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Posts Tagged ‘Date Certain M&A Process’

Gerbsman Partners – Update to the Bidding Process – Procedures for the Sale of Syncapse Corp.- its Assets and Intellectual Property

Posted in "Date Certain M&A Process", Digital Marketing, Distressed Intellectual Property, Distressed IP, Gerbsman Partners, Inetellectual Property, Intellectual capital, Syncapse, Technology, tagged , , , on August 9, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Update to the Bidding Process – Procedures for the Sale of Syncapse Corp.- its Assets and Intellectual Property

Further to Gerbsman Partners e-mail of August 5, 2013 and July, 25, 2013 regarding the sale of Syncapse Corp.’s assets and intellectual property (the “Syncapse Assets”), I attach the draft legal documents, draft fixed asset list and the Receiver’s (defined below) wire transfer information in order to send in your refundable deposit for the Receiver to consider your bid.  Gerbsman Partners – http://gerbsmanpartners.com/ has been retained by MNP Ltd., in its capacity as Court-appointed receiver (the “Receiver”) of the property, assets and undertakings of Syncapse Corp. (“Syncapse”, or the “Company”) (http://syncapse.com/), to solicit interest for the acquisition of the Syncapse Assets.  All parties bidding on the assets are encouraged, to the greatest extent possible, to conform the terms of their bids to the terms and form of the attached agreements.  I would also encourage all interested parties to have their counsel speak with Harvey Chaiton, of Chaitons LLP, counsel to the Receiver, who can be reached at 416 218 1129 or at harvey@chaitons.com

Following an initial round of due diligence, interested parties will be invited to participate with a sealed bid, for the acquisition of the Syncapse Assets. Sealed bids must be submitted so that the bid is actually received by the Receiver no later than August 16, 2013 by 12:00 p.m.Toronto Time (the “Bid Deadline”) at the Receiver’s office, located at 300-111 Richmond Street West , Toronto, ON CANADA M5H 2G4 to the attention of Arif Dhanani.  Please also email steve@gerbsmanpartners.com with any bid.  For additional information regarding bid requirements and considerations, please contact Steve Gerbsman at steve@gerbsmanpartners.com.

1.  All bids must be accompanies by a deposit of 15%, payable to MNP, Ltd, in trust, which is refundable if a potential purchaser is unsuccessful.  The deposit must be in US dollars and wired to the Receiver’s account in advance or paid by certified cheque, money order or bank draft drawn on a Canadian bank.  The winning bidder will be notified within 3 business days of the Bid Deadline. The deposit will be held in trust by the Receiver.  Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposit returned to them within 3 business days of notification that they are an unsuccessful bidder.

Bank Name:  TD Canada Trust

SWIFT address for TD: TDOMCATTTOR
Correspondent bank is Bank of America, NY, NY
SWIFT address for Bank of America: BOFAUS3NXXX
Fedwire ABA # 026009593
Address: 100 33rd Street West, New York, NY  10001

US dollar account:

Account name: MNP Ltd.
IBAN (institution #) 004, transit #10852, account # 7328451
Branch address: 100 – 220 Commerce Valley Dr. West, Markham ON  L3T 0A8

2.  The winning bidder’s offer with be for “Cash”, payable in US dollars either by wire transfer or certified cheque, money order or bank draft drawn on a Canadian bank.

3.  If any potential interested party is interested in the Toronto Syncapse office space, please let me know as soon as possible.

4.  After a successful bidder is identified for the sale of the intellectual property, the Receiver may consider selling the balance of the uncollected accounts receivable at that time.  Please do not include amounts for the purchase of accounts receivable in your bid.

 5.  Please specify all assets and intellectual property that you will be bidding on.  Assets and intellectual property may include the Syncapse platform, source code, historical financial information, customer agreements (may or may not be assignable), trademarks, brand, patent, marketing and strategy information, India operation and/or other designated assets.

For your convenience, I have restated the description of the Updated Bidding Process.

The key dates and terms include:

The Bidding Process for Interested Buyers

Interested and qualified parties will be required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (attached hereto as Attachment A) to have access to certain members of management and intellectual capital teams and the due diligence “war room” documentation (“Due Diligence Access”). Each interested party, as a consequence of the Due Diligence Access granted to it, shall be deemed to acknowledge and represent (i) that it acknowledges and agrees to the bidding procedures described herein; (ii) that it has had an opportunity to inspect and examine the Syncapse Assets and to review all pertinent documents and information with respect thereto; (iii) that it is not relying upon any written or oral statements, representations, or warranties of the Receiver, Syncapse or Gerbsman Partners, or their respective staff, agents, or attorneys; and (iv) all such documents and reports have been provided solely for the convenience of the interested party, and the Receiver, Syncapse and Gerbsman Partners (and their respective staff, agents, or attorneys) do not make any representations and warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy or completeness of the same.

Following an initial round of due diligence, interested parties will be invited to participate with a sealed bid, for the acquisition of all or part of the Syncapse Assets. Each sealed bid must be submitted so that it is received by the Receiver no later than Friday, August 16, 2013 at 12:00pm Toronto Time (the “Bid Deadline”) at the Receiver’s office, located at 300-111 Richmond Street West , Toronto, ON CANADA M5H 2G4 to the attention of Arif Dhanani.  Please also email steve@gerbsmanpartners.com with any bid.  For additional information regarding bid requirements and considerations, please contact Steve Gerbsman at steve@gerbsmanpartners.com.

Any person or other entity making a bid must be prepared to provide independent confirmation that they possess the financial resources to complete the purchase.  All bids must be accompanied by a refundable deposit in the amount of 15% of the offer amount (payable to the Receiver, in trust).  The deposit must be wired to the Receiver’s account in advance (information will be provided), or paid by certified cheque, money order or bank draft drawn on a Canadian bank.  The winning bidder will be notified within 3 business days of the Bid Deadline. The deposit will be held in trust by the Receiver.  Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposit returned to them within 3 business days of notification that they are an unsuccessful bidder.

The Receiver is free to conduct the sale process as it determines in its sole discretion (including, without limitation, terminating further participation in the process by any party, negotiating with prospective purchasers and entering into an agreement with respect to a sale transaction without prior notice to you or any other person) and any procedures relating to such transaction may be changed at any time without prior notice to you or any other person.  For greater certainty, the Receiver reserves the right to, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any bid, or withdraw any or all assets from sale.  Interested parties should understand that it is expected that the highest and best bid submitted will likely be chosen as the winning bidder and bidders may not have the opportunity to improve their bids after submission.

The Receiver will require the successful bidder to close within 5 days after Court approval of the transaction. The Syncapse Assets will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis, with no representation or warranties whatsoever.

All sales, transfer, and recording taxes, stamp taxes, or other taxes, if any, relating to the sale of the Syncapse Assets shall be the sole responsibility of the successful bidder and shall be paid to the Receiver at the closing of any transaction.

For additional information, please see below and/or contact:

Steven R. Gerbsman
steve@gerbsmanpartners.com

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Bidding Process – Procedures for the Sale of certain Assets and Intellectual Property of Portaero, Inc. – “Date Certain M&A” – Gerbsman Partners

Posted in Date Certain M&A, Distressed Intellectual Property, Gerbsman Partners, Portaero, Uncategorized, tagged , , on June 19, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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Bidding Process – Procedures for the Sale of certain Assets and Intellectual Property of Portaero, Inc.

Further to Gerbsman Partners e-mail of June 11, 2013 regarding the sale of certain assets of Portaero, Inc., I attach the draft legal documents that we will be requesting of bidders for certain Assets and Intellectual Property of Portaero, Inc.  All parties bidding on the assets are encouraged, to the greatest extent possible, to conform the terms of their bids to the terms and form of the attached agreement.  Any and all of the assets of Portaero, Inc. will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis and will be subject to “The Bidding Process for Interested Buyers”, outlined below.

I would also encourage all interested parties to have their counsel speak with David Garcia, Esq. and/or Holly Olson, Esq., counsel to Portaero, Inc.

For additional information please contact David Garcia, Esq, 775 327 3021  dgarcia@hollandhart.com and/or Holly Olson, Esq, hbolson@hollandhart.com

Please review in detail, the “Bidding Process for Interested Buyers” below.

The key dates and terms include:

The Bidding Process for Interested Buyers
Interested and qualified parties will be expected to sign a Confidential Disclosure Agreement (attached hereto as Appendix A) to have access to key members of management and intellectual capital teams and the due diligence “war room” documentation (“Due Diligence Access”). Each interested party, as a consequence of the Due Diligence Access granted to it, shall be deemed to acknowledge and represent (i) that it is bound by the bidding procedures described herein; (ii) that it has had an opportunity to inspect and examine the Portaero, Inc. assets and to review all pertinent documents and information with respect thereto; (iii) that it is not relying upon any written or oral statements, representations, or warranties of Gerbsman Partners, or their respective staff, agents, or attorneys; and (iv) all such documents and reports have been provided solely for the convenience of the interested party, and Gerbsman Partners (and their respective staff, agents, or attorneys) do not make any representations as to the accuracy or completeness of the same.

Following an initial round of due diligence, interested parties will be invited to participate with a sealed bid, for the acquisition of the Portaero, Inc. assets. Each sealed bid must be submitted so that it is received by Gerbsman Partners no later than Tuesday, July 16, 2013 at 3:00pm Pacific Daylight Time (the “Bid Deadline”) at Portaero, Inc.’s office, located at 21631 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino, CA 95014.  Please also email steve@gerbsmanpartners.com with any bid.

Any person or other entity making a bid must be prepared to provide independent confirmation that they possess the financial resources to complete the purchase.  All bids must be accompanied by a refundable deposit in the amount of $100,000 (payable to Portaero, Inc.).  The deposit should be wired to Portaero, Inc.’s attorneys (information will be provided).  The winning bidder will be notified within 3 business days of the Bid Deadline. The deposit will be held in trust by Portaero’s counsel.  Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposit returned to them within 3 business days of notification that they are an unsuccessful bidder.

Portaero, Inc. reserves the right to, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any bid, or withdraw any or all assets from sale.  Interested parties should understand that it is expected that the highest and best bid submitted will be chosen as the winning bidder and bidders may not have the opportunity to improve their bids after submission.

Portaero Inc. will require the successful bidder to close within a 7 day period. Any or all of the assets of Portaero, Inc. will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis, with no representation or warranties whatsoever.

All sales, transfer, and recording taxes, stamp taxes, or similar taxes, if any, relating to the sale of the Portaero, Inc. assets shall be the sole responsibility of the successful bidder and shall be paid to Portaero, Inc. at the closing of each transaction.

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The Advantages of a “Date-Certain M&A Process” over an “Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors – ABC” by Steven R. Gerbsman, Gerbsman Partners

Posted in "Date Certain M&A Process", Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors, Distressed Intellectual Property, Distressed IP, Gerbsman Partners, Inetellectual Property, tagged , , , , on May 16, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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San Francisco, May, 2013
The Advantages of a “Date-Certain M&A Process” over an “Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors – ABC”
Apart from a formal bankruptcy (Chapter 7 or Chapter 11) there are two basic approaches to maximizing enterprise value for under-performing and/or under-capitalized technology, life science and medical device companies and their Intellectual Property: a “date-certain” M&A process and an assignment for the benefit of creditors (ABC).

Both of these processes have significant advantages over a formal bankruptcy in terms of speed, cost and flexibility. Gerbsman Partners’ experience in utilizing a “date certain” M&A process has resulted in numerous transactions that have maximized value anywhere from 2-4 times what a normal M&A process would have generated for distressed asset(s). With a date-certain M&A process, the company’s board of directors hires a crisis management/ private investment banking firm (“advisor”) to wind down business operations in an orderly fashion and maximize value of the IP and tangible assets.

The advisor works with the board and corporate management to:

1.  Focus on the control, preservation and forecasting of CASH.
2.  Develop a strategy/action plan and presentation to maximize value of the assets. Including drafting sales materials, preparing information Ïdue diligence war-roomÓ, assembling a list of all possible interested buyers for the IP and assets of the company and identifying and retaining key employees on a go-forward basis.
3.  Stabilize and provide leadership, motivation and morale to all employees,
4.  Communicate with the Board of Directors, senior management, senior lender, creditors, vendors and all stakeholders in interest.
The company’s attorney prepares very simple “as is, where is” asset-sale documents. (“as is, where is- no reps or warranties” agreements is very important as the board of directors, officers and investors typically do not want any additional exposure on the deal). The advisor then contacts and follows-up systematically with all potentially interested parties (to include customers, competitors, strategic partners, vendors and a proprietary distribution list of equity investors) and coordinates their interactions with company personnel, including arranging on-site visits.

Typical terms for a date certain M&A asset sale include no representations and warranties, a sales date typically three to four weeks from the point that sale materials are ready for distribution (based on available CASH), a significant cash deposit in the $100,000 range to bid and a strong preference for cash consideration and the ability to close the deal in 7 business days. Date certain M&A terms can be varied to suit needs unique to a given situation or corporation. For example, the board of directors may choose not to accept any bid or to allow parties to re-bid if there are multiple competitive bids and/or to accept an early bid.

The typical workflow timeline, from hiring an advisor to transaction close and receipt of consideration is four to six weeks, although such timing may be extended if circumstances warrant. Once the consideration is received, the restructuring/insolvency attorney then distributes the consideration to creditors and shareholders (if there is sufficient consideration to satisfy creditors) and takes all necessary steps to wind down the remaining corporate shell, typically with the CFO, including issuing W-2 and 1099 forms, filing final tax returns, shutting down a 401K program and dissolving the corporation etc.

The advantages of this approach include the following:

Speed – The entire process for a date certain M&A process can be concluded in 3 to 6 weeks. Creditors and investors receive their money quickly. The negative public relations impact on investors and board members of a drawn-out process is eliminated. If circumstances require, this timeline can be reduced to as little as two weeks, although a highly abbreviated response time will often impact the final value received during the asset auction.

Reduced Cash Requirements – Given the date certain M&A process compressed turnaround time, there is a significantly reduced requirement for investors to provide cash to support the company during such a process.

Value Maximized – A company in wind-down mode is a rapidly depreciating asset, with management, technical team, customer and creditor relations increasingly strained by fear, uncertainty and doubt. A quick process minimizes this strain and preserves enterprise value. In addition, the fact that an auction will occur on a specified date usually brings all truly interested and qualified parties to the table and quickly flushes out the tire-kickers. In our experience, this process tends to maximize the final value received.

Cost – Advisor fees consist of a retainer plus 10% or an agreed percentage of the sale proceeds. Legal fees are also minimized by the extremely simple deal terms. Fees, therefore, do not consume the entire value received for corporate assets.

Control – At all times, the board of directors retains complete control over the process. For example, the board of directors can modify the auction terms or even discontinue the auction at any point, thus preserving all options for as long as possible.

Public Relations – As the sale process is private, there is no public disclosure. Once closed, the transaction can be portrayed as a sale of the company with all sales terms kept confidential. Thus, for investors, the company can be listed in their portfolio as sold, not as having gone out of business.

Clean Exit – As the sale process is private, there is no public disclosure. Once closed, the transaction can be portrayed as a sale of the company with all sales terms kept confidential. Thus, for investors, the company can be listed in their portfolio as sold, not as having gone out of business.

To this end the insolvency counsel then takes the lead on all orderly shutdown items. In an assignment for the benefit of creditors (ABC), the company (assignor) enters into a contract whereby it transfers all rights, titles, interests, custody and control of all assets to an independent third-party trustee (assignee). The Assignee acts as a fiduciary for the creditors by liquidating all assets and then distributing the proceeds to the creditors. We feel that an ABC is most appropriate in a situation with one or more highly contentious creditors, as it tends to insulate a board of directors from the process. Nevertheless, we have found that most creditors are rational and will support a quick process designed to maximize the value that they receive. A good advisor will manage relationships with creditors and can often successfully convince them that a non-ABC process is more to their advantage. Apart from its one advantage of insulating the board of directors from the process, an ABC has a number of significant disadvantages, including:

Longer Time to Cash – Creditors and investors will not receive proceeds for at least 7 months (more quickly than in a bankruptcy but far slower than with a “date-certain” auction).

Higher Cost – Ultimately, ABCs tend to be more expensive than a date-certain© auction. It is not uncommon for the entire value received from the sale of company assets to be consumed by fees and/or a transaction for maximizing value may not be consummated in a timely fashion.

Loss of Control – Once the assets are assigned to the independent third-party trustee, the board of directors has no further control over the process. It cannot modify the process in any way or discontinue the process. Thus, it is not possible to explore multiple options in parallel.

Higher Public Relations Profile – The longer time frame for the ABC process and the more formal (and public) legal nature of an ABC make it more difficult to put a positive spin on the final outcome.

Messy Exit – Most independent third-party trustees do not perform the services of cleanly shutting down the remaining corporate shell. Thus, investors must either pay another party to do this job or leave it undone, resulting in increased liability.

About Gerbsman Partners

Gerbsman Partners focuses on maximizing enterprise value for stakeholders and shareholders in under-performing, under-capitalized and under-valued companies and their Intellectual Property. In the past 84 months, Gerbsman Partners has been involved in maximizing value for 76 technology, medical device, life science and solar companies and their Intellectual Property and has restructured/terminated over $810 million of real estate executory contracts and equipment lease/sub-debt obligations. Since inception, Gerbsman Partners has been involved in over $2.3 billion of financings, restructurings and M&A transactions.

Gerbsman Partners has offices and strategic alliances in San Francisco, New York, Virginia/Washington DC, Boston, Europe and Israel.

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Email: Steve@GerbsmanPartners.com
Web: www.gerbsmanpartners.com
BLOG of Intellectual Capital: http://blog.gerbsmanpartners.com

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The Advantages of a “Date-Certain” Mergers and Acquisition Process Over a “Standard Mergers and Acquisitions Process”

Posted in "Date Certain M&A Process", Distressed Intellectual Property, Distressed IP, Gerbsman Partners, Inetellectual Property, Steven R. Gerbsman, Uncategorized, tagged , , , on April 29, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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San Francisco, April , 2013
The Advantages of a “Date-Certain” Mergers and Acquisition Process Over a “Standard Mergers and Acquisitions Process”
Every venture capital investor hopes that all of his investments will succeed. The reality is that a large percentage of all venture investments must be shut down. In extreme cases, such a shut down will take the form of a formal bankruptcy or an assignment for the benefit of creditors. In most cases, however, the investment falls into the category of “living dead”, i.e. companies that are not complete failures but that are not self-sustaining and whose prospects do not justify continued investment. Almost never do investors shut down such a “living dead” company quickly.

Most hope against hope that things will change. Once reality sets in, most investors hire an investment banker to sell such a company through a standard mergers and acquisition process – seldom with good results. Often, such a process requires some four to six months, burns up all the remaining cash in the company and leads to a formal bankruptcy or assignment for the benefit of creditors. In many instances, there are a complete lack of bidders, despite the existence of real value in the company being sold.

The first reason for this sad result is a fundamental misunderstanding of buyer psychology. In general, buyers act quickly and pay the highest price only when forced to by competitive pressure. The highest probability buyers are those who are already familiar with the company being sold, i.e. competitors, existing investors, customers and vendors. Such buyers either already know of the company’s weakness or quickly understand it as soon as they see the seller¥s financials. Once the sales process starts, the seller is very much a wasting asset both financially and organizationally. Potential buyers quickly divide the company’s burn rate into its existing cash balance to see how much time it has left. Employees, customers and vendors grow nervous and begin to disengage. Unless compelled to act, potential buyers simply draw out the process and either submit a low-ball offer when the company is out of cash or try to pick up key employees and customers at no cost when the company shuts down.

The second reason for this sad result is a misunderstanding of the psychology and methods of investment bankers. Most investment bankers do best at selling “hot” companies, i.e. where the company’s value is perceived by buyers to be increasing quickly over time and where there are multiple bidders. They tend to be most motivated and work hardest in such situations because the transaction sizes (i.e. commissions) tend to be large, because the publicity brings in more assignments and because such situations are more simply more fun. They also tend to be most effective in maximizing value in such situations, as they are good at using time to their advantage, pitting multiple buyers against each other and setting very high expectations. In a situation where “time is not your friend”, the actions of a standard investment banker frequently make a bad situation far worse. First, since transaction sizes tend to be much smaller, an investment banker will assign his “B” team to the deal and will only have such team spend enough time on the deal to see if it can be closed easily. Second, playing out the process works against the seller. Third, trying to pit multiple buyers against each other and setting unrealistically high valuation expectations tends to drive away potential buyers, who often know far more about the real situation of the seller than does the investment banker.

“Date Certain” M&A Process The solution in a situation where “time is not your friend” is a “date-certain” mergers and acquisitions process. With a date-certain M&A process, the company’s board of directors hires a crisis management/ private investment banking firm (“advisor”) to wind down business operations in an orderly fashion and maximize value of the IP and tangible assets. The advisor works with the board and corporate management to:

1.  Focus on the control, preservation and forecasting of CASH.
2.  Develop a strategy/action plan and presentation to maximize value of the assets. Including drafting sales materials, preparing information due diligence war-room, assembling a list of all possible interested buyers for the IP and assets of the company and identifying and retaining key employees on a go-forward basis.
3.  Stabilize and provide leadership, motivation and morale to all employees,
4.  Communicate with the Board of Directors, senior management, senior lender, creditors, vendors and all stakeholders in interest.
5.  The company’s attorney prepares very simple “as is, where is” asset-sale documents. (“as is, where is- no reps or warranties” agreements is very important as the board of directors, officers and investors typically do not want any additional exposure on the deal). The advisor then contacts and follows-up systematically with all potentially interested parties (to include customers, competitors, strategic partners, vendors and a proprietary distribution list of equity investors) and coordinates their interactions with company personnel, including arranging on-site visits. Typical terms for a date certain M&A asset sale include no representations and warranties, a sales date typically two to four weeks from the point that sale materials are ready for distribution (based on available CASH), a significant cash deposit in the $100,000 range to bid and a strong preference for cash consideration and the ability to close the deal in 7 business days.

Date certain M&A terms can be varied to suit needs unique to a given situation or corporation. For example, the board of directors may choose not to accept any bid or to allow parties to re-bid if there are multiple competitive bids and/or to accept an early bid. The typical workflow timeline, from hiring an advisor to transaction close and receipt of consideration is four to six weeks, although such timing may be extended if circumstances warrant. Once the consideration is received, the restructuring/insolvency attorney then distributes the consideration to creditors and shareholders (if there is sufficient consideration to satisfy creditors) and takes all necessary steps to wind down the remaining corporate shell, typically with the CFO, including issuing W-2 and 1099 forms, filing final tax returns, shutting down a 401K program and dissolving the corporation etc.

The advantages of this approach include the following:

Speed – The entire process for a date certain M&A process can be concluded in 3 to 6 weeks. Creditors and investors receive their money quickly. The negative public relations impact on investors and board members of a drawn-out process is eliminated. If circumstances require, this timeline can be reduced to as little as two weeks, although a highly abbreviated response time will often impact the final value received during the asset auction.

Reduced Cash Requirements – Given the date certain M&A process compressed turnaround time, there is a significantly reduced requirement for investors to provide cash to support the company during such a process.

Value Maximized – A company in wind-down mode is a rapidly depreciating asset, with management, technical team, customer and creditor relations increasingly strained by fear, uncertainty and doubt. A quick process minimizes this strain and preserves enterprise value. In addition, the fact that an auction will occur on a specified date usually brings all truly interested and qualified parties to the table and quickly flushes out the tire-kickers. In our experience, this process tends to maximize the final value received.

Cost – Advisor fees consist of a retainer plus an agreed percentage of the sale proceeds. Legal fees are also minimized by the extremely simple deal terms. Fees, therefore, do not consume the entire value received for corporate assets.

Control – At all times, the board of directors retains complete control over the process. For example, the board of directors can modify the auction terms or even discontinue the auction at any point, thus preserving all options for as long as possible.

Public Relations – As the sale process is private, there is no public disclosure. Once closed, the transaction can be portrayed as a sale of the company with all sales terms kept confidential. Thus, for investors, the company can be listed in their portfolio as sold, not as having gone out of business.

Clean Exit – Once the auction is closed and the consideration is received and distributed, the advisor takes all remaining steps to effect an orderly shut-down of the remaining corporate entity. To this end the insolvency counsel then takes the lead on all orderly shutdown items.

Gerbsman Partners focuses on maximizing enterprise value for stakeholders and shareholders in under-performing, under-capitalized and under-valued companies and their Intellectual Property. Since 2001, Gerbsman Partners has been involved in maximizing value for 76 Technology, Medical Device, Life Science and Solar companies and their Intellectual Property and has restructured/terminated over $810 million of real estate executory contracts and equipment lease/sub-debt obligations. Since inception, Gerbsman Partners has been involved in over $2.3 billion of financings, restructurings and M&A transactions.

Gerbsman Partners has offices and strategic alliances in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, San Francisco, Europe and Israel.

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Steven R. Gerbsman
Principal
Gerbsman Partners
steve@gerbsmanpartners.com

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BLOG of Intellectual Capital
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Skype: thegerbs

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Update to the Bidding Process – Procedures for the sale of certain assets of Applied Spine Technologies, Inc.

Posted in Board Of Intellectual Capital, Distressed Intellectual Property, Distressed IP, Gerbsman Partners, Inetellectual Property, Intellectual capital, Investments, Life Science, Strategy, Technology, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on September 30, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Update to the Bidding Process – Procedures for the sale of certain assets of Applied Spine Technologies, Inc.

Further to Gerbsman Partners e-mail of September 22, 2010 and September 14, 2010 regarding the sale of certain assets of Applied Spine Technologies, Inc., I attach the draft legal documents and wire transfer information that we will be requesting of bidders for certain assets of Applied Spine Technologies, Inc. All parties bidding on the assets are encouraged, to the greatest extent possible, to conform the terms of their bids to the terms and form of the attached agreements.  Any and all of the assets of Applied Spine Technologies, Inc. will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis.  I would also encourage all interested parties to have their counsel speak with Merton Gollaher, Esq., counsel to Applied Spine Technologies, Inc.

For additional information please contact Merton Gollaher, Esq., of Wiggin and Dana LLP counsel to Applied Spine Technologies, Inc. He can be reached at 203 498 4362  and/or at mgollaher@wiggin.com

Following an initial round of due diligence, interested parties will be invited to participate with a sealed bid, for the acquisition of the Applied Spine Assets. Sealed bids must be submitted so that the bid is actually received by Gerbsman Partners no later than Friday, October 15, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (the “Bid Deadline”) at Applied Spine’s office, located at 30 Cold Spring Road, Rocky Hill, CT 60607.  Please also email – steve@gerbsmanpartners.com – with any bid.

For your convenience, I have restated the description of the Updated Bidding Process.

The key dates and terms include:

The Bidding Process for Interested Buyers

Interested and qualified parties will be expected to sign a nondisclosure agreement (attached hereto as Exhibit A) to have access to key members of the management and intellectual capital teams and the due diligence “war room” documentation (the “Due Diligence Access”). Each interested party, as a consequence of the Due Diligence Access granted to it, shall be deemed to acknowledge and represent (i) that it is bound by the bidding procedures described herein; (ii) that it has an opportunity to inspect and examine the Applied Spine Technologies Assets and to review all pertinent documents and information with respect thereto; (iii) that it is not relying upon any written or oral statements, representations, or warranties of Gerbsman Partners, or their respective staff, agents, or attorneys; and (iv) all such documents and reports have been provided solely for the convenience of the interested party, and Gerbsman Partners (and their respective, staff, agents, or attorneys) do not make any representations as to the accuracy or completeness of the same.

Following an initial round of due diligence, interested parties will be invited to participate with a sealed bid, for the acquisition of the Applied Spine Technologies Assets. Sealed bids must be submitted so that it is actually received by Gerbsman Partners no later than Friday, October 15, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (the “Bid Deadline”) at Applied Spine Technologies’ office, located at 30 Cold Spring Rd, Rocky Hill, CT 06067.  Please also email  <mailto:steve@gerbsmanpartners.com> with any bid.

Bids should identify those assets being tendered for in a specific and identifiable way.  In particular, please identify separately certain equipment or other fixed assets.  The attached Applied Spine fixed asset list may not be complete and bidders interested in the Applied Spine equipment must submit a separate bid for such assets.

Any person or other entity making a bid must be prepared to provide independent confirmation that they possess the financial resources to complete the purchase. All bids must be accompanied by a refundable deposit check in the amount of $100,000 (payable to Applied Spine Technologies, Inc.).  The deposit should be wired to Applied Spine’s attorneys Wiggin and Dana LLP.  The winning bidder will be notified within 3 business days of the Bid Deadline. Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposit returned to them within 3 business days of notification that they are the unsuccessful bidder.

Applied Spine Technologies reserves the right to, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any bid, or withdraw any or all of the assets from sale.  Interested parties should understand that it is expected that the highest and best bid submitted will be chosen as the winning bidder and bidders may not have the opportunity to improve their bids after submission.

Applied Spine Technologies will require the successful bidder to close within a 7 day period. Any or all of the assets of Applied Spine Technologies will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis, with no representation or warranties whatsoever.

All sales, transfer, and recording taxes, stamp taxes, or similar taxes, if any, relating to the sale of the Applied Spine Technologies Assets shall be the sole responsibility of the successful bidder and shall be paid to Applied Spine Technologies at the closing of each transaction.

For additional information, please see below and/or contact:

Steven R. Gerbsman
(415) 456-0628
steve@gerbsmanpartners.com

Dennis Sholl
(415) 457-9596
dennis@gerbsmanpartners.com

Kenneth Hardesty
(408) 591-7528
ken@gerbsmanpartners.com

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