in which the dividends were received. The application shall be made by submitting a completed form for refund (available at the website of the Federal Central Tax Office (http://www.bzst.de) as well as at the German embassies and consulates) together with a withholding tax certificate (Kapitalertragsteuerbescheinigung) issued by the institution that deducted the respective withholding tax. In this case, the refund of deducted withholding tax is procedurally granted in such a manner that the difference between the total amount withheld, including the solidarity surcharge, and the tax liability determined on the basis of the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive (0%) or on the basis of the tax rate set forth in the applicable tax treaty (15%, 5% or 0%) is refunded by the German Federal Central Tax Office.
If, under fulfilment of the prerequisites of the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive or a tax treaty, withholding tax is not to be levied at all, the relevant shareholder must apply to the German Federal Central
Tax Office for the issuance of an exemption certificate (Freistellungsbescheinigung) that documents that the prerequisites for the application of the reduced withholding tax rates have been met. Dividends covered by the exemption certificate of the shareholder are then only subject to the reduced withholding tax rates stipulated in the exemption certificate.
The aforementioned refunds of (or exemptions from) withholding tax are further restricted if (i) the applicable tax treaty provides for a tax reduction resulting in an applicable tax rate of less than 15% and (ii) the shareholder is not a corporation that directly holds at least 10% in the equity capital of Lilium and is subject to tax on its income and profits in its state of residence without being exempt. In this case, the refund of (or exemption from) withholding tax is subject to the following three cumulative prerequisites: (i) the shareholder must qualify as beneficial owner of the shares in a company for a minimum holding period of 45 consecutive days occurring within a period of 45 days prior and 45 days after the due date of the dividends; (ii) the shareholder has to bear (taking into account claims of the shareholder from transactions reducing the risk of changes of the market value of the shares and corresponding claims of related parties of the shareholder) at least 70% of the change in value risk related to the shares in a company during the minimum holding period; and (iii) the shareholder must not be required to fully or largely compensate directly or indirectly the dividends to third parties.
In the absence of the fulfillment of all of the three prerequisites, three-fifths of the withholding tax imposed on the dividends must not be credited against the shareholder’s (corporate) income tax liability but may, upon application, be deducted from the shareholder’s tax base for the relevant assessment period. Furthermore, a shareholder that has received gross dividends without any deduction of withholding tax due to a tax exemption without qualifying for such a full tax credit has (i) to notify the competent local tax office accordingly, (ii) to declare according to the officially prescribed form and (iii) to make a payment in the amount of the omitted withholding tax deduction.
However, these special rules on the restriction of withholding tax credit do not apply to a shareholder whose overall dividend earnings within an assessment period do not exceed €20,000 or that has been the beneficial owner of the shares in a company for at least one uninterrupted year upon receipt of the dividends.
For individual or corporate shareholders tax resident outside Germany not holding the Class A Shares through a permanent establishment (Betriebsstätte) in Germany or as business assets (Betriebsvermögen) for which a permanent representative (ständiger Vertreter) has been appointed in Germany, the remaining and paid withholding tax (if any) is then final (i.e., not refundable) and settles the shareholder’s limited tax liability in Germany. For individual or corporate shareholders tax resident in Germany (for example, those shareholders whose residence, domicile, registered office or place of management is located in Germany) holding their Class A Shares as business assets, as well as for shareholders tax resident outside of Germany holding their Class A Shares through a permanent establishment in Germany or as business assets for which a permanent representative has been appointed in Germany, the withholding tax withheld (including solidarity surcharge) can be credited against the shareholder’s personal income tax or corporate income tax liability in Germany. Any withholding tax (including solidarity surcharge) in excess of such tax liability will be refunded upon receipt of the relevant tax assessment. For individual shareholders tax resident in Germany holding Class A Shares as private assets, the withholding tax is a final tax (Abgeltungsteuer), subject to the exceptions described in the following section.
Taxation of Dividend Income of Shareholders Tax Resident in Germany Holding Class A Shares as Private Assets (Private Individuals)
For individual shareholders (individuals) resident in Germany holding Class A Shares as private assets, dividends are subject to a flat rate tax, which is satisfied by the withholding tax actually withheld (Abgeltungsteuer). Accordingly, dividend income will be taxed at a flat tax rate of 25% plus 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon totaling 26.375% and church tax (Kirchensteuer) in case the shareholder is subject to church tax because of his or her personal circumstances. An automatic procedure for deduction of church tax by way of withholding will apply to shareholders being subject to church tax, unless the shareholder has filed a blocking notice (Sperrvermerk) with the German Federal Tax Office (details related to the computation of the specific tax rate, including church tax, are to be discussed with the individual tax advisor of the relevant shareholder). Except for an annual lump sum savings allowance (Sparer-Pauschbetrag) of up to €801 (for individual filers) or up to €1,602 (for married couples and for partners in accordance with the registered
partnership law (Gesetz über die Eingetragene Lebenspartnerschaft) filing jointly), private individual shareholders will not be entitled to deduct expenses incurred in connection with the capital investment from their dividend income.
The income tax owed for the dividend income is satisfied by the withholding tax withheld by the Dividend Paying Agent or Lilium. However, if the flat tax results in a higher tax burden as opposed to the private individual shareholder’s personal income tax rate, the private individual shareholder can opt for taxation at his or her personal income tax rate. In that case, the final withholding tax will be credited against the income tax. The option can be exercised only for all capital income from capital investments received in the relevant assessment period uniformly, and married couples as well as partners in accordance with the registered partnership law filing jointly can only jointly exercise the option.
Exceptions from the flat rate tax (satisfied by withholding the tax at source, Abgeltungswirkung) may apply — that is, only upon application — (i) for shareholders who have a shareholding of at least 25% in Lilium and (ii) for shareholders who have a shareholding of at least 1% in Lilium and work for the Company in a professional capacity, each within the assessment period for which the application is first made. In such a case, the same rules apply as for sole proprietors holding Class A Shares as business assets (see below “— Taxation of Dividend Income of Shareholders Tax Resident in Germany Holding Class A Shares as Business Assets — Sole Proprietors”). Further, the flat rate tax does not apply if and to the extent dividends reduced Lilium taxable income.
Taxation of Dividend Income of Shareholders Tax Resident in Germany Holding Class A Shares as Business Assets
If a shareholder holds Class A Shares as business assets, the taxation of the dividend income depends on whether the respective shareholder is a corporation, a sole proprietor or a partnership.
Corporations
Dividend income of corporate shareholders is exempt from corporate income tax, provided that the corporation holds a direct participation of at least 10% in the share capital of a company at the beginning of the calendar year in which the dividends are paid (participation exemption). The acquisition of a participation of at least 10% in the course of a calendar year (in one instance) is deemed to have occurred at the beginning of such calendar year. Participations in the share capital of the Company that a corporate shareholder holds through a partnership, including co-entrepreneurships (Mitunternehmerschaften), are attributable to such corporate shareholder only on a pro rata basis at the ratio of the interest share of the corporate shareholder in the assets of the relevant partnership. However, 5% of the tax-exempt dividends are deemed to be non-deductible business expenses for tax purposes and therefore are effectively subject to corporate income tax (plus solidarity surcharge); i.e., tax exemption of 95%. Business expenses incurred in connection with the dividends received are entirely tax deductible. The participation exemption does not apply if and to the extent dividends reduced Lilium’s taxable income.
For trade tax purposes, the entire dividend income is subject to trade tax (i.e., the tax-exempt dividends must be added back when determining the trade taxable income), unless the corporate shareholder holds at least 15% of the Company’s registered share capital at the beginning of the relevant tax assessment period (Erhebungszeitraum). In such case, the dividends are not subject to trade tax. However, trade tax is levied on the amount considered to be a non-deductible business expense (amounting to 5% of the dividend). Trade tax depends on the municipal trade tax multiplier applied by the relevant municipal authority. In the case of an indirect participation via a partnership, please refer to the section “— Partnerships” below.
If the shareholding is below 10% in the share capital, dividends are taxable at the applicable corporate income tax rate of 15% plus 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon and trade tax (the rate of which depends on the applicable municipality levy rate determined by the municipality in which the corporate shareholder has its place of management and permanent establishments, respectively, to which the Class A Shares are attributed).
Special regulations apply that abolish the 95% tax exemption, if Class A Shares are held (i) as trading portfolio (Handelsbestand) assets in the meaning of Section 340e paragraph 3 of the German Commercial Code (Handelsgesetzbuch) by a (a) credit institution (Kreditinstitut), (b) securities institution
(Wertpapierinstitut) or (c) financial service institution (Finanzdienstleistungsinstitut) or (ii) as current assets (Umlaufvermögen) by a financial enterprise (Finanzunternehmen) within the meaning of the German Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz), in case more than 50% of the shares of such financial enterprise are held directly or indirectly by a credit institution, a securities institution or a financial service institution, or (iii) by a life insurance company, a health insurance company or a pension fund in case the shares are attributable to the capital investments, resulting in fully taxable income (any shareholder falling under (i), (ii) or (iii), a “Non-Exempt Corporation”).
Sole proprietors
For sole proprietors (individuals) resident in Germany holding Class A Shares as business assets, dividends are subject to the partial income rule (Teileinkünfteverfahren). Accordingly, only (i) 60% of the dividend income will be taxed at his/her personal income tax rate plus 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon and (ii) 60% of the business expenses related to the dividend income are deductible for tax purposes. This does not apply to church tax (if applicable). In addition, the dividend income is entirely subject to trade tax if the Class A Shares are held as business assets of a permanent establishment in Germany within the meaning of the German Trade Tax Act (Gewerbesteuergesetz), unless the shareholder holds at least 15% of the Company’s registered share capital at the beginning of the relevant assessment period. In this latter case, the net amount of dividends, i.e., after deducting directly related expenses, is exempt from trade tax. The trade tax levied will be eligible for credit against the shareholder’s personal income tax liability based on the applicable municipal trade tax rate and the individual tax situation of the shareholder limited to currently up to 4.0 times the trade tax measurement amount (Gewerbesteuer-Messbetrag).
Partnerships
In case Class A Shares are held by a partnership, the partnership itself is not subject to corporate income tax or personal income tax. In this regard, corporate income tax or personal income tax (and church tax, if applicable) as well as solidarity surcharge are levied only at the level of the partner with respect to their relevant part of the partnership’s taxable income and depending on their individual circumstances:
•
if the partner is a corporation, the dividend income will be subject to corporate income tax plus solidarity surcharge (see above “— Corporations”);
•
if the partner is a sole proprietor, the dividend income will be subject to the partial income rule (see above “— Sole Proprietors”);
•
if the partner is a private individual — only possible if the partnership is not a (operative or deemed) commercial partnership, the dividend income will be subject to the flat tax rate (see above “— Private Individuals”).
In case the partnership is a (operative or deemed) commercial partnership with its place of management in Germany, the dividend income is subject to German trade tax at the level of the partnership, unless the partnership holds at least 15% of a company’s registered share capital at the beginning of the relevant assessment period. In such case, the dividend income is 95% exempt from trade tax to the extent the partners of the partnership are corporations and 40% exempt from trade tax to the extent the partners of the partnership are sole proprietors. Any trade tax levied on the level of the partnership will be eligible for credit against an individual shareholder’s personal income tax liability based on the applicable municipal trade tax rate, depending on the individual tax situation of the shareholder and further circumstances and limited to currently 4.0 times the partial trade tax measurement amount allocable to such individual shareholder.
Partnerships can opt to be treated as a corporation for purposes of German income taxation. If the shareholder is a partnership that has validly exercised such option right, any dividends from the disposal shares or subscription rights are subject to corporate income tax (and, for the avoidance of doubt, trade tax).
Taxation of Dividend Income of Shareholders Tax Resident Outside of Germany
For foreign individual or corporate shareholders tax resident outside of Germany not holding the Class A Shares through a permanent establishment in Germany or as business assets for which a permanent representative has been appointed in Germany, the deducted withholding tax (possibly reduced by way of
a tax relief under a tax treaty or domestic tax law, such as in connection with the EU Parent Subsidiary Directive) is final (that is, not refundable) and settles the shareholder’s limited tax liability in Germany, unless the shareholder is entitled to apply for a withholding tax refund or exemption (as set out above in “—Withholding Tax on Dividend Payments”).
In contrast, individual or corporate shareholders tax resident outside of Germany holding the Company’s Class A Shares through a permanent establishment in Germany or as business assets for which a permanent representative has been appointed in Germany are subject to the same rules as applicable (and described above) to shareholders resident in Germany holding the Class A Shares as business assets. The withholding tax withheld (including solidarity surcharge) will generally be credited against the shareholder’s personal income tax or corporate income tax liability in Germany if the prerequisites set out above (see “— Withholding Tax on Dividend Payments”) are fulfilled.
Taxation of Capital Gains
Withholding Tax on Capital Gains
Capital gains realized on the disposal of Class A Shares are only subject to withholding tax if (i) a permanent establishment in Germany of a German or foreign credit or financial institution, (ii) a German securities trading company or (iii) a German securities trading bank stores or administrates or carries out the disposal of the Class A Shares and pays or credits the capital gains. In those cases, the institution (and not the Company) is required to deduct the withholding tax at the time of payment for the account of the shareholder and to pay the withholding tax to the competent tax authority.
In case the Class A Shares in the Company are held (i) as business assets by a sole proprietor, a partnership or a corporation and such shares are attributable to a German business or (ii) in case of a corporation being subject to unlimited corporate income tax liability in Germany, the capital gains are not subject to withholding tax. In case of the aforementioned exemption under (i) the withholding tax exemption is subject to the condition that the paying agent has been notified by the beneficiary (Gläubiger) that the capital gains are exempt from withholding tax. The respective notification has to be filed with the tax office competent for the beneficiary by using the officially prescribed form.
Taxation of Capital Gains Realized by Shareholders Tax Resident in Germany Holding Class A Shares as Private Assets (Private Individuals)
For individual shareholders (individuals) resident in Germany holding Class A Shares as private assets, capital gains realized on the disposal of Class A Shares are subject to final withholding tax (Abgeltungsteuer). Accordingly, capital gains will be taxed at a flat tax rate of 25% plus 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon totaling 26.375% and church tax in case the shareholder is subject to church tax because of his or her personal circumstances. An automatic procedure for deduction of church tax by way of withholding will apply to shareholders being subject to church tax unless the shareholder has filed a blocking notice (Sperrvermerk) with the German Federal Central Tax Office (details related to the computation of the specific tax rate, including church tax, are to be discussed with the personal tax advisor of the relevant shareholder). The taxable capital gain is calculated by deducting the acquisition costs of the Class A Shares and the expenses directly and materially related to the disposal from the proceeds of the disposal. Apart from that, except for an annual lump sum savings allowance (Sparer-Pauschbetrag) of up to €801 (for individual filers) or up to €1,602 (for married couples and for partners in accordance with the registered partnership law (Gesetz über die Eingetragene Lebenspartnerschaft) filing jointly), private individual shareholders will not be entitled to deduct expenses incurred in connection with the capital investment from their capital gain.
In case the flat tax results in a higher tax burden as opposed to the private individual shareholder’s personal income tax rate the private individual shareholder can opt for taxation at his or her personal income tax rate. In that case, the withholding tax (including solidarity surcharge) withheld will be credited against the income tax. The option can be exercised only for all capital income from capital investments received in the relevant assessment period uniformly and married couples as well as for partners in accordance with the registered partnership law filing jointly may only jointly exercise the option.
Capital losses arising from the disposal of the Class A Shares can only be offset against other capital gains resulting from the disposition of the Class A Shares or shares in other stock corporations during the
same calendar year. Offsetting of overall losses with other income (such as business or rental income) and other capital income is not possible. Such losses are to be carried forward and to be offset against positive capital gains deriving from the disposal of shares in stock corporations in future years. The constitutionality of such limitation on the offsetting of losses is currently the subject of a pending procedure at the German Federal Constitutional Court.
The final withholding tax (Abgeltungsteuer) will not apply if the seller of the Class A Shares or in case of gratuitous transfer, its legal predecessor, has held, directly or indirectly, at least 1% of the Company’s registered share capital at any time during the five years prior to the disposal. In that case, capital gains are subject to the partial income rule (Teileinkünfteverfahren). Accordingly, only (i) 60% of the capital gains will be taxed at his or her personal income tax rate plus 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon and church tax (if applicable) and (ii) 60% of the business expenses related to the capital gains are deductible for tax purposes. The withholding tax withheld (including solidarity surcharge) will be credited against the shareholder’s personal income tax liability in Germany.
Taxation of Capital Gains Realized by Shareholders Tax Resident in Germany Holding Class A Shares as Business Assets
If a shareholder holds Class A Shares as business assets, the taxation of capital gains realized on the disposal of such shares depends on whether the respective shareholder is a corporation, a sole proprietor or a partnership:
Corporations
Capital gains realized on the disposal of Class A Shares by a corporate shareholder are generally exempt from corporate income tax and trade tax. However, 5% of the tax-exempt capital gains are deemed to be non-deductible business expenses for tax purposes and therefore are effectively subject to corporate income tax (plus solidarity surcharge) and trade tax; i.e., tax exemption of 95%. Business expenses incurred in connection with the capital gains are entirely tax deductible.
Capital losses incurred upon the disposal of Class A Shares or other impairments of the share value are not tax deductible. A reduction of profit is also defined as any losses incurred in connection with a loan or security in the event the loan or the security is granted by a shareholder or by a related party thereto or by a third person with the right of recourse against the before mentioned persons and the shareholder holds directly or indirectly more than 25% of the Company’s registered share capital.
Special regulations apply, which may exclude aforementioned tax exemptions, if the Company’s Class A Shares are held by a Non-Exempt Corporation.
Sole Proprietors
If the Class A Shares are held by a sole proprietor, capital gains realized on the disposal of the Class A Shares are subject to the partial income rule (Teileinkünfteverfahren). Accordingly, only (i) 60% of the capital gains will be taxed at his or her personal income tax rate plus 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon and church tax (if applicable) and (ii) 60% of the business expenses related to the dividend income are deductible for tax purposes. In addition, 60% of the capital gains are subject to trade tax if the Class A Shares are held as business assets of a permanent establishment in Germany within the meaning of the German Trade Tax Act (Gewerbesteuergesetz). The trade tax levied will be eligible for credit against the shareholder’s personal income tax liability based on the applicable municipal trade tax rate and the individual tax situation of the shareholder limited to currently up to 4.0 times the trade tax measurement amount.
Partnerships
In case the Class A Shares are held by a partnership, the partnership itself is not subject to corporate income tax or personal income tax as well as solidarity surcharge (and church tax) since partnerships qualify as transparent for German income tax purposes. In this regard, corporate income tax or personal income tax as well as solidarity surcharge (and church tax, if applicable) are levied only at the level of the partner with respect to their relevant part of the partnership’s taxable income and depending on their individual circumstances:
•
If the partner is a corporation, the capital gains will be subject to corporate income tax plus solidarity surcharge (see above “— Corporations”). Trade tax will be levied additionally at the level of the partner insofar as the relevant profit of the partnership is not subject to trade tax at the level of the partnership. However, with respect to both corporate income and trade tax, the 95%-exemption rule as described above applies. With regard to corporations as partners, special regulations apply if they are held by a Non-Exempt Corporation, as described above.
•
If the partner is a sole proprietor (individual), the capital gains are subject to the partial income rule (see above “— Sole Proprietors”).
In addition, if the partnership is liable to German trade tax, 60% of the capital gains are subject to trade tax at the level of the partnership, to the extent the partners are individuals, and 5% of the capital gains are subject to trade tax, to the extent the partners are corporations. However, if a partner is an individual, any trade tax paid on the level of the partnership will be eligible for credit against an individual partner’s personal income tax liability based on the applicable municipal trade tax rate and depending on the individual tax situation of the individual and further circumstances, limited to currently 4.0 times of the partial trade tax measurement (Gewerbesteuer-Messbetrag).
Partnerships can opt to be treated as a corporation for purposes of German income taxation. If the shareholder is a partnership that has validly exercised such option right, any capital gains from the disposal shares or subscription rights are subject to corporate income tax (and, for the avoidance of doubt, trade tax).
Taxation of Capital Gains Realized by Shareholders Tax Resident Outside of Germany
Capital gains realized on the disposal of the Class A Shares by a shareholder tax resident outside of Germany are subject to German taxation provided that (i) the Class A Shares are held as business assets of a permanent establishment or as business assets for which a permanent representative has been appointed in Germany, or (ii) the shareholder or, in case of a gratuitous transfer, its legal predecessor has held, directly or indirectly, at least 1% of the Company’s share capital at any time during a five years period prior to the disposal.
In these cases, capital gains are generally subject to the same rules as described above for shareholders resident in Germany. However, if capital gains are realized in case (ii) above by corporations tax resident outside of Germany which are not Non-Exempt Corporations, these capital gains are fully tax exempt under German tax law according to the case law of the German Federal Fiscal Court (Bundesfinanzhof). Additionally, except for the cases referred to in (i) above, most tax treaties concluded by Germany provide for a full exemption from German taxation except if the Company is considered a real estate holding entity for treaty purposes.
German taxation of holders of Warrants
General
Holders of Warrants are likely to be taxed in particular upon certain forms of the exercise, sale or disposal of Warrants (taxation of capital gains) and the gratuitous transfer of Warrants (inheritance and gift tax).
Taxation of Holders of Warrants Not Tax Resident in Germany
The capital gains from the disposition of the Warrants realized by a non-German tax resident holder of the Warrants would not be treated as German source income and not be subject to German income tax provided that (i) such non-German resident holder does not maintain a permanent establishment or other taxable presence in Germany which the Warrants form part of, and (ii) the income does not otherwise constitute German-source income (such as income from the letting and leasing of certain German-situs property or income from certain capital investments directly or indirectly secured by German-situs real estate). If either requirement (i) or (ii) above is not met, a non-German tax resident holder will be subject to German taxation on the aforementioned capital gains corresponding to the taxation of holders of Warrants tax resident in Germany holding the Warrants as business assets, as set out below.
In this case, non-German resident holders of the Warrants are, in general, exempt from German withholding tax on capital gains. However, if capital gains derived from the Warrants are paid out or credited to the holder of the Warrants by a German credit institution, a financial services institution, a securities trading company or a securities trading bank (each as defined in the German Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz) and, in each case including a German branch of a foreign enterprise, but excluding a foreign branch of a German enterprise) (“German Disbursing Agent”), withholding tax may be levied under certain circumstances both in the case of business and non-business holders of Warrants. The withholding tax may be refunded based on an assessment to tax or under an applicable tax treaty, depending on the individual circumstances of the holder.
Taxation of Holders of Warrants Tax Resident in Germany
Withholding Tax on Capital Gains
The capital gains from the disposition (i.e., the difference between the proceeds from the disposal, redemption, repayment or assignment after deduction of expenses directly related to the disposal, redemption, repayment or assignment and the cost of acquisition) or a cash-settlement (i.e., the cash amount received minus directly related costs and expenses, e.g. the acquisition costs) of the Warrants received by a German resident holder of Warrants holding the Warrants as private assets will be subject to German withholding tax if the Warrants are kept or administered in a custodial account with a German Disbursing Agent. The tax rate is 25% (plus a 5.5% solidarity surcharge thereon, resulting in an aggregate rate of 26.375%; plus church tax, if applicable). For individual holders who are subject to church tax, the church tax generally has to be withheld by the German Disbursing Agent based on an automatic data access procedure, unless the shareholder has filed a blocking notice (Sperrvermerk) with the Federal Central Tax Office.
In case the Warrants have not been kept or administered in a custodial account with the same German Disbursing Agent since the time of their acquisition, the withholding tax rate will be applied to 30% of the (disposal) proceeds (the so called “Lump Sum Substitute Basis”), unless the current German Disbursing Agent has been notified of the actual acquisition costs of the Warrants by the previous German Disbursing Agent or by a statement of a bank or financial services institution from another member state of the European Union or the European Economic Area or from certain other countries (e.g., Switzerland or Andorra).
In computing any German tax to be withheld, the German Disbursing Agent generally deducts from the basis of the withholding tax, subject to certain limitations, negative investment income realized by a non-business holder of the Warrants via the German Disbursing Agent (e.g., losses from the sale of other securities with the exception of shares). The German Disbursing Agent also deducts accrued interest on other securities (if any) paid separately upon the acquisition of the respective security by a non-business holder of Warrants via the German Disbursing Agent. In addition, subject to certain requirements and restrictions the German Disbursing Agent may credit foreign withholding taxes levied on investment income in a given year regarding securities held by a non-business holder of Warrants in the custodial account with the German Disbursing Agent.
Non-business holders of the Warrants are entitled to an annual saver’s allowance of €801 for an individual or €1,602 for a married couple or registered civil union filing taxes jointly for all investment income received in a given year. Upon the non-business holder of the Warrants filing an exemption certificate (Freistellungsauftrag) with the Disbursing Agent, the Disbursing Agent will take the allowance into account when computing the amount of tax to be withheld.
No withholding tax will be deducted if the holder of the Warrants has submitted to the Disbursing Agent a certificate of non-assessment (Nichtveranlagungs-Bescheinigung) issued by the competent local tax office. The deduction of expenses related to the investment income (including gains with respect to the Warrants) is generally not possible for private investors.
German withholding tax should not apply to gains from the disposal, redemption, repayment or assignment of Warrants held by a German tax resident corporation. The same may apply to sole proprietors or partners of partnerships, where the Warrants form part of a trade or business or are related to income from letting and leasing of property, subject to further requirements being met (compare with “— Corporations, Sole Proprietors and Partnerships” below). However, there is a risk that losses resulting
from the sale, other disposition or lapse of the Warrants may be ring-fenced and only offsetable against income from forward transactions (Termingeschäfte) in both of the aforementioned cases. Please note that for corporations, sole-proprietors or partnerships which or who are not tax resident in Germany, withholding tax may be levied, as set out above (compare with “— Taxation of Holders of Warrants Not Tax Resident in Germany”).
Taxation of Capital Gains
Individuals as the Holders of the Warrants
The personal income tax liability of a holder of the Warrants holding the Warrants as private assets deriving income from capital investments under the Warrants is, in principle, settled by the tax withheld (unless for example the income from Warrants qualifies as income from the letting and leasing of property). To the extent withholding tax has not been levied, such as in the case of Warrants kept in custody abroad or if no German Disbursing Agent is involved in the payment process, the non-business holder of Warrants must report his or her income and capital gains derived from the Warrants (through disposition or cash settlement) on his or her tax return and then will also be taxed at a rate of 25% (plus solidarity surcharge of 5.5% thereon, resulting in an aggregate rate of 26.375%; and church tax, if applicable). If the withholding tax has been calculated on the basis of a Lump Sum Substitute Basis, a non-business holder of the Warrants may and in case the actual gain is higher than 30% of the proceeds must also apply for an assessment on the basis of his or her actual acquisition costs. Further, a non-business holder may request that all investment income of a given year is taxed at his or her lower individual tax rate based upon an assessment to tax with any amounts over withheld being refunded. In each case, the deduction of expenses (other than transaction costs) on an itemized basis is not permitted.
With regard to non-business holders of Warrants, there is a relevant risk that such losses may only be applied against profits from income from capital investments derived in the same or, subject to certain limitations, in subsequent years. For assessment periods beginning after December 31, 2020, such losses incurred by non-business holders of the Warrants may only be applied against income from other forward/future or option transactions derived in the same or, subject to certain limitations, in subsequent years and the deductibility of such losses is limited to €20.000 per year.
In addition, losses of non-business holders arising from a bad debt loss (Forderungsausfall), a waiver of a receivable (Forderungsverzicht) or a transfer of an impaired receivable to a third party or from any other default can only be offset against other income from capital investments and only up to an amount of €20,000 per year. The same rules may apply if the Warrants expire worthless or lapse.
Corporations, Sole Proprietors and Partnerships
Where Warrants form part of a trade or business, the withholding tax, if any, will not settle the personal or corporate income tax liability. The respective holder of Warrants (or the partner of the partnership holding the Warrants) will have to report income and related (business) expenses resulting from the disposition or cash settlement of the Warrants on the tax return and the balance will be taxed at the holder’s (or the partner of the partnership holding the Warrants) applicable tax rate. Withholding tax levied, if any, will be credited against the personal or corporate income tax of the holder (or the partner of the partnership holding the Warrants). Capital gains resulting from a disposal, redemption, repayment, assignment or cash settlement of the Warrants may also be subject to German trade tax, if the Warrants form part of a German trade or business. A corporate income tax or trade tax exemption should, in this case, not be applicable.
With regard to business holders of Warrants, there is a risk that losses resulting from the sale, other disposition or lapse of the Warrants may generally only be applied against profits from other forward/future or option transactions derived in the same or, subject to certain restrictions, the previous year. Otherwise these losses can be carried forward indefinitely and, within certain limitations, applied against profits from forward/future or option transactions in subsequent years. Further special rules apply to credit institutions, financial services institutions and finance companies within the meaning of the German Banking Act.
In the case of physical settlement of the Warrants please see the above sections on disposal of Class A Shares for German taxation of the disposal or other transaction involving a resulting Class A Share.
Solidarity Surcharge
The solidarity surcharge has been partially abolished or reduced as of the assessment period 2021 for certain German taxpayers. The solidarity surcharge continues, however, to apply for corporate income tax and capital investment income and, thus, on withholding taxes levied. In case the individual income tax burden for an individual holder is lower than 25% the holder can apply for his or her capital investment income being assessed at his or her individual tariff-based income tax rate in which case solidarity surcharge would be refunded.
Inheritance and Gift Tax
The transfer of Class A Shares or Warrants to another person by way of succession or donation is subject to German inheritance and gift tax (Erbschaft-und Schenkungsteuer) if at the time of transfer:
(i)
the decedent, the donor, the heir, the donee or any other beneficiary has his /her /its residence, domicile, registered office or place of management in Germany, or is a German citizen who has not stayed abroad for more than five consecutive years without having a residence in Germany; or
(ii)
(irrespective of the personal circumstances) the Class A Shares or Warrants are held by the decedent or donor as business assets for which a permanent establishment in Germany is maintained or a permanent representative is appointed in Germany; or
(iii)
(irrespective of the personal circumstances) at least 10% of the registered share capital of Lilium is held directly or indirectly by the decedent or person making the gift, himself or together with a related party in terms of Section 1(2) German Foreign Tax Act (Außensteuergesetz).
Special regulations apply to German citizens who maintain neither a residence nor their domicile in Germany but maintain a residence or domicile in a low tax jurisdiction and to former German citizens, also resulting in inheritance and gift tax. The few tax treaties on inheritance and gift tax that Germany has entered into may limit the German right to inheritance and gift tax to the case described under (i) above, and with certain restrictions, in case of (ii).
Value Added Tax (VAT)
No German value added tax (Umsatzsteuer) will arise in respect of any acquisition, ownership and/or disposal of the Class A Shares or Warrants unless in certain cases where a waiver of an applicable VAT exemption occurs. Any such waiver would require a supply of shares from one person taxable for VAT purposes to the enterprise of another VAT taxable person.
Transfer Taxes
No German capital transfer tax (Kapitalverkehrsteuer) or stamp duty (Stempelgebühr) or similar taxes are levied when acquiring, owning or disposing the Class A Shares or Warrants. Net wealth tax (Vermögensteuer) is currently not levied in Germany. German real estate transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer) may only be attracted by the acquisition (including by way of exercise of warrants) or sale of Class A Shares or certain comparable transactions under very specific circumstances if Lilium, or a subsidiary entity to Lilium own German situs real estate at such time, with “ownership” and “real estate” both having an extended meaning under the German Real Estate Transfer Tax Act (Grunderwerbsteuergesetz).
The European Commission has published a proposal for a directive for a common financial transactions tax (“FTT”) in certain participating member states of the European Union, including Germany. The proposed FTT has a very broad scope and could, if introduced in the form of the proposal, apply to certain dealings in the Class A Shares (including secondary market transactions) in certain circumstances. However, the proposed FTT remains subject to negotiations between the participating member states and it is currently unclear in what form and when an FTT would be implemented, if at all. Prospective holders of the Class A Shares are advised to monitor future developments closely and to seek their own professional advice in relation to the FTT.
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
We are registering the issuance by us of up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants.
We are also registering the possible resale from time to time by the selling securityholders of (a) up to 103,537,402 Class A Shares, which consists of up to (i) 69,024,938 Class A Shares issued in connection with the closing of the PIPE and (ii) 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants and (b) up to 34,512,464 Warrants. We are also registering any additional securities that may become issuable by reason of share splits, share dividends or other similar transactions. All of the Class A Shares and Warrants offered by the selling securityholders pursuant to this prospectus will be sold by the selling securityholders for their respective accounts. We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of Class A Shares or Warrants by the selling securityholders or the issuance of Class A Shares by us pursuant to this prospectus, except with respect to amounts received by us upon exercise of the Warrants.
The selling securityholders will pay any underwriting discounts and commissions and expenses incurred by the selling securityholders for brokerage, accounting, tax or legal services or any other expenses incurred by the selling securityholders in disposing of the securities. We will bear all other costs, fees and expenses incurred in effecting the registration of the securities covered by this prospectus, including, without limitation, all registration and filing fees, Nasdaq listing fees and fees and expenses of our counsel and our independent registered public accountants.
The securities beneficially owned by the selling securityholders covered by this prospectus may be offered and sold from time to time by the selling securityholders. The term “selling securityholders” includes donees, pledgees, transferees or other successors in interest selling securities received after the date of this prospectus from a selling securityholder as a gift, pledge, partnership distribution or other transfer. The selling securityholders will act independently of us in making decisions with respect to the timing, manner and size of each sale. Such sales may be made on one or more exchanges or in the over-the-counter market or otherwise, at prices and under terms then prevailing or at prices related to our then current market price or in negotiated transactions. Each selling securityholder reserves the right to accept and, together with its respective agents, to reject, any proposed purchase of securities to be made directly or through agents. The selling securityholders and any of their permitted transferees may sell their securities offered by this prospectus on any stock exchange, market or trading facility on which the securities are traded or in private transactions. If underwriters are used in the sale, such underwriters will acquire the shares for their own account. These sales may be at a fixed price or varying prices, which may be changed, or at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at prices relating to prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices. The securities may be offered to the public through underwriting syndicates represented by managing underwriters or by underwriters without a syndicate. The obligations of the underwriters to purchase the securities will be subject to certain conditions. The underwriters will be obligated to purchase all the securities offered if any of the securities are purchased.
Subject to the limitations set forth in any applicable securities purchase agreement between the Company and one or more selling securityholders, the selling securityholders may use any one or more of the following methods when selling the securities offered by this prospectus:
•
purchases by a broker-dealer as principal and resale by such broker-dealer for its own account pursuant to this prospectus;
•
ordinary brokerage transactions and transactions in which the broker solicits purchasers;
•
block trades in which the broker-dealer so engaged will attempt to sell the securities as agent but may position and resell a portion of the block as principal to facilitate the transaction;
•
an over-the-counter distribution in accordance with the rules of Nasdaq;
•
through trading plans entered into by a selling securityholder pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act that are in place at the time of an offering pursuant to this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement hereto that provide for periodic sales of their securities on the basis of parameters described in such trading plans;
•
short sales;
•
distribution to employees, members, limited partners or stockholders of the selling securityholders;
•
through the writing or settlement of options or other hedging transaction, whether through an options exchange or otherwise;
•
by pledge to secured debt and other obligations;
•
delayed delivery arrangement;
•
to or through underwriters or broker-dealers;
•
in “at the market” offerings, as defined in Rule 415 under the Securities Act, at negotiated prices;
•
at prices prevailing at the time of sale or at prices related to such prevailing market prices, including sales made directly on a national securities exchange or sales made through a market maker other than on an exchange or other similar offerings through sales agents;
•
directly to purchasers, including through a specific bidding, auction or other process or in privately negotiated transactions;
•
in options transactions;
•
through a combination of any of the above methods of sale; or
•
any other method permitted pursuant to applicable law.
In addition, a selling securityholder that is an entity may elect to make a pro rata in-kind distribution of securities to its members, partners or shareholders pursuant to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part by delivering a prospectus or prospectus supplement with a plan of distribution. Such members, partners or shareholders would thereby receive freely tradeable securities pursuant to the distribution through a registration statement. To the extent a distributee is an affiliate of ours (or to the extent otherwise required by law), we may file a prospectus supplement in order to permit the distributees to use the prospectus to resell the securities acquired in the distribution.
There can be no assurance that the selling securityholders will sell all or any of the securities offered by this prospectus. In addition, the selling securityholders may also sell securities under Rule 144 under the Securities Act, if available, or in other transactions exempt from registration, rather than under this prospectus. The selling securityholders have the sole and absolute discretion not to accept any purchase offer or make any sale of securities if they deem the purchase price to be unsatisfactory at any particular time.
The selling securityholders also may transfer the securities in other circumstances, in which case the transferees, pledgees or other successors-in-interest will be the selling beneficial owners for purposes of this prospectus. Upon being notified by a selling securityholder that a donee, pledgee, transferee, other successor-in-interest intends to sell our securities, we will, to the extent required, promptly file a supplement to this prospectus to name specifically such person as a selling securityholder.
With respect to a particular offering of the securities held by the selling securityholders, to the extent required, an accompanying prospectus supplement or, if appropriate, a post-effective amendment to the registration statement of which this prospectus is part, will be prepared and will set forth the following information:
•
the specific securities to be offered and sold;
•
the names of the selling securityholders;
•
the respective purchase prices and public offering prices, the proceeds to be received from the sale, if any, and other material terms of the offering;
•
settlement of short sales entered into after the date of this prospectus;
•
the names of any participating agents, broker-dealers or underwriters; and
•
any applicable commissions, discounts, concessions and other items constituting compensation from the selling securityholders.
In connection with distributions of the securities or otherwise, the selling securityholders may enter into hedging transactions with broker-dealers or other financial institutions. In connection with such
transactions, broker-dealers or other financial institutions may engage in short sales of the securities in the course of hedging the positions they assume with selling securityholders. The selling securityholders may also sell the securities short and redeliver the securities to close out such short positions. The selling securityholders may also enter into option or other transactions with broker-dealers or other financial institutions which require the delivery to such broker-dealer or other financial institution of securities offered by this prospectus, which securities such broker-dealer or other financial institution may resell pursuant to this prospectus (as supplemented or amended to reflect such transaction). The selling securityholders may also pledge securities to a broker-dealer or other financial institution, and, upon a default, such broker-dealer or other financial institution, may effect sales of the pledged securities pursuant to this prospectus (as supplemented or amended to reflect such transaction).
In order to facilitate the offering of the securities, any underwriters or agents, as the case may be, involved in the offering of such securities may engage in transactions that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the price of our securities. Specifically, the underwriters or agents, as the case may be, may overallot in connection with the offering, creating a short position in our securities for their own account. In addition, to cover overallotments or to stabilize the price of our securities, the underwriters or agents, as the case may be, may bid for, and purchase, such securities in the open market. Finally, in any offering of securities through a syndicate of underwriters, the underwriting syndicate may reclaim selling concessions allotted to an underwriter or a broker-dealer for distributing such securities in the offering if the syndicate repurchases previously distributed securities in transactions to cover syndicate short positions, in stabilization transactions or otherwise. Any of these activities may stabilize or maintain the market price of the securities above independent market levels. The underwriters or agents, as the case may be, are not required to engage in these activities, and may end any of these activities at any time.
The selling securityholders may solicit offers to purchase the securities directly from, and they may sell such securities directly to, institutional investors or others. In this case, no underwriters or agents would be involved. The terms of any of those sales, including the terms of any bidding or auction process, if utilized, will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
It is possible that one or more underwriters may make a market in our securities, but such underwriters will not be obligated to do so and may discontinue any market making at any time without notice. We cannot give any assurance as to the liquidity of the trading market for our securities.
The selling securityholders may authorize underwriters, broker-dealers or agents to solicit offers by certain purchasers to purchase the securities at the public offering price set forth in the prospectus supplement pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a specified date in the future. The contracts will be subject only to those conditions set forth in the prospectus supplement, and the prospectus supplement will set forth any commissions we or the selling securityholders pay for solicitation of these contracts.
A selling securityholder may enter into derivative transactions with third parties, or sell securities not covered by this prospectus to third parties in privately negotiated transactions. If the applicable prospectus supplement indicates, in connection with those derivatives, the third parties may sell securities covered by this prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement, including in short sale transactions. If so, the third party may use securities pledged by any selling securityholder or borrowed from any selling securityholder or others to settle those sales or to close out any related open borrowings of stock, and may use securities received from any selling securityholder in settlement of those derivatives to close out any related open borrowings of stock. The third party in such sale transactions will be an underwriter and will be identified in the applicable prospectus supplement (or a post-effective amendment). In addition, any selling securityholder may otherwise loan or pledge securities to a financial institution or other third party that in turn may sell the securities short using this prospectus. Such financial institution or other third party may transfer its economic short position to investors in our securities or in connection with a concurrent offering of other securities.
In effecting sales, broker-dealers or agents engaged by the selling securityholders may arrange for other broker-dealers to participate. Broker-dealers or agents may receive commissions, discounts or concessions from the selling securityholders in amounts to be negotiated immediately prior to the sale.
To our knowledge, there are currently no plans, arrangements or understandings between the selling securityholders and any broker-dealer or agent regarding the sale of the securities by the selling securityholders. Upon our notification by a selling securityholder that any material arrangement has been entered into with an underwriter or broker-dealer for the sale of securities through a block trade, special offering, exchange distribution, secondary distribution or a purchase by an underwriter or broker-dealer, we will file, if required by applicable law or regulation, a supplement to this prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act disclosing certain material information relating to such underwriter or broker-dealer and such offering.
In compliance with the guidelines of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), the aggregate maximum discount, commission, fees or other items constituting underwriting compensation to be received by any FINRA member or independent broker-dealer will not exceed 8% of the gross proceeds of any offering pursuant to this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement.
If at the time of any offering made under this prospectus a member of FINRA participating in the offering has a “conflict of interest” as defined in FINRA Rule 5121 (“Rule 5121”), that offering will be conducted in accordance with the relevant provisions of Rule 5121.
Pursuant to the securities purchase agreements between the Company and each selling securityholder, we have agreed to indemnify the selling securityholders against certain liabilities, including certain liabilities under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or other federal or state law.
We have agreed pursuant to the securities purchase agreements between the Company and each selling securityholder to use commercially reasonable efforts to keep the registration statement of which this prospectus constitutes a part effective with respect to the selling securityholders until the earlier of the following: (i) the selling securityholder ceases to hold any securities covered by this prospectus, and (ii) the date all securities covered by this prospectus held by each of the selling securityholders may be sold without restriction under Rule 144, including without limitation, any volume and manner of sale restrictions which may be applicable to affiliates under Rule 144 and without the requirement for us to be in compliance with the current public information required under Rule 144(c)(1) (or Rule 144(i)(2), if applicable).
EXPENSES RELATED TO THE OFFERING
Set forth below is an itemization of the total expenses that are expected to be incurred by us in connection with the securities being registered hereby and the offer and sale of our Class A Shares and Warrants by the selling securityholders. With the exception of the SEC registration fee, all amounts are estimates.
|
|
|
Amount
|
|
SEC Registration Fee
|
|
|
|
$ |
16,658.34 |
|
|
Legal fees and expenses
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
Accounting fees and expenses
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
Miscellaneous expenses
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
|
Total
|
|
|
|
$ |
* |
|
|
*
These fees are calculated based on the securities offered and the number of issuances and accordingly cannot be defined at this time.
LEGAL MATTERS
The validity of the Class A Shares and Warrants being offered by this prospectus will be passed upon for us by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.
EXPERTS
The financial statements incorporated in this prospectus by reference to the Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2021, have been so incorporated in reliance on the report (which contains an explanatory paragraph relating to the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern as described in Note 4 to the financial statements) of PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft, an independent registered public accounting firm, given on the authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.
PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft is a member of the Chamber of Public Accountants (Wirtschaftsprüferkammer), Berlin, Germany. The current address of PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft, is Bernhard-Wicki-Straße 8, 80636 Munich, Germany.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We have filed with the SEC a registration statement (including amendments and exhibits to the registration statement) on Form F-3 under the Securities Act. This prospectus, which is part of the registration statement, does not contain all of the information set forth in the registration statement and the exhibits and schedules to the registration statement. For further information, we refer you to the registration statement and the exhibits and schedules filed as part of the registration statement. If a document has been filed as an exhibit to the registration statement, we refer you to the copy of the document that has been filed. Each statement in this prospectus relating to a document filed as an exhibit is qualified in all respects by the filed exhibit. We are subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act that are applicable to foreign private issuers. Accordingly, we are required to file or furnish reports and other information with the SEC, including annual reports on Form 20-F and reports on Form 6-K. The SEC maintains an Internet website that contains reports and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. Our filings with the SEC are available to the public through the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. As a foreign private issuer, we are exempt under the Exchange Act from, among other things, the rules prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements, and our executive officers, directors and principal and selling shareholders are exempt from the reporting and short-swing profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we will not be required under the Exchange Act to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S. companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act. We maintain a corporate website at www.lilium.com.
Information contained on, or that can be accessed through, our website does not constitute a part of this prospectus. We have included our website address in this prospectus solely for informational purposes.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” the information we file with or furnish to them. This means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those documents. Each document incorporated by reference is current only as of the date of such document, and the incorporation by reference of such documents shall not create any implication that there has been no change in our affairs since the date thereof or that the information contained therein is current as of any time subsequent to its date. The information incorporated by reference is considered to be a part of this prospectus and should be read with the same care. When we update the information contained in documents that have been incorporated by reference by making future filings with the SEC, the information incorporated by reference in this prospectus is considered to be automatically updated and superseded. In other words, in the case of a conflict or inconsistency between information contained in this prospectus and information incorporated by reference into this prospectus, you should rely on the information contained in the document that was filed later.
We incorporate by reference the documents listed below and any documents filed with the SEC in the future under Sections 13(a), 13(c) and 15(d) of the Exchange Act until the offerings made under this prospectus are completed:
•
•
any future filings on Form 20-F made with the SEC under the Exchange Act after the date of this prospectus and prior to the termination of the offering of the securities offered by this prospectus;
•
•
•
•
our Reports on Form 6-K, furnished to the SEC on February 28, 2022, June 6, 2022 (two filings), June 14, 2022, September 27, 2022, September 28, 2022, October 28, 2022, November 18, 2022 and November 22, 2022;
•
•
any future reports on Form 6-K that we furnish to the SEC after the date of this prospectus that are, or selected portions of which are, identified in such reports as being incorporated by reference in this prospectus.
We will provide without charge to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom this prospectus is delivered, upon his or her written or oral request, a copy of any or all documents referred to above that have been or may be incorporated by reference into this prospectus other than exhibits that are not specifically incorporated by reference into those documents. You can request those documents from:
Roger Franks
c/o Lilium Aviation Inc.
2385 N.W. Executive Center Drive, Suite 300
Boca Raton, Florida 33431
Telephone: 561-526-8460
We have not authorized and the selling securityholders have not authorized any other person to provide you with any information other than the information contained in this prospectus and the documents
incorporated by reference herein. We do not and the selling securityholders do not take responsibility for, or provide any assurance as to the reliability of, any different or additional information. We are not and selling securityholders are not making an offer to sell any securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted. You should assume the information appearing in this prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein are accurate only as of their respective dates. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since those dates.
PART II
Information Not Required in Prospectus
Item 8. Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Under Dutch law, directors of a Dutch public company may be held jointly and severally liable to the Company for damages in the event of improper or negligent performance of their duties. They may be held liable for damages to the Company and to third parties for infringement of certain provisions of Dutch law or the articles of association. In addition, directors may be held liable to third parties for any actions that may give rise to a tort. This applies equally to our non-executive directors and executive directors. In certain circumstances, they may also incur other specific civil and criminal liabilities.
Pursuant to our articles of association and unless Dutch law provides otherwise, the Company shall indemnify and hold harmless each executive director and non-executive director, both former directors and directors currently in office, each person who is or was serving as an officer, each person who is or was serving as a proxy holder and each person who is or was a member of the board or supervisory board or officer of other companies or corporations, partnerships, joint ventures, trusts or other enterprises by virtue of their functional responsibilities with the Company or any of its Subsidiaries (each of them an “Indemnified Person”, against any and all liabilities, claims, judgments, fines and penalties (the “Claims”) incurred by the Indemnified Person as a result of any threatened, pending or completed action, investigation or other proceeding, whether civil, criminal or administrative (each, a “Legal Action”), brought by any party other than the Company itself or any subsidiaries within the meaning of Section 2:24a of the Dutch Civil Code (“Subsidiaries”), in relation to acts or omissions in or related to their capacity as an Indemnified Person.
Claims will include derivative actions brought on behalf of the Company or any Subsidiaries against the Indemnified Person and Claims by the Company (or any Subsidiaries) itself for reimbursement for Claims by third parties on the ground that the Indemnified Person was jointly liable toward that third party in addition to the Company.
The Indemnified Person will not be indemnified with respect to Claims insofar as they relate to the gaining in fact of personal profits, advantages or compensation to which the Indemnified Person was not legally entitled, or if the Indemnified Person shall have been adjudged to be liable for willful misconduct (opzet) or intentional recklessness (bewuste roekeloosheid).
Any expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and litigation costs) (collectively, “Expenses”) incurred by the Indemnified Person in connection with any Legal Action shall be settled or reimbursed by the Company, but only upon receipt of a written undertaking by that Indemnified Person that they shall repay such Expenses if a competent court in an irrevocable judgment has determined that they are not entitled to be indemnified. Expenses shall be deemed to include any tax liability that the Indemnified Person may be subject to as a result of their indemnification.
In the case of a Legal Action against the Indemnified Person by the Company itself or any Subsidiary(s), the Company will settle or reimburse to the Indemnified Person their reasonable attorneys’ fees and litigation costs, but only upon receipt of a written undertaking by that Indemnified Person that they shall repay such fees and costs if a competent court in an irrevocable judgment has resolved the Legal Action in favor of the Company or the relevant Subsidiary(s) rather than the Indemnified Person.
Expenses incurred by the Indemnified Person in connection with any Legal Action will also be settled or reimbursed by the Company in advance of the final disposition of such action, but only upon receipt of a written undertaking by that Indemnified Person that they shall repay such Expenses if a competent court in an irrevocable judgment has determined that they are not entitled to be indemnified. Such Expenses incurred by Indemnified Persons may be so advanced upon such terms and conditions as the Board decides.
We have entered into indemnification agreement with each of our directors and executive officers. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors,
officers or persons controlling us pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is theretofore unenforceable.
Item 9. Exhibits
The following exhibits are included or incorporated by reference in this registration statement on Form F-3:
Exhibit Index
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Exhibit
No.
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Description
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2.1
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Business Combination Agreement, dated as of March 30, 2021, by and among Qell Acquisition Corp., Lilium GmbH, Lilium B.V. and Queen Cayman Merger LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Registration Statement on Form F-4 (Reg. No. 333-255800), filed with the SEC on May 5, 2021).
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2.2
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Amendment No. 1, dated as of July 14, 2021, to Business Combination Agreement, by and among Qell Acquisition Corp., Lilium GmbH, Lilium B.V. and Queen Cayman Merger LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.2 to the Registration Statement on Form F-4 (Reg. No. 333-255800), filed with the SEC on July 14, 2021).
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2.3
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|
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Plan of Merger (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.3 to the Registration Statement on Form F-4 (Reg. No. 333-255800), filed with the SEC on May 5, 2021).
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3.1
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|
|
English Translation of Amended Articles of Association of Lilium N.V. (Unofficial Translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.2 to the Report on Form 6-K furnished to the SEC on October 28, 2022).
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4.1
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Form of Warrant Agency Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Report on Form 6-K furnished to the SEC on November 22, 2022).
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4.2
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Form of PIPE Securities Purchase Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Report on Form 6-K furnished to the SEC on November 22, 2022).
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4.3
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|
|
Form of PIPE Warrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Report on Form 6-K furnished to the SEC on November 22, 2022).
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5.1*
|
|
|
Opinion of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.
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|
|
5.2*
|
|
|
Opinion of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP.
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8.1*
|
|
|
Opinion of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP regarding certain U.S. tax matters.
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|
8.2*
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|
|
Opinion of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP regarding certain Dutch tax matters.
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8.3*
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|
Opinion of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP regarding certain German tax matters.
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23.1*
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|
|
Consent of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1 to this Registration Statement).
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|
23.2*
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|
Consent of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP (included in Exhibit 5.2 to this Registration Statement).
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|
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23.3*
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|
|
Consent of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP (included in Exhibit 8.1 of this Registration Statement).
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23.4*
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|
|
Consent of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (included in Exhibit 8.2 to this Registration Statement).
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23.5*
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Consent of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (included in Exhibit 8.3 to this Registration Statement).
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23.6*
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Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft.
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24.1*
|
|
|
Power of Attorney (included on the signature page of this Registration Statement).
|
|
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107*
|
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|
Filing Fee Table.
|
|
*
Filed herewith.
All schedules have been omitted because they are not required, are not applicable or the information is otherwise set forth in the financial statements or notes thereto.
Item 10. Undertakings
(a) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:
(i) to include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;
(ii) to reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and
(iii) to include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement;
provided, however, that paragraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the SEC by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement, or is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) that is part of the registration statement.
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.
(4) To file a post-effective amendment to the registration statement to include any financial statements required by Item 8.A of Form 20-F at the start of any delayed offering or throughout a continuous offering. Financial statements and information otherwise required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act need not be furnished, provided that the Registrant includes in the prospectus, by means of a post-effective amendment, financial statements required pursuant to this paragraph (a)(4) and other information necessary to ensure that all other information in the prospectus is at least as current as the date of those financial statements. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a post-effective amendment need not be filed to include financial statements and information required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act or Item 8.A of Form 20-F if such financial statements and information are contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the SEC by the Registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement.
(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act to any purchaser:
(i) Each prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and
(ii) Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5) or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii) or (x) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which that prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date.
(b) The undersigned Registrant undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question of whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
(d) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that (1) for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b) (1) or (4) or 497(h) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of this registration statement as of the time it was declared effective, and (2) for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form F-3 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the city of Wessling, Germany on the 25th day of November, 2022.
LILIUM N.V.
By:
/s/ Klaus Roewe
Name:
Klaus Roewe
Title:
Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director
Power of Attorney
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below does hereby constitute and appoint Klaus Roewe and Geoffrey Richardson, and each of them singly, as his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, each with full power of substitution and re-substitution, for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this registration statement, and any subsequent registration statement filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 462(b) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and to file or cause to be filed the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the SEC, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in connection therewith and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, or their or his or her substitutes or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
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Signature
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Capacity
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Date
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/s/ Klaus Roewe
Klaus Roewe
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Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director
(Principal Executive Officer)
|
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November 25, 2022
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/s/ Geoffrey Richardson
Geoffrey Richardson
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Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
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November 25, 2022
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/s/ Henri Courpron
Henri Courpron
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Non-executive Director
|
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November 25, 2022
|
|
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/s/ Dr. Thomas Enders
Dr. Thomas Enders
|
|
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Non-executive Director
|
|
|
November 25, 2022
|
|
|
/s/ Barry Engle
Barry Engle
|
|
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Non-executive Director
|
|
|
November 25, 2022
|
|
|
/s/ David Neeleman
David Neeleman
|
|
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Non-executive Director
|
|
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November 25, 2022
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|
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Signature
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Capacity
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Date
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/s/ Margaret M. Smyth
Margaret M. Smyth
|
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Non-executive Director
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|
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November 25, 2022
|
|
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/s/ Gabrielle Toledano
Gabrielle Toledano
|
|
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Non-executive Director
|
|
|
November 25, 2022
|
|
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/s/ David Wallerstein
David Wallerstein
|
|
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Non-executive Director
|
|
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November 25, 2022
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|
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/s/ Daniel Wiegand
Daniel Wiegand
|
|
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Executive Director
|
|
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November 25, 2022
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|
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/s/ Niklas Zennström
Niklas Zennström
|
|
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Non-executive Director
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November 25, 2022
|
|
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE
Pursuant to the requirement of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the undersigned, the duly authorized undersigned representative in the United States of Lilium N.V., has signed this registration statement on the 25th day of November, 2022.
LILIUM N.V.
By:
/s/ Geoffrey Richardson
Name:
Geoffrey Richardson
Title:
Chief Financial Officer
Exhibit 5.1
Lilium N.V. |
Amsterdam |
Claude-Dornier-Straβe 1 |
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP |
Building 335 |
Strawinskylaan 10 |
82234 Wessling |
1077 XZ Amsterdam |
Germany |
Postbus 75299 |
|
1070 AG Amsterdam |
|
T +31 20 485 7000 |
|
+31 20 485 7633 (Direct) |
|
F +31 20 517 7633 |
|
E dirkjan.smit@freshfields.com |
|
www.freshfields.com |
|
|
|
Doc ID |
|
EUROPE-LEGAL-264309672/3 |
|
|
|
Our Ref |
|
DJS/MM |
|
CLIENT MATTER NO. 176386:0001 |
22 November 2022
Dear Sirs, Madams,
Lilium N.V.
Introduction
1.
We have acted as Dutch law legal advisers to Lilium N.V.
(the Company) with respect to certain matters of Netherlands law in connection with, inter alia, the issuance
and sale by the Company of (i) 54,249,995 class A ordinary shares in the capital of the Company, having a nominal value of €
0.12 per share (the Investor Shares) and (ii) warrants to acquire 27,124,993 additional Class A Ordinary Shares (the Warrants
and as exercised, the Warrant Shares, and together with the Investor Shares also referred to as the New
Securities), on such terms as set out in exhibit B of the Securities Purchase Agreements (as defined below) (the Warrant
Form) to each investor as identified on the signature pages of the Securities Purchase Agreements (as defined below) (the Investors)
on the terms and conditions set out in the securities purchase agreement dated 2 November 2022, as amended and restated on 17
November 2022 (the Amended and Restated Securities Purchase Agreement) by and among the Company and the investors
party thereto and the securities purchase agreements dated 18 November 2022 by and among the Company and the investors or business
partners party thereto, as applicable (together with the Amended and Restated Securities Purchase Agreement, the Securities
Purchase Agreements) (the Transaction). The class A ordinary shares with nominal value of EUR 0.12 each in the
capital of the Company shall hereinafter be defined as the Ordinary Shares. This opinion letter is delivered to you
upon your request.
Words and expressions defined
in paragraph 2 below shall, unless the context otherwise requires, bear the same respective meaning when used in this opinion.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with registered number OC334789. It is authorised and regulated
by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Dutch Chambers of Commerce registration number 34368197. For regulatory information please refer
to www.freshfields.com/support/legalnotice.
A list of the members (and
of the non-members who are designated as partners) of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP and their qualifications is available for inspection
at its registered office, 65 Fleet Street, London EC4Y 1HS or at the above address. Any reference to a partner means a member, or a consultant
or employee with equivalent standing and qualifications, of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP or any of its affiliated firms or entities.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP’s Amsterdam office includes attorneys, civil law notaries, tax advisers and solicitors.
Bank account:
Stg Beh Derdengld Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
LLP, ABN AMRO Bank N.V., IBAN: NLl4ABNA0256049947, BIC: ABNANL2A
Abu
Dhabi Amsterdam Bahrain Beijing Berlin Brussels Cologne Dubai Düsseldorf Frankfurt
am Main Hamburg Hanoi Ho Chi Minh City Hong Kong London Madrid Milan Munich New
York Paris Rome Shanghai Singapore Tokyo Vienna Washington
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Documents reviewed
2. | In
connection with the Transaction, we have examined the following documents: |
(a) | the registration statement on Form
F-3 under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act),
as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission)
on 3 October 2022 (the Original Registration Statement); and |
(b) | the
Prospectus Supplement to the prospectus contained in the Original Registration Statement,
as filed with the Commission on 22 November 2022 (the Prospectus Supplement and,
together with the Original Registration Statement, referred to as the Registration
Statement); |
(c) | an
electronic copy of an extract from the commercial register of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce
(the Commercial Register) dated 22 November 2022 relating to the Company, and
confirmed upon our request by the Commercial Register by telephone to be correct in all material
respects on the date hereof (the Extract); |
(d) | a
scanned copy of the deed of incorporation of the Company (at the time named Qell DutchCo
B.V.) dated 11 March 2021 (the Deed of Incorporation); |
(e) | a
scanned copy of the deed of partial amendment of the articles of association of the Company
(akte van partiële statutenwijziging) dated 8 April 2021, pursuant to which amendment
the name of the Company was changed into Lilium B.V.; |
(f) | a
scanned copy of a deed of conversion and amendment (akte van omzetting en statutenwijziging)
dated 10 September 2021 relating to the conversion of the legal form of the Company from
a company with limited liability (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid)
into a public company (naamloze vennootschap) and amendment of the articles of
association (statuten) of the Company; |
(g) | a
scanned copy of the deed of partial amendment of the articles of association of the Company
(akte van partiële statutenwijziging) dated 28 October 2022 (the Deed of Amendment); |
(h) | a scanned copy of
a certified copy of the full text of the articles of association of the Company as they read
as per the Deed of Amendment, which, according to the Extract, are the Company’s articles
of association currently in force and effect (the Articles of Association); |
(i) | a
copy of the shareholders’ register of the Company; |
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(j) | scanned
copies of the signed: |
| (i) | resolution
of the general meeting of the Company dated 10 September 2021 (the Shareholder’s Resolution)
relating to, inter alia, the designation of the board of directors of the
Company (the Board) (a) to issue (or to grant rights to subscribe for) class
A ordinary shares and class B ordinary shares in the capital of the Company up to
a maximum of 25% of the outstanding capital after the Deeds of Issue (as defined in the Shareholder’s
Resolution) became effective (i.e., on 14 September 2021) for a period of 5 years as of the
date of the Shareholder’s Resolution and (b) to limit or exclude pre-emptive rights with
regard to such issuances of (or rights to subscribe for) class A ordinary shares and class
B ordinary shares in the capital of the Company pursuant to the delegation referred to above
under (a); |
| (ii) | minutes
of the general meeting of the Company dated 27 October 2022 (the General Meeting) relating
to, inter alia, the designation of the Board (a) to issue (or to grant rights to subscribe
for) class A ordinary shares in the capital of the Company up to a maximum of 25% of the
outstanding capital at the date of the General Meeting for a period of 24 months from the
General Meeting and (b) to limit or exclude the statutory pre-emptive rights with regard
to such issuances of (or rights to subscribe for) class A ordinary shares in the capital
of the Company pursuant to the delegation referred to above under (a); |
| (iii) | unanimous
resolution of the Board dated 31 October 2022 (Board Resolution); |
| (iv) | extract
of the minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 16 November 2022 (Board Minutes);
and |
| (v) | unanimous
resolution of the Pricing Committee of the Board dated 18 November 2022. |
| (i) | the
signed instruction notice on behalf of the Company to Continental Stock Transfer & Trust
Company (as transfer agent) relating to the issuance and delivery of the Investor Shares;
and |
| (ii) | the
bank statements as referred to in Section 2:93a paragraphs 2 and 6 of the Dutch Civil Code
issued by Deutsche Bank AG dated 21 November 2022 and 22 November 2022 in connection with
the payment of the Investor Shares; and |
(l) | scanned
copies of the signed Securities Purchase Agreements, including the Warrant Form. |
The documents referred to above in
items (a) to (l) (inclusive) are herein referred to as the Documents; the documents referred to above in items (b) to (i)
(inclusive) are herein referred to as the Corporate Documents; the documents referred to above in item (i) are herein referred
to as the Resolutions; the documents referred to above in item (l) are herein referred to as the Opinion Documents.
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Nature of Opinion and Observations
3. | This letter is subject to the following
nature of opinion and observations: |
(a) | Dutch Law: this opinion
is confined to the laws with general applicability (wettelijke regels met algemene gelding)
of the Netherlands and, insofar as they are directly applicable in the Netherlands, the
European Union, all as they stand as at the date hereof and as such laws are currently interpreted
in published authoritative case law of the courts of the Netherlands (Dutch law);
accordingly, we express no opinion with regard to any other system of law (including the
law of jurisdictions other than the Netherlands in which our firm has an office), even in
cases where, in accordance with Dutch law, any foreign law should be applied; furthermore,
we do not express any opinion on public international law or on the rules of or promulgated
under any treaty or by any treaty organisation (except as otherwise stated above); |
(b) | Changes in Law: we express
no opinion that the future or continued performance of a party’s obligations or the consummation
of the transactions contemplated by the Opinion Documents will not contravene Dutch law,
its application or interpretation if altered in the future; |
(c) | Territory
of the Netherlands: all references in this opinion letter and its schedules to the
Netherlands and Dutch law are to the European part of the Netherlands and its law, respectively,
only; |
(d) | Factual Statements: we
have not been responsible for investigating or verifying the accuracy of the facts (or statements
of foreign law) or the reasonableness of any statements of opinion or intention contained
in any documents, or for verifying that no material facts or provisions have been omitted
therefrom; nor have we verified the accuracy of any assumption made in this opinion letter
other than as explicitly stated in this opinion letter; |
(e) | Representations: we
express no opinion as to the correctness of any representation given by any of the parties
(express or implied) under or by virtue of the Documents, save if and insofar as the matters
represented are the subject matter of a specific opinion herein; |
(f) | Effects of Opinion: the
opinions expressed in this opinion letter have no bearing on declarations made, opinions
expressed or statements of a similar nature made by any of the parties in the Opinion Documents; |
(g) | Nature of Investigations: in
rendering this opinion we have exclusively examined the Documents and we have conducted such
investigations of Dutch law as we have deemed necessary or advisable for the purpose of giving
this opinion letter; as to matters of fact we have relied on the Documents and any other
document we have deemed relevant, and on statements or certificates of public officials; |
(h) | Formulae
and Cash Flows: we have not been responsible for verifying the accuracy or correctness
of any formula or ratio (whether expressed in words or symbols) or financial schedule contained
in the Documents, or any cash flow model used or to be used in connection with the transactions
contemplated thereby, or whether such formula, ratio, financial schedule or cash flow model
appropriately reflects the commercial arrangements between the parties; |
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(i) | Tax:
we express no opinion in respect of the tax treatment of the Documents or the Transaction;
you have not relied on any advice from us in relation to the tax implications of the Documents
or the Transaction for any person, whether in the Netherlands or any other jurisdiction,
or the suitability of any tax provisions in the Documents; |
(j) | Operational
Licenses: we have not investigated whether the Company has obtained any of the operational
licences, permits and consents which it may require for the purpose of carrying on its business
(including, unless such licence, permit and/or consent is the subject of an opinion herein,
the Transaction); |
(k) | Anti-trust:
we have not considered whether the transactions contemplated by the Opinion Documents
comply with civil, regulatory or criminal anti-trust, cartel, competition, public procurement
or state aid laws, nor whether any filings, clearances, notifications or disclosures are
required or advisable under such laws; |
(l) | Data
Protection / Insider Trading: we express no opinion on any data protection
or insider trading laws of any jurisdiction (including the Netherlands); |
(m) | Legal
Concepts: Dutch legal concepts are expressed in English terms in this opinion letter
and not in their original Dutch terms; the concepts concerned may not be identical to the
concepts described by the same English terms as they exist in the laws of other jurisdictions; |
(n) | Governing
Law: this opinion and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in relation
to this opinion are governed by Dutch law;1 and |
(o) | Date
of Opinion: this opinion speaks as of the date hereof; no obligation is assumed to
update this opinion or to inform any person of any changes of law or other matters coming
to our knowledge and occurring after the date hereof, which may affect this opinion in any
respect. |
Opinion
4. On
the basis stated in paragraph 3, and subject to the assumptions in Schedule 1, the qualifications in Schedule 2 and any factual matters,
documents or events not disclosed to us, we are of the opinion that (i) the Company has been duly incorporated as a private company with
limited liability (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) and is existing as a public company (naamloze vennootschap)
under Dutch law, (ii) the Investor Shares have been duly authorised, validly issued and are fully paid and non-assessable and (iii)
upon the exercise of the Warrants in accordance with the Warrant Form, the Warrant Shares when issued by the Company will have been duly
authorised, validly issued and when paid in accordance with the terms of the Warrant Form (and following issuance of a bank statement
as referred to in Section 2:93a paragraph 2 and 6 of the Dutch Civil Code) will be fully paid and non-assessable.
1 The general terms and conditions of Freshfields
Bruckhaus Deringer LLP can be found at www.freshfields.com.
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Benefit of opinion
5. This
opinion is addressed to you in relation to and as an exhibit to the Company’s Registration Statement and, except with our prior written
consent, is not to be transmitted or disclosed to any other person, other than as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and is not
to be used or relied upon by you or by any other person for any purpose other than in connection with the filing of the Registration
Statement.
6.
This opinion letter and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in relation to this opinion are governed by the laws of
the Netherlands. Every situation concerning the legal relationship between yourself and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, the
above submission to jurisdiction included, is governed by the general terms of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.2
7.
We hereby consent to the filing of this legal opinion letter as an exhibit to the Registration Statement. In giving the consent set out
in the previous sentence, we do not thereby admit or imply that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section
7 of the Securities Act or any rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder.
Yours faithfully,
/s/ Freshfields Bruckhaus
Deringer LLP
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
LLP
2 The general
terms and conditions of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP can be found at www.freshfields.com.
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Schedule 1
ASSUMPTIONS
In considering the Documents
and in rendering this opinion we have (with your consent and, unless specifically stated otherwise, without any further enquiry) assumed
that:
(a) | Authenticity:
all (electronic) signatures, stamps and seals on all documents in connection with
this opinion ((whether as originals as copies or electronically) are genuine and all such
documents are authentic, accurate and complete; |
(b) | Copies: all documents
retrieved by us or supplied to us electronically (whether in portable document format (PDF)
or as scanned copies), as photocopies, facsimile copies or e-mail conformed copies are in
conformity with the originals; |
(c) | Drafts: Documents examined
by us in draft form have been or, as the case may be, will be executed in the form of the
drafts examined by us; |
(d) | No Amendments:
the Opinion Documents have since its execution not been amended, supplemented, rescinded,
terminated by any of the parties thereto or declared null and void by a competent court; |
(e) | Deed of Incorporation: the
Deed of Incorporation is a valid notarial deed (authentieke akte), the contents of
which were correct and complete as of the date thereof and there were no defects in the incorporation
of the Company (not appearing on the face of the Deed of Incorporation) on the basis of which
a court might dissolve the Company or deem it has never existed; |
(f) | Registration: the Registration
Statement has been or will have been filed with the SEC and declared effective pursuant to
the Securities Act; |
(g) | Corporate Documents: at
the time when any Corporate Document was signed, each person who is a party to or signatory
of that Corporate Document (other than the Company), as applicable (i) had been validly
incorporated, was validly existing and, to the extent relevant in such party’s jurisdiction,
in good standing under the laws applicable to such party, (ii) had all requisite power, authority
and legal capacity to sign that Corporate Document and to perform all juridical acts (rechtshandelingen)
and other actions contemplated thereby and (iii) has validly signed that Corporate Document; |
(h) | Extract: the information
set forth in the Extract, is accurate and complete on today’s date and the factual statements
from the Company in relation to the total issued and outstanding capital of the Company are
accurate and complete on today’s date; |
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(i) | No Insolvency:
(i) the Company has not been declared bankrupt (failliet verklaard), (ii)
the Company has not been granted a (provisional) suspension of payments ((voorlopige)
surseance van betaling), (iii) the Company has not become subject to a (confidential
or public) pre-insolvency private plan procedure (onderhands akkoordprocedure), (iv)
the Company has not become subject to any of the other insolvency proceedings (together with
the proceedings in paragraph (i)(i) and (i)(ii) referred to as the Insolvency Proceedings)
referred to in section 1(1) of Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of 20 May 2015 on insolvency
proceedings (recast) (the Insolvency Regulation), (v) the Company has not been
dissolved (ontbonden), (vi) the Company has not ceased to exist pursuant to a legal
merger or demerger (juridische fusie of splitsing), and (vii) no order for the administration
(bewind) of the assets of the Company has been made; these assumptions are supported
by our enquiries today with the Commercial Register, the online EU Insolvency register (EU
Insolventieregister) and the court in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and The Hague, the Netherlands,
which have not revealed any information that any such event has occurred with respect to
the Company; however, such enquiries are not conclusive evidence that no such events have
occurred; additionally, in the event a confidential pre-insolvency private plan procedure
(onderhands akkoordprocedure) as referred to in paragraph (i)(iii) should occur with
respect to the Company, the above-mentioned registers will not make notice of such procedure; |
(j) | Articles of Association: the
Articles of Association have not been amended. |
(k) | Resolutions:
the Resolutions (including the power of attorney in the Board Resolution and the
Board Minutes) have not been revoked (ingetrokken) or amended and have not been and
will not be declared null and void by a competent court and the Resolutions have not been,
and will not be, amended, revoked (ingetrokken), terminated or declared null and void
by a competent court and the factual statements and confirmations set out in the Resolutions
are true and correct; |
(l) | Corporate
Benefit: the entering into the Opinion Documents and the transactions contemplated
thereby are in the corporate interests (vennootschappelijk belang) of the Company; |
(m) | No Conflict of Interest: Geoffrey
Richardson nor any of those members of the Board (in whatever capacity) who have participated
in the meeting of the Board held on 16 November 2022 as evidenced by the Board Minutes, has
a direct or indirect personal conflict of interest with the Company (een direct of indirect
persoonlijk belang dat strijdig is met het belang van de vennootschap en de met haar verbonden
onderneming) in relation to the transactions contemplated by the Opinion Documents; |
(n) | Works Council: no works
council (ondernemingsraad) has been instituted with jurisdiction (and the authority
to render advice) in respect of the Company and/or the transactions contemplated by the Opinion
Documents, nor has any person working for any enterprise (onderneming, as defined
in the Dutch Works Councils Act (Wet op de ondernemingsraden)) of the Company (whether
employee or not) at any time made a request to the board of directors of the Company that
any works council be installed; |
(o) | Financial
Supervision Act: the Company is not required to be licensed pursuant to the Dutch
Financial Supervision Act (Wet op het financieel toezicht); |
(p) | Due Execution: the (electronic)
signature appearing on the Opinion Documents on behalf of the Company is the (electronic)
signature of Geoffrey Richardson; |
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(q) | Signing under
Power of Attorney: under any applicable law (other than Dutch law) governing the
existence and extent of Geoffrey Richardson’s authority towards third parties (as determined
pursuant to and in accordance with the rules of The Hague Convention of 14 March 1978 on
the Laws Applicable to Agency), the power of attorney included in the Board Resolution and
the Board Minutes authorising Geoffrey Richardson creates valid and legally binding obligations
for the Company towards any of the other parties to the Opinion Documents as a result of
Geoffrey Richardson acting as attorney for and on behalf of the Company; |
(r) | Other Parties - Corporate
Capacity/Approval: each of the parties to the Opinion Documents (other than the Company)
(i) has been validly incorporated, is validly existing and, to the extent relevant in such
party’s jurisdiction, in good standing under the laws applicable to such party, (ii) has
the power, capacity and authority to enter into, execute and deliver the Opinion Documents
to which it is a party and to exercise its rights and perform its obligations thereunder,
and (iii) has duly authorised and validly executed and, to the extent relevant, delivered
the Opinion Documents; |
(s) | Anti-terrorism, Money Laundering:
the parties to the Opinion Documents comply with all applicable anti-terrorism, anti-corruption,
anti-money laundering, sanctions and human rights laws and regulations, and the performance
or enforcement of the Opinion Documents is consistent with all such laws and regulations;
without providing conclusive evidence, this assumption is supported by our online enquiry
with the registers referred to in Sections 2:20(3) and 10:123 of the Dutch Civil Code finalised
today confirming that the Company is not listed on any such list; |
(t) | No Director Disqualification:
none of the directors of the Company is subject to a civil law director disqualification
(civielrechtelijk bestuursverbod) imposed by a court under articles 106a to 106e
of the Dutch Bankruptcy Act (Faillissementswet) (as amended by the Directors disqualification
act (Wet civielrechtelijk bestuursverbod)); although not providing conclusive evidence
thereof, this assumption is supported by (i) the confirmation of the directors included in
the Board Resolution and the Board Minutes and (ii) our enquiries today with the Commercial
Register; and |
(u) | Shares: the issue, offering,
sale, transfer, payment and delivery of the New Securities, each distribution (electronically
or otherwise) of any circulars, documents or information relating to the Company and/or the
New Securities and any and all invitations, offers, offer advertisements, publications and
other documents relating to the Transaction have been and will continue to be made in conformity
with the provisions of the Opinion Documents and the Registration Statement. |
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Schedule 2
QUALIFICATIONS
Our opinion is subject to the
following qualifications:
(a) | Insolvency Proceedings: a
confirmation derived from an insolvency register does not provide conclusive evidence that
an entity is not subject to any insolvency proceedings as defined in the Insolvency Regulation
or otherwise; |
(b) | Creditor
Action: our opinions with respect to the validity or enforceability of the Opinion
Documents or any legal act (rechtshandeling) forming part thereof or contemplated
thereby are subject to and limited by the protection afforded by Dutch law to creditors whose
interests have been adversely affected pursuant to the rules of Dutch law relating to (i)
unlawful acts (onrechtmatige daden) based on section 6:162 et seq. of the Dutch Civil
Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek) and (ii) fraudulent conveyance or preference (actio pauliana)
within the meaning of section 3:45 of the Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek) and/or
section 42 et seq. of the Dutch Bankruptcy Act (Faillissementswet); |
(c) | Foreign Documents: the
opinion and other statements expressed herein relating to the Opinion Documents are subject
to the qualification that as Dutch lawyers we are not qualified or able to assess the true
meaning and purport under applicable law (other than Dutch law) of the terms of the Opinion
Documents and the obligations thereunder of the parties thereto, and we have made no investigation
of such meaning and purport; our review of the Opinion Documents and any other documents
subject or expressed to be subject to any law other than Dutch law has therefore been limited
to the terms of such documents as they appear to us on the basis of such review and only
in respect of any involvement of Dutch law; |
(d) | Sanctions Act 1977:
the Sanctions Act 1977 (Sanctiewet 1977) and regulations promulgated thereunder, or
international sanctions, may limit the enforceability of the Opinion Documents; |
(e) | Non-assessable: in
absence of an equivalent Dutch legal term for the term “non-assessable” as used
in this opinion letter and for the purposes of this opinion letter, non-assessable means
that no holder of Ordinary Shares can be required to pay any amount in addition to the amount
required for such share to be fully paid as provided for by Section 2:81 of the Dutch Civil
Code; and |
(f) | Commercial Register: an
extract from the Commercial Register does not provide conclusive evidence that the facts
set out in it are correct. However, under the 2007 Trade Register Act (Handelsregisterwet
2007), subject to limited exceptions, a legal entity cannot invoke the incorrectness
or incompleteness of its Commercial Register information against third parties who were unaware
of the incorrectness or incompleteness. |
Exhibit 5.2
Lilium
N.V.
Claude Dornier Straße 1
Bldg. 335, 82234
Wessling, Germany |
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![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex5-2img001.jpg) |
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New York |
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601 Lexington Avenue, 31st Floor |
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New York, NY 10022 |
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T +1 (212) 277-4000 |
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www.freshfields.com |
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November 25, 2022
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We
are acting as United States counsel to Lilium N.V., a Dutch public limited liability company (the Company), in connection
with the registration statement on Form F-3 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission)
on November 25, 2022 (as it may be amended and supplemented after the initial filing date, the Registration Statement,
which term does not include any other document or agreement whether or not specifically referred to therein or attached as an exhibit
or schedule thereto), relating to the registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act),
of (i) 69,024,938 Class A ordinary shares, nominal value €0.12 per share (the Class A Shares and, the
registered Class A Shares, the Shares), (ii) warrants to purchase 34,512,464 Class A Shares (the Warrants)
sold by the Company pursuant to various securities purchase agreements (the Securities Purchase Agreements) by and among
the Company and the investors named therein and (iii) and 34,512,464 Class A Shares which may be issued upon the exercise of
the Warrants.
The opinion expressed herein is confined to the
law of the State of New York, as currently in effect. Accordingly, we express no opinion herein with regard to any other laws. The opinion
expressed herein is limited to the matters stated herein, and no opinion is implied or may be inferred beyond the matters expressly stated
herein. We do not undertake to advise you of changes in law or facts that may come to our attention after the date of this letter.
Insofar as the opinion expressed herein relates
to or is dependent upon matters governed by the law of The Netherlands, we have relied upon the opinion dated on or about the date hereof
of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, which opinion is being filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement.
In rendering the opinion expressed below, we
have examined the following documents and agreements:
| (a) | the form of the Securities Purchase
Agreements and the form of Warrant attached thereto (the Form of Warrant); |
| (b) | the warrant agency agreement, dated
as of November 18, 2022 (the Warrant Agreement and, together with
the Form of Warrant, the Warrant Documents), between the Company and Continental
Stock Transfer & Trust Company (Continental); and |
| (c) | the Registration Statement. |
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex5-2img002.jpg)
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is an international legal practice
operating through Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (a partnership
registered in Hong Kong), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Law office, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Foreign Law Office, Studio Legale
associato a Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater PartG mbB, Freshfields Bruckhaus
Deringer Rechtsanwälte PartG mbB and other associated entities and undertakings. For further regulatory information please refer
to www.freshfields.com/support/legal-notice.
In addition, we have examined and have relied as to matters of fact upon such corporate and other records, agreements, documents and other
instruments and certificates or comparable documents of public officials and of officers and representatives of the Company and such other
persons, and we have made such other investigations, as we have deemed relevant and necessary as a basis for the opinion expressed below.
In our examination, we have assumed the genuineness
of all signatures, the legal capacity of natural persons, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals and the conformity
with authentic originals of all documents submitted to us as copies. As to any facts material to the opinion expressed herein that we
did not independently establish or verify, we have relied, without independent verification, upon the representations and warranties
contained in the Securities Purchase Agreements, and oral or written statements and representations of public officials, officers and
other representatives of the Company. We have also assumed that the Warrant Documents have been duly authorized, executed and delivered
by the parties thereto.
Based
upon the foregoing, and subject to the limitations, qualifications and assumptions set forth herein, we are of the opinion that, assuming
that (i) the Warrants have been duly authorized by the Company,
and (ii) the Warrant Agreement constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of Continental, the Warrant Agreement and the
Warrants constitute valid and legally binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms.
Our opinion above is subject to (i) (a) the
effects of bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance or transfer or other similar laws relating to or
affecting the rights of creditors generally, (b) the possible judicial application of foreign laws or governmental action affecting
the rights of creditors generally and (c) the application of general principles of equity (regardless of whether considered in a
proceeding in equity or at law), including without limitation (1) the possible unavailability of specific performance, injunctive
relief or any other equitable remedy and (2) concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing, and (ii) limitations
on the right to indemnity and contribution under applicable law and public policy.
In addition, we express no opinion as to (i) the
validity, legally binding effect or enforceability of (a) any waiver of immunity, (b) any waiver of a right to trial by jury,
(c) any waiver of inconvenient forum set forth in the Warrant Documents and the Warrants or (d) any provisions relating to
partial unenforceability contained in the Warrant Documents or (ii) (a) whether a federal or state court outside New York would
give effect to any choice of law provided for in the Warrant Documents and the Warrants or (b) any provisions of the Warrant Documents
and the Warrants that relate to the subject matter jurisdiction of the federal or state courts of a particular jurisdiction to adjudicate
any controversy related to the Warrant Documents and the Warrants or the transactions contemplated thereby.
The opinion expressed in this letter is solely
for your benefit and the benefit of persons entitled to rely thereon pursuant to applicable provisions of the Securities Act and the
rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder, in connection with the Registration Statement, and may not be relied
upon in any manner or used for any purpose by any other person or entity.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion
letter with the Commission as Exhibit 5.2 to the Registration Statement and further consent to the reference to our name under the
caption “Legal Matters” in the prospectus which is a part of the Registration Statement. In giving this consent, we do not
hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act.
/s/ Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP
Exhibit 8.1
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Washington, DC |
Lilium N.V.
Claude-Dornier-Straße 1
Bldg. 335, 82234
Wessling, Germany |
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700 13th Street, NW, 10th Floor Washington, DC 20005
Claude Stansbury T +1 (202) 777-4500
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freshfields.us |
November 25, 2022
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as special U.S. federal income
tax counsel to Lilium N.V., a Dutch public limited liability company (the “Company,” “you,” “your”
or similar terms), in connection with the preparation and filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”)
of a registration statement on Form F-3 , under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), relating
to (a) the offer and sale from time to time by the selling securityholders of up to 103,537,405 shares of the Company’s class
A ordinary shares, nominal value €0.12 per share (the “Class A Shares”) and (b) up to 34,512,466 warrants
to purchase Class A Shares at an exercise price of $1.30 per share (the “Warrants”). The registration statement on Form F-3,
filed on November 25, 2022, together with all exhibits thereto is herein called the “Registration Statement”. You have
requested our opinion concerning the statements in the Registration Statement under the heading “Taxation – Material U.S.
Federal Income Tax Considerations for U.S. Holders”.
In rendering our opinion, we have reviewed the
Registration Statement and the Company’s audited financial statements as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 and for each of the
three years in the period ended December 31, 2021, including the accompanying notes, incorporated by reference into the Registration
Statement and participated in discussions with officers and representatives of the Company and representatives of the independent registered
public accounting firm for the Company, at which discussions the contents of these documents were discussed.
In addition, we have examined and relied as to
matters of fact upon the Registration Statement and such corporate and other records, agreements, documents and other instruments and
certificates or comparable documents of public officials and of officers and representatives of the Company and such other persons, and
we have made such other investigations, as we have deemed relevant and necessary in order to enable us to render this opinion. Our opinion
is conditioned on the initial and continuing accuracy of the facts, information and analyses set forth in the Registration Statement
and such other documents.
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex8-1img002.jpg)
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is an international
legal practice operating through Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
(a partnership registered in Hong Kong), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Law office, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Foreign Law Office,
Studio Legale associato a Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater PartG mbB,
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte PartG mbB and other associated entities and undertakings. For further regulatory information
please refer to www.freshfields.com/support/legal-notice.
In rendering the opinion set forth below, we
have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the legal capacity of natural persons, the authenticity of all documents submitted to
us as originals and the conformity with authentic originals of all documents submitted to us as copies. As to any facts material to the
opinions expressed herein that we did not independently establish or verify, we have relied, without independent verification, upon oral
or written statements and representations of public officials, officers and other representatives of the Company. We have also assumed
that the Registration Statement will be declared effective by order of the Commission and will remain effective at the time the Class A
Shares and Warrants are issued. The purpose of our engagement was not to establish or confirm factual matters set forth in the Registration
Statement and we have not undertaken any obligation to verify independently any of the factual matters set forth in those documents.
Moreover, many of the determinations required to be made in the preparation of such documents involve judgments that are primarily of
a non-legal nature. Any inaccuracy in any of the aforementioned assumptions could adversely affect our opinion.
Our opinion is based on existing provisions of
the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, U.S. Treasury Regulations promulgated thereunder, administrative and judicial decisions,
and rulings and other pronouncements of the Internal Revenue Service as in effect on the date of this opinion, all of which are subject
to change (possibly with retroactive effect) or reinterpretation. No assurances can be given that a change in the law on which our opinion
is based or the interpretation thereof will not occur or that such change will not affect the opinion expressed herein. We undertake
no responsibility to advise of any such developments in the law.
Based upon our examination and subject to the
qualifications set forth in this letter, and subject to the qualifications, exceptions, assumptions and limitations set forth in the
Registration Statement, we are of the opinion that the statements set forth in the Registration Statement under the heading “Taxation
– Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations for U.S. Holders,” insofar as such statements constitute descriptions of
or conclusions with respect to United States federal income tax law, are correct in all material respects. Notwithstanding the foregoing,
we do not express any opinion herein with respect to the Company’s status as a passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”)
for United States federal income tax purposes for any taxable year, for the reasons stated in the discussion on PFICs set forth in the
Registration Statement under the heading “Taxation – Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations for U.S. Holders –
Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules.”
Our opinion is limited to the federal income
tax law of the United States and to the issues specifically addressed in this letter. We express no opinion on any other laws, we intimate
no view on any other matter that may be relevant to your interests and we do not undertake to advise you of changes in law or fact that
may come to our attention after the date of this letter. This letter speaks only as of its date, and we assume no obligation to advise
you or any other person of any change in law or fact that occurs after the date of this opinion letter, even though such change may affect
the legal analysis or legal conclusion expressed in this letter. We also caution you that our opinions depend upon the facts, assumptions
and representations to which this letter refers, and our conclusions could differ if those facts and assumptions were found to be different.
Should the United States Internal Revenue Service take a position inconsistent with our conclusions, there can be no assurance that it
will not prevail.
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex8-1img002.jpg)
This letter is furnished by us to you solely
in connection with the Registration Statement. The opinion expressed in this letter is solely for your benefit and the benefit of persons
entitled to rely thereon pursuant to applicable provisions of the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission
promulgated thereunder, and may not be used, quoted, relied upon in any manner or otherwise referred to for any other purpose by any
other person or entity.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion
with the Commission as Exhibit 8.1 to the Registration Statement. In giving this consent, we do not thereby admit that we are in
the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act, or the rules and regulations of the
Commission.
Sincerely,
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP |
|
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex8-1img002.jpg)
Exhibit 8.2
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex8-2img001.jpg)
Lilium N.V.
Claude-Dornier-Straße 1
Building 335
82234 Wessling
Germany
|
Amsterdam
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
Strawinskylaan 10
1077 XZ Amsterdam
Postbus 75299
1070 AG Amsterdam
T +31 20 485 7000
+31 20 485 7635 (Direct)
F +31 20 517 7635
E eelco.vanderstok@freshfields.com
www.freshfields.com
Doc ID
US-LEGAL-11598118/3
Our Ref
176386-0007 E |
25 November 2022
Dear Sirs, Madams,
Netherlands tax opinion
We have acted as special counsel on certain matters
of Dutch tax law to Lilium N.V. (the Company) in connection with the registration statement on Form F-3 filed with
the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on 25 November 2022 for the registration of (i) Class A
ordinary shares of the Company, nominal value €0.12 per share (the Class A Shares and, such Class A Shares
as may be issued pursuant to the exercise of certain warrants of the Company, as described in the Registration Statement (as defined below),
the Registered Shares), and (ii) certain warrants to purchase Class A Shares (the Warrants) as described
in the Registration Statement.
This opinion letter is delivered to you pursuant
to your request.
In rendering this opinion, we have examined a
scanned copy of the registration statement on Form F-3 under the Securities Act, as filed with the SEC on 25 November 2022 (the
Registration Statement).
This opinion letter is strictly limited to the
matters expressly stated in it and may not be read as an opinion on the legal validity and/or the binding nature under Dutch law of the
Registration Statement or any matter not specifically referred to in this opinion. We have assumed that all the facts, representations
or warranties contained in the Registration Statement are correct. Consequently, we did not examine the correctness of any of these and
we do not express an opinion in that respect. We have also assumed that the Company is, and will remain, solely resident in Germany for
purposes of the 2012 Convention between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of the Netherlands for the avoidance of double
taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a limited liability partnership
registered in England and Wales with registered number OC334789. It is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Dutch Chambers of Commerce registration number 34368197. For regulatory information please refer to www.freshfields.com/support/legalnotice.
A list of the members (and of the non-members who are designated as
partners) of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is available for inspection at its registered office, 100 Bishopsgate, London EC2P 2SR
or at the above address. Any reference to a partner means a member, or a consultant or employee with equivalent standing and qualifications,
of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP or any of its affiliated firms or entities. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP’s Amsterdam
office includes attorneys, civil law notaries, tax advisers and solicitors.
Bank Account:
Stg Beh Derdengld Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, ABN AMRO Bank N.V., IBAN: NL14ABNA0256049947, BIC: ABNANL2A
2ï3
This opinion is furthermore limited to laws, treaties
and regulatory interpretations in effect in the Netherlands on the date of this opinion and as they are generally construed and applied
according to the current published case law of the Dutch courts, authorities and administrative rulings. These laws, treaties and regulations
are subject to change, including changes that could have retroactive effect, as a result of which the correctness and accuracy of the
content of this opinion may be affected. We will nevertheless not update and/or modify this opinion, not even in case of possible and
relevant modifications to the Dutch tax laws, unless you specifically request us to do so in writing after such a modification should
have occurred.
All the (English) legal concepts and terms used
in this opinion are moreover deemed to refer to Dutch legal concepts and should therefore be interpreted following the corresponding Dutch
tax concepts.
All references in this opinion letter to
the Netherlands and Dutch law are to the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and its law, respectively, only.
This opinion and any non-contractual obligations
arising out of or in relation to this opinion are governed by Dutch law, and the courts of Amsterdam (the Netherlands) shall have exclusive
jurisdiction, to which you and we submit, in relation to all disputes (including claims for set-off and counterclaims) arising out of
or in connection with this opinion, including (without limitation) in connection with (i) the creation, effect or interpretation
of, or the legal relationships established by, this opinion; and (ii) any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in relation
to this opinion. Every situation concerning the legal relationship between yourself and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, the above
submission to jurisdiction included, is governed by the general terms of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.1
Based upon and subject to the foregoing and any
factual matters, documents or events not disclosed to us, the statements contained in the Registration Statement under the heading “Material
Dutch Tax Considerations” constitute our opinion and are a true and accurate summary of the material Dutch tax consequences of the
acquisition, ownership and disposal of Registered Shares and the acquisition, ownership, disposal and exercise of Warrants to the holders
of Registered Shares and/or Warrants described therein.
1
The general terms and conditions of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP can be found at www.freshfields.com.
3ï3
This opinion is addressed to you in relation to
and as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and, except with our prior written consent, is not to be transmitted or disclosed to any
other person, other than as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and is not to be used or relied upon by you or by any other person
for any purpose other than in connection with the filing of the Registration Statement.
We hereby consent to the filing of this legal
opinion letter as an exhibit to the Registration Statement. In giving the consent set out in the previous sentence, we do not thereby
admit or imply that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or any rules and
regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder.
Yours faithfully |
|
/s/ Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP |
Exhibit 8.3
Lilium N.V.
Claude Dornier Straße 1 Bldg. 335 82234 Wessling Germany |
München
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater PartG
mbB
Maximiliansplatz 13
80333 München
T +49
89 20 70 20 (Zentrale)
+49 89 20702339 (Durchwahl)
F +49
89 20 70 21 00
E david.beutel@freshfields.com
www.freshfields.com
Our Ref
176386-0007 DBE |
25 November 2022
German Tax Opinion
Dear Sir or Madam,
We are acting as legal advisor of Lilium N.V.,
a public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) incorporated under the laws of the Netherlands, with its registered
seat in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, registered with the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel) under number 82165874,
having its business address at Claude-Dornier Straße 1, Bldg. 335, 82234, Wessling, Germany (the Company), in
respect of certain matters of German tax law in connection with the filing of a Form F-3 registration statement under the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended, regarding the sale and issuance, as applicable, of up to 69,024,938 class A ordinary shares with a nominal value
of EUR 0.12 each (the Class A Shares), up to 34,512,464 Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of warrants
and up to 34,512,464 warrants prepared by the Company and filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC)
on 25 November 2022 (the Registration Statement).
In this capacity, we have been requested to provide
a tax opinion regarding the section “Material German Tax Considerations” of the Registration Statement (the Opinion)
which we provide below.
We have solely examined a scanned copy of the
Registration Statement, as filed with the SEC on 25 November 2022.
In considering the documents provided to us and
rendering this Opinion we have assumed without further inquiry that:
| a) | all copies of documents provided to us conform to the relevant originals and that all documents submitted
to us whether as originals or as copies are authentic and complete; |
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater Partnerschaftsgesellschaft
mit beschränkter Berufshaftung (Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater PartG mbB) has its seat in Frankfurt
am Main and is registered with the partnership register of the Amtsgericht Frankfurt am Main with registered number PR 2677. For further
regulatory information please refer to www.freshfields.com/support/legalnotice.
A list of all members of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte
Steuerberater PartG mbB is available on request. The reference to "partners" means members of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater PartG mbB as well as consultants and employees of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte
Steuerberater PartG mbB with equivalent standing and qualifications who are not members of the partnership.
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex8-3img002.jpg) |
Confidential |
2ï3 |
| b) | the Company is, and will remain, solely resident in Germany for purposes of (i) the 2012 Convention
between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of the Netherlands for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of
fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and (ii) the German tax laws currently in force; |
| c) | there are no factual matters and documents not disclosed to us in the course of our examination that would
affect any opinion expressed in this Opinion; and |
| d) | all factual matters identified in the Registration Statement are accurate and complete. |
The undersigned is a member of the bar association
(Rechtsanwaltskammer) in Munich, Germany, and licensed as an attorney (Rechtsanwalt) in Germany. This Opinion is, therefore,
limited to matters of German law as presently in effect. We have not investigated and do not express or imply any opinion with respect
to the laws of any other jurisdiction.
Based upon and subject to the foregoing and the
observations set out below, we are of the opinion that:
The statements set forth in the Registration Statement
under the section with the caption “Material German Tax Considerations”, insofar as such statements purport to constitute
a description or summary of the legal issues or legal provisions referred to therein, represent fair descriptions or summaries of such
issues or provisions and are correct in all material respects.
With your approval we have not been responsible
for investigating or verifying the accuracy of any facts, or statements of foreign law, nor the reasonableness of any statements of opinion
contained in the documents provided to us. Moreover, we have not conducted any investigation of factual matters for the purposes of this
Opinion and our opinion does not purport to express or imply any opinion with regard to such matters. Nothing in this Opinion should be
taken as expressing an opinion with respect to the representations and warranties or other factual statements contained in any of the
documents referred to above.
All the (English) legal concepts and terms used
in this Opinion are moreover deemed to refer to German legal concepts and should therefore be interpreted following the corresponding
German tax concepts.
The opinions contained herein are expressions
of professional judgement regarding the legal matters addressed and not guarantees that a court will reach any particular result.
This Opinion speaks as of its date only and we
do not assume any obligation to update this Opinion or to inform you or any other addressee of this Opinion of any changes to any of the
facts or laws or other matters referred to in this Opinion.
![](https://cdn.kscope.io/b6919996f8dece569c0088fdffacc44a-tm2231032d2_ex8-3img002.jpg) |
Confidential |
3ï3 |
This Opinion is rendered to you solely for your
benefit in connection with the Registration Statement and may not, without our prior written consent, be circulated, disclosed, quoted,
otherwise referred to or made available to third parties in any other matter or context whatsoever, save that this letter may be used
(i) as required by law or regulation, (ii) if requested by any court or governmental or regulatory authority, or (iii) if
deemed necessary by the addressee to establish a legal defence.
This Opinion may only be relied upon under the
express condition that this Opinion and any issues of interpretation arising hereunder are governed by German law and any disputes between
ourselves and the addressees hereof arising in connection with this Opinion will be brought before a German court. The courts of Frankfurt
am Main shall have exclusive jurisdiction with respect to any matters of liability arising hereunder.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion
letter with the SEC as an exhibit to the Registration Statement. In giving this consent, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category
of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or any rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated
thereunder.
Very truly yours,
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater PartG mbB
Exhibit 23.6
CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING
FIRM
We hereby consent to the incorporation by reference
in this Registration Statement on Form F-3 of Lilium N.V. of our report dated March 30, 2022 relating to the financial statements, which
appears in Lilium N.V.’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2021. We also consent to the reference to us
under the heading “Experts” in such Registration Statement.
Munich, Germany
November 25, 2022
PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH
Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft
/s/ Holger Graßnick |
|
/s/ ppa. Annika Sicking |
Wirtschaftsprüfer |
|
Wirtschaftsprüfer |
(German Public Auditor) |
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(German Public Auditor) |
Exhibit 107
Calculation of Filing Fee Tables
Form F-3
(Form Type)
Lilium N.V.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
Table 1: Newly Registered
|
Security
Type |
|
Security
Class Title |
|
Fee
Calculation or Carry Forward Rule |
|
Amount
Registered |
|
Proposed
Maximum Offering Price Per Unit |
|
Maximum
Aggregate Offering Price |
|
Fee
Rate |
|
Amount
of Registration Fee |
Newly Registered Securities |
|
Primary Offering |
Fees to be Paid |
Equity |
|
Class A Shares underlying
Warrants |
|
Other(1) |
|
34,512,464(2) |
|
$1.46(1) |
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$50,388,197.44 |
|
$110.20 per $1,000,000 |
|
$5,552.78 |
Secondary Offering |
Equity |
|
Class A Share |
|
Other(1) |
|
69,024,938(3) |
|
$1.46(4) |
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$100,776,409.48 |
|
$110.20 per
$1,000,000 |
|
$11,105.56 |
Other |
|
Warrants |
|
Other |
|
34,512,464(5) |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
—(6) |
Total Offering Amounts |
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$151,164,606.92 |
|
|
|
$16,658.34 |
Total Fees Previously Paid |
|
|
|
|
|
— |
Total Fee Offsets |
|
|
|
|
|
$16,658.34 |
Net Fee Due |
|
|
|
|
|
$0.00 |
| * | Pursuant
to Rule 416 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”),
the Registrant is also registering an indeterminate number of additional securities as may
be issued to prevent dilution resulting from share dividends, share splits or similar transactions. |
| (1) | Estimated solely
for the purpose of the calculation of the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(g) on the
basis of $1.46 per share, which is the average of the high and low prices of the Registrant’s
Class A Shares (as defined in the Registration Statement) as reported on the Nasdaq
Global Select Market as of November 22, 2022 (which is greater than the exercise price of
the Warrants of $1.30 per Class A Share). |
| (2) | Consists of 34,512,464
Class A Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants (as defined in the Registration Statement)
issued to the selling securityholders in connection with the PIPE (as defined in the Registration
Statement). |
| (3) | Consists of 69,024,938
Class A Shares issued to the selling securityholders in connection with the PIPE. |
| (4) | Estimated in
accordance with Rule 457(c) of the Securities Act solely for the purpose of calculating the
registration fee on the basis of $1.46 per share, which is the average of the high and low
prices of the Class A Shares, as reported on the Nasdaq Global Select Market as of November
22, 2022. |
| (5) | Represents the resale of the Warrants. |
| (6) | In accordance
with Rule 457(g), the entire registration fee for the Warrants is allocated to the Class
A Shares underlying the Warrants, and no separate fee is payable for the Warrants. |
Table 2 – Fee Offset Claims and Sources
|
Registrant
or Filer Name |
|
Form or
Filing Type |
|
File
Number |
|
Initial
Filing Data |
|
Filing
Date |
|
Fee Offset
Claimed |
|
Security
Type Associated with Fee |
|
Security
Title Associated with Fee Offset Claimed |
|
Unsold
Securities Associated with Fee Offset Claimed |
|
Unsold
Aggregate Offering Amount Associated with Fee Offset Claimed |
|
Fee Paid
with Fee Offset Source |
Rule 457(p) |
Fee Offset Claims |
Lilium N.V. |
|
F-1 |
|
333-259889 |
|
September 29, 2021 |
|
N/A |
|
$16,658.34 |
|
Equity |
|
Class A Shares |
|
(1) |
|
$2,222,648,203.48 |
|
|
Fees Offset Sources |
Lilium N.V. |
|
F-1 |
|
333-259889 |
|
|
|
September 29, 2021 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$264,738 |
| (1) | The Registrant
previously filed a registration statement on Form F-1 (File No. 333-259889), initially filed
on September 29, 2021, amended on March 31, 2022 and initially declared effective on April
11, 2022 (the “Prior Registration Statement”), which registered (i) 52,143,054
Class A Shares for issuance by the Registrant in connection with the exercise or conversion
of certain of its securities (the “Primary Shares”) for a proposed maximum aggregate
offering price of $493,827,499 and (ii) and 201,805,118 Class A Shares for resale by
the applicable selling security holder (the “Secondary Shares”) for a proposed
maximum aggregate offering price of $1,938,872,941. The Prior Registration Statement was
not fully used and 51,663,116 Primary Shares and 193,560,280 Secondary Shares were not sold,
resulting in unsold aggregate offering amounts of $2,222,648,203.48. These unused amounts
result, in the aggregate, in an available fee offset of $242,490.92 (the “Fee Offset”),
representing approximately 91.6% of the registration fees on the Prior Registration Statement.
Pursuant to Rule 457(p) under the Securities Act, the Registrant is offsetting $16,658.34
of the fees associated with this Registration Statement from the filing fee previously paid
by the registrant associated with the unsold securities. The Registrant has terminated any
offerings that included the unsold securities under the Prior Registration Statement. Inclusive
of the fee offset associated with this Registration Statement, the Registrant has used $113,686.08
of the Fee Offset. |