Ares Acquisition Corporation II filed SEC Form 8-K: Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement, Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation, Regulation FD Disclosure
UNITED STATES
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CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
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| Item 1.01 | Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement. |
On April 16, 2025, Ares Acquisition Holdings II LP (the “Sponsor”) agreed to make monthly deposits directly to Ares Acquisition Corporation II’s (“AACT” or the “Company”) trust account of $0.02 for each outstanding Class A ordinary share, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Class A Ordinary Shares”), of the Company, other than Class A Ordinary Shares held by the Sponsor upon any conversion of Class B ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Class B Ordinary Shares”), of the Company (each deposit, a “Contribution” and collectively, the “Contributions”) on the terms and subject to the conditions described below. In exchange for the Contributions, the Company shall issue to the Sponsor a non-interest bearing, unsecured promissory note (the “Promissory Note”) on the terms and subject to the conditions described below.
At the extraordinary general meeting of the Company to be held at 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time, on April 22, 2025 (the “Shareholder Meeting”), the Company’s shareholders will be asked to vote on a proposal to amend the Company’s amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (the “Memorandum and Articles of Association”) to extend the date by which the Company has to consummate a business combination from April 25, 2025 to January 26, 2026 (the “Extension Amendment Proposal”).
If the Extension Amendment Proposal is approved, the Promissory Note will be issued and the first Contribution will be made on April 25, 2025. Additional Contributions will be made on the 25th day of each month following April 25, 2025 (or if such day is not a business day, on the business day immediately preceding such day) until the earlier of (i) the consummation of a business combination, and (ii) the last day the Company has to complete a business combination in accordance with its Memorandum and Articles of Association, as then in effect (the earlier of (i) and (ii), the “Maturity Date”). The Promissory Note will not bear any interest and will be repayable by the Company to the Sponsor upon the Maturity Date. The Maturity Date may be accelerated upon the occurrence of an “Event of Default” (as defined in the Promissory Note). Any outstanding principal under the Promissory Note may be prepaid at any time by the Company, at its election and without penalty.
The foregoing description of the Promissory Note does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by the terms and conditions of the Form of Promissory Note, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 10.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K (this “Current Report”) and is incorporated by reference into this Item 1.01.
| Item 2.03 | Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an Off-Balance Sheet Arrangement of a Registrant. |
The information disclosed under Item 1.01 of this Current Report is incorporated by reference into this Item 2.03 to the extent required.
| Item 3.02 | Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities. |
In connection with the Extension Amendment Proposal, the Sponsor has announced its intention to convert its 12,500,000 Class B Ordinary Shares into 12,500,000 Class A Ordinary Shares prior to or concurrently with the approval of the Extension Amendment Proposal.
In connection with the approval of the Extension Amendment Proposal, the Company will issue an aggregate of 12,500,000 Class A Ordinary Shares to the Sponsor upon the conversion (the “Conversion”) by the Sponsor of an equal number of Class B Ordinary Shares. The 12,500,000 Class A Ordinary Shares to be issued in connection with the Conversion will be subject to the same restrictions as applied to the Class B Ordinary Shares before the Conversion, including, among other things, certain transfer restrictions, waiver of redemption rights and the obligation to vote in favor of an initial business combination as described in the Company’s prospectus for its initial public offering. Following the Conversion, assuming no redemptions in connection with the Shareholder Meeting, there will be 62,500,000 Class A Ordinary Shares and no Class B Ordinary Shares issued and outstanding. The issuance of Class A Ordinary Shares upon the Conversion will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, in reliance on the exemption from registration provided by Section 3(a)(9) thereof.
| Item 7.01. | Regulation FD Disclosure. |
On April 16, 2025, the Company issued a press release announcing the Contributions and the Promissory Note. The press release is furnished as Exhibit 99.1 and incorporated by reference into this Item 7.01.
The foregoing (including Exhibit 99.1) is being furnished pursuant to Item 7.01 and will not be deemed to be filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise be subject to the liabilities of that section, nor will it be deemed to be incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) or the Exchange Act.
Forward Looking Statements
This Current Report includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. These include AACT’s or its management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as “estimate,” “plan,” “project,” “forecast,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “seek,” “potential,” “budget,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “continue” or other similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the timing of the proposed business combination between AACT and Kodiak Robotics, Inc. (“Kodiak”) (the “proposed Business Combination”), the Contribution, the Conversion, the success of the Extension Amendment Proposal, the capitalization of AACT after giving effect to the proposed Business Combination and expectations with respect to the future performance and the success of the combined company following the consummation of the Business Combination. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this Current Report, and on the current expectations of AACT’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied upon by any investors as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of AACT. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including changes in business, market, financial, political and legal conditions; the inability of the parties to successfully or timely consummate the proposed Business Combination including as a result of redemptions or the failure by shareholders to adopt the Extension Amendment Proposal, the risk that any regulatory approvals are not obtained, are delayed or are subject to unanticipated conditions that could adversely affect the combined company or the expected benefits of the proposed Business Combination or that the approval of the equity holders of Kodiak or AACT is not obtained; failure to realize the anticipated benefits of the proposed Business Combination; the amount of redemption requests made by AACT’s public equity holders; and the ability of AACT or the combined company to issue equity or equity-linked securities in connection with the proposed Business Combination or in the future. Additional information concerning these and other factors that may impact such forward-looking statements can be found in filings and potential filings by Kodiak, AACT or the combined company resulting from the proposed Business Combination with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including under the heading “Risk Factors.” If any of these risks materialize or any assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that AACT does not presently know or that AACT currently believes are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as and must not be relied on by investors as a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability.
In addition, forward-looking statements reflect AACT’s expectations, plans or forecasts of future events and views as of the date they are made. AACT anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause Kodiak’s and AACT’s assessments to change. However, while AACT may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, AACT specifically disclaims any obligation to do so, except as required by law. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing AACT’s assessments as of any date subsequent to the date they are made. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements. Neither AACT, nor any of its affiliates have any
obligation to update these forward-looking statements other than as required by law. Certain information set forth in this Current Report includes estimates and targets and involves significant elements of subjective judgment and analysis. No representations are made as to the accuracy of such estimates or targets or that all assumptions relating to such estimates or targets have been considered or stated or that such estimates or targets will be realized.
Additional Information and Where to Find It
In connection with the proposed Business Combination, AACT and Kodiak plan to file a registration statement on Form S-4 relating to the transactions (the “Registration Statement”) with the SEC, which will include a prospectus with respect to the combined company’s securities to be issued in connection with the proposed Business Combination and a preliminary proxy statement with respect to the shareholder meeting of AACT to vote on the proposed Business Combination. AACT and Kodiak also plan to file other documents and relevant materials with the SEC regarding the proposed Business Combination. After the Registration Statement is declared effective by the SEC, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus included in the Registration Statement will be mailed to the shareholders of AACT as of the record date to be established for voting on the proposed Business Combination. SECURITY HOLDERS OF KODIAK AND AACT ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND OTHER DOCUMENTS AND RELEVANT MATERIALS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING DECISION WITH RESPECT TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION AND THE PARTIES TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION. Shareholders are able to obtain free copies of the proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about Kodiak and AACT once such documents are filed with the SEC through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, the documents filed by AACT may be obtained free of charge from AACT at www.aresacquisitioncorporationii.com. Alternatively, these documents, when available, can be obtained free of charge from AACT upon written request to Ares Acquisition Corporation II, 245 Park Avenue, 44th Floor, New York, NY 10167, Attn: Secretary, or by calling (888) 818-5298. The information contained on, or that may be accessed through the websites referenced in this Current Report is not incorporated by reference into, and is not a part of, this Current Report.
Participants in the Solicitation
AACT, Kodiak and their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the shareholders of AACT in connection with the proposed Business Combination. Security holders may obtain more detailed information regarding the names, affiliations and interests of certain of AACT’s executive officers and directors in the solicitation by reading AACT’s final prospectus related to its initial public offering filed with the SEC on April 24, 2023, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus, which will become available after the Registration Statement has been declared effective by the SEC, and other relevant materials filed with the SEC in connection with the proposed Business Combination when they become available. Information concerning the interests of AACT’s participants in the solicitation, which may, in some cases, be different from those of AACT’s shareholders generally, will be set forth in the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus included in the Registration Statement.
No Offer or Solicitation
This Current Report shall not constitute a solicitation of any proxy, vote, consent or approval in any jurisdiction in connection with the proposed Business Combination and shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the securities of AACT, Kodiak or the combined company resulting from the proposed Business Combination, nor shall there be any sale of any such securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of the Securities Act.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits |
(d) Exhibits
| Exhibit |
Title | |
| 10.1 | Form of Promissory Note, by and between Ares Acquisition Corporation II and Ares Acquisition Holdings II LP. | |
| 99.1 | Press Release, dated April 16, 2025. | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File. | |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this Current Report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Dated: April 16, 2025 | Ares Acquisition Corporation II | |||||
| By: | /s/ Allyson Satin | |||||
| Name: | Allyson Satin | |||||
| Title: | Chief Operating Officer | |||||