Blueprint
 
As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 2, 2018
 
  Registration No. 333-

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
 
FORM S-3
 
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
 
ISSUER DIRECT CORPORATION
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
 
Delaware
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
 
26-1331503
I.R.S. Employer Identification Number
 
500 Perimeter Park Drive, Suite 400
Morrisville, North Carolina 27560
(919) 481-4000
 (Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code of registrant’s principal executive offices)
 
Brian R. Balbirnie
Chief Executive Officer
Issuer Direct Corporation
500 Perimeter Park Drive, Suite 400
Morrisville, North Carolina 27560
(919) 481-4000
 (Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
 
With a copy to:
 
Jeffrey M. Quick, Esq.
Quick Law Group PC
1035 Pearl Street, Suite 404
Boulder, Colorado 80302
Phone: (720) 259-3393
Fax: (303) 845-7315
 
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: From time to time after the effective date of this registration statement. 
 
If the 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 of the Securities Act of 1933, other than securities offered only in connection with dividend or interest reinvestment plans, check the following box. [X]
 
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.D. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, please check the following box. [ ]
 
If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.D. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box. [ ]
 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):
 
Large accelerated filer
[ ]
Accelerated filer
[ ]
Non-accelerated filer
[ ]
Smaller reporting company
[X]
(Do not check if a smaller reporting company)
 
Emerging growth company 
[ ]
 
If an emerging growth company, 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 Securities Act. [ ]
 
 
 
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
 
Title of each class of securities to be registered
 
 
Amount to be Registered
 
 
Proposed Maximum Offering Price Per Unit
 
 
Proposed Maximum Aggregate Offering Price
 
 
Amount of Registration Fee (3)
 
Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share
 
  (1) 
  (2) 
  (2) 
 $ 
Preferred Stock, par value $0.001 per share
 
  (1) 
  (2) 
  (2) 
   
Debt Securities
 
  (1) 
  (2) 
  (2) 
   
Warrants
 
  (1) 
  (2) 
  (2) 
   
Units
 
  (1) 
  (2) 
  (2) 
   
Total
 
  (1)
  (2) 
 $30,000,000
 
 $3,735
 
 
(1)
There are being registered hereunder such indeterminate number of shares of common stock and preferred stock, such indeterminate principal amount of debt securities and such indeterminate number of warrants and units as shall have an aggregate offering price not to exceed $30,000,000. If any debt securities are issued at an original issue discount, then the principal amount of such debt securities shall be in such greater amount as shall result in an aggregate offering price not to exceed $30,000,000, less the aggregate dollar amount of all securities previously issued hereunder. Any securities registered hereunder may be sold separately or as units with other securities registered hereunder. The securities registered also include such indeterminate number of shares of common stock and preferred stock and amount of debt securities as may be issued upon conversion of or exchange for preferred stock or debt securities that provide for conversion or exchange, upon exercise of warrants or pursuant to the anti-dilution provisions of any such securities. In addition, pursuant to Rule 416 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), the shares being registered hereunder include such indeterminate number of shares of common stock and preferred stock as may be issuable with respect to the shares being registered hereunder as a result of stock splits, stock dividends or similar transactions.
 
(2)
The proposed maximum aggregate offering price per class of security will be determined from time to time by the Registrant in connection with the issuance by the Registrant of the securities registered hereunder and is not specified as to each class of security.
 
(3)
Calculated pursuant to Rule 457(o) under 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 or until the registration statement shall become effective on such date as the Commission, acting pursuant to said section 8(a), may determine.
 
 
 
 
The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.
 
PROSPECTUS
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION
DATED AUGUST 2, 2018
 
 
$30,000,000
 
 
Common Stock
Preferred Stock
Debt Securities
Warrants
Units
 
From time to time, we may offer and sell, in one or more offerings, up to $30,000,000 of any combination of the securities described in this prospectus. We may also offer securities as may be issuable upon conversion, redemption, repurchase, exchange or exercise of any securities registered hereunder, including any applicable anti-dilution provisions.
 
This prospectus provides a general description of the securities we may offer from time to time. Each time we offer securities, we will provide specific terms of the securities offered in a supplement to this prospectus. We may also authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to you in connection with an offering. The prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus may also add, update or change information contained in this prospectus. You should carefully read this prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, as well as any documents incorporated by reference, before you invest in any of the securities being offered.
 
Our common stock is listed on the NYSE American under the symbol “ISDR”. The last reported sale price of our common stock on August 1, 2018 was $18.90 per share.
 
We may offer and sell our securities to or through one or more agents, underwriters, dealers or other third parties or directly to one or more purchasers on a continuous or delayed basis. If agents, underwriters or dealers are used to sell our securities, we will name them and describe their compensation in a prospectus supplement. The price to the public of our securities and the net proceeds we expect to receive from the sale of such securities will also be set forth in a prospectus supplement. For additional information on the methods of sale, you should refer to the section entitled “Plan of Distribution” in this prospectus
 
As of August 1, 2018, the aggregate market value of our outstanding common stock held by non-affiliates was approximately $41.6 million, which was calculated based on 2,201,983 shares of outstanding common stock held by non-affiliates, at a price per share of $18.90. Pursuant to General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3, in no event will we sell the securities described in this prospectus in a public primary offering with a value exceeding more than one-third of the aggregate market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates in any 12-month period, so long as the aggregate market value of our outstanding common stock held by non-affiliates remains below $75 million. During the 12 calendar months prior to and including the date of this prospectus, we have not offered or sold any securities pursuant to General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3.
 
Our business and investing in shares of our common stock involves significant risks. You should review carefully the risks and uncertainties referenced under the heading “Risk Factors” on page 7 of this prospectus, as well as those contained in the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, and in the other documents that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus or the applicable prospectus supplement.
 
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.
 
The date of this prospectus is [       ], 2018
 
 
 
 
ISSUER DIRECT CORPORATION
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS
 
 
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i
 
 
ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS
 
This prospectus is part of a registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), using a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf registration process, we may sell the securities described in this prospectus in one or more offerings. This prospectus provides you with a general description of the securities which may be offered. Each time we offer securities for sale, we will provide a prospectus supplement that contains specific information about the terms of that offering. Any prospectus supplement may also add or update information contained in this prospectus. You should read both this prospectus and any prospectus supplement together with additional information described below under “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Incorporation of Certain Information by Reference.”
 
You should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus, and in any prospectus supplement. We have not authorized any other person to provide you with different information. If anyone provides you with different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. We are not making offers to sell or solicitations to buy the securities described in this prospectus in any jurisdiction in which an offer or solicitation is not authorized, or in which the person making that offer or solicitation is not qualified to do so or to anyone to whom it is unlawful to make an offer or solicitation. You should not assume that the information in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement, as well as the information we file or previously filed with the SEC that we incorporate by reference in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement is accurate as of any date other than its respective date. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since those dates.
 
This prospectus contains summaries of certain provisions contained in some of the documents described herein, but reference is made to the actual documents for complete information. All of the summaries are qualified in their entirety by the actual documents. Copies of some of the documents referred to herein have been filed, will be filed or will be incorporated by reference as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, and you may obtain copies of those documents as described below under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information”.
 
All brand names or trademarks appearing in this report are the property of their respective holders. Unless the context requires otherwise, references in this prospectus to “Issuer Direct,” the “Company,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Issuer Direct Corporation, a Delaware corporation.
 
 
 
 
 
 
1
 
 
THE COMPANY
 
Overview
 
Issuer Direct is an industry-leading global communications and compliance company focusing on the needs of corporate issuers. Issuer Direct's principal platform, Platform id.™, empowers users by thoughtfully integrating the most relevant tools, technologies and products, thus eliminating the complexity associated with producing and distributing their business communications and financial information.
 
We work with a diverse customer base in the financial services industry, including brokerage firms, banks and mutual funds. We also sell products and services to corporate issuers, professional firms, such as investor relations and public relations firms, and the accounting and the legal communities. Corporate issuers and their service providers utilize Platform id. and related services from document creation all the way to dissemination to regulatory bodies, platforms and shareholders.
 
In order to provide a good representation of our business and reflect our platform first engagement strategy, we report revenue in two revenue streams: (i) Platform and Technology and (ii) Services. Due to the adoption of Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 606 Revenue from Contracts with Customers as of January 1, 2018, we reclassified revenue associated with the Company’s shareholder outreach offering that included both electronic dissemination and physical delivery of a customer’s annual report. Historically, revenue from these bundled contracts was reported in the Services revenue stream because an allocation between electronic and physical hardcopy distribution was not made, however, under ASC 606, a portion of the revenue from these contracts is required to be allocated to the Platform and Technology revenue stream in accordance with stand-alone contracts for the shareholder outreach subscription. Revenue of $186,000 and $393,000 for the three and six months ended June 30, 2017, respectively, which was previously reported as Services revenue was reclassified as Platform and Technology revenue.
 
Set forth below is an infographic depicting the modules included in Platform id. and the services we provide:
 
 
 
2
 
 
Platform and Technology
 
As we continue our transition to a cloud-based subscription business, we expect the Platform and Technology portion of our business to continue to increase over the next several years, both in terms of overall revenue and as compared to the Services portion of our business. Platform and Technology revenue grew to 59% of total revenue for the second quarter of 2018, compared to 55% of our revenue for 2017 and approximately 44% of our revenue in 2016. Our ACCESSWIRE® news business offering represented a majority of the year over year growth in our Platform and Technology revenue during 2017 and continues to lead our transition to a full platform solution.
 
As part of our Platform and Technology strategy, we have been working with several select stock exchanges, whereby we make available certain parts of our platform, under agreement, to integrate our offerings. Such partnerships should yield increased exposure to a targeted customer base that could impact our revenue and overall brand in the market.
 
Additionally, we plan to continue to invest in both our current Platform id. offering as well as additional offerings, which we believe provide long term opportunity. These advancements will leverage our current application technology framework and give us an opportunity to further expand our customer and user base.
 
Platform id.
 
Platform id. is our primary cloud-based subscription platform that efficiently and effectively helps manage the events of our customers seeking to distribute their messaging to key constituents, investors, markets and regulatory systems around the globe. Currently, Platform id. consists of several related but distinct shareholder communications and compliance modules. Certain of these capabilities were historically part of our disclosure management and shareholder communications offerings, but are now included into our fully integrated platform.
 
Within most of our target markets, customers require several individual services and/or software providers to meet their investor relations, communications and compliance needs. We believe Platform id. can address all those needs in a single, secure, cloud-based platform - one that offers a company control, increases efficiencies, demonstrates a clear value and, most importantly, delivers consistent and compliant messaging from one centralized platform.
 
While the complete platform is available for a single subscription fee, companies also have the flexibility to choose one or more of the specific modules that fit their needs.
 
Communications Modules
 
Our press release offering, which is marketed under the brand, ACCESSWIRE, is a cost-effective Fair Disclosure, Regulation FD, news dissemination and media outreach service. The ACCESSWIRE product offering focuses on press release distribution for both private and publicly held companies globally. ACCESSWIRE is fast becoming a competitive alternative to the traditional newswires because we have been able to integrate customer editing features and improve our targeting and growing analytics reporting systems, which we believe will enable us to add new customers for the remainder of 2018 and beyond. We have also been able to maintain flexible pricing by offering our customers the option to pay per release or enter into longer-term subscriptions. Currently, approximately 60% of our ACCESSWIRE revenue is on a subscription basis.
 
On July 3, 2018, we completed the acquisition of Filing Services Canada Inc. (“FSCwire”), which not only increased our customer base, but more importantly increased our global footprint, distribution capabilities and editorial team. Once the integration of FSCwire is complete it will be rebranded ACCESSWIRE Canada, which should be completed the by the end of the third quarter of this year.
 
We will continue to brand our press release offerings under the name ACCESSWIRE, which we believe will solidify our market position in the newswire business. Our ACCESSWIRE news editing offering is available within our core Platform id. subscription or as a stand-alone module.
 
ACCESSWIRE is dependent upon several key partners for news distribution, some of which are also partners that we rely on for other investor outreach offerings. A disruption in any of these partnerships could have a materially adverse impact on our business.
 
Also included in Platform id. is our targeting and outreach database and intelligence analytics module. This module is centered around both our shareholder communications and news distribution offerings. We anticipate the analytics and peer review components will become a focal point for Platform id. in the future, as customers become increasingly interested in peer performance and real-time alerts to vital data points throughout the day.
 
We believe our data-set is an attractive option for both investor relations and public relations firms and for customers looking for an alternative to current products in the market, based on price, as well as data quality and quantity. During the fourth quarter of 2017, our dataset and analytics were integrated into our ACCESSWIRE offering as a way to add value and expand distribution via highly targeted lists of professionals from the dataset. We expect this to increase future ACCESSWIRE revenues per press release as well as ACCESSWIRE subscriptions throughout 2018.
 
Over the past year, we have been focused on refining the model of digital distribution of our customers’ message to the investment community and beyond. This has been accomplished by integrating our shareholder outreach module, formerly known as Investor Network, into and with Platform id. Most of the customers subscribing to this module today are historical PrecisionIR (“PIR”) – Annual Report Service (“ARS”) users, as well as new customers purchasing the entire Platform id. subscription. We have migrated many of the customers from the traditional ARS business into this new digital subscription business. However, there can be no assurances these customers will continue using this digital platform in the long term if market conditions or shareholder interest is not present.
 
 
3
 
 
There are over 5,000 companies in North America conducting earnings events each quarter that include teleconference, webcast or both as part of their events. Platform id. incorporates each element of the earnings event including earnings date/call announcement, earnings press release and SEC Form 8-K filings. There are a handful of our competitors that can offer this today. However, we believe our real-time event setup and integrated approach offers a more effective way to manage the process as well as attract an audience of investors.
 
The earnings event industry is a highly competitive space with the majority of the business being driven from practitioners in the investor relations and communications firms. In the past, we invested time and financial resources developing and integrating systems and processes within Platform id. by creating an application programming interface (“API”) for the webcast marketplace, that we will begin offering to partners and publishers for their platforms under license. We believe this offering will further increase our brand awareness. This API license will allow publishers to query single or multiple companies' current and past earnings calls and present those webcasts on their platforms, under a subscription to Platform id. Additionally, as a commitment to broadening the reach of our webcast platform, all events will be broadcast live within our shareholder outreach module, which will drive new audiences and give companies the ability to view their analytics and engagement of each event. We believe these analytics will increase the demand for our webcasting platform among the corporate issuer community.
 
Our investor relations content network is another component of Platform id., which is used to create the investor relations’ tab of a public company’s website. This investor relations content network is a robust series of data feeds including news feeds, stock feeds, fundamentals, regulatory filings, corporate governance and many other components that are aggregated from a majority of the major exchanges and news distribution outlets around the world. Customers can subscribe to one or more of these data feeds from us or as a component of a fully designed and hosted website for pre-IPO, reporting companies and partners seeking to display our content on their corporate sites. The clear benefit to our investor relations module is its integration into and with the rest of Platform id., meaning companies can produce content for public distribution and it is automatically linked to their corporate site, distributed to targeted groups and placed into and with our data feed partners.
 
Compliance Modules
 
Platform id.’s disclosure reporting module is a document conversion, editing and filing offering, which is designed for reporting companies and professionals seeking to insource the document drafting, editing and filing processes to the SEC and SEDAR, which is the Canadian equivalent of EDGAR. This module is available in both a secure public cloud within our Platform id. subscription, as well as in a private cloud option for corporations, mutual funds and the legal community looking to further enhance their internal document process. We believe that once this module is fully marketed and adopted by our customers, we will see a negative impact on our legacy disclosure conversion services business in the future. However, the margins associated with our Platform and Technology business compared to our Services business are higher and align with our long-term strategy, and as such, we believe this module will have a positive impact on our compliance business.

Toward the latter part of 2017, we completed upgrades to our disclosure reporting product to include tagging functionality that meets newly mandated SEC requirements. On June 28, 2018, the SEC voted to adopt rules mandating the use of Inline XBRL (Inline Extensible Business Reporting Language or “iXBRL”) for the submission of financial statement information to the SEC. The new requirements for iXBRL will have a three-year phase in beginning for large accelerated filers that use U.S. GAAP to be compliant for fiscal periods ending on or after June 15, 2019, for accelerated filers to begin reporting for fiscal periods ending on or after June 15, 2020 and for all other filers to begin reporting for fiscal periods ending on or after June 15, 2021. These upgrades also include meeting new SEC mandates for foreign filers that compile financial statements using International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) to be able to utilize our cloud-based platform. Foreign filers with fiscal year’s ending on or after December 15, 2017, are now required to begin reporting their financial statements in XBRL with the SEC in 2018. Issuer Direct's Platform id. has adopted the new IFRS taxonomy into and with its new disclosure upgrade for iXBRL to ensure our customers are able to meet these new mandates.
 
Our whistleblower module is an add-on product within Platform id. This system delivers secure notifications and basic incident workflow management processes that align with a company’s corporate governance whistleblower policy. As a supported and subsidized bundle product of the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) offerings, we hope we will gain relationships with new IPO customers and other larger cap customers listed on the NYSE.
 
A valued subscription add-on in our Platform id. offering is the ability for our customers to gain access to real-time information of their shareholders, stock ledgers, reports, and issue new shares from our cloud-based stock transfer module. Managing the capitalization table of a public company or pre-IPO company is the cornerstone of corporate governance and transparency, and as such companies and community banks have chosen us to assist with their stock transfer needs, including bond offerings and dividend management. This is an industry which has experienced declining overall revenues as it was affected by the replacement of paper certificates with digital certificates. However, we have recently been focused on selling subscriptions of the stock transfer component of our platform, allowing customers to gain access to our cloud-based system in order to move shares or query shareholders, which has significantly changed the long term dynamics for both our customers and us.
 
On October 2, 2017, we completed the acquisition of Interwest Transfer Company, Inc. (“Interwest”), a company specializing in stock registrar and transfer agent services. During the fourth quarter of 2017 and first half of 2018, we have been combining the stock information of both the legacy Issuer Direct customers and the acquired customers from Interwest. We have also begun and will continue to market the other modules of Platform id. and services to these new customers to help them meet all of their shareholder communication and compliance needs.
 
Our proxy module is marketed as a fully integrated, real-time voting platform for our customers and their shareholders of record. This module is utilized for every annual meeting and or special meeting we manage for our customer base and offers both full-set mailing and notice of internet availability options.
 
 
4
 
 
Services
 
As we focus on expanding our cloud-based subscription business, we expect to see a decrease in the overall revenues associated with our Services business. Typically, Services revenues relate to activities where substantial resources are required to perform the work for our customers and or hard goods are utilized as part of the engagement. To date, most of our Services have been related to converting and editing SEC documents and XBRL tagging, which has been our core disclosure business over the last 11 years. Services also include telecommunications services and print, fulfillment and delivery of stock certificates, proxy materials or annual reports depending on each customer’s engagement. Services are not required, but are optional for customers that utilize our Platform id.
 
Our investor outreach and engagement offering, formerly known as the ARS, was acquired from PIR. The ARS business has existed for over 20 years primarily as a physical hard copy delivery service of annual reports and prospectuses. We continue to operate a portion of this legacy system for those who opt to take advantage of physical delivery of material. Additionally, we continue to attempt to migrate the install base over to subscriptions of our digital outreach engagement module within Platform id. We believe we will continue to see further attrition of both customers and revenues in this category as we focus our efforts on our Platform and Technology business.
 
Selected Risk Factors
 
Our business is subject to substantial risk. Please carefully consider the section titled “Risk Factors” on page 7 of this prospectus for a discussion of the factors you should carefully consider before deciding to purchase the securities offered by this prospectus. These risks include, among others:
 
Legislative and regulatory changes can influence demand for our solutions and could adversely affect our business.
 
The environment in which we compete is highly competitive, which creates adverse pricing pressures and may harm our business and operating results if we cannot compete effectively.
 
Our revenue growth rate in the recent period relating to our Platform and Technology business may not be indicative of this business segment’s future performance.
 
The success of our cloud-based software largely depends on our ability to provide reliable solutions to our customers. If a customer were to experience a product defect, a disruption in its ability to use our solutions or a security flaw, demand for our solutions could be diminished, we could be subject to substantial liability and our business could suffer.

A substantial portion of our business is derived from our ACCESSWIRE brand, which is dependent on technology and key partners.
 
Failure to manage our growth may adversely affect our business or operations.
 
If we are unable to retain our key employees and attract and retain other qualified personnel, our business could suffer.
  
If we fail to keep our customers’ information confidential or if we handle their information improperly, our business and reputation could be significantly and adversely affected.
  
We must adapt to rapid changes in technology and customer requirements to remain competitive.
 
Our business could be materially harmed if we do not successfully manage the integration of our October 2017 acquisition of Interwest Transfer Company, Inc.
 
Additionally, our business could be harmed if we do not successfully manage the integration of any business that we may acquire in the future.
 
New issuers seeking to raise capital and become SEC registrants may choose to utilize Regulation A+ and we may see a significant decline in the number of filings as part of our current disclosure management business.
  
Revenue from Platform id. subscriptions and many of our service contracts is recognized ratably over the term of the contract or subscription period. As a result, downturns or upturns in sales may not be immediately reflected in our operating results.
 
 
5
 
 
We cannot accurately predict subscription renewal or upgrade rates and the impact these rates may have on our future revenue and operating results.
 
Although we have generated positive cash flows from operations for the past ten year, we have incurred operating losses in the past and may do so again in the future
 
We continue to transition our business from a services company to a software as a service company, which makes it difficult to predict our future operating results.
 
We are subject to general litigation and regulatory requirements that may materially adversely affect us.
 
New and existing laws make determining our income tax rate complex and subject to uncertainty.
  
We are subject to U.S. and foreign data privacy and protection laws and regulations as well as contractual privacy obligations, and our failure to comply could subject us to fines and damages and would harm our reputation and business.
  
Our business may be affected by factors outside of our control.
  
If potential customers take a long time to evaluate the use of our products, we could incur additional selling expenses and require additional working capital.
 
The seasonality of business makes it difficult to predict future results based on specific quarters.
 
If we are unable to successfully develop and timely introduce new technology-based products or enhance existing technology-based products, our business may be adversely affected.
 
The price of our common stock may fluctuate significantly, which could lead to losses for stockholders.
 
The trading volume of our common stock is currently very limited. As such, you may find it difficult to dispose of our common stock at a price that is acceptable to you.
 
We have two non-affiliate stockholders who hold more than 5% but less than 10% of our outstanding common stock. In the event either of those stockholders elected to liquidate a substantial portion of their position, our stock price may decline materially.
 
You may lose your investment in our shares.
 
Future sales and issuances of our capital stock or rights to purchase capital stock could result in additional dilution of the percentage ownership of our stockholders and could cause our stock price to decline.
 
We will continue to incur significantly increased costs and devote substantial management time as a result of operating as a public company.
 
A failure to maintain adequate internal controls over our financial and management systems could cause errors in our financial reporting, which could cause a loss of investor confidence and result in a decline in the price of our common stock.
 
Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also impair our business operations. You should be able to bear a complete loss of your investment.
 
Corporate information
 
We were organized in the State of Delaware on February 2006. Our principal executive offices are located at 500 Perimeter Park Drive, Suite D, Morrisville NC 27560. Our telephone number is (919) 481-4000. Our website address is www.issuerdirect.com. The information contained on our website is not part of this prospectus. We have included our website address as a factual reference and do not intend it to be an active link to our website.
 
 
6
 
 
RISK FACTORS
 
An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider the risks, uncertainties and assumptions described under Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, as well as subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, which risk factors are incorporated herein by reference, and may be amended, supplemented or superseded from time to time by other reports we file with the SEC in the future and any prospectus supplement related to a particular offering. The risks and uncertainties we have described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also affect our operations. The occurrence of any of these known or unknown risks might cause you to lose all or part of your investment in the offered securities.
 
CAUTIONARY NOTES REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
 
This prospectus contains forward-looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements contained in this prospectus and/or any applicable prospectus supplement other than statements of historical facts, including statements regarding our strategy, future operations, future financial position, future revenue, projected costs, prospects, plans, objectives of management and expected market growth, are forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.
 
The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “target,” “potential,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “should,” “continue,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements about:
 
our ability to strategically re-align and invest in our Platform and Technology sales team;
 
our ability to continue to expand our customer base, generate profitable, sustainable growth and generate increase cash flows from operations;
 
regulatory developments in the U.S. and foreign countries;
 
our ability to migrate, integrate and capitalize on our various acquisitions;
 
our ability to further expand our ACCESSWIRE distribution and customer base;
 
the size of the potential markets for our product offerings and our ability to serve those markets;
 
our ability to obtain and maintain intellectual property protection for our core assets;
 
the success of competing product offerings by others that are or become available for the services and products that we offer; and
 
other risks and uncertainties, including those described under Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, which risk factors are incorporated herein by reference.
 
These forward-looking statements are only predictions and we may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements, so you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements we make. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We have included important factors in the cautionary statements included in this prospectus, as well as certain information incorporated by reference into this prospectus, that could cause actual future results or events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements that we make. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, mergers, dispositions, joint ventures or investments we may make.
 
 
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You should read this prospectus with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from what we expect. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.
 
RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES
 
Our ratio of earnings to fixed charges for recently completed fiscal years and any required interim periods will be specified in a prospectus supplement or in a document that we file with the SEC and incorporated by reference in the future.
 
USE OF PROCEEDS
 
Unless otherwise provided in the applicable prospectus supplement, we intend to use the net proceeds from the sale of the securities under this prospectus for general corporate purposes and to in-license, acquire or invest in complementary businesses, technologies, products or assets. However, we have no current commitments or obligations to do so. We may set forth additional information on the use of proceeds from the sale or the securities we offer under this prospectus in a prospectus supplement relating to the specific offering. We cannot currently allocate specific percentages of the net proceeds that we may use for the purposes specified above. As a result, our management will have broad discretion in the allocation of the net proceeds. Pending the application of the net proceeds, we intend to invest the net proceeds in short- and intermediate-term, interest-bearing obligations, investment-grade instruments, certificates of deposit or direct or guaranteed obligations of the U.S. government.
 
DESCRIPTION OF OUR CAPITAL STOCK
 
General
 
Our authorized capital stock consists of 20,000,000 shares of common stock, $0.001 par value per share, and 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, $0.001 par value per share. The following is a description of our common stock and certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation, as amended (“Certificate”), and our amended and restated bylaws (“Bylaws”), and certain provisions of Delaware law.
 
As of August 2, 2018, there were issued and outstanding or reserved for issuance:
 
3,106,772 shares of common stock outstanding held by approximately 144 stockholders of record;
 
106,413 shares of common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding stock options under our 2010 Equity Incentive Plan and our 2014 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended, with a weighted average exercise price of $11.63 per share;
 
45,669 shares of unvested restricted stock units granted under our 2014 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended; and
 
61,000 shares of common stock reserved for future issuance in connection with future grants under our 2014 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended.
 
Common Stock
 
This section describes the general terms of our common stock that we may offer from time to time. For more detailed information, a holder of our common stock should refer to our Certificate and our Bylaws.
 
Except as otherwise expressly provided in our Certificate, or as required by applicable law, all shares of our common stock have the same rights and privileges and rank equally, share ratably and are identical in all respects as to all matters, including, without limitation, those described below. All outstanding shares of common stock are fully paid and nonassessable.
 
Voting Rights
 
Each holder of our common stock is entitled to cast one vote for each share of common stock held on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders. Cumulative voting for election of directors is not allowed under our Certificate, which means that a plurality of the shares voted can elect all of the directors then outstanding for election. Except as otherwise provided under Delaware law or our Certificate, and Bylaws, on matters other than election of directors, action on a matter is approved if the votes cast favoring the action exceed the votes cast opposing the action.
 
 
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Dividend Rights
 
The holders of outstanding shares of our common stock are entitled to receive dividends out of funds legally available, if our board of directors, in its discretion, determines to issue dividend, and only at the times and in the amounts that our board of directors may determine. Our board of directors is not obligated to declare a dividend.
 
Liquidation Rights
 
Upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, the holders of our common stock will be entitled to share equally, identically and ratably in all assets remaining, subject to the prior satisfaction of all outstanding debt and liabilities and the preferential rights and payment of liquidation preferences, if any, on any outstanding shares of preferred stock.
 
No Preemptive or Similar Rights
 
Our common stock is not subject to conversion, redemption, sinking fund or similar provisions.
 
Transfer Agent and Registrar
 
The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is Direct Transfer, LLC, Morrisville, North Carolina, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Issuer Direct.
 
Preferred Stock
 
This section describes the general terms and provisions of our outstanding shares of preferred stock, as well as preferred stock that we may offer from time to time. The applicable prospectus supplement will describe the specific terms of the shares of preferred stock offered through that prospectus supplement, which may differ from the terms we describe below. We will file a copy of the certificate of designation that contains the terms of each new series of preferred stock with the SEC each time we issue a new series of preferred stock, and these certificates of designation will be incorporated by reference into the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. Each certificate of designation will establish the number of shares included in a designated series and fix the designation, powers, privileges, preferences and rights of the shares of each series as well as any applicable qualifications, limitations or restrictions. A holder of our preferred stock should refer to the applicable certificate of designation, our Certificate and the applicable prospectus supplement (and any related free writing prospectus that we may authorize to be provided to you) for more specific information.
 
We are authorized, subject to limitations prescribed by Delaware law, to issue up to 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock in one or more series, to establish from time to time the number of shares to be included in each series and to fix the designation, powers, preferences and rights of the shares of each series and any of its qualifications, limitations or restrictions. Our board of directors can increase or decrease the number of shares of any series, but not below the number of shares of that series then outstanding, without any further vote or action by our stockholders. Our board of directors may authorize the issuance of preferred stock with voting or conversion rights that could adversely affect the voting power or other rights of the holders of the common stock. The issuance of preferred stock, while providing flexibility in connection with possible acquisitions and other corporate purposes, could, among other things, have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control of the Company and may adversely affect the market price of our common stock and the voting and other rights of the holders of our common stock.
 
Outstanding Series of Preferred Stock
 
Currently, there are no shares of our preferred stock outstanding or designated.
 
Shares of Preferred Stock Issuable Pursuant to this Prospectus
 
We will incorporate by reference as an exhibit to the registration statement, which includes this prospectus, the form of any certificate of designation that describes the terms of the series of preferred stock we are offering. This description and the applicable prospectus supplement will include:
 
the title and stated value;
 
the number of shares authorized;
 
 
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the liquidation preference per share;
 
the purchase price;
 
the dividend rate, period and payment date, and method of calculation for dividends;
 
whether dividends will be cumulative or non-cumulative and, if cumulative, the date from which dividends will accumulate;
 
the procedures for any auction and remarketing, if any;
 
the provisions for a sinking fund, if any;
 
the provisions for redemption or repurchase, if applicable, and any restrictions on our ability to exercise such redemption and repurchase rights;
 
any listing of the preferred stock on any securities exchange or market;
 
whether the preferred stock will be convertible into our common stock, and, if applicable, the conversion price, or how it will be calculated, and the conversion period;
 
whether the preferred stock will be exchangeable into debt securities, and, if applicable, the exchange price, or how it will be calculated, and the exchange period;
 
voting rights, if any, of the preferred stock;
 
preemptive rights, if any;
 
restrictions on transfer, sale or other assignment, if any;
 
a discussion of any material United States federal income tax considerations applicable to the preferred stock;
 
the relative ranking and preferences of the preferred stock as to dividend rights and rights if we liquidate, dissolve or wind up our affairs;
 
any limitations on issuance of any class or series of preferred stock ranking senior to or on a parity with the series of preferred stock as to dividend rights and rights if we liquidate, dissolve or wind up our affairs; and
 
any other specific terms, preferences, rights or limitations of, or restrictions on, the preferred stock.
 
When we issue shares of preferred stock under this prospectus, the shares will fully be paid and nonassessable and will not have, or be subject to, any preemptive or similar rights.
 
 
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DESCRIPTION OF OUR DEBT SECURITIES
 
This section describes the general terms and provisions of debt securities that we may issue from time to time. We may issue debt securities, in one or more series, as either senior or subordinated debt or as senior or subordinated convertible debt. While the terms we have summarized below will apply generally to any future debt securities we may offer under this prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus will describe the specific terms of any debt securities offered through that prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus. The terms of any debt securities we offer under a prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus may differ from the terms we describe below. Unless the context requires otherwise, whenever we refer to the “indentures,” we also are referring to any supplemental indentures that specify the terms of a particular series of debt securities.
 
In the event that we issue any debt securities, we will issue such senior debt securities under a senior indenture that we will enter into with the trustee named in such senior indenture. We will file forms of these documents as exhibits to the registration statement, of which this prospectus is a part, and supplemental indentures and forms of debt securities containing the terms of the debt securities being offered will be filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part or will be incorporated by reference from reports that we file with the SEC.
 
The indentures will be qualified under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, (the “Trust Indenture Act”). We use the term “trustee” to refer to either the trustee under the senior indenture or the trustee under the subordinated indenture, as applicable.
 
The following summaries of material provisions of potential senior debt securities, subordinated debt securities and the indentures are subject to, and qualified in their entirety by reference to, all of the provisions of the indenture applicable to a particular series of debt securities. We urge you to read the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus and any related free writing prospectuses related to the debt securities that we may offer under this prospectus, as well as the complete applicable indenture that contains the terms of the debt securities. Except as we may otherwise indicate, the terms of the senior indenture and the subordinated indenture are identical.
 
General
 
We will describe in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus the terms of the series of debt securities being offered, including:
 
the title;
 
the principal amount being offered, and if a series, the total amount authorized and the total amount outstanding;
 
any limit on the amount that may be issued;
 
whether or not we will issue the series of debt securities in global form, and, if so, the terms and who the depository will be;
 
the maturity date;
 
whether and under what circumstances, if any, we will pay additional amounts on any debt securities held by a person who is not a United States person for tax purposes, and whether we can redeem the debt securities if we have to pay such additional amounts;
 
the annual interest rate, which may be fixed or variable, or the method for determining the rate and the date interest will begin to accrue, the dates interest will be payable and the regular record dates for interest payment dates or the method for determining such dates;
 
whether or not the debt securities will be secured or unsecured, and the terms of any secured debt;
 
the terms of the subordination of any series of subordinated debt;
 
the place where payments will be payable;
 
 
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restrictions on transfer, sale or other assignment, if any;
 
our right, if any, to defer payment of interest and the maximum length of any such deferral period; the date, if any, after which, the conditions upon which, and the price at which, we may, at our option, redeem the series of debt securities pursuant to any optional or provisional redemption provisions and the terms of those redemption provisions;
 
the date, if any, on which, and the price at which we are obligated, pursuant to any mandatory sinking fund or analogous fund provisions or otherwise, to redeem, or at the holder’s option, to purchase, the series of debt securities and the currency or currency unit in which the debt securities are payable;

whether the indenture will restrict our ability or the ability of our subsidiaries to:
 
incur additional indebtedness;
 
issue additional securities;
 
create liens;
 
pay dividends or make distributions in respect of our capital stock or the capital stock of our subsidiaries;
 
redeem capital stock;
 
place restrictions on our subsidiaries’ ability to pay dividends, make distributions or transfer assets;
 
make investments or other restricted payments;
 
sell or otherwise dispose of assets;
 
enter into sale-leaseback transactions;
 
engage in transactions with stockholders or affiliates;
 
issue or sell stock of our subsidiaries; or
 
effect a consolidation or merger;
 
whether the indenture will require us to maintain any interest coverage, fixed charge, cash flow-based, asset-based or other financial ratios;
 
a discussion of certain material or special United States federal income tax considerations applicable to the debt securities;
 
information describing any book-entry features;
 
provisions for a sinking fund purchase or other analogous fund, if any;
 
the applicability of the provisions in the indenture on discharge;
 
whether the debt securities are to be offered at a price such that they will be deemed to be offered at an “original issue discount” as defined in paragraph (a) of Section 1273 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended;
 
 
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the denominations in which we will issue the series of debt securities, if other than denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof;
 
the currency of payment of debt securities if other than U.S. dollars and the manner of determining the equivalent amount in U.S. dollars; and
 
any other specific terms, preferences, rights or limitations of, or restrictions on, the debt securities, including any additional events of default or covenants provided with respect to the debt securities, and any terms that may be required by us or advisable under applicable laws or regulations or advisable in connection with the marketing of the debt securities.
 
Conversion or Exchange Rights
 
We will set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus the terms on which a series of debt securities may be convertible into or exchangeable for our common stock, our preferred stock or other securities (including securities of a third-party). We will include provisions as to whether conversion or exchange is mandatory, at the option of the holder or at our option. We may include provisions pursuant to which the number of shares of our common stock, our preferred stock or other securities (including securities of a third-party) that the holders of the series of debt securities receive would be subject to adjustment.

Consolidation, Merger or Sale
 
Unless we provide otherwise in the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus applicable to a particular series of debt securities, the indentures will not contain any covenant that restricts our ability to merge or consolidate, or sell, convey, transfer or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets. However, any successor to or acquirer of such assets must assume all of our obligations under the indentures or the debt securities, as appropriate. If the debt securities are convertible into or exchangeable for other securities of ours or securities of other entities, the person with whom we consolidate or merge or to whom we sell all of our property must make provisions for the conversion of the debt securities into securities that the holders of the debt securities would have received if they had converted the debt securities before the consolidation, merger or sale.
 
Events of Default Under the Indenture
 
Unless we provide otherwise in the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus applicable to a particular series of debt securities, the following are events of default under the indentures with respect to any series of debt securities that we may issue:
 
if we fail to pay interest when due and payable and our failure continues for 90 days and the time for payment has not been extended;
 
if we fail to pay the principal, premium or sinking fund payment, if any, when due and payable at maturity, upon redemption or repurchase or otherwise, and the time for payment has not been extended;
 
if we fail to observe or perform any other covenant contained in the debt securities or the indentures, other than a covenant specifically relating to another series of debt securities, and our failure continues for 90 days after we receive notice from the trustee or holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of the applicable series; and
 
if specified events of bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization occur.
 
We will describe in each applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus any additional events of default relating to the relevant series of debt securities.
 
If an event of default with respect to debt securities of any series occurs and is continuing, other than an event of default specified in the last bullet point above, the trustee or the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series, by notice to us in writing, and to the trustee if notice is given by such holders, may declare the unpaid principal, premium, if any, and accrued interest, if any, due and payable immediately. If an event of default specified in the last bullet point above occurs with respect to us, the unpaid principal, premium, if any, and accrued interest, if any, of each issue of debt securities then outstanding shall be due and payable without any notice or other action on the part of the trustee or any holder.
 
The holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of an affected series may waive any default or event of default with respect to the series and its consequences, except defaults or events of default regarding payment of principal, premium, if any, or interest, unless we have cured the default or event of default in accordance with the indenture. Any waiver shall cure the default or event of default.
 
 
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Subject to the terms of the indentures, if an event of default under an indenture shall occur and be continuing, the trustee will be under no obligation to exercise any of its rights or powers under such indenture at the request or direction of any of the holders of the applicable series of debt securities, unless such holders have offered the trustee reasonable indemnity or security satisfactory to it against any loss, liability or expense. The holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of any series will have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred on the trustee, with respect to the debt securities of that series, provided that:
 
the direction so given by the holder is not in conflict with any law or the applicable indenture; and
 
subject to its duties under the Trust Indenture Act, the trustee need not take any action that might involve it in personal liability or might be unduly prejudicial to the holders not involved in the proceeding.
 
A holder of the debt securities of any series will have the right to institute a proceeding under the indentures or to appoint a receiver or trustee, or to seek other remedies if:
 
the holder has given written notice to the trustee of a continuing event of default with respect to that series;
 
the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series have made written request, and such holders have offered reasonable indemnity to the trustee or security satisfactory to it against any loss, liability or expense or to be incurred in compliance with instituting the proceeding as trustee; and
 
the trustee does not institute the proceeding, and does not receive from the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series other conflicting directions within 90 days after the notice, request and offer.
 
These limitations do not apply to a suit instituted by a holder of debt securities if we default in the payment of the principal, premium, if any, or interest on, the debt securities, or other defaults that may be specified in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus.
 
We will periodically file statements with the trustee regarding our compliance with specified covenants in the indentures.
 
Modification of Indenture; Waiver
 
Subject to the terms of the indenture for any series of debt securities that we may issue, we and the trustee may change an indenture without the consent of any holders with respect to the following specific matters:
 
to fix any ambiguity, defect or inconsistency in the indenture;
 
to comply with the provisions described above under “Description of Our Debt Securities—Consolidation, Merger or Sale;”
 
to comply with any requirements of the SEC in connection with the qualification of any indenture under the Trust Indenture Act;
 
to add to, delete from or revise the conditions, limitations, and restrictions on the authorized amount, terms, or purposes of issue, authentication and delivery of debt securities, as set forth in the indenture;
 
to provide for the issuance of and establish the form and terms and conditions of the debt securities of any series as provided under “Description of Our Debt Securities—General ,” to establish the form of any certifications required to be furnished pursuant to the terms of the indenture or any series of debt securities, or to add to the rights of the holders of any series of debt securities;
 
to evidence and provide for the acceptance of appointment hereunder by a successor trustee;
 
to provide for uncertificated debt securities and to make all appropriate changes for such purpose;
 
 
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to add to our covenants such new covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions for the benefit of the holders, to make the occurrence, or the occurrence and the continuance, of a default in any such additional covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions an event of default or to surrender any right or power conferred to us in the indenture; or
 
to change anything that does not materially adversely affect the interests of any holder of debt securities of any series.
 
In addition, under the indentures, the rights of holders of a series of debt securities may be changed by us and the trustee with the written consent of the holders of at least a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of each series that is affected. However, subject to the terms of the indenture for any series of debt securities that we may issue or as otherwise provided in the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus applicable to a particular series of debt securities, we and the trustee may make the following changes only with the consent of each holder of any outstanding debt securities affected:
 
extending the stated maturity of the series of debt securities;
 
reducing the principal amount, reducing the rate of or extending the time of payment of interest, or reducing any premium payable upon the redemption or repurchase of any debt securities; or
 
reducing the percentage of debt securities, the holders of which are required to consent to any amendment, supplement, modification or waiver.
 
Discharge
 
Each indenture provides that, subject to the terms of the indenture and any limitation otherwise provided in the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus applicable to a particular series of debt securities, we can elect to be discharged from our obligations with respect to one or more series of debt securities, except for specified obligations, including obligations to:
 
register the transfer or exchange of debt securities of the series;
 
replace stolen, lost or mutilated debt securities of the series;
 
maintain paying agencies;
 
hold monies for payment in trust;
 
recover excess money held by the trustee;
 
compensate and indemnify the trustee; and
 
appoint any successor trustee.
 
In order to exercise our rights to be discharged, we must deposit with the trustee money or government obligations sufficient to pay all the principal of, and any premium and interest on, the debt securities of the series on the dates payments are due.
 
Form, Exchange and Transfer
 
In the event that we issue debt securities, we will issue such debt securities of each series only in fully registered form without coupons and, unless we otherwise specify in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, in denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof. The indentures provide that we may issue debt securities of a series in temporary or permanent global form and as book-entry securities that will be deposited with, or on behalf of, The Depository Trust Company or another depository named by us and identified in a prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus with respect to that series.
 
 
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At the option of the holder, subject to the terms of the indentures and the limitations applicable to global securities described in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, the holder of the debt securities of any series can exchange the debt securities for other debt securities of the same series, in any authorized denomination and of like tenor and aggregate principal amount.
 
Subject to the terms of the indentures and the limitations applicable to global securities set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, holders of the debt securities may present the debt securities for exchange or for registration of transfer, duly endorsed or with the form of transfer endorsed thereon duly executed if so required by us or the security registrar, at the office of the security registrar or at the office of any transfer agent designated by us for this purpose. Unless otherwise provided in the debt securities that the holder presents for transfer or exchange, we will make no service charge for any registration of transfer or exchange, but we may require payment of any taxes or other governmental charges.
 
We will name in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus the security registrar, and any transfer agent in addition to the security registrar that we initially designate for any debt securities. We may at any time designate additional transfer agents or rescind the designation of any transfer agent or approve a change in the office through which any transfer agent acts, except that we will be required to maintain a transfer agent in each place of payment for the debt securities of each series. If we elect to redeem the debt securities of any series, we will not be required to:
 
issue, register the transfer of, or exchange any debt securities of that series during a period beginning at the opening of business 15 days before the day of mailing of a notice of redemption of any debt securities that may be selected for redemption and ending at the close of business on the day of the mailing; or
 
register the transfer of or exchange any debt securities so selected for redemption, in whole or in part, except the unredeemed portion of any debt securities we are redeeming in part.
 
Information Concerning the Trustee
 
The trustee, other than during the occurrence and continuance of an event of default under an indenture, undertakes to perform only those duties as are specifically set forth in the applicable indenture. Upon an event of default under an indenture, the trustee must use the same degree of care as a prudent person would exercise or use in the conduct of his or her own affairs.
 
Subject to this provision, the trustee is under no obligation to exercise any of the powers given it by the indentures at the request of any holder of debt securities unless it is offered reasonable security and indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities that it might incur.
 
Payment and Paying Agents
 
Unless we otherwise indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, we will make payment of the interest on any debt securities on any interest payment date to the person in whose name the debt securities, or one or more predecessor securities, are registered at the close of business on the regular record date for the interest.
 
We will pay principal of and any premium and interest on the debt securities of a particular series at the office of the paying agents designated by us, except that unless we otherwise indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, we will make interest payments by check that we will mail to the holder or by wire transfer to certain holders. Unless we otherwise indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, we will designate the corporate trust office of the trustee as our sole paying agent for payments with respect to debt securities of each series. We will name in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus any other paying agents that we initially designate for the debt securities of a particular series. We will maintain a paying agent in each place of payment for the debt securities of a particular series.
 
All money we pay to a paying agent or the trustee for the payment of the principal of or any premium or interest on any debt securities that remains unclaimed at the end of two years after such principal, premium or interest has become due and payable will be repaid to us, and the holder of the debt security thereafter may look only to us for payment thereof.
 
Governing Law
 
The indentures and the debt securities will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware, except to the extent that the Trust Indenture Act is applicable.
 
Ranking of Debt Securities
 
The subordinated debt securities will be subordinate and junior in priority of payment to certain of our other indebtedness to the extent described in a prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus. The subordinated indenture does not limit the amount of subordinated debt securities that we may issue. It also does not limit us from issuing any other secured or unsecured debt.
 
The senior debt securities will rank equally in right of payment to all our other senior unsecured debt. The senior indenture does not limit the amount of senior debt securities that we may issue. It also does not limit us from issuing any other secured or unsecured debt.
 
 
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DESCRIPTION OF OUR WARRANTS
 
The following description, together with the additional information we include in any applicable prospectus supplements or free writing prospectus, summarizes the material terms and provisions of the warrants that we may offer under this prospectus, which may consist of warrants to purchase common stock, preferred stock and/or debt securities in one or more series. Warrants may be offered independently or together with common stock, preferred stock and/or debt securities offered by any prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, and may be attached to or separate from those securities. While the terms we have summarized below will generally apply to any future warrants we may offer under this prospectus, we will describe the particular terms of any warrants that we may offer in more detail in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus. The terms of any warrants we offer under a prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus may differ from the terms we describe below.
 
In the event that we issue warrants, we will issue the warrants under a warrant agreement which we will enter into with a warrant agent to be selected by us. Forms of these warrant agreements and forms of the warrant certificates representing the warrants, and the complete warrant agreements and forms of warrant certificates containing the terms of the warrants being offered, will be filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part or will be incorporated by reference from reports that we file with the SEC. We use the term “warrant agreement” to refer to any of these warrant agreements. We use the term “warrant agent” to refer to the warrant agent under any of these warrant agreements. The warrant agent will act solely as an agent of ours in connection with the warrants and will not act as an agent for the holders or beneficial owners of the warrants.
 
The following summaries of material provisions of the warrants and the warrant agreements are subject to, and qualified in their entirety by reference to, all the provisions of the warrant agreement applicable to a particular series of warrants. We urge you to read the applicable prospectus supplements or free writing prospectus related to the warrants that we sell under this prospectus, as well as the complete warrant agreements that contain the terms of the warrants.
 
General
 
We will describe in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus the terms relating to a series of warrants. If warrants for the purchase of debt securities are offered, the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus will describe the following terms, to the extent applicable:
 
the offering price and the aggregate number of warrants offered;
 
the currencies in which the warrants are being offered;
 
the designation, aggregate principal amount, currencies, denominations and terms of the series of debt securities that can be purchased if a holder exercises a warrant;
 
the designation and terms of any series of debt securities with which the warrants are being offered and the number of warrants offered with each such debt security;
 
the date on and after which the holder of the warrants can transfer them separately from the related series of debt securities;
 
the principal amount of the series of debt securities that can be purchased if a holder exercises a warrant and the price at which and currencies in which such principal amount may be purchased upon exercise;
 
the terms of any rights to redeem or call the warrants;
 
the date on which the right to exercise the warrants begins and the date on which such right expires;
 
federal income tax consequences of holding or exercising the warrants; and
 
any other specific terms, preferences, rights or limitations of, or restrictions on, the warrants.
 
 
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If warrants for the purchase of common stock or preferred stock are offered, the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus will describe the following terms, to the extent applicable:
 
the offering price and the aggregate number of warrants offered;
 
the total number of shares that can be purchased if a holder of the warrants exercises them and, in the case of warrants for preferred stock, the designation, total number and terms of the series of preferred stock that can be purchased upon exercise;
 
the designation and terms of any series of preferred stock with which the warrants are being offered and the number of warrants being offered with each share of common stock or preferred stock;
 
the date on and after which the holder of the warrants can transfer them separately from the related common stock or series of preferred stock;
 
the number of shares of common stock or preferred stock that can be purchased if a holder exercises the warrant and the price at which such common stock or preferred stock may be purchased upon exercise, including, if applicable, any provisions for changes to or adjustments in the exercise price and in the securities or other property receivable upon exercise;
 
the terms of any rights to redeem or call, or accelerate the expiration of, the warrants;
 
the date on which the right to exercise the warrants begins and the date on which that right expires;
 
federal income tax consequences of holding or exercising the warrants; and
 
any other specific terms, preferences, rights or limitations of, or restrictions on, the warrants.
 
Exercise of Warrants
 
Each holder of a warrant is entitled to purchase the principal amount of debt securities or number of shares of common stock or preferred stock, as the case may be, at the exercise price described in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus. After the close of business on the day when the right to exercise terminates (or a later date if we extend the time for exercise), unexercised warrants will become void.
 
A holder of warrants may exercise them by following the general procedure outlined below:
 
delivering to the warrant agent the payment required by the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus to purchase the underlying security;
 
properly completing and signing the reverse side of the warrant certificate representing the warrants; and
 
delivering the warrant certificate representing the warrants to the warrant agent within five business days of the warrant agent receiving payment of the exercise price.
 
If you comply with the procedures described above, your warrants will be considered to have been exercised when the warrant agent receives payment of the exercise price, subject to the transfer books for the securities issuable upon exercise of the warrant not being closed on such date. After you have completed those procedures and subject to the foregoing, we will, as soon as practicable, issue and deliver to you the debt securities, common stock or preferred stock that you purchased upon exercise. If you exercise fewer than all of the warrants represented by a warrant certificate, a new warrant certificate will be issued to you for the unexercised amount of warrants. Holders of warrants will be required to pay any tax or governmental charge that may be imposed in connection with transferring the underlying securities in connection with the exercise of the warrants.
 
 
18
 
 
Amendments and Supplements to the Warrant Agreements
 
We may amend or supplement a warrant agreement without the consent of the holders of the applicable warrants to cure ambiguities in the warrant agreement, to cure or correct a defective provision in the warrant agreement, or to provide for other matters under the warrant agreement that we and the warrant agent deem necessary or desirable, so long as, in each case, such amendments or supplements do not materially adversely affect the interests of the holders of the warrants.
 
Warrant Adjustments
 
Unless the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus states otherwise, the exercise price of, and the number of securities covered by, a common stock warrant or preferred stock warrant will be adjusted proportionately if we subdivide or combine our common stock or preferred stock, as applicable. In addition, unless the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus states otherwise, if we, without receiving payment:
 
issue capital stock or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for common stock or preferred stock, or any rights to subscribe for, purchase or otherwise acquire any of the foregoing, as a dividend or distribution to holders of our common stock or preferred stock;
 
pay any cash to holders of our common stock or preferred stock other than a cash dividend paid out of our current or retained earnings or other than in accordance with the terms of the preferred stock;
 
issue any evidence of our indebtedness or rights to subscribe for or purchase our indebtedness to holders of our common stock or preferred stock; or
 
issue common stock or preferred stock or additional stock or other securities or property to holders of our common stock or preferred stock by way of spinoff, split-up, reclassification, combination of shares or similar corporate rearrangement,
 
then the holders of common stock warrants and preferred stock warrants, as applicable, will be entitled to receive upon exercise of the warrants, in addition to the securities otherwise receivable upon exercise of the warrants and without paying any additional consideration, the amount of stock and other securities and property such holders would have been entitled to receive had they held the common stock or preferred stock, as applicable, issuable under the warrants on the dates on which holders of those securities received or became entitled to receive such additional stock and other securities and property.
 
Except as stated above or as otherwise set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, the exercise price and number of securities covered by a common stock warrant and preferred stock warrant, and the amounts of other securities or property to be received, if any, upon exercise of those warrants, will not be adjusted or provided for if we issue those securities or any securities convertible into or exchangeable for those securities, or securities carrying the right to purchase those securities or securities convertible into or exchangeable for those securities.
 
Holders of common stock warrants and preferred stock warrants may have additional rights under the following circumstances:
 
certain reclassifications, capital reorganizations or changes of the common stock or preferred stock, as applicable;
 
certain share exchanges, mergers, or similar transactions involving us and which result in changes of the common stock or preferred stock, as applicable; or
 
certain sales or dispositions to another entity of all or substantially all of our property and assets.
 
If one of the above transactions occurs and holders of our common stock or preferred stock are entitled to receive stock, securities or other property with respect to or in exchange for their securities, the holders of the common stock warrants and preferred stock warrants then outstanding, as applicable, will be entitled to receive upon exercise of their warrants the kind and amount of shares of stock and other securities or property that they would have received upon the applicable transaction if they had exercised their warrants immediately before the transaction.
 
 
19
 
 
DESCRIPTION OF OUR UNITS
 
This section outlines some of the provisions of the units and the unit agreements. This information may not be complete in all respects and is qualified entirely by reference to the unit agreement with respect to the units of any particular series. The specific terms of any series of units will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus. If so described in a particular prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus, the specific terms of any series of units may differ from the general description of terms presented below.
 
As specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we may issue units consisting of one or more shares of common stock, shares of preferred stock, debt securities, warrants or any combination of such securities.
 
The applicable prospectus supplement will specify the following terms of any units in respect of which this prospectus is being delivered:
 
the terms of the units and of any of the shares of common stock, shares of preferred stock, debt securities, or warrants comprising the units, including whether and under what circumstances the securities comprising the units may be traded separately;
 
a description of the terms of any unit agreement governing the units;
 
if appropriate, a discussion of material U.S. federal income tax considerations; and
 
a description of the provisions for the payment, settlement, transfer or exchange of the units.
 
DESCRIPTION OF OVERALLOTMENT PURCHASE RIGHTS
 
We summarize below some of the provisions that will apply to the overallotment purchase rights unless the applicable prospectus supplement provides otherwise. This summary may not contain all information that is important to you. The complete terms of the overallotment purchase rights will be contained in the applicable overallotment purchase rights certificate and overallotment purchase rights agreement. These documents have been or will be included or incorporated by reference as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. You should read the overallotment purchase rights certificate and the overallotment purchase rights agreement. You should also read the prospectus supplement, which will contain additional information and which may update or change some of the information below.
 
General
 
We may issue, together with common or preferred stock or warrants as units or separately, overallotment purchase rights for the purchase of shares of our common or preferred stock or warrants. The terms of each overallotment purchase right will be discussed in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to the particular series of overallotment purchase rights. The form(s) of certificate representing the overallotment purchase rights and/or the overallotment purchase right agreement, will be, in each case, filed with the SEC as an exhibit to a document incorporated by reference in the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part on or prior to the date of any prospectus supplement relating to an offering of the particular overallotment purchase right. The following summary of material provisions of the overallotment purchase rights and the overallotment purchase right agreements is subject to, and qualified in their entirety by reference to, all the provisions of the overallotment purchase rights agreement and overallotment purchase rights certificate applicable to a particular series of overallotment purchase rights.
 
The prospectus supplement relating to any series of overallotment purchase rights that are offered by this prospectus will describe, among other things, the following terms to the extent they are applicable to that series of overallotment purchase rights:
 
the procedures and conditions relating to the exercise of the overallotment purchase rights;
 
the number of shares of our common or preferred stock or warrants, if any, issued with the overallotment purchase rights;
 
 
20
 
 
the date, if any, on and after which the overallotment purchase rights and any related shares of our common or preferred stock or warrants will be separately transferable;
 
the offering price of the overallotment purchase rights, if any;
 
the number of shares of our common or preferred stock or warrants which may be purchased upon exercise of the overallotment purchase rights and the price or prices at which the shares or warrants may be purchased upon exercise;
 
the date on which the right to exercise the overallotment purchase rights will begin and the date on which the right will expire;
 
a discussion of the material United States federal income tax considerations applicable to the exercise of the overallotment purchase rights;
 
anti-dilution provisions of the overallotment purchase rights, if any;
 
call provisions of the overallotment purchase rights, if any; and
 
any other material terms of the overallotment purchase rights.

Each overallotment purchase right may entitle the holder to purchase for cash, or, in limited circumstances, by effecting a cashless exercise for, the number of shares of our common or preferred stock or warrants at the exercise price that is described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Overallotment purchase rights will be exercisable during the period of time described in the applicable prospectus supplement. After that period, unexercised overallotment purchase rights will be void. Overallotment purchase rights may be exercised in the manner described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
 
A holder of an overallotment purchase right will not have any of the rights of a holder of our common or preferred stock before the stock is purchased upon exercise of the overallotment purchase right. Therefore, before an overallotment purchase right is exercised, the holder of the overallotment purchase right will not be entitled to receive any dividend payments or exercise any voting or other rights associated with shares of our common or preferred stock which may be purchased when the overallotment purchase right is exercised.
 
Transfer Agent and Registrar
 
The transfer agent and registrar, if any, for any overallotment purchase rights will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement.
 
 
 
21
 
 
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
 
We may sell the securities being offered hereby in one or more of the following ways from time to time:
 
through agents to the public or to investors;
 
to underwriters for resale to the public or to investors;
 
negotiated transactions;
 
block trades;
 
directly to investors; or
 
through a combination of any of these methods of sale.
 
As set forth in more detail below, the securities may be distributed from time to time in one or more transactions:
 
at a fixed price or prices, which may be changed;
 
at market prices prevailing at the time of sale;
 
at prices related to such prevailing market prices; or
 
at negotiated prices.
 
We will set forth in a prospectus supplement the terms of that particular offering of securities, including:
 
the name or names of any agents or underwriters;
 
the purchase price of the securities being offered and the proceeds we will receive from the sale;
 
any over-allotment options under which underwriters may purchase additional securities from us;
 
any agency fees or underwriting discounts and other items constituting agents' or underwriters' compensation;
 
any initial public offering price;
 
any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers; and
 
any securities exchanges or markets on which such securities may be listed.
 
 
22
 
 
Only underwriters named in the prospectus supplement are underwriters of the securities offered by the prospectus supplement.
 
If underwriters are used in an offering, we will execute an underwriting agreement with such underwriters and will specify the name of each underwriter and the terms of the transaction (including any underwriting discounts and other terms constituting compensation of the underwriters and any dealers) in a prospectus supplement. The securities may be offered to the public either through underwriting syndicates represented by managing underwriters or directly by one or more investment banking firms or others, as designated. If an underwriting syndicate is used, the managing underwriter(s) will be specified on the cover of the prospectus supplement. If underwriters are used in the sale, the offered securities will be acquired by the underwriters for their own accounts and may be resold from time to time in one or more transactions, including negotiated transactions, at a fixed public offering price or at varying prices determined at the time of sale. Any public offering price and any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers may be changed from time to time. Unless otherwise set forth in the prospectus supplement, the obligations of the underwriters to purchase the offered securities will be subject to conditions precedent and the underwriters will be obligated to purchase all of the offered securities if any are purchased.
 
We may grant to the underwriters options to purchase additional securities to cover over-allotments, if any, at the public offering price, with additional underwriting commissions or discounts, as may be set forth in a related prospectus supplement. The terms of any over-allotment option will be set forth in the prospectus supplement for those securities.

If we use a dealer in the sale of the securities being offered pursuant to this prospectus or any prospectus supplement, we will sell the securities to the dealer, as principal.  The dealer may then resell the securities to the public at varying prices to be determined by the dealer at the time of resale.  The names of the dealers and the terms of the transaction will be specified in a prospectus supplement.
 
We may sell the securities directly or through agents we designate from time to time.  We will name any agent involved in the offering and sale of securities and we will describe any commissions we will pay the agent in the prospectus supplement. Unless the prospectus supplement states otherwise, any agent will act on a best-efforts basis for the period of its appointment.
 
We may authorize agents or underwriters to solicit offers by institutional investors to purchase securities from us 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. We will describe the conditions to these contracts and the commissions we must pay for solicitation of these contracts in the prospectus supplement.
 
In connection with the sale of the securities, underwriters, dealers or agents may receive compensation from us or from purchasers of the securities for whom they act as agents in the form of discounts, concessions or commissions. Underwriters may sell the securities to or through dealers, and those dealers may receive compensation in the form of discounts, concessions or commissions from the underwriters or commissions from the purchasers for whom they may act as agents. Underwriters, dealers and agents that participate in the distribution of the securities, and any institutional investors or others that purchase securities directly and then resell the securities, may be deemed to be underwriters, and any discounts or commissions received by them from us and any profit on the resale of the securities by them may be deemed to be underwriting discounts and commissions under the Securities Act.
 
We may provide agents and underwriters with indemnification against particular civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or contribution with respect to payments that the agents or underwriters may make with respect to such liabilities. Agents and underwriters may engage in transactions with, or perform services for, us in the ordinary course of business.
 
In addition, we may enter into derivative transactions with third parties (including the writing of options), or sell securities not covered by this prospectus to third parties in privately negotiated transactions. If the applicable prospectus supplement indicates, in connection with such a transaction, the third parties may, pursuant to this prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement, sell securities covered by this prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement. If so, the third party may use securities borrowed from us or others to settle such sales and may use securities received from us to close out any related short positions. We may also loan or pledge securities covered by this prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement to third parties, who may sell the loaned securities or, in an event of default in the case of a pledge, sell the pledged securities pursuant to this prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement. The third party in such sale transactions will be an underwriter and will be identified in the applicable prospectus supplement or in a post-effective amendment.
 
To facilitate an offering of a series of securities, persons participating in the offering may engage in transactions that stabilize, maintain, or otherwise affect the market price of the securities. This may include over-allotments or short sales of the securities, which involves the sale by persons participating in the offering of more securities than have been sold to them by us. In those circumstances, such persons would cover such over-allotments or short positions by purchasing in the open market or by exercising the over-allotment option granted to those persons. In addition, those persons may stabilize or maintain the price of the securities by bidding for or purchasing securities in the open market or by imposing penalty bids, whereby selling concessions allowed to underwriters or dealers participating in any such offering may be reclaimed if securities sold by them are repurchased in connection with stabilization transactions. The effect of these transactions may be to stabilize or maintain the market price of the securities at a level above that which might otherwise prevail in the open market. Such transactions, if commenced, may be discontinued at any time. We make no representation or prediction as to the direction or magnitude of any effect that the transactions described above, if implemented, may have on the price of our securities.
 
 
23
 
 
Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, each class or series of securities will be a new issue with no established trading market, other than our common stock, which is listed on the NYSE American. We may elect to list any other class or series of securities on any exchange or market, but we are not obligated to do so. It is possible that one or more underwriters may make a market in a class or series of securities, but the 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 any of the securities.
 
In order to comply with the securities laws of some states, if applicable, the securities offered pursuant to this prospectus will be sold in those states only through registered or licensed brokers or dealers. In addition, in some states securities may not be sold unless they have been registered or qualified for sale in the applicable state or an exemption from the registration or qualification requirement is available and complied with.
 
Any underwriter may engage in overallotment, stabilizing transactions, short covering transactions and penalty bids in accordance with the Exchange Act or Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Overallotment involves sales in excess of the offering size, which create a short position. Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase the underlying security so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum. Short covering transactions involve purchases of the securities in the open market after the distribution is completed to cover short positions. Penalty bids permit the underwriters to reclaim a selling concession from a dealer when the securities originally sold by the dealer are purchased in a covering transaction to cover short positions. Those activities may cause the price of the securities to be higher than it would otherwise be. If commenced, the underwriters may discontinue any of these activities at any time.
 
Any underwriters who are qualified market makers on the NYSE American may engage in passive market making transactions in the securities on the NYSE American in accordance with Rule 103 of Regulation M, during the business day prior to the pricing of the offering, before the commencement of offers or sales of the securities. Passive market makers must comply with applicable volume and price limitations and must be identified as passive market makers. In general, a passive market maker must display its bid at a price not in excess of the highest independent bid for such security. If all independent bids are lowered below the passive market maker's bid, however, the passive market maker's bid must then be lowered when certain purchase limits are exceeded.
 
 
 
 
 
 
24
 
 
LEGAL MATTERS
 
The validity of the securities offered by this prospectus will be passed upon by Quick Law Group PC, Boulder, Colorado. Certain legal matters will passed upon for any underwriters, dealers or agents by the law firm identified as counsel to such underwriters, dealers or agents in the applicable prospectus supplement.
 
EXPERTS
 
The financial statements of the Company incorporated in this prospectus by reference to the Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 have been audited by Cherry Bekaert LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report thereon, and are included in reliance upon the report of such firm given upon its authority as experts in accounting and auditing.
 
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
 
We are a public company and file annual, quarterly and special reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. You may read and copy any document we file at the SEC’s public reference room at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20549. You can request copies of these documents by writing to the SEC and paying a fee for the copying cost. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for more information about the operation of the public reference room. Our SEC filings are also available, at no charge, to the public at the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.
 
We announce material financial information to our investors using our investor relations website, SEC filings, investor events, news and earnings releases, public conference calls, webcasts and social media. We use these channels to communicate with our investors and the public about our company, our products and services and other related matters. It is possible that information we post on some of these channels could be deemed to be material information. Therefore, we encourage investors, the media and others interested in our company to review the information we post to all of our channels, including our social media accounts.
 
INCORPORATION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION BY REFERENCE
 
The following documents filed by us with the SEC are incorporated by reference in this prospectus:
 
Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, filed on March 5, 2018, including the information specifically incorporated by reference into the Annual Report on Form 10-K/A from the Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A, filed on April 20, 2018;
 
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2018, filed on May 3, 2018;
 
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2018, filed on August 2, 2018
 
Current Report on Form 8-K, filed on March 1, 2018;
 
Current Report on Form 8-K, filed on May 3, 2018;
 
Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 1, 2018;
 
Current Report on Form 8-K filed on July 5, 2018;
 
Current Report on Form 8-K filed on July 9, 2018;
 
Current Report on Form 8-K filed on August 2, 2018; and
 
The description of our common stock contained in the Registration Statement on Amendment No. 1 to Form S-1 filed pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act on January 29, 2014, including any amendment or report filed with the SEC for the purpose of updating this description.
 
We also incorporate by reference all documents we file pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15 of the Exchange Act (other than any portions of filings that are furnished rather than filed pursuant to Items 2.02 and 7.01 of a Current Report on Form 8-K) after the date of the initial registration statement of which this prospectus is a part and prior to effectiveness of such registration statement. All documents we file in the future pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the date of this prospectus and prior to the termination of the offering are also incorporated by reference and are an important part of this prospectus.
 
 
25
 
 
Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for the purposes of this registration statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this registration statement.
 
We will provide to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom a prospectus is delivered, a copy of any or all of the information that has been incorporated by reference in the prospectus but not delivered with the prospectus. You may request a copy of these filings, excluding the exhibits to such filings which we have not specifically incorporated by reference in such filings, at no cost, by writing to or calling us at:
 
 
Issuer Direct Corporation
Attn: Corporate Secretary
500 Perimeter Park Drive, Suite D
Morrisville, North Carolina 27560
(919) 481-4000
 
This prospectus is part of a registration statement we filed with the SEC. You should only rely on the information or representations contained in this prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement. We have not authorized anyone to provide information other than that provided in this prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement. We are not making an offer of the securities in any state where the offer is not permitted. You should not assume that the information in this prospectus or any accompanying prospectus supplement is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of the document.
 
 
 
 
 
26
 

 
 
 
PROSPECTUS
 
 
 
 
 
 
$30,000,000
 
 
 
 
Common Stock
Preferred Stock
Debt Securities
Warrants
Units
 
 
 
 
            , 2018
 
 
 

 
 
 
PART II
 
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
 
ITEM 14. OTHER EXPENSES OF ISSUANCE AND DISTRIBUTION
 
The following table sets forth an estimate of the fees and expenses, other than the underwriting discounts and commissions, payable by us in connection with the issuance and distribution of the securities being registered.
 
 
 
Amount
 
SEC registration fee
 $3,735 
NYSE American supplemental listing fee
  * 
Accounting fees and expenses
  5,000 
Legal fees and expenses
  20,000 
Transfer agent and registrar fees and expenses
  * 
Trustee fees and expenses
  * 
Printing and miscellaneous fees and expenses
  * 
Total
 $* 
 
* These fees are calculated based on the securities offered and the number of issuances and accordingly cannot be estimated at this time.
 
ITEM 15. INDEMNIFICATION OF OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
 
Limitations of liability and indemnification
 
Subsection (a) of Section 145 of the General Corporation Law of Delaware, or the DGCL, empowers a corporation to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of the corporation) by reason of the fact that he is or was a director, employee or agent of the corporation or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his conduct was unlawful.
 
Subsection (b) of Section 145 of the DGCL empowers a corporation to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that such person acted in any of the capacities set forth above, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation and except that no indemnification may be made with respect to any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the corporation unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery or the court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all of the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other court shall deem proper.
 
Section 145 of the DGCL further provides that to the extent a director, officer, employee or agent of a corporation has been successful on the merits or otherwise in the defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in subsections (a) and (b) or in the defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, he shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection therewith; that indemnification or advancement of expenses provided for by Section 145 shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which the indemnified party may be entitled; and empowers the corporation to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation against any liability asserted against him or incurred by him in any such capacity or arising out of his status as such whether or not the corporation would have the power to indemnify him against such liabilities under Section 145.
 
 
II-1
 
 
Reference is also made to Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL, which enables a corporation in its certificate of incorporation to eliminate or limit the personal liability of a director for monetary damages for violations of a director’s fiduciary duty, except for liability (i) for any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to the corporation or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) under Section 174 of the DGCL (providing for liability of directors for unlawful payment of dividends or unlawful stock purchases or redemptions) or (iv) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit. Our Certificate of Incorporation, as amended, and our indemnity agreements with our officers and directors provides that we must indemnify our directors to the fullest extent under applicable law. Pursuant to Delaware law, this includes elimination of liability for monetary damages for breach of the directors’ fiduciary duty of care to Issuer Direct and its stockholders. However, our directors may be personally liable for liability:
 
for any breach of duty of loyalty to us or to our stockholders;
 
for acts or omissions not in good faith or that involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;
 
for unlawful payment of dividends or unlawful stock repurchases or redemptions; or
 
for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

In addition, our amended and restated bylaws and indemnity agreements provide that:
 
we are required to indemnify our directors and executive officers to the fullest extent not prohibited by Delaware law or any other applicable law, subject to limited exceptions;
 
we may indemnify our other officers, employees and other agents as set forth in Delaware law or any other applicable law;
 
we are required to advance expenses to our directors and executive officers as incurred in connection with legal proceedings against them for which they may be indemnified; and
 
the rights conferred in the amended and restated bylaws are not exclusive.
 
There is no pending litigation or proceeding naming any of our directors or officers as to which indemnification is being sought, nor are we aware of any pending or threatened litigation that may result in claims for indemnification.
 
ITEM 16. EXHIBITS
 
1.1*
Form of Underwriting Agreement
Agreement and Plan of Merger dated August 22, 2013 with the Company, ISDR Acquisition Corp. and Precision IR Group, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Form 8-K filed on August 27, 2013)
Asset Purchase Agreement dated October 2, 2014 with the Company, Baystreet.ca Media Corp. and Aaron Bodnar (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Form 8-K filed on October 7, 2014)
Stock Purchase Agreement dated July 3, 2018 with the Company, ACCESSWIRE Canada Ltd. and Fred Gautreau (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Form 8-K filed on July 5, 2018)
Certificate of Incorporation, as amended (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Form S-3 filed on May 10, 2017)
Amended and Restated Bylaws (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Form 8-K filed on February 12, 2014)
4.1*
Form of any certificate of designation with respect to any preferred stock issued hereunder and the related form of preferred stock certificate
4.2*
Form of any warrant agreement with respect to each particular series of warrants issued hereunder
4.3*
Form of any unit agreement with respect to any unit issued hereunder
Form of indenture for senior debt securities
Form of indenture for subordinated debt securities
4.6*
Form of senior note
4.7*
Form of subordinated note
4.8*
Form of overallotment purchase right agreement
Opinion of Quick Law Group PC
12.1*
Computation of Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges
Consent of Quick Law Group PC (included with exhibit 5.1)
Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm – Cherry Bekaert LLP
Power of Attorney (located on signature page to this Registration Statement)
25.1**
Form T-1 Statement of Eligibility of Trustee for senior indenture under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939
 
*
To be filed, if necessary, subsequent to the effectiveness of this registration by an amendment to this registration statement or incorporation by reference pursuant to a Current Report on Form 8-K in connection with an offering of securities.
 
**
To be filed as an exhibit to a Current Report on Form 305B2 or pursuant to Section 305(b)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 and incorporated herein by reference.
 
 
II-2
 
 
ITEM 17. 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 of 1933;
 
(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 Commission 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.
 
(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 Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 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 of 1933, each such post-effective amendment 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) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser:
 
(i) If the Registrant is relying on Rule 430B:
 
(A) 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
 
(B) 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 of 1933 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; or
 
 
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(ii) If the registrant is subject to Rule 430C, each prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) as part of a registration statement relating to an offering, other than registration statements relying on Rule 430B or other than prospectuses filed in reliance on Rule 430A, shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the date it is first used after effectiveness. 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 first use, 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 date of first use.

(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability of the registrant under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities: The undersigned registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser:
 
(i)      Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424;
 
(ii)     Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned registrant;
 
(iii)    The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant; and
 
(iv)     Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned registrant to the purchaser.
 
(6) That, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) 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.
 
(7) To file an application for the purpose of determining the eligibility of the trustee to act under subsection (a) of Section 310 of the Trust Indenture Act in accordance with the rules and regulations prescribed by the Commission under Section 305(b)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act.
 
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of each Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, each Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by a Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of a 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, that 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 whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
 
 
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SIGNATURES
 
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-3 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Morrisville, North Carolina on August 2, 2018.
 
 
ISSUER DIRECT CORPORATION
 
 
 
 
 
 
By:  
/s/ Brian R. Balbirnie
 
 
 
Brian R. Balbirnie 
 
 
 
Chief Executive Officer 
 
 
POWER OF ATTORNEY
 
KNOWN ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature below constitutes and appoints Brian R. Balbirnie as attorney-in-fact, with power of substitution, for him in any and all capacities, to sign any amendments to this Registration Statement on Form S-3, including any post-effective amendments thereto, and file the same, with exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming all that each of said attorneys-in-fact, or his substitute or substitutes, may do or cause to be done by virtue hereof. This power of attorney shall be governed by and construed with the laws of the State of Delaware and applicable federal securities laws.
 
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
 
Signature

Title 
 
Date 
 
 
 
 
 
/s/ Brian R. Balbirnie
 
Chief Executive Officer and Director
 
 
Brian R. Balbirnie
 
(Principal Executive Officer)
 
August 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
/s/ Steven Knerr
 
Chief Financial Officer
 
 
Steven Knerr
 
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
 
August 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
/s/ William Everett 
 
Chairman of the Board of Directors
 
 
William Everett
 
 
 
August 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
/s/ Eric Alan Frank
 
Director
 
 
Eric Alan Frank
 
 
 
August 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
/s/ J. Patrick Galleher
 
Director
 
 
J. Patrick Galleher
 
 
 
August 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
/s/ Michael Nowlan
 
Director
 
 
Michael Nowlan
 
 
 
August 2, 2018
 
 
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