SEC Form 20-F filed by Fuwei Films (Holdings) Co. Ltd.

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

☐   REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR 12(g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

OR

☒   ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023

OR

☐   TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

OR

☐   SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of event requiring this shell company report

Commission file number: 001-33176

Baijiayun Group Ltd

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

N/A 

(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)

Fangfei Liu, Chief Financial Officer

Tel.: +86-25 8222-1596

Email: [email protected]

Address:

24F, A1 South Building, No. 32 Fengzhan Road

Yuhuatai District, Nanjing 210000

The People’s Republic of China

(Name, Telephone, Email and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act.

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

(Title of Class)

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:

None

(Title of Class)

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.

As of June 30, 2023, there were 95,098,773 ordinary shares, par value US$0.519008 per share of Baijiayun Group Ltd, including 41,514,816 Class A ordinary shares and 53,583,957 Class B ordinary shares.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. ☐ Yes ☒ No

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. ☐ Yes ☒ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. ☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). ☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See the definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer ☐ Accelerated filer ☒ Non-accelerated filer ☐ Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

† The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant's executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing.

If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow. Item 17 ☐ Item 18 ☐

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). ☐ Yes ☒ No

(APPLICABLE ONLY TO ISSUERS INVOLVED IN BANKRUPTCY PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PAST FIVE YEARS)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed all documents and reports required to be filed by Sections 12, 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 subsequent to the distribution of securities under a plan confirmed by a court. Yes ☐ No ☐

TABLE OF CONTENT

INTRODUCTION

Conventions that apply to this annual report on Form 20-F

In this annual report on Form 20-F, each of the following terms has the meaning ascribed to it below:

Names of certain companies provided in this annual report are translated or transliterated from their original Chinese legal names.

Discrepancies in any table between the amounts identified as total amounts and the sum of the amounts listed therein are due to rounding.

On July 18, 2022, Fuwei entered into the Merger Agreement with BJY, pursuant to which a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fuwei, i.e., the Merger Sub, was merged with and into BJY, with BJY being the surviving entity. The Merger and all transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement were consummated on December 23, 2022. Upon consummation of the Merger, BJY became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fuwei, and we changed our name from “Fuwei Films (Holdings) Co., Ltd.” to “Baijiayun Group Ltd” and our ticker from “FFHL” to “RTC.”

The Merger was accounted for as a “reverse takeover,” with BJY being treated as the accounting acquiror and Fuwei as the accounting acquiree. As such, the historical financial statements prior to the consummation of the Merger, including the audited consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss), changes in shareholders’ deficit and cash flows for the 2021 and 2022 fiscal years, and the consolidated balance sheets as of June 30, 2022, relate to BJY. This annual report on Form 20-F also includes the audited consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss), changes in shareholders’ equity (deficit) and cash flows for the 2023 fiscal year, and the consolidated balance sheets as of June 30, 2023 of our company. The reporting currency is U.S. dollars.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements

This annual report on Form 20-F contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. All statements other than statements of historical fact in this annual report on Form 20-F are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements can be identified by words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “is/are likely to,” “may,” “plan,” “should,” “will” and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements relating to:

You should thoroughly read this annual report and the documents that we refer to in this annual report with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from and worse than what we expect. Other sections of this annual report include additional factors which could adversely impact our business and financial performance. Moreover, we operate in an evolving environment. New risk factors and uncertainties emerge from time to time and it is not possible for our management to predict all risk factors and uncertainties, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.

You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

PART I

Item 1. Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers

Not applicable.

Item 2. Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable

Not applicable.

Item 3. Key Information

Implications of Being a Company with the Holding Company Structure and the VIE Structure

Baijiayun Group Ltd is a Cayman Islands holding company with no substantive operations. We have carried out our video-centric technology solution business through Zhejiang WFOE since January 2, 2023 (and through Beijing WFOE from September 7, 2021 to January 1, 2023) and its contractual arrangements, commonly known as the VIE structure, with the VIEs based in China and their respective shareholders, due to the PRC regulatory restrictions on direct foreign investment in internet-related services. Our shareholders hold the equity securities of Baijiayun Group Ltd, the Cayman Islands holding company, rather than the equity securities of the VIEs, through which our operations are conducted.

The VIE structure was established through a series of agreements entered into among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and their respective shareholders, comprising exclusive technical and consulting services agreements, powers of attorney, exclusive option agreements, and equity interest pledge agreements. The contractual arrangements allow us to (1) be considered as the primary beneficiary of the VIEs for accounting purposes and consolidate the financial results of the VIEs, (2) receive substantially all of the economic benefits of the VIEs, (3) have the pledge right over the equity interests in the VIEs as the pledgee, and (4) have an exclusive option to purchase all or part of the equity interests in the VIEs when and to the extent permitted by PRC law. For details, see “Item 4. Information on the Company — C. Organizational Structure — Contractual Arrangements and Corporate Structure.”

The VIE structure is not equivalent of an investment in the equity interest of such entities. Neither Baijiayun Group Ltd nor our WFOEs owns any equity interests in the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries. Our contractual arrangements with the VIEs and their respective shareholders are not equivalent of an investment in the equity interests of the VIEs, and investors may never hold equity interests in the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries. Instead, we are regarded as the primary beneficiary of the VIEs and we consolidate the financial results of the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries under U.S. GAAP in light of the VIE structure.

The VIE structure involves unique risks to holders of our ordinary shares. It may be less effective than direct ownership in providing us with operational control over the VIEs or their respective subsidiaries, and we may incur substantial costs to enforce the terms of the arrangements. For instance, the VIEs and their respective shareholder could breach their contractual arrangements with us by, among other things, failing to conduct the operations of the VIEs in an acceptable manner or taking other actions that are detrimental to our interests. If we had direct ownership of the VIEs in China, we would be able to exercise our rights as a shareholder to effect changes in the board of directors of the VIEs, which in turn could implement changes, subject to any applicable fiduciary obligations, at the management and operational level. However, under the current contractual arrangements, we rely on the performance by the VIEs and their respective shareholders of their obligations under the contracts to direct the VIEs’ activities. The shareholders of the VIEs may not act in the best interests of our company or may not perform their obligations under these contracts. If any dispute relating to these contracts remains unresolved, we will have to enforce our rights under these contracts through the operations of PRC law and arbitration, litigation and other legal proceedings and we are uncertain whether we can get support under the PRC legal system.

We may face challenges in enforcing the contractual arrangements due to jurisdictional and legal limitations. There are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current and future PRC laws, regulations and rules regarding the status of the rights of our Cayman Islands holding company with respect to its contractual arrangements with the VIEs and their respective shareholders through Zhejiang WFOE. As of the date of this annual report, the agreements under the contractual arrangements among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and their respective shareholders have not been tested in a court of law. It is uncertain whether any new PRC laws or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what they would provide. If we or the VIEs are found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws or regulations or fail to obtain or maintain any of the required licenses, permits, registrations or approvals, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities would have discretion to take action in dealing with such violations or failures according to PRC laws or regulations. The PRC regulatory authorities could disallow the VIE structure in the future. If our contractual arrangements with the VIEs do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in the relevant industries, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change or are interpreted differently in the future, we could be subject to severe penalties and may incur substantial costs to enforce the terms of the arrangements, or be forced to relinquish our beneficiary interests in those operations. Our Cayman Islands holding company, our subsidiaries, the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries, and our shareholders face uncertainties with respect to future PRC laws that could affect the enforceability of the contractual arrangements with the VIEs and, consequently, significantly affect the financial performance of our company and the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries as a whole. For details, see “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure.”

Revenues contributed by the VIEs accounted for substantially all of our total revenues in the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years. For a condensed consolidation schedule depicting the results of operations, financial position and cash flows for us, our WFOEs and the VIEs during the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.” For details of the permissions and licenses required for operating our business in China and the related limitations, see “—Permissions Required from the PRC Authorities for Our Operations.”

Cash and Asset Flows through Our Organization

In light of our holding company structure and the VIE structure, our ability to pay dividends to the shareholders, and to service any debt we may incur may highly depend upon dividends paid by Zhejiang WFOE to us and service fees paid by the VIEs to Zhejiang WFOE, despite that we may obtain financing at the holding company level through other methods. For instance, if any of Zhejiang WFOE or the VIEs incur debt on its own behalf in the future, the instruments governing such debt may restrict its ability to pay dividends to us and our shareholders, as well as the ability to settle amounts owed under the contractual arrangements. As of the date of this annual report, none of Baijiayun Group Ltd, the WFOEs and the VIEs have paid any dividends or made any distributions to their respective shareholder(s), including any U.S. investors. In the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, the VIEs did not pay any service fees to our WFOEs under the contractual arrangements. For details, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Financial Information Related to the VIEs.” We expect to continue to distribute earnings and settle the service fees owed under the contractual arrangements at the request of Zhejiang WFOE and based on our business needs, and do not expect to declare dividend in the foreseeable future. We currently have not maintained any cash management policies that specifically dictate how funds shall be transferred among Baijiayun Group Ltd, its subsidiaries (including Zhejiang WFOE), and the VIEs. We will determine the payment of dividends and fund transfer based on our specific business needs in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations.

Under PRC laws and regulations, the WFOEs are permitted to pay dividends only out of their retained earnings, if any, as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. Furthermore, the WFOEs and the VIEs are required to make appropriations to certain statutory reserve funds or may make appropriations to certain discretionary funds, which are not distributable as cash dividends except in the event of a solvent liquidation of the companies. Remittance of dividends by the WFOEs out of China is also subject to certain procedures with the banks designated by the PRC State Administration of Foreign Exchange (“SAFE”). These restrictions are benchmarked against the paid-in capital and the statutory reserve funds of the WFOEs and the net assets of the VIEs in which we have no legal ownership. In addition, while there are currently no such restrictions on foreign exchange and our ability to transfer cash or assets between Baijiayun Group Ltd and BaiJia Cloud Limited, our Hong Kong subsidiary, if certain PRC laws and regulations, including existing laws and regulations and those enacted or promulgated in the future were to become applicable to our Hong Kong subsidiary in the future, and to the extent our cash or assets are in Hong Kong or a Hong Kong entity, such funds or assets may not be available due to interventions in or the imposition of restrictions and limitations on our ability to transfer funds or assets by the PRC government. Furthermore, we cannot assure you that the PRC government will not intervene or impose restrictions on Baijiayun Group Ltd, its subsidiaries, the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries to transfer or distribute cash within the organization, which could result in an inability of or prohibition on making transfers or distributions to entities outside of mainland China and Hong Kong. For details, see “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in China — We may rely on dividends, loans and other distributions on equity paid by our principal operating subsidiaries to fund offshore cash and financing requirements. Any limitation on the ability of our PRC operating subsidiaries to make payments to us could adversely affect our ability to conduct our business,” and “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in China —PRC regulation of loans to, and direct investment in, PRC entities by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may restrict or prevent us from making loans to the WFOEs and the VIEs, or to make additional capital contributions to the WFOEs.”

Under PRC laws and regulations, we, the Cayman Islands holding company, may fund the WFOEs only through capital contributions or loans, and fund the VIEs only through loans, subject to satisfaction of applicable government registration and approval requirements. As of June 30, 2021, 2022 and 2023, (1) the aggregate amount of capital contribution by us to our subsidiaries in Hong Kong was nil, US$22.9 million and US$47.9 million, respectively; and (2) the aggregate amount of capital contribution by us to the WFOEs through our subsidiaries in Hong Kong was nil, US$36.9 million and US$61.9 million, respectively. For the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, there were no loans between the VIEs and the WFOEs, net cash transferred by the VIEs to the WFOEs, or transfer of assets within our organization. For details, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Financial Information Related to the VIEs.”

Permissions Required from the PRC Authorities for Our Operations

We currently conduct our video-centric technology solution business in China through Zhejiang WFOE and the VIEs. Our operations in China are governed by PRC laws and regulations. We and the VIEs are required to obtain certain licenses, permits and approvals from relevant governmental authorities in China in order to operate our business. As of the date of this annual report, as advised by our PRC counsel, Zhong Lun Law Firm, Zhejiang WFOE and the VIEs have obtained all material licenses, permits and registrations from the PRC government authorities necessary for our business operations in China, including, among others, value-added telecommunications business operation licenses with service scope for provision of domestic multi-party communication services and for provision of information services. Given the possible differences of interpretation and implementation of relevant laws and regulations and the enforcement practice by relevant government authorities due to different understanding, and the promulgation of new laws and regulations and amendment to the existing ones, we may be required to obtain additional licenses, permits, registrations, filings or approvals for our business operations in the future. We cannot assure you that we or the VIEs will be able to obtain, in a timely manner or at all, or maintain such licenses, permits or approvals, and we or the VIEs may also inadvertently conclude that such permissions or approvals are not required. Any lack of or failure to maintain requisite approvals, licenses or permits applicable to us or the VIEs may have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects and cause the value of any securities we offer to significantly decline or become worthless. For details, see “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in China — We may be required to obtain and maintain permits, filings and licenses to operate our business in China.”

On December 28, 2021, the CAC and other twelve PRC regulatory authorities jointly revised and promulgated the Measures for Cybersecurity Review (the “Review Measures”), which became effective on February 15, 2022. See “Item 4. Information on the Company — Government Regulations — Regulation on Information Security and Censorship.” Pursuant to the Review Measures, in addition to “critical information infrastructure operators” who procure internet products and services that affect or may affect national security that are subject to a cybersecurity review, any “network platform operators” carrying out data processing activities that affect or may affect national security will also be subject to the cybersecurity review requirements. The Review Measures also provide that if a “network platform operator” holding personal information of more than one million users intends to go public in a foreign country, it must apply for a cybersecurity review. In addition, the relevant PRC governmental authorities may initiate cybersecurity review if they determine certain network products, services, or data processing activities affect or may affect national security. We currently do not have over one million users’ personal information and do not anticipate that we will be collecting over one million users’ personal information in the foreseeable future. As of the date of this annual report, we have not been informed by any PRC government authorities that we will be deemed as a critical information infrastructure operator, nor have we been involved in any formal investigations on cybersecurity review made by the CAC. However, if we are not able to comply with the cybersecurity and data privacy requirements in a timely manner, or at all, we may be subject to government enforcement actions and investigations, fines, penalties, suspension of our non-compliant operations, or removal of our applications from the relevant application stores, among other sanctions, which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. See “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Business and Industry — Our business is subject to a variety of PRC laws and regulations, including those regarding privacy, cybersecurity and data protection, and our customers may be subject to regulations related to the handling and transfer of certain types of sensitive and confidential information. Any failure of our platform to comply with or enable our customers to comply with applicable laws and regulations could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.”

On February 17, 2023, the CSRC promulgated the Trial Measures of the Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies (the “Overseas Listing Trial Measures”) and the related guidelines, which became effective on March 31, 2023. The Overseas Listing Trial Measures, which reformed the existing regulatory regime for overseas offering and listing of securities by PRC domestic companies and both direct and indirect overseas offering and listing of securities by PRC domestic companies, imposes a filing-based regulatory regime. According to the Overseas Listing Trial Measures, PRC domestic companies that seek to offer and list securities in overseas markets, either in direct or indirect means, are required to fulfil the filing procedure with the CSRC and report relevant information. The Overseas Listing Trial Measures provides that an overseas listing or offering is explicitly prohibited, if any of the following factors are present: (1) such securities offering and listing is explicitly prohibited by provisions in laws, administrative regulations and relevant state rules; (2) the intended securities offering and listing may endanger national security as reviewed and determined by applicable authorities under the State Council in accordance with law; (3) the domestic company intending to make the securities offering and listing, or its controlling shareholder(s) and the actual controller, have committed relevant crimes such as corruption, bribery, embezzlement, misappropriation of property or undermining the order of the socialist market economy during the latest three years; (4) the domestic company intending to make the securities offering and listing is currently under investigation for suspicion of criminal offenses or major violations of laws and regulations, and no conclusion has yet been made thereof; or (5) there are material ownership disputes over equity held by the domestic company’s controlling shareholder(s) or by other shareholder(s) that are controlled by the controlling shareholder(s) and/or actual controller.

The CSRC provided further notice related to the Overseas Listing Trial Measures that companies that have already been listed on overseas stock exchanges prior to March 31, 2023 are not required to make immediate filings for its listing, but are required to make filings for subsequent offerings in accordance with the Overseas Listing Trial Measures within three business days after the closing of such subsequent offerings. As our Class A ordinary shares had been listed on Nasdaq prior to March 31, 2023, we are not required to make immediate filing with the CSRC in connection with our listing. However, we believe we will be required to file with the CSRC within three business days after the closing of any subsequent offerings of our securities. As the Overseas Listing Trial Measures was newly published, and there may be different interpretations or explanations, we cannot assure you that we would be able to complete the filing procedures, obtain the approvals or complete other compliance procedures in a timely manner, or at all, or that any completion of filing or approval or other compliance procedures would not be rescinded. Any such failure would subject us to sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory authorities. These regulatory authorities may impose restrictions and penalties on the operations in China, significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to launch any new offering of our securities, limit our ability to pay dividends outside of China, delay or restrict the repatriation of the proceeds from future capital raising activities into China, or take other actions that could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects, as well as the trading price of the Class A ordinary shares. Accordingly, the value of your investment may be materially and adversely affected or become worthless. For details, see “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing business in China — Recent regulatory development in China may result in the PRC government exerting more oversight and control over listing and offerings that are conducted overseas. The approval of the CSRC may be required in connection with our capital raising activities, and, if required, we cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain such approval.”

Dividend Distribution and Taxation

As of the date of this annual report, none of Baijiayun Group Ltd, the WFOEs and the VIEs has paid any dividends or made any distributions to their respective shareholders, including any U.S. investors, nor do we have any present plan to pay any cash dividends on our ordinary shares in the foreseeable future. We currently intend to retain most, if not all, of our available funds and any future earnings to operate and expand our business. See “Item 8. Financial Information — A. Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information —Dividend Policy” for details.

Subject to the “passive foreign investment company” rules, the gross amount of any distribution that we make to a U.S. Holder (as defined in “Item 10. Additional Information — E. Taxation — U.S. Federal Income Taxation”) with respect to the Class A ordinary shares (including any amounts withheld to reflect PRC withholding taxes) will be taxable as a dividend for United States federal income tax purposes, to the extent paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under United States federal income tax principles. In addition, if we are considered a PRC tax resident enterprise for tax purposes, any dividends we pay to our overseas shareholders may be regarded as China-sourced income and as a result may be subject to PRC withholding tax. See “Item 10. Additional Information — E. Taxation” for details.

The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act

Pursuant to the HFCAA and related regulations, if we have filed an audit report issued by a registered public accounting firm that the PCAOB has determined it is unable to inspect and investigate completely, the SEC will identify us as a “Commission-identified Issuer,” and the trading of our securities on any U.S. national securities exchanges, as well as any over-the-counter trading in the United States, will be prohibited if we are identified as a Commission-identified Issuer for two consecutive years. In August 2022, the PCAOB, the CSRC and the Ministry of Finance of the PRC signed the Statement of Protocol, which establishes a specific and accountable framework for the PCAOB to conduct inspections and investigations of PCAOB-governed accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong.

On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB announced that it was able to secure complete access to inspect and investigate PCAOB-registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong completely in 2022. On December 29, 2022, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (the “CAA”) was signed into law by President Biden. The CAA, among other things, reduced the number of consecutive non-inspection years required for triggering the prohibitions under the HFCAA as it was originally passed from three years to two, and thus, reduced the time before our securities may be prohibited from trading or delisted. The PCAOB Board vacated its previous 2021 determinations that the PCAOB was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong. However, whether the PCAOB will continue to be able to satisfactorily conduct inspections of PCAOB-registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong is subject to uncertainties and depends on a number of factors outside of our and our auditor’s control. The PCAOB continues to demand complete access in mainland China and Hong Kong moving forward and pursue ongoing investigations and initiate new investigations as needed. The PCAOB has also indicated that it will act immediately to consider the need to issue new determinations with the HFCAA if needed.

If the PCAOB is unable to inspect and investigate completely our registered public accounting firm located in China and we fail to retain another registered public accounting firm that the PCAOB is able to inspect and investigate completely, or if we otherwise fail to meet the PCAOB’s requirements, our Class A ordinary shares will be delisted from Nasdaq, and will not be permitted for trading over the counter in the United States under the HFCAA and related regulations. The related risks and uncertainties could cause the value of our Class A ordinary shares to significantly decline or become worthless. For details, see “— D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in China — The Class A ordinary shares will be delisted and prohibited from trading in the over-the-counter market under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, if the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely our auditor, which is located in China for two consecutive years. The delisting of the Class A ordinary shares, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment.”

A. [Reserved]

B. Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not applicable.

C. Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

Not applicable.

D. Risk Factors

This section describes the risks that we currently believe may materially affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. The factors below should be considered in connection with any forward-looking statements in this annual report on Form 20-F. Although we will make reasonable efforts to mitigate or minimize these risks, one or more of a combination of these risks could materially and adversely impact our business, revenues, sales, net assets, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, capital resources and prospects. Additional risks and uncertainties that we are unaware of, or that we currently believe to be immaterial, may also become important factors that affect us.

Summary of Risk Factors

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Ordinary Shares

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

We operate in an emerging and evolving market, which may develop more slowly or differently than we expect. If the market does not grow as expected, or if we cannot expand our services to meet the demands of this market, our revenues may decline, or fail to grow.

The video cloud market in China is at an early stage of development. There is considerable uncertainty over the size and rate at which this market will grow, as well as whether our platform will be widely adopted. Prospective customers may be reluctant or unwilling to use our platform for a number of reasons, including concerns about costs, uncertainty regarding the reliability and security of cloud-based offerings, lack of awareness of the benefits of our platform, or the fact that they have invested substantial personnel and financial resources to develop internal solutions. Our ability to expand sales depends on several factors that are out of our control, including but not limited to market awareness and acceptance, competition, end-user demand for applications with SaaS/PaaS features launched by our customers, technological challenges and developments. If the video cloud market or demand for our products does not grow or even decreases, our business, results of operations and financial condition would be adversely affected.

Our results of operations and growth prospects depend on acquiring and retaining customers and increasing usage of customers’ applications that integrate our products.

To successfully grow our business, we must continue to attract new customers in a cost-effective manner. We use a variety of marketing channels to promote our products and platform, such as developer conferences and events and public relations initiatives. If the costs of the marketing channels we use increase dramatically, we may choose to use alternative and less expensive channels, which may not be as effective as current ones. Alternatively, we may adopt or expand usage of more expensive channels, which could adversely affect our margins, profitability and financial condition. We invest in marketing before being able to assess whether they improve our brand awareness, customer acquisition or increase revenues in a cost-effective manner or at all. If our marketing programs are ineffective or inefficient, our business, results of operations and growth prospects would be adversely affected.

Our success also depends on retaining customers and increasing their usage of our products and platform over time. We generate revenues from customers’ usage of our products, some of which are integrated into their applications. Increasing usage of our products and platform over time will require customers to develop new use cases and those use cases to mature. The majority of our customers do not have long-term contractual commitments to us, and may reduce or terminate their use of our products at any time without penalty or termination charges. End users’ demand for our customers’ applications that integrate our products are driven by many factors out of our or our customers’ control, making customers’ usage of our products and platform difficult to predict. Furthermore, if a significant number of customers reduce or cease their usage of our products, we may incur greater sales and marketing expenses than expected to maintain or increase revenues from other customers, which may impact our profitability. If usage levels fail to meet our expectations, our business, results of operations and growth prospects would be adversely affected.

The market in which we participate is competitive, and if we do not compete effectively, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be harmed.

The global market for video cloud is relatively new and rapidly evolving. The industry in which we operate include a number of enterprises that may or may not directly compete with us. We consider that our competitors fall into three different business lines: companies that provide real time engagement services via companies’ cloud computing platform, companies that offer customized software that is installed on a customer’s own cloud computing platform, and companies that provide systematic solutions to customers by integrating customized software into hardware. In many cases, our prospective customers may choose to use custom software developed in-house or by consultants, or legacy solutions repurposed by in-house developers to meet specific use cases. As we plan to sell products to prospective customers with existing internal solutions, we need to demonstrate to them that our video cloud products are superior to their current legacy solutions, and failure to do so may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We expect competition to intensify in the future. Although a number of large software vendors or cloud providers currently do not have SaaS/PaaS offerings, some of them who operate in adjacent markets may bring such offerings to market through product development, acquisitions, or other means in the future. In addition, several of our competitors have greater brand recognition, longer operating histories, more and better-established customer relationships, larger sales forces, larger marketing and development budgets and significantly greater resources than we do. As a result, certain of our competitors may be able to respond more quickly and effectively to new or changing opportunities, technologies, standards or customer requirements than us. Furthermore, these large vendors may be willing to provide competing software for free as part of enterprise-wide agreements that include other products or services. In these cases, it may be more difficult for us to compete effectively with our competitors, especially if our competitors attempt to continuously strengthen or maintain their market positions.

Our competitors may offer products, services and functions that are same or similar to our products with more compelling pricing terms, more competitive advantages, or greater geographic coverage in the markets where we do not operate or are less established. Furthermore, our customers may choose to use our products and our competitors’ products at the same time, resulting in increased pricing pressures and competition. This, in turn, may cause the decrease in our revenues, profitability and market acceptance and harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

If our platform does not achieve sufficient market acceptance, our financial results and competitive position will suffer.

To meet our customers’ rapidly evolving demands, we invest substantial resources in research and development to incorporate additional functionalities, improve our technology capabilities and expand the use cases that our platform empowers. For the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, the research and development expenses were US$5.8 million, US$13.0 million and US$6.4 million, respectively. If we are unable to develop products internally due to inadequate research and development resources, we may not be able to address our customers’ needs in a timely manner, or at all. In addition, if we seek to enhance our research and development capabilities or the breadth of our products through acquisitions, such acquisitions could be expensive and we may not successfully integrate acquired technologies or businesses into our existing business. When we develop or acquire new or enhanced products, we typically incur expenses and expend resources upfront to develop, market, promote and sell the new offerings. Therefore, new or enhanced products we develop, acquire or introduce need to achieve high market acceptance to justify the upfront investment.

Our new products or enhancements and changes to our existing products could fail to attain sufficient market acceptance for many reasons, including:

It is important that we maintain and increase the acceptance of our platform among the developers that work for our customers. We rely on developers to choose our platform over other options they may have, and to continue to use and promote our platform as they move between companies. These developers often make design decisions and influence the product and vendor processes within our customers. If we fail to gain or maintain their acceptance of our platform, our business, results of operations and financial condition would be harmed.

We may not successfully manage our growth as expected. Our gross profit and net profit may not grow at same rate as our revenues, continued investment and expansion into low-margin business, significant investments in sales and marketing efforts and research and development may negatively impact our gross profit margin, net profit margin and growth rate in the future.

We have experienced rapid growth. We had revenues of US$41.4 million, US$68.6 million and US$82.2 million for the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, respectively. However, there can be no assurance that our business will continue to grow at the rate as it did in the past, or avoid any decline in the future.

Our ability to forecast our future results of operations is limited and subject to a number of uncertainties. In particular, we cannot accurately predict customers’ usage of our products given the diversity of our customer base and the end users across industries, geographies, use cases and other factors. We consider that there are two primary risks in relation to our financial performance in the future. First, our gross profit and net profit may not grow at same rate as our revenues, continued investment and expansion into low-margin business may negatively impact our gross profit margin, net profit margin and growth rate. For example, the gross profit margin decreased from 44.7% in the 2021 fiscal year to 26.9% in the 2022 fiscal year, and further decreased to 20.1% in the 2023 fiscal year. We had net profit margin for continuing operations of 8.8% in the 2021 fiscal year, and had net margin of negative 18.4% and negative 8.1% in the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, respectively. We are expanding and currently expect to continually expand into new business lines. Certain initiatives on our new business lines may be new and evolving, and may prove unsuccessful. We may not be able to successfully implement new business plans and realize all of the benefits that we expect to achieve, or it may be more costly to do so than we anticipate. Second, our profitability may be lower than expected if our strategy were to maximize short-term profitability. We intend to continuously increase research and development investment to improve the performance of our existing software and platform which may have new business breakthroughs, such as real-time communications (“RTC”). In addition, we intend to continue to invest significantly in sales and marketing efforts to explore new business lines and improve our brand image and influence. The above potential investments and expansions may not ultimately grow our business or result in long-term profitability as expected. Moreover, such increases in the cost may adversely impact our gross profit margin, net profit margin and growth rate.

Our limited operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our current business and prospects and our results of operations may fluctuate from time to time.

We conduct a significant portion of our businesses in China through the VIEs. The VIEs were founded in May 2017 and October 2019, respectively, and our limited operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our current business and future prospects, including our ability to predict and manage future growth. We have encountered and will continue to encounter risks and difficulties as a rapidly growing company in a constantly evolving industry. If we do not address these risks successfully, our business may be harmed.

Our results of operations have fluctuated and will continue to vary in the future as a result of a variety of factors, many of which are out of our control. For example, our revenue model of our video-centric technology solution business is based in large part on end user adoption and usage of our customers’ applications, which can constrain our ability to forecast revenues. Some factors that may cause our results of operations to fluctuate from period to period include:

The occurrence of one or more of the foregoing factors may cause our results of operations to vary significantly. For example, a significant percentage of our operating expenses such as staff costs is fixed to some extent and we may not be able to adjust all costs and fees in accordance with the changes in revenue. Accordingly, in the event of a revenue shortfall, we may not be able to mitigate the negative impact on profitability in the short term.

We generated a substantial portion of our revenues from a limited number of customers, and the loss of, or a significant reduction in usage by, one or more of such major customers would result in lower revenues and could harm our business.

Our future success is dependent on establishing and maintaining successful relationships with a diverse set of customers. For the 2022 fiscal year, BJY generated a substantial portion of its revenues from a limited number of customers, and BJY’s top ten customers (after aggregating customers with multiple accounts) accounted for approximately 47.6% of its revenues, although no single customer contributed more than 10% of its revenues. For the 2023 fiscal year, our top ten customers (after aggregating customers with multiple accounts) accounted for approximately 42.0% of our revenues, although no single customer contributed more than 10% of our revenues. Going forward, it is likely that we will continue to be dependent upon a limited number of customers for a significant portion of our revenues for the foreseeable future and, in some cases, the portion of our revenues attributable to individual customers may increase. The loss of one or more key customers or a reduction in usage by any major customers would reduce our revenues. If we fail to maintain existing customers or develop relationships with new customers, our business would be harmed.

Failure to effectively develop and expand our sales and marketing capabilities could harm our ability to increase our customer base and achieve broader market acceptance of our platform.

Historically, we relied on the adoption of our products by developers through our self-service model as well as more targeted sales efforts. Our ability to further increase our customer base and achieve broader market acceptance of our platform will significantly depend on our ability to expand our sales and marketing operations. We plan to continue expanding our sales force and network both domestically and internationally. We also plan to dedicate significant resources to sales and marketing programs. All of these efforts will require us to invest significant financial and other resources, and our business may be harmed if they fail to attract additional customers.

As we increase our target sales efforts to larger organizations, we expect to incur higher costs and longer sales cycles. The decision to adopt our products by such customers may require the approval of multiple technical and business decision makers, including security, compliance, procurement, operations and IT. In addition, while certain customers may quickly deploy our products on a limited basis before they commit to deploying our products at scale, they often require extensive education and customer support, engage in protracted pricing negotiations and seek dedicated product development resources. In addition, sales cycles for efforts targeted at larger organizations are inherently more complex and less predictable than the sales through our self-service model, and some customers may not use our products enough to generate revenues that offset the cost of customer acquisition. In addition, complex and resource-intensive sales efforts could place additional strain on our product and engineering resources.

We believe that there is significant competition for sales personnel, including sales representatives, sales managers, and sales engineers with required skills and technical knowledge. Our ability to achieve significant revenue growth will depend, in large part, on our success in recruiting, training, and retaining sufficient numbers of sales personnel to support our growth. New hires require significant training and may take significant time before we achieve full productivity. New hires may not become productive as quickly as expected, if at all, and we may be unable to hire or retain sufficient numbers of qualified individuals in the markets where we conduct business or plan to do business. In addition, particularly if we continue to grow rapidly, new members of our sales force will have relatively little experience working with us, our platform, and our business model. If we are unable to hire and train sufficient numbers of effective sales personnel, our sales personnel do not reach significant levels of productivity in a timely manner, or our sales personnel are not successful in acquiring new customers or expanding usage by existing customers, our business will be harmed.

We believe that continued growth in our business is also dependent upon identifying, developing and maintaining strategic relationships with additional third-party sales partners that can drive substantial revenues. If we fail to identify additional third-party sales partners in a timely and cost-effective manner, or at all, or are unable to assist our current and future third-party sales partners in independently selling and deploying our products, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

We have granted and may continue to grant share-based awards, which could lead to substantial share-based compensation expenses and significant dilutive effect to existing shareholders.

We use share-based compensation to award our management members and employees, and have incurred and may continue to incur share-based compensation expenses. For the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, we incurred nil, US$9.5 million and US$1.5 million in share-based compensation expenses. On October 1, 2021, the board of directors of BJY adopted an equity incentive plan and reserved 9,486,042 ordinary shares of BJY for issuance under share options to be granted to employees and directors of BJY in its PRC operations. The equity incentive plan stipulated that Duo Duo International Limited will be the incentive platform to hold the ordinary shares of BJY on behalf of the beneficiaries of the equity incentive plan. On October 1, 2021, pursuant to the incentive plan, options to acquire 6,816,417 ordinary shares of BJY were issued, with exercise price ranged from RMB0.0001 to RMB10.0 per share and varied vesting schedules, and 1,709,310 ordinary shares were issued as restricted stock units (“RSUs”), at a price of RMB0.0001 per share. The total fair value of the issued share options and RSUs is between US$10.0 million to US$15.0 million, out of which US$11.0 million had been recognized in the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, and the rest will be recognized over the period until calendar year 2025. As of June 30, 2023, awards with respect to 8,436,052 ordinary shares of BJY reserved under the equity incentive plan were issued, among which, awards with respect to 6,022,648 ordinary shares of BJY had been fully vested. The awards granted under BJY’s equity incentive plan were assumed by us following the completion of the Merger.

On January 21, 2023, our board of directors approved the 2023 Share Incentive Plan, pursuant to which share-based awards may be granted to our employees, directors and consultants. Under the 2023 Share Incentive Plan, the maximum aggregate number of Class A ordinary shares which may be issued pursuant to all awards under such plan is initially 12,855,546, which shall automatically be increased or decreased to ensure the number of shares available to issue in a calendar year will represent 6% of all our issued and outstanding share capital as of the first date of such calendar year. As of December 31, 2023, all awards for the initial 12,855,546 Class A ordinary shares had been granted, including (1) options to purchase 5,759,690 Class A ordinary shares and (2) RSUs representing 7,095,856 Class A ordinary shares, all of which are still outstanding as of the date of this annual report. Pursuant to the evergreen provision, starting from January 1, 2024, the maximum aggregate number of Class A ordinary shares which may be issued pursuant to all awards under the 2023 Share Incentive Plan is 5,261,563. As of the date of this annual report, none of such awards has been granted. We expect to continue to grant awards under 2023 Share Incentive Plan, which we believe is of significant importance to our ability to attract and retain key personnel and employees. In the future, if additional share incentives are granted to our employees or directors, we will incur additional share-based compensation expenses, and our results of operations will be further adversely affected. Furthermore, the grant of share-based awards and the vesting and exercise thereof could significantly dilute existing shareholders’ ownership and materially and adversely affect the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares.

An occurrence of a natural disaster, widespread health epidemic or other outbreaks, such as the outbreak of COVID-19, could have a material adverse effect on our business operations.

Our business could be materially and adversely affected by natural disasters, such as snowstorms, earthquakes, fires or floods, the outbreak of a widespread health epidemic or other events, such as wars, acts of terrorism, environmental accidents, power shortages or communication interruptions. The occurrence of such a disaster or prolonged outbreak of an epidemic illness or other adverse public health developments in China or elsewhere, including but not limited to the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the H5N1 avian flu, the human swine flu, also known as Influenza A (H1N1), or COVID-19, could materially disrupt our business and operations.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected various aspects of our business. For instance, we experienced certain difficulties in purchasing bandwidth, co-location space, servers and equipment on equally cost-efficient terms due to various government-imposed restrictions and other logistical hurdles. In addition, the economic downturn due to the COVID-19 pandemic may adversely affect our customers’ ability to pay, customer demand and end user usage, which would adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic affects our operations and financial performance will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and unpredictable, including the availability and effectiveness of any new vaccines and the emergence of any new COVID-19 variants, among others.

We are required to obtain and maintain permits, filings and licenses to operate our business in China.

Our business activities mainly include offering real-time engagement products that enable interactions through audio, video or message within mobile applications, which may be regarded as value-added telecommunications services under the Catalog of Telecommunications Business (the “Catalog”), which was recently revised and promulgated on June 6, 2019. Considering the products we offer and the way our services are provided to our customers, we are of the view that our business activities fit into domestic multi-party communication services and information services under the Catalog. We are required to obtain the value-added telecommunications business operation licenses with service scope for provision of domestic multi-party communication services (the “DMPC license”), and for provision of information services (the “IS license”). Nanjing Baijia Cloud Technology Co., Ltd. (“Nanjing BaiJiaYun”) obtained the DMPC license with national coverage on December 3, 2019. BaiJiaYun Group, Nanjing BaiJiaYun, Wuhan BaiJiaShiLian Technology Co., Ltd. (“Wuhan BaiJiaShiLian”) and Guizhou Baijia Cloud Technology Co., Ltd. have obtained the IS licenses. However, the video cloud industry is still at a nascent stage of development and the laws and regulations regarding licenses for value-added telecommunications services in the PRC are continuously evolving. Though the above licenses have already been obtained to minimize the risk arising from the PRC regulator’s different interpretation and enforcement on relevant laws, rules and regulations, it is possible that the businesses described in the Catalog, along with other relevant rules and regulatory requirements for the licenses, may further be interpreted and applied in a manner that is inconsistent with our understanding above, which means that we may be required by the PRC regulators to update our existing licenses or to obtain additional licenses under the current Catalog, or under future laws, rules and regulations applicable to our business as promulgated and amended from time to time.

Currently, we operate two internet mobile applications, i.e., “Cloud Classroom” and “Cloud Live.” Cloud Classroom” is an interactive live streaming tool that focuses on the education and training industry, helping customers in such industry to quickly develop online live courses business. The PRC Administrative Measures on Filing of Educational Mobile Apps requires the operators of educational mobile applications to file such application with competent provincial regulatory authorities. However, there is no specific punishment towards operators who fail to file such applications. We did not complete the filing of our operating applications, as we do not deem our applications as educational mobile applications. Based on the recent verbal consultations with applicable authorities, our applications would not be regarded as educational mobile applications, and thus, we are not required to file these applications with the relevant authorities. As of the date of this annual report, we confirm that we have never been interviewed, criticized, or included in the blacklist of educational mobile application operators by PRC government authorities due to our lack of filing with respect to our educational mobile applications. Pursuant to the Administrative Measures for the Graded Protection of Information Security, entities operating information systems shall determine the security protection grade of the information system pursuant to the Measures for the Graded Protection of Information Security and the Guidelines for Grading of Classified Protection of Cyber Security, and report such grade to the relevant department for examination and approval. Pursuant to the PRC Cybersecurity Law, if network operators do not perform cybersecurity protection duties of classified protection of cybersecurity, the relevant authorities shall order the operator to make correction and give warnings. We operate several information systems, however, have only obtained the Information System Security Level Protection Record Certificate for our “Cloud Classroom” system. As of the date of this annual report, we confirm that we have never been warned, or ordered to make correction due to lack of filing with respect to our information systems.

Though the lack of filing with respect to our educational mobile applications and information systems has not affected our business and results of operations at current stage, it is possible that the laws, rules and regulations may further be interpreted and applied in a manner that is inconsistent with understanding above, or be promulgated and amended from time to time, which could adversely affect our business operations in the future.

We may acquire or invest in or dispose of or divest from business, technologies, services, products and other assets, which may divert our management’s attention and result in the incurrence of debt or dilution to our shareholders. Such transactions may subsequently turn out to be less favorable to us than expected. We may be unable to integrate acquired businesses and technologies successfully or achieve the expected benefits of such acquisitions or dispositions.

Similar to many other companies, we continuously evaluate and consider potential strategic transactions, including acquisitions of, investments in, dispositions of, or divestments from, businesses, technologies, services, products and other assets in the future. For example, we acquired several businesses in recent years. BJY acquired 33.38% of the equity interest in Beijing Deran Technology Co., Ltd. (“Beijing Deran”) in June 2021, which was then increased to 51% in March 2022 through further acquisition. BJY has consolidated the financial results of Beijing Deran into its own financial statements since it obtained majority interests in Beijing Deran in March 2022. In March 2023, we acquired the remaining 49% equity interest in Beijing Deran and became its sole shareholder. In March 2023, we entered into an equity acquisition agreement to acquire 100% equity ownership of Beijing Hydrogen Data Information Technology Co., Ltd. (“Beijing Hydrogen”). We also may enter into relationships with other businesses to expand our products and platform, which could involve preferred or exclusive licenses, additional channels of distribution, discount pricing or investments in other companies. In addition, we disposed of the BOPET film business to Aoji Holdings Co., Ltd at a purchase price of US$30.0 million in cash pursuant to a securities purchase agreement dated March 9, 2023 (the “Fuwei Disposition”). The Fuwei Disposition was consummated in March 2023. From the consummation of the Merger to the consummation of the Fuwei Disposition, revenues generated from the BOPET film business, i.e., the discontinued operations, was US$11.9 million, and the discontinued operation loss was US$0.3 million. While we believe that this disposition was in the best interest of our company, there can be no assurance that this disposition will not result in the occurrence of a material adverse impact on our company. In addition, while the equity interests of Fuwei BVI had been transferred to the purchaser at closing, pursuant to a supplemental agreement dated July 31, 2023, the purchaser is only obligated to pay us the purchase price no later than three years of the closing date. As such, we are exposed to the risk of non-performance by the purchaser, which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. We recognized allowance of credit loss of US$10.3 million as of June 30, 2023, as we estimated there was a possibility that the US$30.0 million receivables may not be fully recovered in the future.

Any acquisition, investment, disposition, divestment or business relationship may result in unforeseen operating difficulties and expenditures. In particular, we may encounter difficulties assimilating or integrating the businesses, technologies, products, personnel or operations of the acquired companies, particularly if the key personnel of the acquired company choose not to work for us, our products or services are not easily adapted to work with our platform, or we have difficulty retaining the customers of any acquired business due to changes in ownership, management or otherwise. Acquisitions also may disrupt our business, divert our resources or require significant management attention that would otherwise be available for development of our existing business. Moreover, the anticipated benefits of any acquisition, investment, disposition, divestment or business relationship may not be realized, such transaction or relationship may turn out to be less favorable to us, or we may be exposed to unknown risks or liabilities. For example, an acquired business may perform worse than expected and a disposed business may perform better than expected. In addition, acquisitions and investments could result in the use of substantial amounts of cash, potentially dilutive issuances of equity securities, the incurrence of debt, the incurrence of significant goodwill impairment charges, amortization expenses for other intangible assets and exposure to potential unknown liabilities of the acquired businesses and investment.

Negotiating these transactions can be time-consuming, difficult and expensive, and our ability to complete these transactions may often be subject to approvals that are beyond our control. Consequently, these transactions, even if announced, may not be completed. For one or more of those transactions, we may:

The occurrence of any of these foregoing could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We could incur substantial costs in protecting or defending our intellectual property rights, and we may in the future become involved in disputes relating to alleged infringement of others’ intellectual property rights. Any failure to protect our intellectual property rights, or alleged infringement of third-party intellectual property rights, could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our success depends, in part, on our ability to protect our brand, trade secrets, trademarks, patents, domain names, copyrights and proprietary methods and technologies, whether registered or not, that we develop under patent and other intellectual property laws of China, the United States and other jurisdictions, so that we can prevent others from using our inventions and proprietary information. We currently rely on patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secret law to protect our intellectual property rights. However, we cannot assure you that any of our intellectual property rights will not be challenged, invalidated or circumvented, or that our intellectual property will be sufficient to provide us with competitive advantages. Because of the rapid pace of technological change, we cannot assure you that all of our proprietary technologies and similar intellectual property rights can be patented in a timely or cost-effective manner, or at all.

In addition, we may be subject to allegations of infringement of other parties’ intellectual proprietary rights, which, whether successful or not, could harm our brand, business, results of operations and financial condition. There is considerable patent and other intellectual property development in our industry, and we may be unaware of the intellectual property rights of others that may cover some or all of our technologies. Our competitors or other third parties may in the future claim that our products or platform and/or underlying technology infringe their intellectual property rights, and we may be found to be infringing such rights. Any claims or litigation, if successfully asserted against us, could require that we pay substantial damages or ongoing royalty payments, indemnify our customers or business partners, obtain licenses or modify our products or platform, prevent us from offering products, develop alternative non-infringing technology or comply with other unfavorable terms, any of which could significantly increase our operating expenses. Even if we were to prevail in the event of claims or litigation against us, any claim or litigation regarding intellectual property could be costly and time-consuming and divert the attention of our management and other employees from our business.

We also rely, in part, on confidentiality agreements with our business partners, employees, consultants, advisors, customers and others in our efforts to protect our proprietary technology, processes and methods. These agreements may not effectively prevent disclosure of our confidential information, and it is possible for unauthorized parties to copy our software or other proprietary technology or information, or to develop similar software independently without an adequate remedy for unauthorized use or disclosure of our confidential information.

In addition, the laws of some countries do not protect intellectual property and other proprietary rights to the same extent as the laws of others. We need to register, maintain and enforce intellectual property rights in China. Statutory laws and regulations are subject to judicial interpretation and enforcement and may not be applied consistently due to the lack of clear guidance on statutory interpretation. Confidentiality, invention assignment and non-compete agreements may be breached by counterparties, and there may not be adequate remedies available to us for any such breach. Accordingly, we may not be able to effectively protect our intellectual property rights or to enforce our contractual rights in China. To the extent we expand our international activities outside of China, our exposure to unauthorized copying, transfer and use of our proprietary technology or information may increase.

Preventing any unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly and the steps we take may be inadequate to prevent the misappropriation of our intellectual property. Litigation may be necessary in the future to enforce our intellectual property rights, determine the validity and scope of our proprietary rights or those of others, or defend against claims of infringement or invalidity. Such litigation could be costly, time-consuming and distracting to management, result in a diversion of significant resources, the narrowing or invalidation of portions of our intellectual property and have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights may be met with defenses, counterclaims and countersuits attacking the validity and enforceability of our intellectual property rights or alleging that we infringe the counterclaimant’s own intellectual property. Any of our patents, trade secrets, copyrights, trademarks or other intellectual property rights could be challenged by others or invalidated through administrative process or litigation. There can be no assurance that we will prevail in such litigation. In addition, our proprietary methods and technologies that are regarded as trade secrets may be leaked or otherwise become available to, or be independently discovered by, our competitors. In these cases, we would not be able to assert any trade secret rights against those parties. Costly and time-consuming litigation could be necessary to enforce and determine the scope of our proprietary rights, and failure to obtain or maintain trade secret protection could adversely affect our competitive business position. To the extent that our employees or consultants use intellectual property owned by others in their work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in related know-how and inventions.

There can be no assurance that our particular ways and means of protecting our intellectual property and proprietary rights, including business decisions about when to file patent applications and trademark applications, will be adequate to protect our business, or that our competitors will not independently develop similar technology. We could be required to spend significant resources to monitor and protect our intellectual property rights. If we fail to protect and enforce our intellectual property and proprietary rights adequately, our competitors might gain access to our technology, and our business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

We depend largely on the continued services of our senior management, the loss of any of whom could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our future performance depends on the continued services and contributions of our senior management to execute on our business plan, develop our products and platform, deliver our products to customers, attract and retain customers and identify and pursue business opportunities. The loss of services of senior management could significantly delay or prevent the achievement of our development and strategic objectives. In particular, to a considerable degree, we depend on the vision, skills, experience and effort of the founder of BJY and our chairman of the board and chief executive officer, Mr. Gangjiang Li, and our director and president, Mr. Yi Ma. The replacement of any of our senior management personnel would likely involve significant time and costs, and such loss could significantly delay or prevent the achievement of our business objectives. The loss of the services of any of our senior management for any reason could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We may have insufficient transmission bandwidth and co-location space, which could result in disruptions to our platform and loss of revenues.

Our operations are dependent in part upon transmission bandwidth provided by third-party network or cloud providers and leasing co-location facilities for our servers and equipment. There can be no assurance that we are adequately prepared for unexpected increases in bandwidth demands by our customers. In the first quarter of 2020, we experienced a spike in usage as a result of demand for online real-time engagement spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although we were able to scale our network infrastructure in response, the general increase in demand for bandwidth and servers increased prices which in turn adversely impacted our gross margin. Failure to contain the further spread, or any resurgence, of the COVID-19 pandemic may affect our ability to cost-effectively maintain and expand our network infrastructure, which could severely disrupt our business and operations and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

The bandwidth we have contracted to purchase may become unavailable for a variety of reasons, including service outages, payment disputes, suspension or termination of the network providers’ business, natural disasters, pandemics, networks imposing traffic limits, or governments adopting regulations that impact network operations. We may also be unable to move quickly enough to augment capacity to reflect growing traffic or security demands. Failure to put in place the capacity we require could result in a reduction in, or disruption of, services to our customers, or require us to issue credits and ultimately a loss of those customers. Such a failure could result in our inability to acquire new customers demanding capacity not available on our platform. If we are unable to provide sufficient bandwidth, we may also become contractually obligated to provide affected customers with service credits under service level commitments in our customer agreements.

We use open-source software, which could negatively affect our ability to sell our products and subject us to possible litigation.

Our products and platform incorporate open-source software, and we expect to continue to incorporate open-source software in our products and platform in the future. Few of the licenses applicable to open-source software have been interpreted by courts, and there is a risk that these licenses could be construed in a manner that could impose unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to commercialize our products and platform. Moreover, although we have implemented policies to regulate the use and incorporation of open-source software into our products and platform, we cannot be certain that we have not incorporated open-source software in our products or platform in a manner that is inconsistent with such policies. When we utilize open-source software in our products in certain ways, the applicable open-source licenses may subject us and our customers to certain requirements, including requirements that we and our customers offer the products that incorporate the open-source software for no cost, make available source code for modifications or derivative works that are based on, incorporate or use the open-source software, and license such modifications or derivative works under the terms of applicable open-source licenses. In some cases, open-source software is also offered under commercial terms which do not include such requirements and obligations, in exchange for the payment of fees to be negotiated with the author or licensors. In the future, we may receive notices alleging that our usage of open-source software does not comply with the applicable license, or such usage requires us to obtain a commercial license. If it were determined that we had not complied with the conditions of one or more of these open-source licenses, or if we are unable to successfully negotiate an acceptable commercial license, we and our customers could be required to incur significant legal expenses defending against such allegations and could be subject to significant damages, enjoined or otherwise prohibited from distributing our products that contained the open-source software, and be required to comply with onerous conditions or restrictions on these products. In any of these events, we and our customers could be required to seek licenses from third parties in order to continue offering the respective products and platforms, and to re-engineer products or platforms or discontinue offering products in the event re-engineering cannot be accomplished in a timely manner. Any of the foregoing could require us and our customers to devote additional research and development resources to re-engineer products or platforms, harm our reputation, or result in customer dissatisfaction, and may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Breaches of our networks or systems, or those of our service providers, could degrade our ability to conduct our business, compromise the integrity of our products, platform and data, result in significant data losses and leakage and the theft of our intellectual property, damage our reputation, expose us to liability to third parties and require us to incur significant additional costs to maintain the security of our networks and data.

We depend on our IT systems to conduct virtually all of our business operations, ranging from internal operations and research and development activities to marketing and sales efforts and communications with our customers, service providers and business partners. Individuals or entities may attempt to penetrate our network security, or that of our platform, and to cause harm to our business operations, including by misappropriating our proprietary information or that of our customers, employees, service providers and business partners or to cause interruptions of our products and platform. Because the vulnerabilities and techniques used by such individuals or entities to access, disrupt or sabotage devices, systems and networks change frequently and may not be recognized until launched against a target, we may be unable to anticipate these vulnerabilities and techniques, and may not become aware in a timely manner of such a security breach, which could exacerbate any damage we experience. Additionally, we depend on our employees and contractors to appropriately handle confidential and sensitive data, including customer data, and to deploy our IT resources in a safe and secure manner that does not expose our network systems to security breaches or the loss or leakage of data. Any data security incidents, including the leakage of data of customers or the end users, internal malfeasance by our employees, unauthorized access or usage, virus or similar breach or disruption of us or our service providers could result in loss of confidential information, damage to our reputation, loss of customers, litigation, regulatory investigations, fines, penalties and other liabilities. Accordingly, if our cybersecurity measures or those of our service providers fail to protect against unauthorized access, attacks (which may include sophisticated cyberattacks), compromise or the mishandling of data by our employees, service providers and business partners, our reputation, business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

Our business is subject to a variety of laws and regulations, including those regarding privacy, cybersecurity and data protection, and our customers may be subject to regulations related to the handling and transfer of certain types of sensitive and confidential information. Any failure of our platform to comply with or enable our customers to comply with applicable laws and regulations could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We and our customers that use our products may be subject to privacy, cybersecurity and data protection- related laws and regulations that impose obligations in connection with the collection, processing and use of personal data, financial data, health or other similar data and general cybersecurity. The PRC government and governments in other countries have adopted or proposed limitations on, or requirements regarding, the collection, distribution, use, security and storage of information, including personally identifiable information of individuals. In the PRC, the PRC Cybersecurity Law and relevant regulations require network operators, which may include us, to ensure the security and stability of the services provided via network and to provide assistance and support in accordance with the law for public security and national security authorities to protect national security or assist with criminal investigations.

In recent years, the PRC government has increasingly tightened the regulation of data privacy and data protection. The laws, regulations and governmental policies in the PRC for the data privacy and data protection are constantly evolving. For example, in June 2017, the PRC Cybersecurity Law promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (the “SCNPC”), took effect. The PRC Cybersecurity Law requires network operators to perform certain functions related to cybersecurity protection. In addition, the PRC Cybersecurity Law provides that the critical information infrastructure operators generally shall, during their operations in the PRC, store the personal information and important data collected and produced within the territory of PRC, and shall conduct security assessment for cross-border data transfer. See “Item 4. Information on the Company — Government Regulations — Regulation on Information Security and Censorship.” On August 20, 2021, the SCPNC adopted the Personal Information Protection Law (the “PIPL”), which became effective on November 1, 2021. The PIPL stipulates that personal information processors who have a large user base and/or operate complex types of businesses are subject to certain obligations, such as establishing an internal personal information protection system in compliance with relevant laws, rules and regulations; and releasing social responsibility reports on personal information protection on a regular basis. See “Item 4. Information on the Company — Government Regulations —Regulation on Privacy Protection” Existing PRC laws and regulations do not provide clear parameters as to what constitutes “large user base” and/or “complex types of businesses.” Nevertheless, it is widely accepted in practice that at least one million users is required in order to reach the “large user base” threshold, and “complex types of businesses” usually refers to a business model under which a company either operates as an integrated online platform, for example, a social media or e-commerce platform, or operates with diversified business lines or product catalogues. We believe that we are not a personal information processor who has a large user base and/or operate complex types of businesses. However, since there has been no official interpretation or explanation as to the definition of same, it remains uncertain whether we would be deemed as a personal information processor who has a large user base and/or operate complex types of businesses by the PRC regulatory authorities, thus requiring us to perform the obligations stipulated under the PIPL.

On July 7, 2022, the Security Assessment Measures for Outbound Data Transfer was released by the CAC, which became effective on September 1, 2022, stipulates that before cross-border data transfer under certain circumstances, data processors shall make self-assessment of the risks, and shall apply for security assessment. These laws and regulations require, among others, that the personal information and important data generated and collected during the operations in the PRC should be stored within the PRC unless, prior to the intended data transfer, certain specified criteria have been satisfied, such as a completed official security assessment carried out by the PRC government authorities. As a personal information processor defined under the PIPL, while we do not believe current business involves any transmission, use and exchange of information that comes under the definition of “cross-border transfer of personal information and important data” under the PRC Cybersecurity Law, we cannot assure you that the PRC regulatory authorities will not take a view contrary to our view, thus requiring us to comply with the data localization, security assessment and other requirements under these proposed laws and regulations. As our business continues to grow, there may arise circumstances where we engage in such cross-border transfer of personal data and/or important data, including in order to satisfy the legal and regulatory requirements, in which case we may need to comply with the foregoing requirements as well as any other limitations under PRC laws then applicable. Complying with these laws and requirements could cause us to incur substantial expenses or require us to alter or change our practices in ways that could harm our business. Additionally, to the extent we are found to be not in compliance with these laws and requirements, we may be subject to fines, regulatory orders to suspend our operations or other regulatory and disciplinary sanctions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

On December 28, 2021, the CAC, together with 12 other government authorities, jointly issued the Review Measures, which became effective on February 15, 2022. Pursuant to the Review Measures, “critical information infrastructure operators” who procure internet products and services that affect or may affect national security and any “network platform operators” carrying out data processing activities that affect or may affect national security shall be subject to cybersecurity review requirements. See “Item 4. Information on the Company — Government Regulations — Regulation on Information Security and Censorship.” As of the date of this annual report, the Network Data Security Management Regulations was released for public comment only, and no interpretation or implementation rules for this proposed regulation have been issued by the CAC or any other PRC regulatory authorities. It remains uncertain when the Network Data Security Management Regulations will be adopted and become effective and whether it will be adopted as it was initially proposed. Also, there is no further explanation or interpretation as to how to determine what constitutes “affecting national security.” Therefore, it is uncertain whether we would be deemed as a “critical information infrastructure operator” or a “network platform operator” or a “data processors” holding one million users’ personal information, or whether our business will be deemed to affect or may affect national security under PRC laws, thus requiring us to go through a cybersecurity review process. We currently do not have over one million users’ personal information and do not anticipate that we will be collecting over one million users’ personal information in the foreseeable future. As of the date of this annual report, we have not been informed by any PRC government authorities that we will be deemed as a critical information infrastructure operator. It also remains uncertain whether future regulatory changes would impose additional restrictions on companies like us. We cannot predict the impact of the Review Measures and the Network Data Security Management Regulations, if any, at this stage. We will closely monitor and assess any development in the rulemaking process. If the Review Measures and the enacted version of the Network Data Security Management Regulations mandate clearance of a cybersecurity review and other specific actions to be completed by China-based companies listed on a foreign stock exchange like us, we face uncertainties as to whether such clearance can be timely obtained, or at all. As of the date of this annual report, we have not been involved in any formal investigations on cybersecurity review made by the CAC. If we are not able to comply with the cybersecurity and data privacy requirements in a timely manner, or at all, we may be subject to government enforcement actions and investigations, fines, penalties, suspension of our non-compliant operations, or removal of our applications from the relevant application stores, among other sanctions, which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

In November 2021, one of our applications, “Cloud Classroom,” was tested and determined to be in violation of the relevant regulations relating to the collection of personal information by National App Technology Testing Platform, which is an official platform under the MIIT. Upon receipt of the notice, we immediately conducted thorough reviews on relevant systems and made rectifications. In February 2022, such application was listed on a notice of criticism circulated by the MIIT, which determined that we violated relevant regulations in using users’ personal information and mandatorily, frequently and excessively requesting for permissions of users’ personal information. We reviewed our application system immediately and carried out rectification measures. The rectified application was recognized and approved by the MIIT in March 2022.

Pursuant to the PIPL, where personal information is handled in violation of this law or personal information is handled without fulfilling personal information protection duties in accordance with the provisions, the departments fulfilling personal information protection duties and responsibilities are to order correction, confiscate unlawful income, and order the provisional suspension or termination of service provision of the application programs unlawfully handling personal information. The above-mentioned matters have neither caused the cessation of any of our applications nor adversely affected our business and results of operations.

Further, in many cases we rely on the data processing, privacy, data protection and cybersecurity practices of our suppliers and contractors, including with regard to maintaining the confidentiality, security and integrity of data. If we fail to manage our suppliers or contractors or their relevant practices, or if our suppliers or contractors fail to meet any requirements with regard to data processing, privacy, data protection or cybersecurity required by applicable legal or contractual obligations that we face (including any applicable requirements of our clients), we may be liable in certain cases. We may face difficulties in binding our suppliers and contractors to these agreements and otherwise managing their relevant practices, which may subject us to claims, proceedings and liabilities.

Any failure or perceived failure by us, our products or our platform to comply with new or existing cybersecurity or data protection laws, regulations, policies, industry standards or legal obligations in the PRC, any failure to bind our suppliers and contractors to appropriate agreements or to manage their practices or any systems failure or security incident that results in the unauthorized access to, or acquisition, release or transfer of, personally identifiable information or other data relating to customers or individuals may result in governmental investigations, inquiries, enforcement actions and prosecutions, private claims and litigation, fines and penalties, adverse publicity or potential loss of business.

International laws and regulations relating to privacy, cybersecurity and data protection may limit our ability to expand into those markets or prohibit us from continuing to offer services in those markets without significant additional costs.

We continue to see jurisdictions imposing data localization laws, which require personal information, or certain subcategories of personal information to be stored in the jurisdiction of origin. These regulations may limit our ability to expand into those markets or prohibit us from continuing to offer services in those markets without significant additional costs.

The uncertainty and changes in the requirements of multiple jurisdictions may increase the cost of compliance, delay or reduce demand for our services, restrict our ability to offer services in certain locations, impact our customers’ ability to deploy our solutions in certain jurisdictions, or subject us to claims and litigation from private actors and investigations, proceedings, and sanctions by data protection regulators, all of which could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, although we endeavor to have our products and platform comply with applicable laws and regulations, these and other obligations may be modified, they may be interpreted and applied in an inconsistent manner from one jurisdiction to another, and they may conflict with one another, other regulatory requirements, contractual commitments or our practices. We also may be bound by contractual obligations relating to our collection, use and disclosure of personal, financial and other data or may find it necessary or desirable to join industry or other self-regulatory bodies or other privacy, cybersecurity or data protection-related organizations that require compliance with their rules pertaining to privacy and data protection. Furthermore, as global laws, regulations and industry standards concerning privacy, cybersecurity and data protection have continued to develop and evolve rapidly, it is possible that we or our products or platform may not be, or may not have been, compliant with each such applicable law, regulation and industry standard and compliance with such new laws or to changes to existing laws may impact our business and practices, require us to expend significant resources to adapt to these changes, or to stop offering our products in certain countries. These developments could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Significant uncertainties exist in relation to the interpretation and implementation of, or proposed changes to, the PRC laws, regulations and policies regarding the industries in which we or our customers operate, including online private education industry, may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

The regulatory environment with respect to the industries in which we or our customers operate in China has been changing rapidly for the past several years and therefore is subject to substantial uncertainties, which may negatively impact our business. For example, the PRC private education industry, especially the after-school tutoring sector, has experienced intense scrutiny and has been subject to significant regulatory changes. In particular, the Opinions on Further Reducing Students’ Homework Burden and After-School Tutoring Burden in Compulsory Education jointly promulgated by the General Office of State Council and the General Office of Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on July 24, 2021, sets out a series of operating requirements on after-school tutoring institutions, including, among other things, online academic after-school tutoring institutions that have filed with the local education administration authorities will be subject to review and re-approval procedures by competent government authorities, and any failure to obtain such approval will result in the cancellation of the previous filing and internet content provider license (the “ICP License”). Revenues generated from the education sector in general represented a significant portion of our total revenues in the past. The regulatory scrutiny on the PRC private education industry could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Since our customers operate in a broad range of industries, including private education industry, we are closely monitoring the evolving regulatory environment. However, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospect may be materially and adversely affected due to restrictions on the private education and other industries. We also cannot assure that there will not be any new rules or regulations in China on business regarding the private education or other industry sectors that our customers currently operate in, or such new rules and regulations will not subject our business operations to further adjustments and in the event of such changes, our business operations may be adversely impacted.

We currently do not have insurance coverage covering all risks related to our business and operations. The lack of adequate D&O insurance may also make it difficult for us to retain and attract talented and skilled directors and officers.

We do not maintain insurance policies covering all of our business risks, such as risks relating to properties, receivables and public liability, among others. We cannot assume that the insurance coverage we currently have would be sufficient to cover our potential losses. In the event there is any damage to any assets or incidents for which we do not have sufficient insurance coverage, if at all, we would have to pay for the difference, and our results of operations, financial condition and liquidity could be negatively affected.

As of the date of this annual report, we have not obtained directors and officers liability insurance (the “D&O insurance”) for our directors and officers. In the future, we may be subject to additional litigation, including potential class action and shareholder derivative actions. Risks associated with legal liability are difficult to assess and quantify, and their existence and magnitude can remain unknown for significant periods of time. Without adequate D&O insurance, the amounts we would pay to indemnify our officers and directors should they be subject to legal action based on their service to us could have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, results of operations and liquidity. Furthermore, our lack of adequate D&O insurance may make it difficult for us to retain and attract talented and skilled directors and officers, which could adversely affect our business.

Negative publicity about us, our services, operations and our management may adversely affect our reputation and business.

We may, from time to time, receive negative publicity, including negative internet and blog postings about our company, our business, our management or our services. Certain of such negative publicity may be the result of malicious harassment or unfair competition acts by third parties. We may even be subject to government or regulatory investigation as a result of such third-party conduct and may be required to spend significant time and incur substantial costs to defend ourselves against such third-party conduct, and we may not be able to conclusively refute each of the allegations within a reasonable period of time, or at all. Our brand and reputation may be materially and adversely affected as a result of any negative publicity, which in turn may cause us to lose market share, customers and other third parties with which we conduct business.

We may require additional capital to support our business, and this capital might not be available on acceptable terms, if at all.

We intend to continue to make investments to support our business and may require additional funds. In particular, we may seek additional funds to develop new products and enhance our platform and existing products, expand our operations, including our sales and marketing organizations and our presence outside of China, improve our infrastructure or acquire complementary businesses, technologies, services, products and other assets. Accordingly, we may need to engage in equity or debt financings to secure additional funds. If we raise additional funds through future issuances of equity or convertible debt securities, our shareholders could suffer significant dilution. In addition, the issuance of additional securities will increase the number of shares eligible for resale in the public market, which in turn could adversely affect the market price of our Class A ordinary shares. For example, we issued a two-year convertible note with a principal amount of US$10.0 million and an annual interest rate of 4% to BetterJoy Limited Partnership on February 20, 2023, which is convertible at the option of the holder into our Class A ordinary shares at a fixed conversion price of US$10.00 per share (or a floor price of US$7.00 per share at the option of the holder and upon the occurrence of certain events of default). In addition, on February 1, 2024 and 2025, we may, at our option, redeem all or a portion of the then-outstanding principal amount and accrued interest in cash, Class A ordinary shares through conversion of the note, or a combination of both. We repaid the convertible note in full in cash in September 2023.

Any new equity securities we issue could have rights, preferences and privileges superior to holders of our equity securities currently issued and outstanding. Any debt financing that we may secure in the future could involve restrictive covenants relating to our capital raising activities and other financial and operational matters, which may make it more difficult for us to obtain additional capital and to pursue business opportunities. We may not be able to obtain additional financing on terms favorable to us, if at all. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing or financing on terms satisfactory to us when required, our ability to continue to support our business growth, scale our infrastructure, develop product enhancements and to respond to business challenges could be significantly impaired, and our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected. Furthermore, we may choose to raise additional capital due to market conditions or strategic considerations even if we believe we have sufficient funds for our current or future operating plans.

Heightened tensions in international relations, particularly between the United States and China, may adversely impact our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Recently there have been heightened tensions in international relations, particularly between the United States and China, but also as a result of the war in Ukraine and sanctions on Russia. These tensions have affected both diplomatic and economic ties among countries. Heightened tensions could reduce levels of trade, investments, technological exchanges, and other economic activities between the major economies. The existing tensions and any further deterioration in the relationship between the United States and China may have a negative impact on the general, economic, political, and social conditions in both countries and, given our reliance on the Chinese market, adversely impact our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Our business is subject to the risks of earthquakes, fire, floods, pandemics and other natural catastrophic events, and to interruption by man-made problems such as power disruptions, computer viruses, data security breaches or terrorism.

A significant natural disaster, such as an earthquake, fire, flood or pandemic, occurring at our headquarters, at one of our other facilities or where a business partner is located could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Further, if a natural disaster or man-made problem were to affect our service providers, this could adversely affect the ability of our customers to use our products and platform. In addition, natural disasters and acts of terrorism could cause disruptions in our or our customers’ businesses, national economies or the world economy as a whole. We also rely on our network and third-party infrastructure and enterprise applications and internal technology systems for our engineering, sales and marketing, and operating activities. Although we maintain incident management and disaster response plans, in the event of a major disruption caused by a natural disaster or man-made problem, we may be unable to continue our operations and may endure system interruptions, reputational harm, delays in our development activities, lengthy interruptions in service, breaches of data security and loss of critical data, any of which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

In addition, computer malware, viruses and computer hacking, fraudulent use attempts and phishing attacks have become more prevalent in our industry, have occurred on our platform and have impacted some of our services providers in the past and may occur on our platform in the future. Any failure to maintain performance, reliability, security, integrity and availability of our products and technical infrastructure, including third-party infrastructure and services upon which we rely, may give rise to litigation, consumer protection actions, or harm to our reputation, and as a result, may hinder our ability to retain existing customers and attract new customers.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure

If the contractual arrangements in relation to the VIEs do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in the relevant industries, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change in the future, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our beneficiary interests in those operations.

The PRC government regulates telecommunications-related businesses through strict business licensing requirements and other government regulations. These laws and regulations also include limitations on foreign ownership of PRC companies that engage in telecommunications-related businesses. Specifically, foreign investors are not allowed to own more than 50% equity interest in any PRC company engaging in value-added telecommunications businesses, except for those in a few categories, such as e-commerce, domestic multiparty communication, storage-and-forward, and call center services according to the Special Administrative Measures for Foreign Investment Access (Negative List) (Edition 2021) effective on January 1, 2022, which may be amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time (the “Negative List”). It was further required under the Provisions on the Administration of Foreign Invested Telecommunications Enterprises (the “FITE Regulations”) that the primary foreign investor must also have experience and a good track record in providing value-added telecommunications services overseas. The FITE Regulations was recently amended on March 29, 2022 and has become effective since May 1, 2022, among which, the previous requirement on the primary foreign investor’s experience and good track record has been cancelled. However, this modification is relatively new, uncertainties still exist in relation to its interpretation and implementation.

Because we are an exempted company incorporated in the Cayman Islands, we are classified as a foreign enterprise under PRC laws and regulations, and our subsidiaries in the PRC are foreign-invested enterprises (the “FIEs”). Given that our current business and business plan are deemed as kinds of value-added telecommunications services, which are subject to restrictions or prohibitions, and that FIEs may not be eligible to operate value-added telecommunications service business in China according to above mentioned restrictions, we conduct our business in China through the VIEs. As the telecommunications authorities generally implement look-through approach for the supervision of the value-added telecommunications license, there are risks that we may be required by the telecommunications authorities to re-apply for value-added telecommunications license in accordance with the FITE Regulations, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. We have, through Zhejiang WFOE, entered into a series of contractual arrangements, including exclusive technical and consulting services agreements, powers of attorney, exclusive option agreements and equity interest pledge agreements, as amended and restated, with the VIEs, as well as the shareholders of the VIEs. These contractual arrangements entered into with the VIEs allow us to receive substantially all of the economic benefits of the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries, and have an exclusive option to purchase all or part of the equity interests in the VIEs when and to the extent permitted by PRC law. As a result of these contractual arrangements, we are the primary beneficiary of the VIEs and hence consolidate the financial results of the VIEs under U.S. GAAP.

We believe that our corporate structure and contractual arrangements comply with the current applicable PRC laws and regulations. Our PRC counsel, Zhong Lun Law Firm, is of the view that the contractual arrangements in relation to the VIEs and all of the contracts among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and the shareholders of the VIEs are valid and binding in accordance with its terms. However, there can be no assurance that the PRC government authorities, such as the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (“MOFCOM”), the MIIT or other authorities that regulate internet content providers and other participants in the telecommunications industry, would agree that our corporate structure or any of the above contractual arrangements comply with PRC licensing, registration or other regulatory requirements, with existing policies or with requirements or policies that may be adopted in the future. PRC laws and regulations governing the validity of these contractual arrangements are uncertain and the relevant government authorities have discretion in interpreting these laws and regulations.

In addition, Mr. Gangjiang Li owns the majority of our voting shares. The shares of the VIEs are ultimately owned by Mr. Yi Ma and Ms. Xin Zhang. The enforceability, and therefore the benefits, of the contractual agreements between us and the VIEs depend on these individuals enforcing the contracts. There is a risk that the benefits of ownership between us and the VIEs may not be aligned in the future. Given the significance and importance of the VIEs, there would be a significant negative impact to us if these contracts were not enforced.

If our corporate structure and contractual arrangements are deemed by the MIIT, MOFCOM or other applicable regulators to be illegal, either in whole or in part, we may lose control of the VIEs and have to modify such structure to comply with regulatory requirements. However, there can be no assurance that we can achieve this without material disruption to our business. Further, if our corporate structure and contractual arrangements are found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws or regulations, the relevant regulatory authorities would have discretion in dealing with such violations, including:

Furthermore, new PRC laws, rules and regulations may be introduced to impose additional requirements that may be applicable to our corporate structure and contractual arrangements. Occurrence of any of these events could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, if the imposition of any of these penalties or requirement to restructure our corporate structure causes us to lose the rights to direct the activities of the VIEs or the right to receive economic benefits, we would no longer be able to consolidate the financial results of such VIEs in our consolidated financial statements.

We rely on contractual arrangements with the VIEs and the shareholders of the VIEs to operate our business, which may not be as effective as equity ownership in providing operational control and could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We rely on contractual arrangements with the VIEs and the shareholders of the VIEs to operate our business in the PRC. These contractual arrangements may not be as effective as equity ownership in providing us with control over the VIEs. If the VIEs or the shareholders of the VIEs fail to perform their respective obligations under these contractual arrangements, our recourse to the assets held by the VIEs is indirect, and we may have to incur substantial costs and expend significant resources to enforce such arrangements in reliance on legal remedies under PRC law, which may not always be effective. Furthermore, in connection with litigation, arbitration or other judicial or dispute resolution proceedings, assets under the name of any of record holder of equity interest in the VIEs, including such equity interest, may be put under court custody. As a consequence, we cannot be certain that the equity interest will be disposed of pursuant to the contractual arrangements or ownership by the record holder of the equity interest. In addition, though we have entered into equity interest pledge agreements with the shareholders of the VIEs, our remedies under the equity interest pledge agreements are primarily intended to help us collect debts owed to us by the VIEs or the shareholders of the VIEs under the contractual arrangements and may not help us in acquiring the assets or equity of the VIEs.

All the agreements under our contractual arrangements with the VIEs are governed by PRC laws and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in China. Accordingly, these contracts would be interpreted in accordance with PRC laws and any disputes would be resolved in accordance with PRC legal procedures. There are very few precedents and little formal guidance as to how such contractual arrangements should be interpreted or enforced under PRC laws. Significant uncertainties exist regarding the ultimate outcome of such arbitration should legal action become necessary. In addition, under PRC laws, rulings by arbitrators are final and parties cannot appeal arbitration results in court unless such rulings are revoked or determined unenforceable by a competent court. If the losing parties fail to carry out the arbitration awards within a prescribed time limit, the prevailing parties may only enforce the arbitration awards in PRC courts through arbitration award recognition proceedings, which would require additional expenses and delay. In the event that we are unable to enforce these contractual arrangements, or if we suffer significant delay or other obstacles in the process of enforcing these contractual arrangements, we may not be able to exert effective control over the VIEs and relevant rights and licenses we hold in order to operate our business, and as a result our ability to conduct our business may be adversely affected. See also “— Risks Related to Doing Business in China — Our contractual arrangements with the VIEs are governed by the laws of the PRC and we may have difficulty in enforcing any rights we may have under these contractual arrangements.”

Our ability to enforce the equity interest pledge agreements among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and each shareholder of the VIEs may be subject to limitations based on PRC laws and regulations.

Pursuant to the equity interest pledge agreements among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and each shareholder of the VIEs, such shareholder pledges all of his or her equity interests in the VIEs to Zhejiang WFOE to secure the performance by the VIEs and their respective shareholders of their obligations under the applicable contractual agreements.

As of the date of this annual report, the pledge of the equity interests in the VIEs has not been completed and the equity interest pledge under the equity interest pledge agreements has not been registered with local Administration for Market Regulation although the equity interest pledge agreements have been executed. Under the PRC Civil Code, when a pledgor fails to pay its debt when due, the pledgee may choose to either conclude an agreement with the pledgor to obtain the pledged equity or seek payments from the proceeds of the auction or sale of the pledged equity. The PRC Civil Code further provides that the registration is necessary to create security interest on the shares of a PRC limited liability company, which means that before the equity interest pledge is duly registered, such pledge is unenforceable even though the relevant equity interest pledge agreement is binding. Prior to the completion of the registration, we may not be able to successfully enforce the equity interest pledges against any third parties who have acquired the equity interests in good faith in the VIEs.

The shareholders of the VIEs may have potential conflicts of interest with us, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The interests of the shareholders of the VIEs in their capacities as such shareholders may differ from our interests as a whole. There can be no assurance that when conflicts of interest arise, any or all of these shareholders will act in our best interests, or those conflicts of interest will be resolved in our favor. In addition, these shareholders may breach or cause the VIEs to breach or refuse to renew the existing contractual arrangements with us, which would have a material adverse effect on our ability to effectively control the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries and receive economic benefits from them.

Currently, we do not have arrangements to address potential conflicts of interest between the shareholders of the VIEs and our company. We, however, could, at all times, exercise the option under the exclusive option agreements to cause the shareholders of the VIEs to transfer all of their equity ownership in the VIEs to our wholly-owned subsidiaries or an entity or individual designated by us as permitted by the then applicable PRC laws. In addition, if such conflicts of interest arise, we could also, in the capacity of attorney-in-fact of the then existing shareholders of the VIEs as provided under the powers of attorney, directly appoint new directors of the VIEs. We rely on the shareholders of the VIEs to comply with PRC laws and regulations, which provide that directors and executive officers owe a duty of loyalty to the company and require them to avoid conflicts of interest and not to take advantage of their positions for personal gains, and with the laws of the Cayman Islands, which provide that directors have a duty of care and a duty of loyalty to act honestly in good faith with a view to the best interests of the company. However, the legal frameworks of China and the Cayman Islands do not provide guidance on resolving conflicts in the event of a conflict with another corporate governance regime. If we cannot resolve any conflicts of interest or disputes between us and the shareholders of the VIEs, we may have to rely on legal proceedings, which could result in disruption of our business and subject us to substantial uncertainty as to the outcome of any such legal proceedings.

Contractual arrangements in relation to the VIEs may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities and they may determine that the VIEs owe additional taxes, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Under applicable PRC laws and regulations, arrangements and transactions among related parties may be subject to audit or challenge by the PRC tax authorities. The PRC enterprise income tax law (the “EIT Law”) requires every enterprise in China to submit its annual enterprise income tax return together with a report on transactions with its related parties to the relevant tax authorities. The tax authorities may impose reasonable adjustments on taxation if they have identified any related party transactions that are inconsistent with arm’s length principles. We may face material and adverse tax consequences if the PRC tax authorities determine that the contractual arrangements among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and the shareholders of the VIEs were not entered into on an arm’s length basis in such a way as to result in an impermissible reduction in taxes under applicable PRC laws, regulations and rules, and adjust their income in the form of a transfer pricing adjustment, which could increase their PRC tax liabilities and its overall tax liabilities. A transfer pricing adjustment could, among other things, result in a reduction of expense deductions recorded by Zhejiang WFOE or the VIEs for PRC tax purposes, which could in turn increase their tax liabilities without reducing their tax expenses. In addition, if Zhejiang WFOE requests the shareholders of the VIEs to transfer their equity interests in the VIEs at nominal or no value pursuant to these contractual arrangements, such transfer could be viewed as a gift and subject the relevant subsidiary to PRC income tax. Furthermore, the PRC tax authorities may impose late payment fees and other penalties on Zhejiang WFOE and the VIEs for adjusted but unpaid taxes according to applicable regulations. Our financial position could be materially and adversely affected if the tax liabilities of Zhejiang WFOE and VIEs increase, or if they are required to pay late payment fees and other penalties.

We may lose the ability to use and enjoy assets held by the VIEs that are material to the operation of our business if the VIEs declare bankruptcy or become subject to a dissolution or liquidation proceeding.

The VIEs hold substantially all of our assets in China. Under the contractual arrangements, the VIEs may not and the shareholders of the VIEs may not cause it to, in any manner, sell, transfer, mortgage or dispose of its assets or its legal or beneficial interests in the business without our prior consent. However, in the event that the shareholders of the VIEs breach these contractual arrangements and voluntarily liquidate the VIEs, or the VIEs declare bankruptcy and all or part of its assets become subject to liens or rights of third-party creditors, or are otherwise disposed of without our consent, we may be unable to continue some or all of our business activities or otherwise benefit from the assets held by the VIEs, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. If the VIEs undergo a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, independent third-party creditors may claim rights to some or all of these assets, thereby hindering our ability to operate our business, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretation and implementation of the PRC Foreign Investment Law, and its enactment could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

MOFCOM published a discussion draft of the proposed Foreign Investment Law (2015) (the “2015 Draft”) in January 2015 aiming to, upon its enactment, replace the major existing laws and regulations governing foreign investment in China. In December 2018, the SCNPC published the draft Foreign Investment Law (2018), which was further amended and published in January 2019, as a second draft for comment. In March 2019, a new draft of Foreign Investment Law was submitted to the National People’s Congress for review and was approved on March 15, 2019, which came into effect recently on January 1, 2020. The Foreign Investment Law replaced the three laws on foreign investment, i.e., the Wholly Foreign-owned Enterprise Law of the PRC, the Cooperative Joint Venture Law of the PRC and the Equity Joint Venture Law of the PRC.

Pursuant to the Foreign Investment Law, “foreign investment” refers to investment activities directly or indirectly conducted by one or more natural persons, business entities, or otherwise organizations of a foreign country within China, or foreign investors, and the investment activities include the following situations: (1) a foreign investor, individually or collectively with other investors, establishes an FIE in China; (2) a foreign investor acquires stock shares, equity shares, shares in assets, or other similar rights and interests of an enterprise within China; (3) a foreign investor, individually or collectively with other investors, invests in a new project in China; and (4) investments in other means as provided by laws, administrative regulations, or the State Council.

The 2015 Draft introduced certain concepts for the regulation of the VIE structures, such as “actual control” and “controlling PRC companies by contracts or trusts.” However, the enacted Foreign Investment Law, as well as its implementation rules which was promulgated on December 26, 2019 and took effect on January 1, 2020, no longer mention the relevant concepts for the regulation of these variable interest entity structures. Instead, the newly promulgated Foreign Investment Law contains a catch-all provision, stating that investments made by foreign investors through means stipulated in laws or administrative regulations or other methods prescribed by the State Council shall also be deemed as foreign investments. In consideration of the above, there are significant uncertainties as to the interpretation and implementation of such new legislation and how the control status of the VIEs would be determined under the enacted Foreign Investment Law. We also face uncertainties as to whether the interpretation and implementation of such new legislation or regulations promulgated in the future would mandate further actions, such as MOFCOM market entry clearance or certain restructuring of corporate structure and operations, to be completed by companies with existing VIE structure and whether these actions can be timely completed, or at all, and our business and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected. If we are not able to obtain any approval when required, our contractual arrangements with the VIEs may be regarded as invalid and illegal, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition, and may result in a significant or complete loss of the value of your investment. As a result, we may not be able to (1) continue our business in China through the contractual arrangements with the VIEs, (2) exert effective control over the VIEs, or (3) consolidate the financial results of, and receive economic benefits from the VIEs under existing contractual arrangements.

In addition, our corporate governance practice may be impacted and our compliance costs could increase if the VIEs were considered as FIEs under the Foreign Investment Law. For instance, the Foreign Investment Law purports to impose ad hoc and periodic information reporting requirements on foreign investors and the applicable FIEs. Any company found to be non-compliant with these information reporting obligations could potentially be subject to fines or administrative liabilities.

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Changes in the political and economic policies of the PRC government could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition, and may result in our inability to sustain our growth and expansion strategies.

A substantial part of our operations is based in the PRC and a significant portion of our revenues are generated from our operations in the PRC. Accordingly, our business, results of operations and financial condition are affected to a significant extent by economic, political and legal developments in the PRC.

The PRC economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including the extent of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. Although the PRC government has implemented measures emphasizing the utilization of market forces for economic reform, the reduction of state ownership of productive assets, and the establishment of improved corporate governance in business enterprises, a substantial portion of productive assets in China are still owned by the government. In addition, the PRC government continues to play a significant role in regulating industry development by imposing industrial policies.

While the PRC economy has experienced significant growth in the past, growth has been uneven, both geographically and among various sectors of the economy. The PRC government has implemented various measures to encourage economic growth and guide the allocation of resources. Some of these measures may benefit the overall PRC economy, but may also have a negative effect on us. Our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations that are applicable to us. In addition, the PRC government has implemented certain measures to control the pace of economic growth. These measures may cause decreased economic activity, which in turn could lead to a reduction in demand for our services and consequently adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition, and cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or become worthless. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic may continue to affect Chinese economy.

Furthermore, we, as well as investors of our securities, face uncertainty about future actions by the PRC government that could significantly affect our financial performance and operations, including the enforceability of the contractual arrangements with the VIEs. If future laws, administrative regulations or provisions mandate further actions to be taken by companies with respect to existing contractual arrangements, we may face substantial uncertainties as to whether we can complete such actions in a timely manner, or at all. Failure to take timely and appropriate measures to adapt to any of these or similar regulatory compliance challenges could materially and adversely affect our current corporate structure and business operations, and thereby have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares.

We may be affected by the complexity and changes in PRC laws, rules and regulations, particularly of internet businesses. There is a risk that the PRC government may exert more oversight and control over offerings that are conducted overseas, which could materially and adversely affect our business and hinder our ability to continue our operations, and cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or become worthless.

A significant portion of our operations are conducted in the PRC and are governed by PRC laws, rules and regulations. Zhejiang WFOE and the VIEs are subject to laws, rules and regulations applicable to foreign investment in China. The PRC legal system is a civil law system based on written statutes. Unlike the common law system, prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited precedential value in the PRC.

In 1979, the PRC government began to promulgate a comprehensive system of laws, rules and regulations governing economic matters in general. The overall effect of legislation in the past has significantly enhanced the protections afforded to various forms of foreign investment in China. However, the recently enacted laws, rules and regulations may not sufficiently cover all aspects of economic activities in China or may be subject to significant degrees of interpretation by PRC regulatory agencies. In particular, because these laws, rules and regulations are relatively new, the number of published decisions and the nonbinding nature of such decisions is limited, and the laws, rules and regulations often give the relevant regulator significant discretion in how to enforce them, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws, rules and regulations involve uncertainties and can be inconsistent and unpredictable. In addition, the PRC legal system contains government policies, and we may not be aware of the violation of these policies until after the occurrence. Moreover, the administrative and court proceedings in China may sometimes be protracted, resulting in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention. Since PRC administrative and court authorities have significant discretion in interpreting and implementing statutory and contractual terms, it may be more difficult to evaluate the outcome of administrative and court proceedings and the level of legal protection we enjoy than in other legal systems. These uncertainties may impede the ability to enforce the contracts we have entered into and could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

There are uncertainties regarding the enforcement of PRC laws, and rules and regulations in China can change quickly with little advance notice. Any actions by the Chinese government to exert more oversight and control over offerings that are conducted overseas could materially and adversely affect our business and hinder our ability to offer securities overseas, or continue our operations, and cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or become worthless.

The Chinese government heavily regulates the internet industry, including relevant market access restrictions and limitations on foreign investment, license and permit requirements for service providers in the internet industry. Since some of the laws, regulations and legal requirements with respect to the internet are relatively new and evolving, their interpretation and enforcement involve significant uncertainties. Because the Chinese legal system is based on written statutes, such that prior court decisions can only be cited for reference and have little precedential value, it may be difficult to determine what actions or omissions may result in liabilities.

Issues, risks and uncertainties relating to China’s government regulation of the Chinese internet sector include the following.

Due to the increasing popularity and use of the internet and other online services, it is possible that additional laws and regulations may be adopted with respect to the internet or other online services covering issues such as user privacy, cybersecurity, data protection, pricing, content, copyrights, distribution, antitrust and characteristics and quality of products and services. The adoption of additional laws or regulations may impede the growth of the internet or other online services, which could, in turn, decrease the demand for our products and services and increase our cost of doing business. The interpretation and application of existing PRC laws, regulations and policies, the stated positions of relevant PRC government authorities and possible new laws, regulations or policies have created substantial uncertainties regarding the legality of existing and future foreign investments in, and the businesses and activities of, internet businesses in China, including our business.

We will continuously assess the need to obtain and renew permits, filings and licenses to operate our business, closely consult the supervisory authority having jurisdiction over us, and follow their guidance in a timely manner to ensure that we run our business legally. However, we may fail, on acceptable terms and in a timely manner, or at all, to obtain, maintain or update the permits, filings and licenses we may need to operate and expand our business from time to time and as required by the supervisory authorities. Business operations without proper permits, filings and licenses may subject us to administrative penalties by relevant PRC regulators with measures including fines, and in very extreme cases, confiscation of the gains derived from the operations, being required to discontinue or restrict our operations and being placed in the credit blacklist made by the PRC regulator, and our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.

Our contractual arrangements with the VIEs are governed by the laws of the PRC and we may have difficulty in enforcing any rights we may have under these contractual arrangements.

As all of our contractual arrangements with the VIEs are governed by the PRC laws and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in the PRC, they would be interpreted in accordance with PRC law and any disputes would be resolved in accordance with PRC legal procedures. Disputes arising from these contractual arrangements will be resolved through arbitration in China, although these disputes do not include claims arising under the United States federal securities law and thus do not prevent you from pursuing claims under the United States federal securities law. The legal environment in the PRC is different from that in the United States. As a result, uncertainties in the PRC legal system could further limit our ability to enforce these contractual arrangements, through arbitration, litigation and other legal proceedings available in China, which could limit our ability to enforce these contractual arrangements and exert effective control over the VIEs. Furthermore, these contracts may not be enforceable in China if PRC government authorities or courts take a view that such contracts contravene PRC laws and regulations or are otherwise not enforceable for public policy reasons. In the event we are unable to enforce these contractual arrangements, we may not be able to consolidate the financial results of the VIEs under U.S. GAAP, and our ability to conduct our business may be materially and adversely affected.

Recent regulatory development in China may result in the PRC government exerting more oversight and control over listing and offerings that are conducted overseas. The approval of the CSRC may be required in connection with our capital raising activities, and, if required, we cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain such approval.

Under the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors (the “M&A Rules”), as jointly adopted by six PRC regulatory agencies in 2006 and amended in 2009, an offshore special purpose vehicle that is controlled by PRC domestic companies or individuals and that has been formed for the purpose of an overseas listing of securities through acquisitions of PRC domestic companies or assets is required to obtain the approval of the CSRC prior to the listing and trading of such special purpose vehicle’s securities on an overseas stock exchange. However, substantial uncertainty remains regarding the scope and applicability of the M&A Rules to offshore special purpose vehicles.

Our PRC counsel, Zhong Lun Law Firm, has advised us based on their understanding of the current PRC laws, regulations and rules that the CSRC’s approval under the M&A Rules is not required for the listing our securities on Nasdaq, given that: (1) the CSRC currently has not issued any definitive rule or interpretation concerning whether offerings like ours are subject to the M&A Rules, (2) the WFOEs were incorporated as wholly foreign-owned enterprise by means of direct investment rather than by merger or acquisition of equity interest or assets of a PRC domestic company owned by PRC companies or individuals as defined under the M&A Rules, and (3) no explicit provision in the M&A Rules clearly classifies contractual arrangements as a type of acquisition transaction subject to the M&A Rules.

However, our PRC counsel, Zhong Lun Law Firm, has further advised us that its opinions summarized above are subject to any new laws, regulations and rules or detailed implementations and interpretations in any form relating to the M&A Rules. We cannot assure you that relevant PRC government agencies, including the CSRC, might, from time to time, further clarify or interpret the M&A Rules in writing or orally and require their approvals to be obtained. We cannot assure you that relevant PRC government agencies, including the CSRC, would reach the same conclusion as our PRC counsel does. If it is determined that CSRC approval under the M&A Rules is required, we may face sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies for failure to obtain or delay in obtaining CSRC approval. These sanctions may include fines and penalties on the operations in China, delays in or restrictions on the repatriation of the proceeds from overseas offering into China, restrictions on or prohibition of the payments or remittance of dividends by the WFOEs or the VIEs in China, or other actions that could have a material and adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, reputation and prospects, as well as the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Furthermore, the PRC regulatory authorities have recently exerted more oversight and control over offerings that are conducted overseas. On July 6, 2021, the General Office of the State Council of the PRC, together with another regulatory authority, jointly promulgated the Opinions, which calls for enhanced administration and supervision of overseas-listed China-based companies, proposes to revise the relevant regulation governing the overseas issuance and listing of shares by such companies, and clarifies the responsibilities of competent domestic industry regulators and government authorities. On February 17, 2023, the CSRC promulgated the Overseas Listing Trial Measures, which became effective on March 31, 2023. According to the Overseas Listing Trial Measures, PRC domestic companies that seek to offer and list securities in overseas markets, either in direct or indirect means, are required to fulfill the filing procedure with the CSRC and report relevant information. The Overseas Listing Trial Measures provides that an overseas listing or offering is explicitly prohibited, if any of the following factors are present: (1) such securities offering and listing is explicitly prohibited by provisions in laws, administrative regulations and relevant state rules; (2) the intended securities offering and listing may endanger national security as reviewed and determined by applicable authorities under the State Council in accordance with law; (3) the domestic company intending to make the securities offering and listing, or its controlling shareholder(s) and the actual controller, have committed relevant crimes such as corruption, bribery, embezzlement, misappropriation of property or undermining the order of the socialist market economy during the latest three years; (4) the domestic company intending to make the securities offering and listing is currently under investigation for suspicion of criminal offenses or major violations of laws and regulations, and no conclusion has yet been made thereof; or (5) there are material ownership disputes over equity held by the domestic company’s controlling shareholder(s) or by other shareholder(s) that are controlled by the controlling shareholder(s) and/or actual controller. The CSRC provided further notice related to the Overseas Listing Trial Measures that companies that have already been listed on overseas stock exchanges prior to March 31, 2023 are not required to make immediate filings for its listing, but are required to make filings for subsequent offerings in accordance with the Overseas Listing Trial Measures within three business days after the closing of such subsequent offerings.

As our Class A ordinary shares had been listed on Nasdaq prior to March 31, 2023, we are not required to make immediate filing with the CSRC in connection with our listing. However, we believe we will be required to file with the CSRC within three business days after the closing of any subsequent offerings of our securities. We cannot assure you that we would be able to complete the filing procedures, obtain the approvals or complete other compliance procedures in a timely manner, or at all, or that any completion of filing or approval or other compliance procedures would not be rescinded. Any such failure would subject us to sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory authorities. These regulatory authorities may impose restrictions and penalties on the operations in China, significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to launch any new offering of our securities, limit our ability to pay dividends outside of China, delay or restrict the repatriation of the proceeds from future capital raising activities into China, or take other actions that could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects, as well as the trading price of the Class A ordinary shares. Accordingly, the value of your investment may be materially and adversely affected or become worthless.

Furthermore, the PRC government authorities may further strengthen oversight and control over offerings that are conducted overseas and/or foreign investment in China-based issuers like us. Any such action may adversely affect our operations and significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer securities to you and cause the value of such securities to significantly decline or be worthless.

The Class A ordinary shares will be delisted and prohibited from trading in the over-the-counter market under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, if the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely our auditor, which is located in China for two consecutive years. The delisting of the Class A ordinary shares, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment.

As part of a continued regulatory focus in the United States on access to audit and other information currently protected by national law, in particular China’s, the HFCAA was signed into law on December 18, 2020. The HFCAA states if the SEC determines that we have filed audit reports issued by a registered public accounting firm that has not been subject to inspection for the PCAOB for two consecutive years, the SEC shall prohibit our Class A ordinary shares from being traded on a national securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market in the United States.

In August 2022, the PCAOB, the CSRC and the Ministry of Finance of the PRC signed the Statement of Protocol, which establishes a specific and accountable framework for the PCAOB to conduct inspections and investigations of PCAOB-governed accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB announced that it was able to secure complete access to inspect and investigate PCAOB-registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong completely in 2022. On December 29, 2022, the CAA was signed into law by President Biden. The CAA, among other things, reduced the number of consecutive non-inspection years required for triggering the prohibitions under the HFCAA as it was originally passed from three years to two, and thus, reduced the time before our securities may be prohibited from trading or delisted. The PCAOB Board vacated its previous 2021 determinations that the PCAOB was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong. However, whether the PCAOB will continue to be able to satisfactorily conduct inspections of PCAOB-registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong is subject to uncertainties and depends on a number of factors outside of our and our auditor’s control. The PCAOB continues to demand complete access in mainland China and Hong Kong moving forward and pursue ongoing investigations and initiate new investigations as needed. The PCAOB has also indicated that it will act immediately to consider the need to issue new determinations with the HFCAA if needed. If the PCAOB is unable to inspect and investigate completely our registered public accounting firm located in China, or if we fail to, among others, meet the PCAOB’s requirements, including retaining a registered public accounting firm that the PCAOB determines it is able to inspect and investigate completely, we will be identified as a “Commission-identified Issuer,” and upon two consecutive years of non-inspection under the HFCAA and relevant regulations, the Class A ordinary shares will be delisted from Nasdaq and our Class A ordinary shares will not be permitted for trading over the counter either. If our Class A ordinary shares are prohibited from trading in the United States, we cannot assure you that we will be able to list on a non-U.S. exchange or that a market for our Class A ordinary shares will develop outside of the United States. Such a prohibition would substantially impair your ability to sell or purchase the Class A ordinary shares when you wish to do so, and the risk and uncertainty associated with delisting would have a negative impact on the price of the Class A ordinary shares. Moreover, the HFCAA or other efforts to increase U.S. regulatory access to audit information could cause investor uncertainty for affected issuers, including us, and the market price of the Class A ordinary shares could be adversely affected. Also, such a prohibition would significantly affect our ability to raise capital on terms acceptable to us, or at all, which would have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and prospects.

PRC laws and regulations mandate complex procedures for some acquisitions of Chinese companies by foreign investors, which could make it more difficult for us to make acquisitions in China.

PRC laws and regulations, such as the M&A Rules, and other relevant rules, established additional procedures and requirements that are expected to make merger and acquisition activities in China by foreign investors more time-consuming and complex, including requirements in some instances that MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise, or that the approval from MOFCOM be obtained in circumstances where overseas companies established or controlled by PRC enterprises or residents acquire affiliated domestic companies. PRC laws and regulations also require certain merger and acquisition transactions to be subject to a merger control security review. In August 2011, MOFCOM promulgated the Rules of the Ministry of Commerce on the Implementation of the Security Review System for Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, effective from September 1, 2011, further provide that, when deciding whether a specific merger or acquisition of a domestic enterprise by foreign investors is subject to a security review by MOFCOM, the principle of substance over form should be applied and foreign investors are prohibited from bypassing the security review requirement by structuring transactions through proxies, trusts, indirect investments, leases, loans, control through contractual arrangements of offshore transaction. Factors that MOFCOM considers in its review are whether an important industry is involved, such transaction involves factors that have had or may have an impact on national economic security and such transaction will lead to a change in control of a domestic enterprise that holds a well-known PRC trademark or a time-honored PRC brand. If a business of any target company that we plan to acquire falls into the ambit of security review, we may not be able to successfully acquire such company. Complying with the requirements of the relevant regulations to complete any such transaction could be time-consuming, and any required approval process, including approval from MOFCOM, may delay or inhibit our ability to complete such transactions, which could affect our ability to expand our business.

PRC regulations relating to investments in offshore companies by PRC residents may subject our PRC-resident beneficial owners, Zhejiang WFOE or the VIEs to liability or penalties, limit our ability to inject capital into Zhejiang WFOE and the VIEs or limit the WFOE’s and the VIEs’ ability to increase their registered capital or distribute profits.

SAFE promulgated the Circular of SAFE on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Control on Domestic Residents’ Offshore Investment and Financing and Roundtrip Investment through Special Purpose Vehicles ( “SAFE Circular 37”) on July 4, 2014, which requires PRC residents to register with local branches of SAFE in connection with their direct establishment or indirect control of an offshore entity, for the purpose of overseas investment and financing, with such PRC residents’ legally owned assets or equity interests in domestic enterprises or offshore assets or interests, referred to in SAFE Circular 37 as a “special purpose vehicle.” Pursuant to SAFE Circular 37, “control” refers to the act through which a PRC resident obtains the right to carry out business operation of, to gain proceeds from or to make decisions on a special purpose vehicle by means of, among others, shareholding entrustment arrangement. SAFE Circular 37 further requires amendment to the registration in the event of any significant changes with respect to the special purpose vehicle, such as change of shareholders of the special purpose vehicle, increase or decrease of capital contributed by PRC individuals, share transfer or exchange, merger, division or other material event. In the event that a PRC shareholder holding interests in a special purpose vehicle fails to fulfill the required SAFE registration, the PRC subsidiaries of that special purpose vehicle may be prohibited from making profit distributions to the offshore parent and from carrying out subsequent cross-border foreign exchange activities, and the special purpose vehicle may be restricted in its ability to contribute additional capital into its PRC subsidiaries. Moreover, failure to comply with the various SAFE registration requirements described above could result in liability under PRC law for evasion of foreign exchange controls. According to the Notice of SAFE on Further Simplifying and Improving Policies for the Foreign Exchange Administration of Direct Investment released on February 13, 2015 by SAFE, local banks will examine and handle foreign exchange registration for overseas direct investment, including the initial foreign exchange registration and amendment registration, under SAFE Circular 37 from June 1, 2015.

Mr. Gangjiang Li, Mr. Yi Ma and 11 natural persons completed the initial SAFE registration pursuant to SAFE Circular 37 in September 2021. We have notified substantial beneficial owners of ordinary shares who are PRC residents of their filing obligation, including the obligation to complete SAFE registration and to make updates under SAFE Circular 37. Nevertheless, we may not be continuously aware of the identities of all of our beneficial owners who are PRC residents. We do not have control over our beneficial owners and there can be no assurance that all of our PRC-resident beneficial owners will comply with SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules, and there is no assurance that the registration under SAFE Circular 37 and any amendment will be completed in a timely manner, or will be completed at all. The failure of our beneficial owners who are PRC residents to register or amend their foreign exchange registrations in a timely manner pursuant to SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules, or the failure of future beneficial owners of our company who are PRC residents to comply with the registration procedures set forth in SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules, may subject such beneficial owners, the WFOEs or the VIEs to fines and legal sanctions. Failure to register or comply with relevant requirements may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital to the WFOEs and the VIEs and limit the WFOEs’ ability to distribute dividends to us. These risks could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Failure to make adequate contributions to various employee benefit plans as required by PRC regulations may subject us to penalties.

We are required under PRC laws and regulations to participate in various government sponsored employee benefit plans, including certain social insurance, housing funds and other welfare-oriented payment obligations, and contribute to the plans in amounts equal to certain percentages of salaries, including bonuses and allowances, of our employees up to a maximum amount specified by the local government from time to time at locations where we operate our businesses. The laws pertaining to employee benefit plans have not been implemented consistently by the local governments in China given the different levels of economic development in different locations. As of the date of this annual report, we have not made adequate employee benefit payments and may be required to make up the contributions and pay a penalty for late contributions for these plans. If we fail to make or supplement contributions of social security premiums within the stipulated period, the social security premiums collection agency may enquire into the deposit accounts of the employer with banks and other financial institutions. In an extreme situation, where we fail to contribute social security premiums in full amount and do not provide guarantee, the social security premiums collection agency may apply to a Chinese court for seizure, foreclosure or auction of our properties of value equivalent to the amount of social security premiums payable, and the proceeds from auction shall be used for contribution of social security premiums. If we are subject to deposit, seizure, foreclosure or auction in relation to the underpaid employee benefits, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

Any failure to comply with PRC regulations regarding employee equity incentive plans may subject the PRC plan participants or us to fines and other legal or administrative sanctions.

Pursuant to SAFE Circular 37, PRC residents who participate in equity incentive plans in overseas non-publicly-listed companies due to their position as director, senior management or employees of the PRC subsidiaries of the overseas companies may submit applications to SAFE or its local branches for the foreign exchange registration with respect to offshore special purpose companies. Our directors, executive officers and other employees who are PRC residents and who have been granted options may follow SAFE Circular 37 to apply for the foreign exchange registration before we become an overseas listed company. As an overseas listed company, we and our directors, executive officers and other employees who are PRC residents and who have been granted options are subject to the Notice of SAFE on Issues Concerning the Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Stock Incentive Plan of Overseas Publicly Listed Company, issued by SAFE in February 2012 (“SAFE Circular 7”), according to which, employees, directors, supervisors and other management members participating in any equity incentive plans of an overseas publicly listed company who are PRC residents are required to register with SAFE through a domestic qualified agent, which could be a PRC subsidiary of such overseas listed company, and complete certain other procedures. We will make efforts to comply with these requirements by making applications and registrations under SAFE Circular 7, but there can be no assurance that they can successfully register with SAFE in full compliance with the rules. Failure to complete SAFE registrations may subject relevant participants in the share incentive plans to fines and legal sanctions and may also limit the ability to make payment under the equity incentive plans or receive dividends or sales proceeds related thereto, or our ability to contribute additional capital into our wholly-foreign owned enterprise in China and limit the wholly-foreign owned enterprise’s ability to distribute dividends to us. We also face regulatory uncertainties that could restrict our ability to adopt additional equity incentive plans for our directors and employees under PRC law.

We may rely on dividends, loans and other distributions on equity paid by our principal operating subsidiaries to fund offshore cash and financing requirements. Any limitation on the ability of our PRC operating subsidiaries to make payments to us could adversely affect our ability to conduct our business.

We are a holding company and may rely on dividends, loans and other distributions on equity paid by our principal operating subsidiaries and on remittances from the VIEs for our offshore cash and financing requirements, including the funds necessary to pay dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders, fund inter-company loans, service any debt we may incur outside of China and pay our expenses. When our WFOEs or the VIEs incur additional debt, the instruments governing the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends, make loans or make other distributions or remittances to us. Furthermore, the laws, rules and regulations applicable to the WFOEs and the VIEs permit payments of dividends only out of our retained earnings, if any, determined in accordance with applicable accounting standards and regulations.

Under PRC laws, rules and regulations, our WFOEs and the VIEs are required to set aside at least 10% of their net income each year to fund certain statutory reserves until the cumulative amount of such reserves reaches 50% of their registered capital. These reserves, together with the registered capital, are not distributable as cash dividends. As a result of these laws, rules and regulations, our WFOEs and the VIEs are restricted in their ability to transfer a portion of their respective net assets to their shareholders as dividends, loans or advances.

Limitations on the ability of the VIEs to make remittance to the wholly-foreign owned enterprise and on the ability of its subsidiaries to pay dividends to us could limit our ability to access cash generated by the operations of those entities, including making investments or acquisitions that could be beneficial to our businesses, paying dividends to our shareholders or otherwise funding and conducting our business.

The discontinuation of the preferential tax treatment available to us in China could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Under PRC tax laws and regulations, some of our PRC subsidiaries currently benefit from a number of preferential tax treatments. For example, the modified EIT Law and its implementation rules generally impose a uniform income tax rate of 25% on all enterprises, but grant preferential treatment to “high and new technology enterprises strongly supported by the state” (the “HNTEs”), to enjoy a reduced enterprise tax rate of 15%. BaiJiaYun Group, Wuhan Baijia Cloud Technology Co., Ltd. (“Wuhan BaiJiaYun”), Wuhan BaiJiaShiLian, Beijing Hydrogen, Wuhan Qiyun Shilian Technology Co., Ltd. and Beijing Deran are qualified as HNTEs. We disposed of 100% equity interest of Wuhan BaiJiaYun in September 2022, and subsequently acquired 100% equity interest of Wuhan BaiJiaYun (currently known as Wuhan Xinwanlian Technology Co., Ltd.) in July 2023. Continued qualification as a HNTE is subject to a three-year review by the relevant government authorities in China, and in practice certain local tax authorities also require annual evaluation of the qualification. In addition to the foregoing tax benefit, some of our PRC subsidiaries obtained the certificate of Qualified Software Enterprise and some of our products have obtained software product registration certificates, based on which the relevant PRC subsidiaries enjoy certain preferential enterprise income tax and value-added tax benefits, according to relevant rules including the Notice on Value-added Tax Policies for Software Products issued by the Ministry of Finance (the “MOF”) and the SAT on October 13, 2011, the Notice on Enterprise Income Tax Policies for Further Encouraging the Development of Software and Integrated Circuit Industries issued by the MOF and the SAT on April 20, 2012, the Notice on Increasing the Proportion of Weighted Pre-tax Deduction for R&D Expenses issued by the MOF, the SAT and the Ministry of Science and Technology on September 20, 2018, and the Announcement on Enterprise Income Tax Policies for Promoting the High-Quality Development of Integrated Circuit and Software Industries issued by the MOF, the SAT, the National Development and Reform Commission (the “NDRC”) and the MIIT on December 11, 2020. In the event the preferential tax treatment for our PRC subsidiaries are discontinued or are not verified by the local tax authorities, and the affected entity fails to obtain preferential tax treatments, we will become subject to the standard tax rates and policies, including the PRC enterprise income tax rate of 25%. We cannot assure you that the tax authorities will not, in the future, discontinue our preferential tax treatment, potentially with retroactive effect.

We and our non-PRC subsidiaries may be treated as resident enterprises for PRC tax purposes under the EIT Law, and we may therefore be subject to PRC income tax on our global income.

Under the modified EIT Law and its implementing rules, enterprises established under the laws of jurisdictions outside of China with “de facto management bodies” located in China may be considered PRC tax resident enterprises for tax purposes and may be subject to the PRC enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on their global income. “De facto management body” refers to a managing body that exercises substantive and overall management and control over the production and business, personnel, accounting books and assets of an enterprise. The SAT issued the Notice Regarding the Determination of Chinese-Controlled Offshore-Incorporated Enterprises as PRC Tax Resident Enterprises on the Basis of De Facto Management Bodies (the “Circular 82”) on April 22, 2009. Circular 82 provides certain specific criteria for determining whether the “de facto management body” of a Chinese-controlled offshore-incorporated enterprise is located in China. Although Circular 82 only applies to offshore enterprises controlled by PRC enterprises or PRC enterprise groups, not those controlled by foreign enterprises or individuals, the determining criteria set forth in Circular 82 may reflect the SAT’s general position on how the “de facto management body” test should be applied in determining the tax resident status of offshore enterprises, regardless of whether they are controlled by PRC enterprises or PRC enterprise groups. According to Circular 82, an offshore incorporated enterprise controlled by a PRC enterprise or a PRC enterprise group will be regarded as a PRC tax resident by virtue of having its “de facto management body” in China and will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax on its global income only if all of the following conditions are met: (1) the primary location of the day-to-day operational management is in China; (2) decisions relating to the enterprise’s financial and human resource matters are made or are subject to approval by organizations or personnel in China; (3) the enterprise’s primary assets, accounting books and records, company seals, and board and shareholder resolutions, are located or maintained in China; and (4) at least 50% of voting board members or senior executives habitually reside in China. If we or any of our non-PRC subsidiaries were to be considered a PRC resident enterprise, we or the subsidiary would be subject to PRC enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on our or our subsidiary’s global income. In such case, our profitability and cash flow may be materially reduced as a result of our global income being taxed under the EIT Law. We believe that none of our entities outside of China is a PRC resident enterprise for PRC tax purposes. However, the tax resident status of an enterprise is subject to determination by the PRC tax authorities and uncertainties remain with respect to the interpretation of the term “de facto management body.”

Recent litigation and negative publicity surrounding China-based companies listed in the United States may result in increased regulatory scrutiny of us and negatively impact the trading price of the Class A ordinary shares.

We believe that litigation and negative publicity surrounding companies with operations in China that are listed in the United States have negatively impacted stock prices for such companies. Certain politicians in the United States have publicly warned investors to shun China-based companies listed in the United States. The SEC and the PCAOB also issued a joint statement on April 21, 2020, reiterating the disclosure, financial reporting and other risks involved in the investments in companies that are based in emerging markets as well as the limited remedies available to investors who might take legal action against such companies. Furthermore, various equity-based research organizations have published reports on China-based companies after examining, among other things, their corporate governance practices, related party transactions, sales practices and financial statements that have led to special investigations and listing suspensions on U.S. national exchanges. Some China-based companies listed in the United States are also subject to allegations centered around financial and accounting irregularities, lack of effective internal controls over financial accounting, and fraud, and are in the process of internal and external investigations into the allegations, shareholder lawsuits and SEC enforcement actions. Any similar scrutiny of us, regardless of its lack of merit, could cause the market price of the Class A ordinary shares to fall, divert management resources and energy, and cause us to incur expenses in defending ourselves against rumors.

It may be difficult for overseas regulators to conduct investigations or collect evidence within China.

Shareholder claims or regulatory investigation that are common in the United States generally are difficult to pursue as a matter of law or practicality in China. For example, in China, there are significant legal and other obstacles to providing information needed for regulatory investigations or litigation initiated outside China. Although the authorities in China may establish a regulatory cooperation mechanism with the securities regulatory authorities of another country or region to implement cross-border supervision and administration, such cooperation with the securities regulatory authorities in the Unities States may not be efficient in the absence of mutual and practical cooperation mechanism. Furthermore, according to Article 177 of the PRC Securities Law, which became effective on March 1, 2020, no foreign securities regulator is allowed to directly conduct investigations or evidence collection activities within the PRC territory. While detailed interpretation of or implementation rules under Article 177 have yet to be promulgated, the inability for a foreign securities regulator to directly conduct investigations or evidence collection activities within China may further increase the difficulties you face in protecting your interests.

There are uncertainties with respect to indirect transfers of equity interests in PRC resident enterprises or other assets attributed to a Chinese establishment of a non-Chinese company, or immovable properties located in China owned by non-Chinese companies.

On February 3, 2015, the SAT issued the Bulletin on Issues of Enterprise Income Tax on Indirect Transfers of Assets by Non-PRC Resident Enterprises (the “Bulletin 7”), which partially replaced and supplemented previous rules under the Notice of the SAT on Strengthening Administration of Enterprise Income Tax for Share Transfers by Non-PRC Resident Enterprises or SAT Circular 698, issued by the SAT on December 10, 2009. Pursuant to this Bulletin 7, an “indirect transfer” of assets, including equity interests in a PRC resident enterprise, by non-PRC resident enterprises may be re-characterized and treated as a direct transfer of PRC taxable assets, if such arrangement does not have a reasonable commercial purpose and was established for the purpose of avoiding payment of PRC enterprise income tax. As a result, gains derived from such indirect transfer may be subject to PRC enterprise income tax. According to Bulletin 7, “PRC taxable assets” include assets attributed to an establishment in China, immovable properties located in China, and equity investments in PRC resident enterprises, in respect of which gains from their transfer by a direct holder, being a non-PRC resident enterprise, would be subject to PRC enterprise income taxes. When determining whether there is a “reasonable commercial purpose” of the transaction arrangement, features to be taken into consideration include: whether the main value of the equity interest of the relevant offshore enterprise derives from PRC taxable assets; whether the assets of the relevant offshore enterprise mainly consists of direct or indirect investment in China or if its income mainly derives from China; whether the offshore enterprise and its subsidiaries directly or indirectly holding PRC taxable assets have real commercial nature which is evidenced by their actual function and risk exposure; the duration of existence of the business model and organizational structure; the replicability of the transaction by direct transfer of PRC taxable assets; and the tax situation of such indirect transfer and applicable tax treaties or similar arrangements. In respect of an indirect offshore transfer of assets of a PRC establishment, the resulting gain is to be included with the enterprise income tax filing of the PRC establishment or place of business being transferred, and would consequently be subject to PRC enterprise income tax at a rate of 25%. Where the underlying transfer relates to the immovable properties located in China or to equity investments in a PRC resident enterprise, which is not related to a PRC establishment or place of business of a non-resident enterprise, a PRC enterprise income tax of 10% would apply, subject to available preferential tax treatment under applicable tax treaties or similar arrangements, and the party who is obligated to make the transfer payments has the withholding obligation. Bulletin 7 does not apply to transactions of sale of shares by investors through a public stock exchange where such shares were acquired from a transaction through a public stock exchange. On October 17, 2017, the SAT promulgated the Announcement on Issues Concerning the Withholding of Non-resident Enterprise Income Tax at Source(the “SAT Circular 37”), which was amended and became effective on June 15, 2018, and SAT Circular 698 then was repealed with effect from December 1, 2017. SAT Circular 37 also amends certain provisions in Bulletin 7, but does not touch upon other provisions of Bulletin 7, which remain in full force. SAT Circular 37, among other things, simplified procedures of withholding and payment of income tax levied on non-resident enterprises.

There is uncertainty as to the application of Bulletin 7 and SAT Circular 37. We face uncertainties as to the reporting and other implications of certain past and future transactions where PRC taxable assets are involved, such as offshore restructuring, sale of the shares in our offshore subsidiaries or investments. We may be subject to filing obligations or taxed if our company is transferor in such transactions, and may be subject to withholding obligations if our company is transferee in such transactions under Bulletin 7. For transfer of shares in our company by investors that are non-PRC resident enterprises, the WFOEs may be requested to assist in the filing under Bulletin 7. As a result, we may be required to expend valuable resources to comply with Bulletin 7 and SAT Circular 37 or to request the relevant transferors from whom we purchase taxable assets to comply with Bulletin 7 and SAT Circular 37, or to establish that we should not be taxed under Bulletin 7 and SAT Circular 37, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We will be subject to restrictions on currency exchange.

A substantial portion of our revenues is denominated in Renminbi. The Renminbi is currently convertible under the “current account,” which includes dividends, trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, but not under the “capital account,” which includes foreign direct investment and loans, including loans we may secure from the WFOEs or the VIEs. Currently, the WFOEs may purchase foreign currency for settlement of “current account transactions,” including payment of dividends to us, without the approval of SAFE by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, the relevant PRC governmental authorities may limit or eliminate our ability to purchase foreign currencies in the future for current account transactions. Foreign exchange transactions under the capital account remain subject to limitations and require approvals from, or registration with, SAFE and other relevant PRC governmental authorities. Since a significant amount of our future revenues and cash flow will be denominated in Renminbi, any existing and future restrictions on currency exchange may limit their ability to utilize cash generated in Renminbi to fund their business activities outside of the PRC or pay dividends in foreign currencies to the shareholders, and may limit our ability to obtain foreign currency through debt or equity financing for the WFOEs and the VIEs.

PRC regulation of loans to, and direct investment in, PRC entities by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may restrict or prevent us from making loans to the WFOEs and the VIEs, or to make additional capital contributions to the WFOEs.

We, as an offshore holding company, are permitted under PRC laws and regulations to provide funding to the WFOEs, which are treated as foreign-invested enterprises under PRC laws, through loans or capital contributions. However, loans by us to the WFOEs to finance our activities cannot exceed statutory limits and must be registered with the local counterpart of SAFE and capital contributions to the WFOEs are subject to the requirement of making necessary filings or registrations through enterprise registration system with relevant governmental authorities in China.

Under applicable regulations promulgated by SAFE, including the Notice of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Reforming the Administration of Foreign Exchange Settlement of Capital of Foreign-invested Enterprises (the “Circular 19”), the flow and use of the Renminbi capital converted from foreign currency-denominated registered capital of a foreign-invested company is regulated such that Renminbi capital may not be used for the issuance of Renminbi entrusted loans, the repayment of inter-enterprise loans or the repayment of banks loans that have been transferred to a third party. Although Circular 19 allows Renminbi capital converted from foreign currency-denominated registered capital of a foreign-invested enterprise to be used for equity investments within the PRC, it also reiterates the principle that Renminbi converted from the foreign currency-denominated capital of a foreign-invested company may not be directly or indirectly used for purposes beyond its business scope. Thus, it is unclear whether SAFE will permit such capital to be used for equity investments in the PRC in actual practice. SAFE promulgated the Notice of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Reforming and Standardizing the Foreign Exchange Settlement Management Policy of Capital Account (the “Circular 16”), effective on June 9, 2016, which reiterates some of the rules set forth in Circular 19, but changes the prohibition against using Renminbi capital converted from foreign currency-denominated registered capital of a foreign-invested company to issue Renminbi entrusted loans to a prohibition against using such capital to issue loans to non-associated enterprises. Violations of Circular 19 and Circular 16 could result in administrative penalties. Circular 19 and Circular 16 may significantly limit its ability to transfer any foreign currency we hold to the WFOEs and the VIEs, which may adversely affect our liquidity and ability to fund and expand our business in the PRC.

Due to the restrictions imposed on loans in foreign currencies extended to any PRC domestic companies, we are not likely to make such loans to the VIEs. Meanwhile, we are not likely to finance the activities of the VIEs by means of capital contributions given the potential restrictions on foreign investment in the businesses that are currently conducted by the VIEs.

In light of the various requirements imposed by PRC regulations on loans to, and direct investment in, PRC entities by offshore holding companies, we cannot assure you that we will be able to complete the necessary government registrations or obtain the necessary government approvals in a timely manner, if at all, with respect to future loans to the WFOEs or the VIEs or future capital contributions by us to the WFOEs. As a result, uncertainties exist as to our ability to provide prompt financial support to the WFOEs or the VIEs when needed. If we fail to complete such registrations or obtain such approvals, our ability to use foreign currency and to capitalize or otherwise fund our PRC operations may be negatively affected, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and ability to fund and expand our business.

Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Ordinary Shares

The trading price of the Class A ordinary shares is likely to be volatile, which could result in substantial losses to investors.

The trading price of the Class A ordinary shares is likely to be volatile. This may happen because of broad market and industry factors, including the performance and fluctuation of the market prices of other companies with business operations located mainly in China that have listed their securities in the United States. The market price for the Class A ordinary shares may be influenced by those factors discussed elsewhere in this “D. Risk Factors” section and many others, including:

For example, if our board of directors decides to conduct a material acquisition or disposition, this could result in the distraction of our management and disruption of ongoing business, any of which could adversely affect our business and financial results, and the trading price of the Class A ordinary shares. In addition, in the past, shareholders of public companies have initiated class action lawsuits against those companies following periods of volatility in the market prices of these companies’ shares. Such litigation, if instituted against us, could cause us to incur substantial costs and divert management’s attention and resources, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Substantial future sales or perceived sales of the Class A ordinary shares in the public market could cause the price of the Class A ordinary shares to decline and depress our ability to raise funds in future offerings.

Substantial future sales of the Class A ordinary shares in the public market, or the perception that these sales could occur, could cause the market price of the Class A ordinary shares to decline, which could in turn depress our ability to raise funds in future offerings. As of the date of this annual report, our issued and outstanding securities consist of: (1) 57,904,261 Class A ordinary shares; (2) 29,788,452 Class B ordinary shares; and (3) warrants to subscribe for 17,964,879 Class A ordinary shares in lieu of shares issuable to certain shareholders of BJY upon the completion of the Merger as the required filings for overseas direct investment to relevant PRC government authorities (the “ODI filings”) had not been completed. Assuming all of the warrants to subscribe for our Class A ordinary shares have been exercised, our issued and outstanding securities consist of: (1) 75,869,140 Class A ordinary shares; and (2) 29,788,452 Class B ordinary shares.

Shares held by our existing shareholders may also be sold in the public market in the future subject to the restrictions in Rule 144 and Rule 701 under the Securities Act and the applicable lock-up agreements. We cannot predict what effect, if any, market sales of securities held by our significant shareholders or any other holders or the availability of these securities for future sale will have on the market price of the Class A ordinary shares.

Our dual-class share structure with different voting rights will significantly limit your ability to influence corporate matters and could discourage others from pursuing any change of control transactions that holders of the Class A ordinary shares may view as beneficial.

Our authorized and issued ordinary shares are divided into the Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares. Except for voting rights and conversion rights, the Class A ordinary shares and the Class B ordinary shares rank pari passu and have the same rights, preferences, privileges and restrictions. In respect of matters requiring the votes of our shareholders, holders of the Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares vote together as one class, and holders of the Class A ordinary shares are entitled to one vote per share while holders of the Class B ordinary shares are entitled to 15 votes per share.

As of the date of this annual report, Jia Jia BaiJiaYun Ltd beneficially owns 1,000,000 Class A ordinary shares and 27,055,888 Class B ordinary shares which account for an aggregate of 80.60% of the voting power represented by all our issued and outstanding ordinary shares, and Nuan Nuan Ltd beneficially owns 5,909,091 Class A ordinary shares and 2,732,564 Class B ordinary shares, which account for an aggregate of 9.29% of the voting power represented by all our issued and outstanding ordinary shares. Mr. Gangjiang Li and Mr. Yi Ma, and their respective holding companies, are parties to an acting-in-concert agreement, pursuant to which the parties agree to vote on the matters that require action in concert, and if the parties thereof are unable to reach a unanimous opinion in relation such matters, a decision that is made by Mr. Gangjiang Li, or Jia Jia BaiJiaYun Ltd, shall be deemed as a decision that is unanimously passed and agreed by the parties and shall be binding on the parties. As a result, Jia Jia BaiJiaYun Ltd and Nuan Nuan Ltd, as holders of the Class B ordinary shares, will have the power to control all matters submitted to our shareholders for approval, including the election of directors, amendments of our organizational documents and any merger, consolidation, sale of all or substantially all of our assets and all other major corporate transactions.

Each of Jia Jia BaiJiaYun Ltd, Nuan Nuan Ltd, and their respective ultimate beneficial owners Mr. Gangjiang Li and Mr. Yi Ma may have interests that differ from the interests of other shareholders, and may vote the Class B ordinary shares directly or indirectly held by him/her/it in ways with which other shareholders may disagree or which may be adverse to such other shareholders’ interests. The concentrated control over our company will likely exist regardless of whether and to what extent we distribute to our shareholders any Class A ordinary shares, and will have the effect of delaying, preventing or deterring a change in control of our company, could deprive our shareholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their Class A ordinary shares as part of a sale of our company, and could have a negative effect on the market price of the Class A ordinary shares.

Each Class B ordinary share is convertible into one Class A ordinary share at any time by the holder thereof, while the Class A ordinary shares are not convertible into the Class B ordinary shares under any circumstances. Our third amended and restated memorandum of association and second amended and restated articles of association (the “memorandum and articles of association”) require any Class B ordinary shares to be automatically converted into Class A ordinary shares upon, among others, a direct or indirect sale, transfer, assignment or disposition of such Class A ordinary shares or a direct or indirect transfer or assignment of the voting power attached to such Class B ordinary shares through voting proxy or otherwise, to any person or entity an affiliate of the holder of such Class B ordinary shares. The potential conversion of Class B ordinary shares into Class A ordinary shares will have a dilutive effect on the existing shareholders of our Class A ordinary shares, which in turn could adversely affect the market price of our Class A ordinary shares.

The outstanding warrants to subscribe for our Class A ordinary shares held by certain investors of BJY may not ultimately be exercised. In the event of non-exercise of such warrants, our shareholding structure may be affected and there may be a negative impact on our financial condition.

As of the date of this annual report, there are outstanding warrants held by some of BJY’s investors to subscribe for Class A ordinary shares, representing approximately 17.00% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares in the aggregate, that are exercisable by their respective holders subject to certain conditions including the completion of the ODI filings under the PRC laws, which is a prerequisite procedure for Chinese entities to make investment overseas. These warrants were assumed by us as a result of the Merger and the Transactions, pursuant to which certain warrants issued to BJY investors in connection with the automatic conversion of the preferred shares issued by BJY to its investors before the Merger were converted into warrants to subscribe for certain number of our Class A ordinary shares based on the conversion ratio as defined in the Merger Agreement. The warrants accord the holders with all rights and obligations attached to our Class A ordinary shares, as if such warrant holders had exercised the warrants and been duly registered as our shareholders.

We cannot guarantee that the ODI filings for all such investors who hold warrants to subscribe for Class A ordinary shares can be finally completed or all such investors will ultimately exercise their rights to subscribe for Class A ordinary shares. In the event that any such investor fails to complete its ODI filings or otherwise decides to not exercise its warrants to subscribe for Class A ordinary shares for any reason, such investor might request us to return the investment amount originally provided by such investor together with certain level of return expected by such investor or otherwise facilitate an exit by such investor (despite there being no contractual obligation for us to do so), which may negatively impact our financial condition and liquidity position. As such, our ability to fund and expand our business may also be affected, which will in turn negatively affect our business and results of operations.

We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the Nasdaq Stock Market Rules and, as a result, may rely on exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements that provide protection to shareholders of other companies.

As of the date of this annual report, Jia Jia BaiJiaYun Ltd and Nuan Nuan Ltd, as a group, have 89.90% of the voting power represented by all the issued and outstanding ordinary shares. As a result, we are a “controlled company” as defined under the Nasdaq Listing Rules as set forth in Rule 5615, because Jia Jia BaiJiaYun Ltd and Nuan Nuan Ltd, as a group, own more than 50% of our total voting power. For so long as we remain a controlled company, we may, and do rely on certain exemptions from corporate governance rules, including an exemption from the rule that we have to establish a nominating committee and a compensation committee composed entirely of independent directors. As a result, you will not have the same protection afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to these corporate governance requirements.

We may be a passive foreign investment company for United States federal income tax purposes, which could result in adverse United States federal income tax consequences to United States investors in the Class A ordinary shares.

Generally, we will be a “passive foreign investment company” (a “PFIC”), if, in the case of any particular taxable year, either (1) 75.0% or more of our gross income for such year consists of certain types of passive income, or (2) 50.0% or more of the average quarterly value of our assets during such year produce or are held for the production of passive income. The determination of whether we are a PFIC will depend on the particular facts and circumstances (such as the valuation of our assets, including goodwill and intangible assets, and the composition of our income). In addition, pursuant to the “change of business exception,” a corporation that would otherwise be a PFIC for a taxable year is not treated as a PFIC for such year if (1) neither the corporation nor any of its predecessors was a PFIC for any prior taxable year, (2) either substantially all of the passive income for the taxable year is attributable to proceeds from the disposition of an active trade or business or substantially all of the passive assets on each measuring date are attributable to proceeds from such a disposition and (3) the corporation reasonably does not expect to be a PFIC and is not a PFIC for either of the first two taxable years following the relevant taxable year.

Our taxable year for U.S. federal income tax purposes is likely the same as our fiscal year, which recently changed from a December 31 year-end to a June 30 year-end in connection with the Merger. We have not performed a definitive analysis as to our PFIC status for the taxable year ended June 30, 2023, including whether we would qualify for the “change of business exception.” In addition, we provide no assurance that we will not be a PFIC or that we will make a determination as to our PFIC status for any future taxable year. Further, since there is little administrative or judicial authority on which to rely to make a determination of PFIC status (including the availability of the “change of business exception”), the tests for determining PFIC status are applied annually after the close of the taxable year, and it is difficult to accurately predict future income and assets relative to this determination, there can be no assurance with respect to our PFIC status for our current taxable year or any future taxable year. In particular, for purposes of the PFIC asset test, the value of our assets will depend in part on the market price of our Class A ordinary shares. The market price of our Class A ordinary shares has recently declined by a material amount, which significantly increases the risk that we will be a PFIC for the taxable year ended June 30, 2024 (and for any future taxable year if the price does not increase). In addition, although the law in this regard is not entirely clear, we treat the VIEs and their respective subsidiaries as being owned by us for U.S. federal income tax purposes because we control their management decisions and are entitled to substantially all of the economic benefits associated with them. As a result, we consolidated their results of operations in our consolidated financial statements. If it were determined, however, that we are not the owner of the VIEs or their respective subsidiaries for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we may be treated as a PFIC in any particular year. If we are a PFIC in any taxable year, a U.S. Holder may incur significantly increased United States federal income tax on gain recognized on the sale or other disposition of the Class A ordinary shares and on the receipt of distributions on the Class A ordinary shares to the extent such gain or distribution is treated as an “excess distribution” under the United States federal income tax rules, and such holders may be subject to burdensome reporting requirements. Further, if we are a PFIC for any year during which a United States Holder holds the Class A ordinary shares, we generally will continue to be treated as a PFIC for all succeeding years during which such U.S. Holder holds the Class A ordinary shares. Investors should consult their own tax advisors regarding all aspects of the application of the PFIC rules to the Class A ordinary shares.

You may face difficulties in protecting your interests, and your ability to protect your rights through U.S. courts may be limited, because we are incorporated under Cayman Islands law.

We are an exempted company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands with limited liability. Our corporate affairs are governed by our memorandum and articles of association, the Companies Act and the common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders to take action against us and our directors, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary duties of our directors under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law of the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the Cayman Islands as well as from the English common law, which are generally of persuasive authority, but are not binding, on a court in the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary duties of our directors under Cayman Islands law are not as clearly established as they would be under statutes or judicial precedent in some jurisdictions in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a different body of securities laws than the United States, and provide significantly less protection to investors. In addition, Cayman Islands companies may not have the standing to initiate a shareholder derivative action in a federal court of the United States. There is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Cayman Islands would (1) recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts obtained against us or our directors or officers that are predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States, or (2) entertain original actions brought in the Cayman Islands against us or our directors or officers that are predicated upon the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States. Although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the federal or state courts of the United States (and the Cayman Islands are not a party to any treaties for the reciprocal enforcement or recognition of such judgments), the courts of the Cayman Islands would recognize as a valid judgment, a final and conclusive judgment in personam obtained in the foreign courts against our company under which a sum of money is payable (other than a sum of money payable in respect of multiple damages, taxes or other charges of a like nature or in respect of a fine or other penalty) or, in certain circumstances, an in personam judgment for non-monetary relief, and would give a judgment based thereon provided that (1) such courts had proper jurisdiction over the parties subject to such judgment, (2) such courts did not contravene the rules of natural justice of the Cayman Islands, (3) such judgment was not obtained by fraud, (4) the enforcement of the judgment would not be contrary to the public policy of the Cayman Islands, (5) no new admissible evidence relevant to the action is submitted prior to the rendering of the judgment by the courts of the Cayman Islands, and (6) there is due compliance with the correct procedures under the laws of the Cayman Islands. A Cayman Islands court may stay enforcement proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere.

Shareholders of Cayman Islands exempted companies like us have no general rights under Cayman Islands law to inspect corporate records (other than the memorandum and articles of association, the register of mortgages and charges, and copies of any special resolutions passed by its shareholders) or to obtain copies of lists of shareholders of these companies. Our directors have discretion under our memorandum and articles of association to determine whether or not, and under what conditions, our corporate records may be inspected by our shareholders, but are not obliged to make them available to our shareholders. This may make it more difficult for you to obtain the information needed to establish any facts necessary for a shareholder resolution or to solicit proxies from other shareholders in connection with a proxy contest.

Certain corporate governance practices in the Cayman Islands differ significantly from requirements for companies incorporated in other jurisdictions such as the U.S. If we choose to follow our home country practice in the future, our shareholders may be afforded less protection than they otherwise would under rules and regulations applicable to U.S. domestic issuers.

As a result of all of the above, public shareholders may have greater difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions taken by our management, members of the board of directors or controlling shareholders than they would as public shareholders of a company incorporated in the United States.

Certain judgments obtained against us by our shareholders may not be enforceable.

We conduct our business in China and substantially all of our assets are located in China. In addition, most of our current directors and senior executive officers are nationals and residents of jurisdictions other than the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for you to bring an action against us or against these individuals in the United States in the event that you believe that your rights have been infringed under the U.S. federal securities laws or otherwise. Even if you are successful in bringing an action of this kind, the PRC laws and the laws of the Cayman Islands may render you unable to enforce a judgment against our assets or the assets of our directors and officers. For more information regarding the relevant laws of the Cayman Islands and China.

Our corporate structure, together with applicable law, may impede our shareholders from asserting claims against us.

Almost all of our operations and records, and all of our senior management are located in China. Shareholders of companies such as us have limited ability to assert and collect on claims in litigation against our PRC subsidiaries. In addition, China has very restrictive secrecy laws that prohibit the delivery of many of the financial records maintained by a business located in China to third parties absent PRC government’s approval. Since discovery is an important part of proving a claim in litigation, and since most if not all of our records are in China, PRC secrecy laws could frustrate efforts to prove a claim against us or our management. In addition, in order to commence litigation in the United States against an individual such as an officer or director, that individual must be served. Generally, service requires the cooperation of the country in which a defendant resides. China has a history of failing to cooperate in efforts to affect such service upon PRC citizens in China.

As a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands, we are permitted to adopt certain home country practices for corporate governance matters that differ significantly from the Nasdaq corporate governance listing standards; these practices may afford less protection to shareholders than they would enjoy if we complied fully with the corporate governance listing standards.

As a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability listed on Nasdaq, we are subject to the Nasdaq Listing Rules for corporate governance listing standards. However, we qualify as a foreign private issuer (as defined in Rule 3b-4 under the Exchange Act) under the Nasdaq Listing Rules and we are permitted to follow home country practice in respect of certain corporate governance matters. As a result, our corporate governance practices differ in some respects from those required to be followed by U.S. companies listed on Nasdaq. For example, we do not (1) have a compensation committee or a nominating and corporate governance committee consisting entirely of independent directors; or (2) have an audit committee be composed of at least three members. We may also continue to rely on these and other exemptions available to foreign private issuers in the future, and to the extent that we choose to do so, our shareholders may be afforded less protection than they otherwise would have under the Nasdaq Listing Rules applicable to U.S. domestic issuers. In addition, we are a “controlled company” as defined under the Nasdaq Listing Rules as set forth in Rule 5615. For so long as we remain a controlled company, we may, and do rely on certain exemptions from corporate governance rules, including an exemption from the rule that that we have to establish a nominating committee and a compensation committee composed entirely of independent directors. As a result, you will not have the same protection afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to these corporate governance requirements.

We are a foreign private issuer within the meaning of the rules under the Exchange Act, and as such we are exempt from certain provisions applicable to U.S. domestic public companies.

We are a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, and exempt from certain provisions of the securities rules and regulations in the United States that are applicable to U.S. domestic issuers, including:

We are required to file an annual report on Form 20-F within four months of the end of each fiscal year. However, the information we are required to file with or furnish to the SEC are less extensive and less timely compared to that required to be filed with the SEC by U.S. domestic issuers. As a result, you may not be afforded the same protections or information that would be made available to you were you investing in a U.S. domestic issuer.

We will not pay dividends for the foreseeable future, so investors must rely on price appreciation of the Class A ordinary shares for return on their investment.

We have not paid any dividends on the Class A ordinary shares for the last five years. We currently anticipate that we will retain future earnings for the development, operation and expansion of our business and do not anticipate declaring or paying any cash dividends for the foreseeable future. In addition, the terms of any future debt agreements may preclude us from paying dividends.

Our board of directors has complete discretion as to whether to distribute dividends, subject to certain requirements of Cayman Islands law. In addition, our shareholders may by ordinary resolution declare a dividend, but no dividend may exceed the amount recommended by the directors. Under Cayman Islands law, a Cayman Islands exempted company may pay a dividend out of either profit or its share premium account, provided that in no circumstances may a dividend be paid if this would result in it being unable to pay its debts as they fall due in the ordinary course of business. Even if the Board decides to declare and pay dividends, the timing, amount and form of future dividends, if any, will depend on our future results of operations and cash flow, capital requirements and surplus, the amount of distributions, if any, received by us from our subsidiaries, financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors deemed relevant by the Board. Accordingly, the return on the investment in the Class A ordinary shares will depend on any future price appreciation of the Class A ordinary shares. There is no guarantee that the Class A ordinary shares will appreciate in value or even maintain the price at which investors purchased the Class A ordinary shares. Investors may not realize a return on the investment in the Class A ordinary shares and investors may even lose their entire investment.

Techniques employed by short sellers may drive down the market price of the Class A ordinary shares.

Short selling is the practice of selling securities that the seller does not own but rather has borrowed from a third party with the intention of buying identical securities back at a later date to return to the lender. The short seller hopes to profit from a decline in the value of the securities between the sale of the borrowed securities and the purchase of the replacement shares, as the short seller expects to pay less in that purchase than it received in the sale.

As it is in the short seller’s interest for the price of the security to decline, many short sellers publish, or arrange for the publication of, negative opinions regarding the relevant issuer and its business prospects in order to create negative market momentum and generate profits for themselves after selling a security short. These short attacks have, in the past, led to selling of shares in the market.

Public companies listed in the United States that have a substantial majority of their operations in China have been the subject of short selling. Much of the scrutiny and negative publicity has centered on allegations of a lack of effective internal control over financial reporting resulting in financial and accounting irregularities and mistakes, inadequate corporate governance policies or a lack of adherence thereto and, in many cases, allegations of fraud. As a result, many of these companies are now conducting internal and external investigations into the allegations and, in the interim, are subject to shareholder lawsuits and/or SEC enforcement actions.

We may be the subject of unfavorable allegations made by short sellers in the future. Any such allegations may be followed by periods of instability in the market price of our Class A ordinary shares and negative publicity. If and when we become the subject of any unfavorable allegations, whether such allegations are proven to be true or untrue, we could have to expend a significant amount of resources to investigate such allegations and/or defend ourselves. While we would strongly defend against any such short seller attacks, we may be constrained in the manner in which we can proceed against the relevant short seller by principles of freedom of speech, applicable federal or state law or issues of commercial confidentiality. Such a situation could be costly and time-consuming and could distract our management from growing our business. Even if such allegations are ultimately proven to be groundless, allegations against us could severely impact our business and shareholders’ equity, and the value of any investment in the Class A ordinary shares could be greatly reduced or rendered worthless.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, the market price for the Class A ordinary shares and its trading volume could decline.

The trading market for the Class A ordinary shares will depend in part on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us, our business, market or our competitors. To our knowledge, we do not currently have and may never obtain research coverage by securities and industry analysts. If no securities or industry analysts commence coverage of our business, the trading price for the Class A ordinary shares would be negatively impacted. In the event that we obtain securities or industry analyst coverage, if one or more of the analysts downgrade the Class A ordinary shares, the trading price of the Class A ordinary shares would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease to cover us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, interest in the Class A ordinary shares could decrease, which could cause the price or trading volume of the Class A ordinary shares to decline.

If we fail to implement or maintain an effective system of internal controls, we may be unable to accurately report our financial condition or results of operations, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and, as a result, the market price of the Class A ordinary shares.

We are subject to reporting obligations under U.S. securities laws. Pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the related rules adopted by the SEC, every public company is required to include a management report on the company’s internal control over financial reporting in its annual report, which contains management’s assessment of the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. In addition, an independent registered public accounting firm must attest to and report on the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting, save for certain exceptions.

As required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and related rules as promulgated by the SEC, our management assessed the effectiveness of the internal control over financial reporting as of June 30, 2023, using criteria established in Internal Control — Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Management is not permitted to conclude that the company’s internal control over financial reporting is effective if there are one or more material weaknesses in the company’s internal control over financing reporting. A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal controls over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of a company’s annual or interim consolidated financial statements would not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.

In the course of preparing and auditing our consolidated financial statements as of and for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, our management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of June 30, 2023. See “Item 15. Controls and Procedures.” Our independent registered public accounting firm did not undertake a comprehensive assessment of our internal control under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for purpose of identifying and reporting any material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. Had our independent registered public accounting firm been required to perform an audit of our internal control over financial reporting, it may issue a report that is qualified if it is not satisfied with our internal controls or the level at which our controls are documented, designed, operated or reviewed, or if it interprets the relevant requirements differently from us.

We have identified in the past, and may in the future identity, areas of our internal controls involving deficiencies, significant deficiencies or material weaknesses that have required or will require improvements in our procedures on the preparation, review, approval and disclosure of financial reports. We cannot assure you that we will be able to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. If we fail to achieve and maintain an effective internal control environment, we could suffer material misstatements in our financial statements and fail to meet our reporting obligations, which would likely cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information. This could in turn limit our access to capital markets, harm our results of operations, and lead to a decline in the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares. Additionally, ineffective internal control over financial reporting could expose us to increased risk of fraud or misuse of corporate assets and subject us to potential delisting from Nasdaq, regulatory investigations and civil or criminal sanctions. We may also be required to restate our financial statements from prior periods.

Item 4. Information on the Company

A. History and Development of the Company

Baijiayun Group Ltd is an exempted company with limited liability incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and currently conducts substantially all of its business and operations through the VIEs in China. Beijing Baijia Shilian Technology Co., Ltd., a PRC limited liability company, was incorporated in May 2017, the name of which was changed into BaiJiaYun Group Co., Ltd. in September 2021. Beijing Baijia Shuangshi Technlogy Co., Ltd., a PRC limited liability company, was incorporated in October 2019, the name of which was changed into Baijia Cloud Technology Co., Ltd. in June 2022. BJY was incorporated in April 2021 as an exempted company with limited liability in the Cayman Islands. BaiJia Cloud Limited (“BJY HK”), a Hong Kong corporation with limited liability, was incorporated in May 2021. BJY HK is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BJY. Zhejiang WFOE, a PRC limited liability company, was incorporated in December 2022. Zhejiang WFOE is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BJY HK.

On July 18, 2022, Fuwei and BJY entered into the Merger Agreement, pursuant to which the Merger Sub was merged with and into BJY, with BJY being the surviving entity and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fuwei, and shareholders of BJY exchanged all of the issued and outstanding shares of BJY immediately prior to the Merger for newly issued shares of Fuwei in a transaction exempt from the registration requirements under the Securities Act.

The Merger and certain additional related proposals were approved by Fuwei’s shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting held on September 24, 2022. Among such proposals, our company’s name was changed from “Fuwei Films (Holdings) Co., Ltd.” to “Baijiayun Group Ltd.” The Merger and the related transactions were consummated on December 23, 2022. Our Class A ordinary shares continue to be listed on Nasdaq and our ticker was changed from “FFHL” to “RTC.” Upon the completion of the Merger, a total of 80,519,969 ordinary shares, consisting of 25,936,012 Class A ordinary shares and 54,583,957 Class B ordinary shares, were issued to BJY’s shareholders based on the conversation ratio that each share of BJY received 0.7807324 ordinary shares of Fuwei. In addition, warrants to subscribe for 17,964,879 Class A ordinary shares were issued to certain shareholders of BJY in lieu of shares issuable upon the completion of the Merger as the required ODI filings had not been completed. The warrants accord the holders with all rights and obligations attached to our Class A ordinary shares, as if such warrant holders had exercised the warrants and been duly registered as our shareholders.

Prior to the Merger, Fuwei principally engaged in the manufacture and distribution of BOPET film. BOPET is a high-quality plastic film manufactured using the biaxially-oriented stretch (transverse and machine direction) technique and marketed its products under the brand name “Fuwei Films.” Fuwei’s operations are based primarily in Shandong Province, PRC, where it manufactures products for sale to customers engaged in flexible packaging businesses and the PRC’s electronics industry, particularly in the coastal region. Fuwei also exports products to end-users and distributors mainly in Europe, Asia, and North America. For details of the BOPET film business, see “Item 4. Information on the Company” in the annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2021 of Fuwei, which was filed with the SEC on April 28, 2022.

Fuwei was incorporated as a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability in August 2004 under the name “Neo-Luck Plastic Holdings Co., Ltd.” and changed its name to “Fuwei Films (Holdings) Co., Ltd.” in April 2005.

We sold all of the equity interests of Fuwei BVI, which operates the BOPET film business of Fuwei through its subsidiary Fuwei Films (Shandong) Co., Ltd., to Aoji Holdings Co., Ltd at a purchase price of US$30.0 million in cash pursuant to a securities purchase agreement dated March 9, 2023. The Fuwei Disposition was consummated in March 2023. The equity interests of Fuwei BVI had been transferred to the purchaser at closing. Pursuant to a supplemental agreement dated July 31, 2023, the purchaser is obligated to pay us the purchase price no later than three years of the closing date. We recognized allowance of credit loss of US$10.3 million as of June 30, 2023, as we estimated there was a possibility that the US$30.0 million receivables may not be fully recovered in the future.

On March 27, 2023, we filed a registration statement on Form F-1 (File Number 333-270867), as amended, registering 1,867,995 Class A ordinary shares (or 2,148,194 Class A ordinary shares, including 280,199 Class A ordinary shares offered by the selling shareholder, assuming the underwriter exercises its over-allotment option in full).

Our principal executive offices are located at 24F, A1 South Building, No. 32 Fengzhan Road, Yuhuatai District, Nanjing, China. Our telephone number at this address is +86-25 8222-1596. Our registered office in the Cayman Islands is at Cricket Square, Hutchins Drive, P.O. Box 2681, Grand Cayman, Cayman, KY1-1111, Cayman Islands. Our website can be found at investor.baijiayun.com. The information contained on our website is not a part of this annual report on Form 20-F. Our agent for service in the United States is Cogency Global Inc. at 122 East 42nd Street, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10168. The SEC maintains a website, www.sec.gov, that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding registrants, including us, that file electronically with the SEC.

B. Business Overview

We are a one-stop AI video solution provider with core expertise in SaaS and PaaS solutions. We are committed to delivering reliable, high-quality video experiences across devices and localities. Leveraging industry-leading video-centric technologies, we offer a wealth of video-centric technology solutions, including SaaS/PaaS solutions, cloud and software related solutions, and enterprise AI and system solutions, catered to the evolving communication and collaboration needs of enterprises of all sizes and across industries.

We help customers quickly deploy dedicated live streaming systems and video-on-demand (“VoD”) systems to meet the customers’ communication and collaboration needs across departments and functions and throughout the business process and accelerate the digital transformation of the customers’ business.

Based on our live streaming service infrastructure, we can provide customers with different functional modules, which can integrate with the customers’ internal systems to achieve data linkage, in various live streaming scenarios such as enterprise training, dual-teacher classroom, small class courses, and medical live streaming. Moreover, we can also achieve customization for customers according to their needs and provide them with high-quality live streaming full-process operation and on-site execution services.

Since our establishment in 2017, we have been expanding our service scope from audio and video SaaS services focused on the education sector, to a wide range of industries. Adhering to our mission of “becoming the customers’ first choice for one-stop video technology services provider,” we also extended our capability to the underlying technologies and in 2020, we launched our real-time audio and video communication PaaS services which provide one-stop video technology services, such as private cloud deployment and in-depth customized development for government customers and large enterprises. We have completed the transformation from a product provider to a technology provider, achieving the ability to deliver both standardized and customized services based on an integrated infrastructure.

Our “PaaS standardization + SaaS scenario-oriented” business layout has driven our robust business growth. As of June 30, 2023, we had a total of 2,861 customers, representing an increase of approximately 16.3% compared with the number of customers as of June 30, 2022.

During the 2021 fiscal year, the total number of user visits of our live streaming large-class courses, a typical use case for SaaS/PaaS solutions where we enable interactive online courses with thousands of participants, was over 57.7 million, the total duration of such live streaming courses exceeded 3.8 million hours, and the cumulative viewing time of such live streaming courses was over 56.8 million hours. During the 2022 fiscal year, the total number of user visits of our live streaming large-class courses reached over 70.1 million, the total duration of such live streaming courses exceeded 4.3 million hours, and the cumulative viewing time of such live streaming courses was over 70.6 million hours. During the 2023 fiscal year, the total number of user visits of our live streaming large-class courses was over 56.5 million, the total duration of such live streaming courses exceeded 2.8 million hours, and the cumulative viewing time of such live streaming courses was over 55.8 million hours. Since our establishment, our cumulative VoD duration has reached over 463.9 million hours. During the 2021 fiscal year, the number of total VoD user visits was approximately 548.5 million, and the total VoD duration was approximately 76.2 million hours. During the 2022 fiscal year, the total number of VoD user visits increased to over 633.5 million, and the total VoD duration increased to over 109.6 million hours, representing a year-on-year increase of approximately 43.9%. During the 2023 fiscal year, the number of total VoD user visits was approximately 605.7 million, and the total VoD duration was approximately 216.0 million hours, representing a year-on-year increase of approximately 97.1%. Our services cover a wide range of industries, such as internet, education, automotive, finance, health care and e-commerce. As of June 30, 2023, we established branches, research and development centers and offices in more than a dozen cities in China, with a total of 361 employees, including complete product design, testing, and R&D teams that support the rapid update iterations of our products.

Our business scale continued to grow in recent years. We had revenues of US$41.4 million, US$68.6 million and US$82.2 million for the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, respectively. We had net income from continuing operations of US$3.6 million for the 2021 fiscal year, and net loss from continuing operations of US$12.6 million and US$7.2 million for the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, respectively.

Industry Overview

Over the past few years, China has continuously promoted the construction of network infrastructure, along with the development of 5G, artificial intelligence (“AI”) and internet of things. We believe the underlying audio and video infrastructure are crucial to support the upper-tier application scenarios. Additionally, with the spread of the mobile internet and the widespread use of intelligent terminal devices, we believe real-time audio and video has become a mainstream method of online interaction. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the need for online interaction in various scenarios, and as result, we have seen solid demand for audio and video technologies in areas such as video conferencing, remote consultation and online learning.

With the improvement of 5G network coverage, there has been a continuous expansion across many industries of the scenarios in which audio and video technologies can be innovatively applied. These usage scenarios in turn often demand enhanced audio and video technologies to deliver the desired results. As a result, we expect many development and growth opportunities in audio and video related sectors.

The video cloud market has developed rapidly in the past few years for the following reasons:

We believe that in recent years the infrastructure attribute of video has become more obvious, and the application of video cloud has been continuously developed and integrated with business scenarios closely. The upstream players in the video cloud service value chain consist of hardware infrastructure manufacturers, IaaS manufacturers, telecommunications operators and third-party technology providers, mainly providing hardware facilities, network services, computing storage and other resources, the midstream players in the value chain consist of PaaS and SaaS manufacturers, which mainly provide audio and video communication products and interface services, and the downstream players in the value chain consist of audio and video cloud service demanders. More specifically, PaaS service providers provide platform services to downstream enterprises by integrating network, communication and other resources in the form of software development kits (the “SDKs”) or application programming interfaces (the “APIs”). They emphasize universality and mainly serve enterprises with development capabilities. SaaS service providers integrate the platform functions of PaaS, emphasize scenario-oriented application capabilities, and provide universal solutions in the form of software application services.

At present, the video cloud industry has various application scenarios for different demands. Focusing on the provision and optimization of video cloud service technology, we believe we are one of a few players in the industry that can provide both SaaS and PaaS services. Not only can we serve the whole industry and act as an industry enabler, we also have a deep understanding of customer demands and the characteristics of industries and scenarios to facilitate value creation for customers. In addition, we divide video cloud services into several subsectors, including live streaming and VoD, video conferencing, corporate training and integrated solutions, we see significant market potential in each of these subsectors and believe that our products are leading in their respective subsectors.

To take advantage of the expected rapid growth in China and serve the unique demands of the market, we have strategically focused on developing three main sectors, including one-stop solution for video cloud, SaaS service for video cloud application, and PaaS service for video cloud technology. We plan to continue to focus on expanding new technology paths, cultivating vertical scenarios, and developing AI, while improving customer experience through strategic layout such as software optimization plus hardware adaptation to seize greater market share.

Our Solutions

We offers comprehensive video-centric technology solutions that are tailored for the unique demands of the Chinese market. Our solutions fall into three main categorizes:

Our video-centric technology solutions are intended to serve individuals and enterprises of all sizes and industry, providing them with a suite of simple-to-use, highly customizable and widely compatible solutions to support their communications and collaboration demands. We believe our video-centric technology solutions present the following compelling value propositions to our customers.

Video-centric SaaS/PaaS solutions

Our video-centric SaaS/PaaS solutions include live streaming solution, VoD solution and real-time communications (“BRTC”) solution, which are readily deployable by enterprises to support their communications and collaboration demands. Our SaaS/PaaS solutions are used in a wide range of scenarios and industries, such as education, finance, medical services, auto industry and IT industry. However, we do not collect, retain, store, or use any individual customers’ data while providing services to millions of end customers.

In addition to these video-centric solutions set forth below, we also offer customers with a customer engagement platform with software designed to address specific use cases and a set of application programming interfaces to send and receive short messages (the “SMS services”). We utilize intelligent sending features to ensure that messages can reliably reach end users wherever they are. Such customers may build use cases, such as appointment reminders, delivery notifications, order confirmations and many two-way and conversational use cases.

CDN accelerates content delivery and loading for data-heavy websites and applications. We offer CDN services to customers to allow them to efficiently deliver online contents to users. By leveraging the CDN services, customers can benefit from the reduction of network congestion and increase of user access response speed, thus improving user experience of the customers’ websites and applications.

Live streaming solution

We take pride in the enterprise-grade live streaming experiences. Backed by content delivery network (“CDN”) nodes deployed across China that are either developed in-house or supplied by reputable third-party CDN service providers, we enable stable, smooth and high-quality live streaming experiences even in certain remote areas with weak network connections. By broadly deploying CDN nodes closer to end-users’ location in an automated process, we believe we can support massive volumes of concurrent live streaming requests with high-definition and low latency. Our live streaming solution can also assess video quality in real time and automatically adapt the quality of video sources to network conditions. In addition to our low-latency and high-definition features, our live streaming solution is widely compatible with multiple protocols underlying the video inputs and supports transcoding and processing services at different resolutions, bitrates and frame rates, to suit different needs and application scenarios. Moreover, we offer our live streaming solution in the form of SDKs and APIs, which allows for seamless integration with web browser, Android and iOS devices and customizable live streaming experiences.

We offer a wide range of value-added services such as recording, editing, playback and real-time beautification effects as well as various interactive functions, such as live chatting, document sharing and interactive whiteboarding. Furthermore, we also embed multi-level security mechanisms in our live streaming solution, such as anti-leeching, anti-screen capturing and custom watermarking, to shield against video piracy.

We offer our live streaming solution primarily on a SaaS basis for a combination of subscription and usage. In the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, we had 837, 1,583 and 1,506 customers for SaaS-based live streaming solution, respectively. In addition, while we have developed our live streaming solution to overcome hardware compatibility issues, we also supplement certain of our video-centric SaaS/PaaS solutions with hardware manufactured by third parties, such as video camera, server, projector, and coding and decoding machines for audio and video signal, to further ensure the quality and reliability of video transmission.

VoD solution

Leveraging our reliable cloud-native infrastructure and industry-leading video capability, we offer an intuitive cloud-based VoD solution which enables customers to conveniently launch their own online video player. As a provider of a VoD solution that we believe is trusted by our customers, we have supported approximately 2.1 billion users’ visits for 464 million hours in cumulative playtime since our inception. We enable convenient upload function that supports batch upload, large file upload and breakpoint resume upload. Similar to the live streaming solution, our VoD solution can transcode video files into different formats so that they can be played on different devices. For example, to accommodate mobile users, our VoD solution allows developers to integrate video features through quick and easy steps with iOS and Android-based SDKs and APIs. Our VoD solution is also compatible with major social media platforms in China, such as WeChat and Weibo, which enables customers to promote their video content by sharing the content to or forward the content on these platforms. We also offer video embedding function for those who want to incorporate video content into a WeChat official account or an H5 webpage to reach a wider audience.

The VoD solution allows customers to change the logo, skin and other layout settings of the video player to satisfy personalized configuration needs, and provides customers with multi-dimensional data to assess the effectiveness of their video content and adjust their promoting strategies with valuable insights. In order to ensure content security and originality, we equip our VoD solution with various tools such as anti-leech and anti-screen capturing protection.

We offer our VoD solution primarily on a SaaS basis for a combination of subscription and usage. In the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, we had over 548 million, 633 million and 606 million customers’ visits for SaaS-based VoD solution, respectively.

BRTC solution

We also started to offer BRTC solutions internally in 2021 to support omni-channel interactions. We have launched six major modules focusing on real-time video, real-time audio, cloud-based recording, interactive live streaming, interactive whiteboarding and intelligent diagnostics and engineering, which serve as building blocks for developers to embed the respective functions into their systems and applications. By pooling communications resources in our cloud servers and distributing them on-demand through readily deployable functional modules in the forms of SDKs and APIs, we continue to help our customers improve their communication and operational efficiency. Leveraging our technology infrastructure, our BRTC solution ensures over 99.99% uptime, and supports secure, smooth and high-quality real-time communications across devices and localities.

We offer our BRTC solution on a PaaS basis for which we provide both the software and infrastructure needed to enable real-time communications. We generally charge our customers for PaaS-based BRTC solution based on usage.

Use cases

We also enable online live courses in various settings, which we believe fundamentally differentiate us from our competitors. For example, we enable 1-on-1 online classes that provide exclusive and immersive learning experiences mimicking in-person tutoring, which is especially useful for scenarios such as oral language training and mock interviews. We use methods including private link, QR code and invitation code to ensure authorized access to designated courses. Leveraging our reliable network infrastructure, we enable large-scale interactive online courses that can support thousands of participants in one session. With the self-developed video technology, students can “raise their hands” at class to interact with teachers through real-time video or audio chat, and teachers can use interactive tools such as screen sharing and whiteboarding to illustrate a topic in all dimensions. We believe this capability enables our customers to deliver rich learning experiences in a large scale with low latency, and further helps them to save teaching costs and improve operation efficiency. In the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, our large-class courses served an accumulation of over 57.7 million, 70.1 million and 56.5 million users’ visits, with over 56.8 million, 70.6 million and 55.8 million hours in cumulative live streaming time, respectively. With our robust video technology, we support concurrent, multi-way video communications such as dual-teacher online courses, where tutors are assigned to a traditional one-teacher online classroom to improve the engagement and learning effectiveness of individual students, and capacity-free open courses, where students may join or leave the courses anonymously through an open link. In addition to online course function, our live streaming capability also helps customers in user acquisition and brand building activities, as potential users may access content and market activities through open links.

Internal collaboration. Enterprise customers may use our technology to build internal communications portals where they can communicate and collaborate in an omni-channel manner, such as via live chatting, video and audio conferencing and document sharing, thereby streamlining their collaboration experiences.

Customer acquisition and support. Enterprise customers utilize our real-time video and audio technologies to establish contact center capabilities to answer customer inquiries, resolve customer complaints and conduct telemarketing campaigns. We believe that by enabling more diverse communications channels such as live chat, audio call and video call as compared to traditional on-premise contact centers relied on telecom-based phone call, customers who deploy our solutions can differentiate themselves from peers, therefore driving customer satisfaction.

Internal training. Enterprises can deploy our solutions to organize their internal training sessions, which allow for both self-studying recorded courses and enterprise-wide interactive live training. We believe video-based internal training can significantly increase participation and save costs as compared traditional face-to-face training. Branding and marketing. Enterprises may use our solutions to build their own live streaming e-commerce platform to showcase their demos and products and effectively boost sales. We also enable enterprise customers to host internal training as well as promotional events such as roadshows and user conferences.

Video-centric cloud related solutions

Leveraging our enterprise-grade video capabilities, we have been rapidly expanding the application scenarios of our video-centric solutions across a wide range of industry verticals including educational institutions, IT, finance, media and advertising, and e-commerce. Our video-centric cloud related solutions primarily include online school solution, video conferencing and enterprise training solution. We create software licenses for customers of our video-centric cloud related solutions, which are created based on an existing software framework with certain customization or design to meet the needs of different customers. We also offer customized platform development solutions that develop customized software modules to be integrated into the customer’s system, as well as other software related services to customers, including design of online advertising videos and operation of online accounts in popular apps.

Online school solution

In addition to supporting the customers’ various course offerings, we are dedicated to offering a one-stop, cloud-based solution that helps customers in education sectors enroll students, deliver courses, evaluate learning results and manage daily operations. To that end, our integrated online school solution incorporates well-designed tools covering all of the key activities involved in the online learning process, such as various course scenarios, live-streaming courses, VoD courses, exam and assessment, online school management. Furthermore, we empower customers to provide superior user experience by integrating comprehensive and ready-to-use school management and sales and marketing capabilities into our cloud solution.

We primarily offer our online school solution on a project basis. In the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, we had 122, 191 and 175 customers for our online school solution, respectively.

Video conferencing solution

We believe our video conference solution enables customers to have reliable and interactive collaboration experiences through video conferencing across disparate devices and scattered worksites. We support high-resolution real-time video and audio feeds from multiple locations with our latest multi-regional multi-center network infrastructure, to deliver reliable and interactive video-conferencing experience that we believe is akin to conventional in-person conferences. We also provide various supporting functions, such as conference scheduling, calendar invitation and virtual conference room administration, through an intuitive user interface. Customers can also control microphone and camera and edit conference encryption and accessibility information with ease through our video conferencing system. During a meeting, participants can interact through live chat, document sharing, screen sharing and digital whiteboarding to improve efficiency. In addition, we support both cloud-based recording and local recording and enable participants and the host to generate a cloud-based playback link after each meeting session. Moreover, the video conferencing system is compatible with major operating systems and hardware and devices, including less sophisticated legacy on-premise video systems, which helps customers minimize deployment cycle and save costs. Meanwhile, benefiting from such combability, end users can join the meetings through diverse terminals including PCs, TVs and mobiles devices including smartphones and tablets with just one click. We also support various customized options including private cloud deployment, where the data and information generated from intra-organizational communications are isolated and encrypted to ensure heightened security and privacy.

We primarily offer our video conferencing solution in the form of software on a project basis.

Enterprise training solution

We offer a comprehensive solution targeting at large-scale, tasked-based enterprise training, to help customers share knowledge, teach skills and convey important information. We believe that apart from the low-latency, highly engaging training experiences backed by our industry-leading video capabilities and technology infrastructure, our enterprise training solution differentiates itself from competitors through the comprehensive supporting functions. The enterprise training system allows customers to create their own video training templates, upload training materials and compile online quizzes to evaluate their employees’ mastery of designated skillsets and the effectiveness of training sessions. Customers may even introduce a ranking and awarding system supported to improve training results. Moreover, the customers can also establish an internal community for employees to discuss knowledge points and share their learning and working experiences to further enhance engagement.

We primarily offer our enterprise training solution in the form of software on a project basis.

Video-centric industry AI solutions

We believe we combine cutting-edge AI technology with real-world scenarios to empower innovative use cases and application scenarios in multiple industry verticals.

Our intelligent industry solutions are predicated on image analysis and recognition technology that we developed in-house using deep learning algorithms, and we believe our solutions are able to achieve high-precision detection and identification. The head count function, which accurately identifies entry and exit status and walking trajectory, can be deployed by schools, exhibitions and other public places for crowd statistics analysis. The skeleton point recognition function analyzes postures of the human body and is suitable for sports training, dance classes and monitoring of abnormal behaviors during exams. In addition, gesture recognition function intelligently captures and recognizes gestures in pictures and videos, and outputs the recognition results for interactive live streaming scenarios such as sign language and early childhood education. Furthermore, the indicator light identification function helps factories use machines to identify indicator lights of different colors, therefore detecting technical issues in real time and reducing manual workload and cost.

Our customizable intelligent industry solutions have significant potential for application in industries such as education, retail, public affairs and industrial manufacturing.

Our Technologies

Technologies underpin our high-quality solutions and operational efficiency.

Data Privacy and Protection

We have access to certain data and information of enterprises which use our video-centric solutions. We may also have access to certain personal data and information of our customers’ end-users. With respect to our solutions deployed on the public cloud, we encrypt data and information and store them in cloud servers, where customers can access as needed only with appropriate authorization. We do not have access to data and information of customers which use our solutions deployed on private cloud.

We are committed to protecting our customers’ data and privacy and have designed protocols on data collection, transmission, storage and usage to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations. In addition, our agreements with customers generally include a confidentiality clause under which we are obligated not to disclose or otherwise misappropriate the data and information of our customers or their end-users.

We take safety precautions to maintain our technology infrastructure and protect our data and information, and are dedicated to upgrading our security programs to better meet growing customer needs, updated regulatory requirements, and the evolving security threat landscape. We have implemented detailed policies regarding system operation and maintenance, information security and management, and data backup and disaster recovery. Our technological infrastructure applies safeguards such as web application firewalls to further ensure data security. As a general principle, data and information in relation to our business operations can only be accessed by our employees with designated authorization level. We enter into confidentiality agreements with our employees who have access to our data and information. The confidentiality agreements provide that, among others, these employees are legally obligated not to disclose or otherwise misappropriate confidential data and information in possession as a result of their employment. Such employees are also legally obligated to surrender all confidential data and information in possession upon resigning and to maintain their confidentiality obligations afterwards. They bear compensation liability if they breach their confidentiality obligations or otherwise commit misconduct resulting in leakage of our confidential data and information. Furthermore, our agreements with business partners generally include a confidentiality clause under which they are legally obligated not to disclose or misappropriate confidential data and information in possession as a result of their relationship with us.

As of the date of this annual report, we have not received any claim from any third party against us on the ground of infringement of such party’s right to data protection as prescribed by applicable laws and regulations in China and other jurisdictions, and we have not experienced any material data loss or breach incidents.

Sales and Marketing

We promote our brand and market our video-centric solutions primarily through our experienced sales and marketing team, which consisted of 96, 107 and 79 personnel as of June 30, 2021, 2022 and 2023, respectively. The sales and marketing team is responsible for selling to prospective customers, renewing existing subscriptions, and identifying cross-selling opportunities. We do not engage external sales and marketing agents to acquire customers, and mainly rely on our in-house sales and marketing team, word-of-mouth referrals from existing customers, as well as our brand recognition to attract potential customers.

To market our products and solutions, we have not only established an online presence but also have actively participated in offline industry events and other events to improve our brand image and influence in the industry.

Customers and Customer Support

Our Customers

We believe that with our robust technology infrastructure and comprehensive solution offerings, we have accumulated a loyal and diversified customer base. As of June 30, 2021, 2022 and 2023, we served a total of 2,404, 2,830 and 3,487 customers, respectively. Our customers operate in a broad range of industries, including but not limited to education, finance, medical services and IT.

Our Customer Support

We endeavor to improve customer experience and drive customer satisfaction at each juncture, from on-board training to post-sale support. We offer service level agreements on most of our solutions, which represent our service level commitments to customers and motivate ourselves to meet or exceed customers’ expectations. The customer support team is staffed with experienced agents and engineers trained in technology diagnostics and engineering to offer around-the-clock customer services via phone, live chat and built-in help desk. The customer support team also monitors service quality regularly to identify issues and offer assistance. In addition, we offer various self-service options on our website, including helper libraries, user guides and a wide range of code samples. As the customers grow, we may assign them to a dedicated support team to attend to their specific needs and ensure their continued satisfaction.

Competition

We offer a broad range of video-centric solutions and, as a result, we primarily compete with a wide range of video-centric solution providers in China. We believe that we compete favorably on the basis of robust video technology, application of advanced technologies in industry solutions, effectiveness of customer services and sales and marketing efforts, and track record and brand recognition.

The industry in which we operate includes a number of enterprises that may or may not directly compete with us. We consider that our competitors fall into three different business lines: companies that provide real time engagement services via companies’ cloud computing platform, companies that offer customized software that is installed on a customer’s own cloud computing platform, and companies that provide systematic solutions to customers by integrating customized software into hardware. Some of these enterprises, including our competitors, have greater financial, technological and other resources, greater brand recognitions, larger sales and marketing budgets and larger intellectual property portfolios. As a result, certain of the competitors may be able to respond more quickly and effectively than we can to new or evolving opportunities, technologies, standards or customer requirements. In addition, some competitors may offer products or services that address one or a limited number of functions at lower prices, with greater depth than our solutions or in geographies where we do not operate. We expect competition to intensify in the future, with the introduction of new technologies and market entrants. Moreover, as we expand the scope of our solutions and services, we may face additional competition.

Research and Development

Since our inception, we believe we have internally developed substantially all core technologies underlying our video-centric solutions based on open-source software components. We are committed to improving our technological capabilities and attracting and cultivating technology talents to stay ahead of the rapidly involving industry trends and market demands. As of June 30, 2021, 2022 and 2023, we had a stable and dedicated research and development team of 243, 174 and 179 members, respectively, whose expertise spans a broad range of related fields, from video RTC, cloud computing, CDN infrastructure, AI and big data analytics, to operational and infrastructure maintenance. As of June 30, 2023, our research and development personnel had an average of 8.8 years of relevant industry experience and had been with us for an average of 3.1 years.

Intellectual Property

We depend upon a combination of trade secret, misappropriation, copyright, trademark, computer fraud and other laws; registration of patents, copyrights and trademarks; nondisclosure, noncompetition and other contractual provisions with employees; and technical measures to protect our proprietary rights in the software, trademarks and other intellectual property.

As of June 30, 2023, we were the registered holder of 172 software copyrights, 29 patents, 41 domain names and 32 trademarks in China. In addition, we had filed 9 patent applications in China as of the same date.

Legal Proceedings

From time to time, we may become a party to legal or administrative proceedings arising in the ordinary course of our business. We are currently not a party to, and are not aware of any threat of, any legal or administrative proceedings that, in the opinion of our management, is likely to have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations.

Government Regulations

Set forth below is a summary of the most significant rules and regulations that affect our business activities in China, or the rights of our shareholders to receive dividends and other distributions from us.

Regulations Related to Foreign Investment

Investment activities in China by foreign investors are principally governed by the Catalog of Industries for Encouraging Foreign Investment (the “Encouraged Industries Catalog”) and the Special Administrative Measures for Foreign Investment Access (Negative List) (Edition 2021) (the “Negative List”), which were promulgated and are amended from time to time by the Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”) and the National Development and Reform Commission (the “NDRC”), and together with the PRC Foreign Investment Law (the “FIL”), and their respective implementation rules and ancillary regulations.

The Encouraged Industries Catalog and the Negative List lay out the basic framework for foreign investment in China, classifying businesses into three categories in terms of the level of participation permitted to foreign investment: “encouraged,” “restricted” and “prohibited.” Industries not listed in the Encouraged Industries Catalog are generally deemed as falling into a fourth category of “permitted” industries unless specifically restricted by other PRC laws. The Negative List sets forth the industries in which foreign investments are restricted or prohibited. The current effective Encouraged Industries Catalog is the 2022 version which became effective on January 1, 2023. The current effective Negative List is the 2021 version which came into force on January 1, 2022.

On March 15, 2019, the National People’s Congress (the “NPC”) promulgated the FIL, which became effective on January 1, 2020, and replaced the main body of laws and regulations then governing foreign investment in China. Pursuant to the FIL, “foreign investments” refer to investment activities conducted by foreign investors directly or indirectly in China, which include any of the following circumstances: (1) foreign investors setting up foreign-invested enterprises in China solely or jointly with other investors, (2) foreign investors obtaining shares, equity interests, interests in property or other similar rights and interests of enterprises within China, (3) foreign investors investing in new projects in China solely or jointly with other investors, and (4) investment by other means as specified in laws, administrative regulations, or as stipulated by the State Council.

According to the FIL, foreign investment shall enjoy pre-entry national treatment, except for those foreign invested entities that operate in industries deemed to be either “restricted” or “prohibited” in the Negative List. The FIL provides that foreign invested entities operating in “restricted” or “prohibited” industries will require entry clearance and other approvals. In particular, the Chinese government heavily regulates the internet industry, including relevant market access restrictions and limitations on foreign investment, license and permit requirements for service provides in the internet industry. Since some of the laws, regulations, and legal requirements with respect to the internet are relatively new and evolving, their interpretation and enforcement involve significant uncertainties.

On December 26, 2019, the State Council promulgated the Implementing Rules of the Foreign Investment Law, which became effective on January 1, 2020. The implementation rules further clarified that the state encourages and promotes foreign investment, protects the lawful rights and interests of foreign investors, regulates foreign investment administration, continues to optimize foreign investment environment, and advances a higher-level of openness.

On December 30, 2019, MOFCOM and the State Administration for Market Regulation (the “SAMR”) jointly promulgated the Measures for Information Reporting on Foreign Investment, which became effective on January 1, 2020. Pursuant to the Measures for Information Reporting on Foreign Investment, where a foreign investor carries out investment activities in China directly or indirectly, the foreign investor or the foreign-invested enterprise shall submit information relating to the investment to the competent commerce department.

Regulations Related to Value-Added Telecommunications Services

The Telecommunications Regulations of the PRC (the “Telecom Regulations”), which was promulgated by the State Council on September 25, 2000, and most recently amended on February 6, 2016, provides the regulatory framework for telecommunications service providers in China. The Telecom Regulations classifies telecommunications services into basic telecommunications services and value-added telecommunications services. Providers of value-added telecommunications services are required to obtain a license prior to commencing operations from the MIIT or its provincial level counterparts. According to the Catalog of Telecommunications Services, attached to the Telecom Regulations and most recently amended by the MIIT on June 6, 2019, information services provided via public communication network or the internet are value-added telecommunications services.

On March 1, 2009, the MIIT issued the Measures on the Administration of Telecommunications Business Operating Permits (the “Telecom License Measures”), which was amended on July 3, 2017, effective on September 1, 2017, to supplement the Telecom Regulations. The Telecom License Measures provide that there are two types of telecommunications operating licenses in China, one for basic telecommunications services and one for value-added telecommunications services. A distinction is also made to licenses for value-added telecommunications services (the “VAT License”) as to whether a license is granted for “intra-provincial” or “trans-regional” (inter-provincial) activities. An appendix to each license granted will detail the permitted activities of the enterprise to which it was granted. An approved telecommunications services operator must conduct its business in accordance with the specifications recorded in its telecommunications license.

The Provisions on the Administration of Foreign Invested Telecommunications Enterprises, (the “FITE Regulations”) promulgated by the State Council on December 11, 2001, and most recently amended on March 29, 2022, effective on May 1, 2022, requires that in general, the foreign party to a foreign-invested telecommunications enterprise (“FITE”) engaging in value-added telecommunications services may hold up to 50% of the equity of the FITE, of which the geographical area it may conduct telecommunications services is provided by the MIIT in accordance with relevant provisions as mentioned above.

On June 30, 2016, the MIIT issued an Announcement of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Issues Concerning the Provision of Telecommunications Services in Mainland China by Service Providers from Hong Kong and Macau (the “MIIT Announcement”), which provides that investors from Hong Kong and Macau may hold no more than 50% of the equity in FITEs engaging in certain specified categories of value-added telecommunications services.

On July 13, 2006, the MIIT issued the Notice of the Ministry of Information Industry on Intensifying the Administration of Foreign Investment in Value-added Telecommunications Services (the “MIIT Notice”), which reiterates certain provisions of the FITE Regulations. In addition to the provisions stated in FITE Regulations, the MIIT Notice further provides that a domestic company that holds a value-added telecommunications license is prohibited from leasing, transferring, or selling the value-added telecommunications license to foreign investors in any form, and from providing any assistance, including providing resources, sites or facilities, to foreign investors to conduct value-added telecommunications businesses illegally in China. The MIIT Notice also requires each value-added telecommunications license holder to have appropriate facilities for its approved business operations and to maintain such facilities in the regions covered by its license, and specifically, with regard to the domain names and trademarks, the MIIT Notice required that trademarks and domain names that are used in the provision of internet content services must be owned by the ICP License holder or its shareholders.

Due to a lack of interpretative materials from the relevant PRC governmental authorities, there are uncertainties regarding whether PRC governmental authorities would consider our corporate structure and contractual arrangements to constitute foreign ownership of a value-added telecommunications business. In order to comply with PRC regulatory requirements, we operate a significant portion of our business through the VIEs, with which we have contractual relationships but in which we do not have an actual ownership interest. If our current ownership structure is found to be in violation of current or future PRC laws, rules, or regulations regarding the legality of foreign investment in the PRC internet sector, we could be subject to severe penalties. See “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors —Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure — If the PRC government deems that the contractual arrangements in relation to the VIEs do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change in the future, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our beneficiary interests in those operations.”

Regulations Related to Internet Information Services

The Administrative Measures on Internet Information Services (the “Internet Content Measures”), which was promulgated by the State Council on September 25, 2000, and amended on January 8, 2011, set out guidelines on the provision of internet information services. The Internet Content Measures classify internet information services into commercial internet information services and non-commercial internet information services, and commercial internet information services refer to services that provide information or services to internet users with charge. A provider of commercial internet information services must obtain an internet content provider license (the “ICP License”), and prior to the application for such ICP License from the MIIT or its local branch at the provincial or municipal level, entities providing online information services regarding news, publishing, education, medicine, health, pharmaceuticals, and medical equipment must procure the consent of the national authorities responsible for such areas. We have obtained such ICP Licenses which remain in full force and effect as of the date of this annual report.

In addition to the approval and license requirements, various ministries and agencies in the PRC, including the MIIT, the News Office of the State Council, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the General Administration of Press and Publication, have promulgated multiple measures relating to internet content, all of which specifically prohibit internet activities that result in the dissemination of any content that infringes the legal rights of others, is found to contain pornography, promote gambling or violence, instigate crimes, undermine public morality or the cultural traditions of the PRC, or compromise State security or secrets. For example, the Internet Content Measures specify a list of prohibited content. Internet information providers are prohibited from producing, copying, publishing, or distributing information that is humiliating or defamatory to others or that infringes the legal rights of others. Internet information providers that violate these measures may face criminal charges or administrative sanctions, such as fines, revoking any relevant business operation licenses. Internet information providers must monitor and control the information posted on their websites. If any prohibited content is found, they must remove the content immediately, keep a record of such content and report to the relevant authorities. On December 15, 2019, CAC promulgated the Provisions on Ecological Governance of Network Information Content, which became effective on March 1, 2020, to further regulate the network information and content.

Regulation on Information Security and Censorship

The SCNPC enacted the Decisions on the Maintenance of Internet Security on December 28, 2000, which was amended on August 27, 2009. Such decision makes it unlawful to: (1) gain improper entry into a computer or system of strategic importance; (2) disseminate politically disruptive information; (3) leak state secrets; (4) spread false commercial information; or (5) infringe intellectual property rights. The Ministry of Public Security has promulgated measures as below that prohibit the use of the internet in ways which, among other things, result in a leakage of state secrets or distribution of socially destabilizing content. The Ministry of Public Security has supervision and inspection rights in this regard.

On December 16, 1997, the Ministry of Public Security issued the Administration Measures on the Security Protection of Computer Information Network with International Connections which was amended on January 8, 2011. Such administration measures prohibit using the internet to leak state secrets or to spread socially destabilizing materials. If any operating license holder violates these measures, the PRC government may revoke its operating license and shut down its websites. Pursuant to the Ninth Amendment to the Criminal Law issued by the SCNPC on August 29, 2015 and becoming effective on November 1, 2015, any internet services provider that fails to fulfill the obligations related to internet information security administration as required by applicable laws and refuses to rectify upon orders, will be subject to criminal liability for (1) any dissemination of illegal information in large scale, (2) any severe effect due to the leakage of the client’s information, (3) any serious loss of evidence of criminal activities or (4) other severe situations, and any individual or entity that (a) sells or provides personal information to others unlawfully or (b) steals or illegally obtains any personal information, will be subject to criminal liability in severe situations.

The Provisions on Technological Measures for Internet Security Protection (the “Internet Security Protection Measures”) promulgated on December 13, 2005 by the Ministry of Public Security require all internet services providers to keep records of certain information about their users (including user registration information, log-in and log-out time, IP address, content and time of posts by users) for at least 60 days and submit the above information as required by laws and regulations. Under these measures, value-added telecommunications services license holders must regularly update information security and content control systems for their websites and must also report any public dissemination of prohibited content to local public security authorities. If a value-added telecommunications services license holder violates these measures, the Ministry of Public Security and the local security bureaus may revoke its operating license and shut down its websites.

The Communication Network Security Protection Administrative Measures, which were promulgated by the MIIT on January 21, 2010, require that all communication network operators, including telecommunications service providers and internet domain name service providers, divide their own communication networks into units. These communication network units shall be rated in accordance with degree of damage to national security, economic operation, social order, and public interest in the event a unit is damaged. Communication network operators must file the division and ratings of their communication networks with the MIIT or its local counterparts. If a communication network operator violates these measures, the MIIT or its local counterparts may order rectification or impose a fine up to RMB30,000 in case a violation is not duly rectified.

On November 7, 2016, the SCNPC promulgated the PRC Cybersecurity Law, which took effect on June 1, 2017. The PRC Cybersecurity Law applies to the construction, operation, maintenance, and use of networks as well as the supervision and administration of internet security in the PRC. The PRC Cybersecurity Law defines “networks” as systems that are composed of computers or other information terminals and relevant facilities used for the purpose of collecting, storing, transmitting, exchanging, and processing information in accordance with certain rules and procedures. “Network operators,” who are broadly defined as owners and administrator of networks and network service providers, shall meet their cybersecurity obligations and take technical measures and other necessary measures to protect the safety and stability of their networks. Under the PRC Cybersecurity Law, network operators are subject to various security protection-related obligations, including:

On June 10, 2021, the SCNPC promulgated the PRC Data Security Law, which took effect on September 1, 2021. The PRC Data Security Law, among other things, requires data collection to be conducted in a legitimate and proper manner, and stipulates that, for the purpose of data security, data processing activities must be conducted based on data classification and hierarchical protection system. Furthermore, on July 7, 2022, the CAC promulgated the Security Assessment Measures for Outbound Data Transfer, effective from September 1, 2022, to regulate outbound data transfer activities, protect the rights and interests of personal information, safeguard national security and social public interests, and promote the cross-border security and free flow of data.

In December 2021, the CAC and several other administrations jointly promulgated the Review Measures which became effective on February 15, 2022. According to the Review Measures, to the extent the purchase of network products and services by a critical information infrastructure operator or the data processing activities conducted by a “network platform operator” affect or may affect national security, a cybersecurity review shall be conducted pursuant to the Review Measures. The Review Measures also expand the cybersecurity review to “internet platform operators” in possession of personal information of over one million users if such operators intend to list their securities “in a foreign country.” Furthermore, relevant governmental authorities in the PRC may initiate cybersecurity review if they determine an operator’s network products or services or data processing activities “affect or may affect national security.” Since the Review Measures are relatively new, significant uncertainties exist in relation to their interpretation and implementation. Additionally, the Review Measures do not provide the exact scope of “network platform operator” or the circumstances that would “affect or may affect national security.”

In addition, on November 14, 2021, the CAC released the consultation draft of the Network Data Security Management Regulations for public comment. According to the Network Data Security Management Regulations, data processors shall apply for a cybersecurity review when carrying out the following activities: (1) a merger, reorganization or separation of internet platform operators that have acquired a large number of data resources related to national security, economic development or public interests, which affect or may affect national security; (2) data processors that handle personal information of more than one million people contemplating to list its securities on a foreign stock exchange; (3) data processors contemplating to list its securities on a stock exchange in Hong Kong, which affects or may affect national security; and (4) other data processing activities that affect or may affect national security. Among others, it further requires that a data processor who processes important data or who is listed overseas shall complete an annual data security assessment either self-conducted or conducted by a data security service organization engaged, and before January 31 of each year, submit the annual data security assessment report of the previous year to the local cyberspace affairs administration department. As of the date of this annual report, the Network Data Security Management Regulations was released for public comment only, and no interpretation or implementation rules for this proposed regulation have been issued by the CAC or any other PRC regulatory authorities. It remains uncertain when the Network Data Security Management Regulations will be adopted and become effective and whether it will be adopted as it was initially proposed.

On November 15, 2018, the Cyberspace Administration issued the Provisions on Security Assessment of the Internet Information Services with Public Opinion Attributes or Social Mobilization Capacity, which came into effect on November 30, 2018. The provisions require internet information providers to conduct security assessments on their internet information services if their services include forums, blogs, microblogs, chat rooms, communication groups, public accounts, short-form videos, online live-streaming, information sharing, mini programs or other functions that provide channels for the public to express opinions or have the capability of mobilizing the public to engage in specific activities. Internet information providers must conduct self-assessment on, among other things, the legality of new technology involved in the services and the effectiveness of security risk prevention measures and file the assessment report with the local competent cyberspace administration authority and public security authority.

Internet security in China is also regulated and restricted from a national security standpoint. On July 1, 2015, the SCNPC promulgated the new National Security Law, which took effect on the same date and replaced the former National Security Law promulgated in 1993. According to the new National Security Law, the state shall ensure that the information system and data in important areas are secure and controllable. In addition, according to the new National Security Law, the state shall establish national security review and supervision institutions and mechanisms and conduct national security reviews of key technologies and IT products and services that affect or may affect national security. There are uncertainties on how the new National Security Law will be implemented in practice.

As of the date of this annual report, we have not been informed by any PRC government authorities that we will be deemed as a critical information infrastructure operator, nor have we been involved in any formal investigations on cybersecurity review made by the CAC. However, if we are not able to comply with the cybersecurity and data privacy requirements in a timely manner, or at all, we may be subject to government enforcement actions and investigations, fines, penalties, suspension of our non-compliant operations, or removal of our applications from the relevant application stores, among other sanctions, which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. See “Item 3. Key Information — Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Business and Industry — Our business is subject to a variety of PRC laws and regulations, including those regarding privacy, cybersecurity and data protection, and our customers may be subject to regulations related to the handling and transfer of certain types of sensitive and confidential information. Any failure of our platform to comply with or enable our customers to comply with applicable laws and regulations could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.”

Regulation on Privacy Protection

On December 28, 2012, the SCNPC enacted the Decision to Enhance the Protection of Network Information (the “Information Protection Decision”) to enhance the protection of user personal information in electronic form. The Information Protection Decision provides that internet services providers must expressly inform their users of the purpose, manner and scope of the internet services providers’ collection and use of user personal information, publish the internet services providers’ standards for their collection and use of user personal information, and collect and use user personal information only with the consent of the users and only within the scope of such consent. The Information Protection Decision also mandates that internet services providers and their employees must keep strictly confidential user personal information that they collect, and that internet services providers must take such technical and other measures as are necessary to safeguard the information against disclosure.

On July 16, 2013, the MIIT issued the Order for the Protection of Telecommunications and Internet User Personal Information (the “Order”). Most of the requirements under the Order that are relevant to internet services providers are consistent with the requirements already established under the MIIT provisions discussed above, except that under the Order the requirements are often stricter and have a wider scope. If an internet services provider wishes to collect or use personal information, it may do so only if such collection is necessary for the services it provides. Further, it must disclose to its users the purpose, method, and scope of any such collection or use, and must obtain consent from the users whose information is being collected or used. Internet services providers are also required to establish and publish their protocols relating to personal information collection or use, keep any collected information strictly confidential, and take technological and other measures to maintain the security of such information. Internet services providers are also required to cease any collection or use of the user personal information, and de-register the relevant user account, when a given user stops using the relevant internet service. Internet services providers are further prohibited from divulging, distorting, or destroying any such personal information, or selling or providing such information unlawfully to other parties. The Order states, in broad terms, that violators may face warnings, fines, and disclosure to the public and, in the most severe cases, criminal liability.

On January 5, 2015, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (the “SAIC”) promulgated the Measures on Punishment for Infringement of Consumer Rights, which was most amended on October 23, 2020, pursuant to which business operators collecting and using personal information of consumers must comply with the principles of legitimacy, propriety and necessity, specify the purpose, method and scope of collection and use of the information, and obtain the consent of the consumers whose personal information is to be collected. Business operators may not (1) collect or use personal information of consumers without their consent, (2) unlawfully divulge, sell, or provide personal information of consumers to others or (3) send commercial information to consumers without their consent or request, or when a consumer has explicitly declined to receive such information.

On August 20, 2021, the SCNPC passed the PRC Personal Information Protection Law (the “PIPL”), which took effect on November 1, 2021. The PIPL accentuates the importance of processors’ obligations and responsibilities for personal information protection and sets out the basic rules for processing personal information and the rules for cross-border transfer of personal information. Pursuant to the PIPL, a personal information processor is allowed to process (including to collect, store, use, transmit, provide, disclose and delete) personal information only under certain circumstances, such as processing with consent from such individual, or for necessity of performance of a contract to which such individual is a contracting party or statutory duties, management of human resource under the labor rules and regulations developed in accordance with the law or a collective contract signed in accordance with the law, protection of public interest, or reasonable usage of legally disclosed information. Processing of sensitive personal information, such as the personal information that is likely to result in damage to personal dignity, personal or property safety once illegally disclosed, as well as the personal information of minors under the age of 14, is subject to higher regulatory requirements including specific purpose, sufficient necessity, duty of explanation to such individuals and consent from a parent or a guardian of such minors.

We believe that we are not a personal information processor who has a large user base and/or operate complex types of businesses. However, since there has been no official interpretation or explanation as to the definition of same, it remains uncertain whether we would be deemed as a personal information processor who has a large user base and/or operate complex types of businesses by the PRC regulatory authorities, thus requiring us to perform the obligations stipulated under the PIPL.

Regulations Related to Intellectual Property Rights

Trademarks

On August 23, 1982, the SCNPC promulgated the Trademark Law of the PRC (the “Trademark Law”), which was amended in 1993, 2001, 2013 and 2019. The Implementation Regulation for the Trademark Law promulgated by the State Council came into effect on September 15, 2002 and was further amended on April 29, 2014.

Under the Trademark Law and the implementing regulation, the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Market Regulation, or the Trademark Office, is responsible for the registration and administration of trademarks. The Trademark Office handles trademark registrations. As with patents, China has adopted a “first-to-file” principle for trademark registration. If two or more applicants apply for registration of identical or similar trademarks for the same or similar commodities, the application that was filed first will receive preliminary approval and will be publicly announced. Registered trademarks are valid for ten years from the date the registration is approved. A registrant may apply to renew a registration within 12 months before the expiration date of the registration. If the registrant fails to apply in a timely manner, a grace period of six additional months may be granted. If the registrant fails to apply before the grace period expires, the registered trademark shall be deregistered. Renewed registrations are valid for ten years.

In addition to the above, the SAIC has established a Trademark Review and Adjudication Board for resolving trademark disputes. According to the Trademark Law, within three months since the date of the announcement of a preliminarily validated trademark, if a titleholder is of the view that is such trademark in application is identical or similar to its registered trademark for the same type of commodities or similar commodities which violates relevant provisions of the Trademark Law, such titleholder may raise an objection to the Trademark Office within the aforesaid period. In such event, the Trademark Office shall consider the facts and grounds submitted by both the dissenting party and the party being challenged and shall decide on whether the registration is allowed within 12 months upon the expiration of the announcement after investigation and verification and notify the dissenting party and the person challenged in writing.

Patents

The National People’s Congress adopted the Patent Law of the People’s Republic of China in 1984 and amended it in 1992, 2000, 2008 and 2020 respectively, with the latest amendment coming into effect on June 1, 2021.

A patentable invention, utility model or design must meet three conditions: novelty, inventiveness, and practical applicability. Patents cannot be granted for scientific discoveries, rules and methods for intellectual activities, methods used to diagnose or treat diseases, animal and plant breeds or substances obtained by means of nuclear transformation. The Patent Office under the State Intellectual Property Office is responsible for receiving, examining, and approving patent applications. A patent is valid for a twenty-year term for an invention, a ten-year term for a utility model and a fifteen-year term for a design, starting from the application date. Except under certain specific circumstances provided by law, any third-party user must obtain consent or a proper license from the patent owner to use the patent, or else the use will constitute an infringement of the rights of the patent holder.

Copyrights

On September 7, 1990, the SCNPC promulgated the Copyright Law, which took effect on June 1, 1991, and was amended in 2001, 2010 and 2020, with the latest amendment coming into effect on June 1, 2021. The amended Copyright Law extends copyright protection to internet activities, products disseminated over the internet and software products. In addition, there is a voluntary registration system administered by the China Copyright Protection Center.

In order to further implement the Computer Software Protection Regulations promulgated by the State Council on June 4, 1991, and amended on January 30, 2013, the National Copyright Administration (the “NCA”) issued the Computer Software Copyright Registration Procedures on April 6, 1992, and amended on February 20, 2002, which specify detailed procedures and requirements with respect to the registration of software copyrights. The China Copyright Protection Center shall grant registration certificates to the computer software copyrights applicants which meet the requirements of both the software copyright registration procedures and the computer software protection regulations.

Domain Names

The MIIT promulgated the Measures on Administration of Internet Domain Names (the “Domain Name Measures”), on August 24, 2017, which took effect on November 1, 2017, and replaced the Administrative Measures on China Internet Domain Name promulgated by MIIT on November 5, 2004. According to the Domain Name Measures, the MIIT is in charge of the administration of PRC internet domain names. The domain name registration follows a first-to-file principle. Applicants for registration of domain names shall provide the true, accurate and complete information of their identifications to domain name registration service institutions. The applicants will become the holder of such domain names upon the completion of the registration procedure.

Regulations Related to Foreign Exchange

Under the Foreign Currency Administration Rules of the PRC promulgated by the State Council on January 29, 1996, and amended on August 5, 2008, and various regulations issued by SAFE, and other relevant PRC government authorities, Renminbi is convertible into other currencies for current account items, such as trade-related receipts and payments and payment of interest and dividends. The conversion of Renminbi into other currencies and remittance of the converted foreign currency outside the PRC for of capital account items, such as direct equity investments, loans, and repatriation of investment, requires the prior approval from SAFE or its local office. Payments for transactions that take place within the PRC must be made in Renminbi. Unless otherwise approved, PRC companies may not repatriate foreign currency payments received from abroad or retain the same abroad. FIEs may retain foreign exchange in accounts with designated foreign exchange banks under the current account items subject to a cap set by SAFE or its local office. Foreign exchange proceeds under the current accounts may be either retained or sold to a financial institution engaged in settlement and sale of foreign exchange pursuant to relevant SAFE rules and regulations. For foreign exchange proceeds under the capital accounts, approval from SAFE is generally required for the retention or sale of such proceeds to a financial institution engaged in settlement and sale of foreign exchange.

Pursuant to the Circular of SAFE on Further Improving and Adjusting Foreign Exchange Administration Policies for Direct Investment (“Circular 59”) promulgated by SAFE on November 19, 2012, which became effective on December 17, 2012 and was further amended on May 4, 2015 and October 10, 2018, approval is not required for opening a foreign exchange account and depositing foreign exchange into the accounts relating to the direct investments. Circular 59 also simplified foreign exchange-related registration required for the foreign investors to acquire the equity interests of PRC companies and further improve the administration on foreign exchange settlement for FIEs.

SAFE promulgated the Circular on Printing and Distributing the Provisions on Foreign Exchange Administration over Domestic Direct Investment by Foreign Investors and the Supporting Documents on May 10, 2013, as amended, which specifies that the administration by SAFE or its local branches over direct investment by foreign investors in the PRC shall be conducted by way of registration and banks shall process foreign exchange business relating to the direct investment in the PRC based on the registration information provided by SAFE and its branches. On February 13, 2015, SAFE promulgated the Circular on Simplifying and Improving the Foreign Currency Management Policy on Direct Investment (“Circular 13”), effective from June 1, 2015, which cancels the administrative approvals of foreign exchange registration of foreign direct investment and overseas direct investment. In addition, Circular 13 simplifies the procedure of foreign exchange-related registration, under which investors shall register with banks for foreign direct investment and overseas direct investment.

Regulations on Dividend Distribution

The principal laws and regulations regulating the dividend distribution of dividends by FIEs in the PRC include the Company Law of the PRC, as amended in 2018 and Foreign Investment Law promulgated by SCNPC on March 15, 2019, and recently came into effect on January 1, 2020, and its implementation regulations that took effect the same day.

Under the current regulatory regime in the PRC, FIEs in the PRC may pay dividends only out of their retained earnings, if any, determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. A PRC company is required to set aside as statutory reserve funds at least 10% of its after- tax profit, until the cumulative amount of such reserve funds reaches 50% of its registered capital unless laws regarding foreign investment provide otherwise. A PRC company shall not distribute any profits until any losses from prior fiscal years have been offset. Profits retained from prior fiscal years may be distributed together with distributable profits from the current fiscal year. In addition, failure to comply with the registration procedures set forth in SAFE Circular 37 may result in bans on the foreign exchange activities of the relevant onshore company, including the payment of dividends and other distributions to its offshore parent or affiliates.

Regulations on Taxation

Enterprise Income Tax

On March 16, 2007, the SCNPC promulgated the Law of the PRC on Enterprise Income Tax, which was recently amended on December 29, 2018, and on December 6, 2007, the State Council enacted the Regulations for the Implementation of the Law on Enterprise Income Tax, collectively, the EIT Law, which was recently amended on April 23, 2019. Under the EIT Law, both resident enterprises and non-resident enterprises are subject to tax in the PRC. Resident enterprises are defined as enterprises that are established in China in accordance with PRC laws, or that are established in accordance with the laws of foreign countries but are actually or in effect controlled from within the PRC. Non-resident enterprises are defined as enterprises that are organized under the laws of foreign countries and whose actual management is conducted outside the PRC, but have established institutions or premises in the PRC, or have no such established institutions or premises but have income generated from inside the PRC. Under the EIT Law and relevant implementing regulations, a uniform corporate income tax rate of 25% is applied. However, if non-resident enterprises have not formed permanent establishments or premises in the PRC, or if they have formed permanent establishment or premises in the PRC but there is no actual relationship between the relevant income derived in the PRC and the established institutions or premises set up by them, enterprise income tax is set at the rate of 20% with respect to their income sourced from inside the PRC.

Withholding Tax

The EIT Law provides that since January 1, 2008, an income tax rate of 10% will normally be applicable to dividends declared to non-PRC resident enterprise investors which do not have an establishment or place of business in the PRC, or which have such establishment or place of business, but the relevant income is not effectively connected with the establishment or place of business, to the extent such dividends are derived from sources within the PRC.

Pursuant to an Arrangement Between the Mainland of China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income (the “Double Tax Avoidance Arrangement”) promulgated by the SAT on August 21, 2006, and other applicable PRC laws, if a Hong Kong resident enterprise is determined by the competent PRC tax authority to have satisfied the relevant conditions and requirements under such Double Tax Avoidance Arrangement and other applicable laws, the 10% withholding tax on the dividends the Hong Kong resident enterprise receives from a PRC resident enterprise may be reduced to 5%. However, based on the Circular on Certain Issues with Respect to the Enforcement of Dividend Provisions in Tax Treaties issued on February 20, 2009 by the SAT, if the relevant PRC tax authorities determine, in their discretion, that a company benefits from such reduced income tax rate due to a structure or arrangement that is primarily tax-driven, such PRC tax authorities may adjust the preferential tax treatment.

Value-added Tax

The Provisional Regulations of the PRC on Value-added Tax (the “VAT Regulations”) were promulgated by the State Council on December 13, 1993 and were most recently amended on November 19, 2017. The Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Provisional Regulations of the PRC on Value-added Tax (Revised in 2011) were promulgated by the Ministry of Finance (the “MOF”) on December 25, 1993 and amended on October 28, 2011 (collectively with the VAT Regulations, the “VAT Law”). According to the VAT Law, all enterprises and individuals engaged in the sale of goods, the provision of processing, repair and replacement services, and the importation of goods within the territory of the PRC must pay value-added tax. For taxpayers providing value-added telecommunications services, a rate of 6% applies, according to the Notice on Fully Promoting the Pilot Plan for Replacing Business Tax by Value-Added Tax, which was jointly promulgated by the MOF and the SAT on March 23, 2016 and became effective on May 1, 2016.

On April 4, 2018, the MOF and the SAT issued the Notice on Adjustment of VAT Rates, which came into effect on May 1, 2018. According to the notice, the taxable goods previously subject to VAT rates of 17% and 11% become subject to lower VAT rates of 16% and 10% starting from May 1, 2018.

On March 20, 2019, the MOF, the SAT and the General Administration of Customs issued the Announcement on Policies for Deepening the VAT Reform, which came into effect on April 1, 2019. According to the announcement, the taxable goods previously subject to VAT rates of 16% and 10% become subject to lower VAT rates of 13% and 9% starting from April 1, 2019.

Regulations on Employment

Labor Law and Labor Contract Law

The Labor Law, which was promulgated on July 5, 1994, and most recently amended on December 29, 2018, and the Labor Contract Law of the PRC (the “Labor Contract Law”) which took effect on January 1, 2008 and was amended on December 28, 2012, are primarily regulating rights and obligations of employer and employee relationships, including the establishment, performance and termination of labor contracts. Pursuant to the Labor Contract Law, labor contracts shall be concluded in writing if labor relationships are to be or have been established between employers and the employees. Employers are prohibited from forcing employees to work above certain time limit and employers shall pay employees for overtime work in accordance with national regulations. In addition, employee wages shall be no lower than local standards on minimum wages and shall be paid to employees timely. Violations of the Labor Contract Law and the Labor Law may result in the imposition of fines and other administrative and criminal liability in the case of serious violations.

Regulations on Social Insurance and Housing Fund

Under the Social Insurance Law of the PRC that was promulgated by the SCNPC on October 28, 2010, came into force as of July 1, 2011 and recently amended on December 29, 2018 and the Interim Regulations on the Collection and Payment of Social Insurance Premiums that was promulgated by the State Council on January 22, 1999 and was amended recently on March 24, 2019, employers are required to pay basic endowment insurance, unemployment insurance, basic medical insurance, employment injury insurance, maternity insurance and other social insurance for its employees at specified percentages of the salaries of the employees, up to a maximum amount specified by the local government regulations from time to time. Where an employer fails to fully pay social insurance premiums, relevant social insurance collection agency shall order it to make up for any shortfall within a prescribed time limit and may impose a late payment fee at the rate of 0.05% per day of the outstanding amount from the due date. If such employer still fails to make up for the shortfalls within the prescribed time limit, the relevant administrative authorities shall impose a fine of one to three times the outstanding amount upon such employer.

In accordance with the Regulations on the Management of Housing Fund which was promulgated by the State Council in 1999 and amended in 2002 and 2019, employers must register at the designated administrative centers and open bank accounts for depositing employees’ housing funds. Employer and employee are also required to pay and deposit housing funds, with an amount no less than 5% of the monthly average salary of the employee in the preceding year in full and on time.

Regulations on Employee Share Incentive Plans

Pursuant to SAFE Circular 37, PRC residents who participate in share incentive plans in overseas non-publicly-listed companies may submit applications to SAFE or its local branches for the foreign exchange registration with respect to offshore special purpose companies. In addition, pursuant to the Notice of Issues Related to the Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Stock Incentive Plan of Overseas Listed Company (“SAFE Circular 7”), which was issued by SAFE on February 15, 2012, employees, directors, supervisors, and other senior management participating in any share incentive plan of an overseas publicly-listed company who are PRC citizens or who are non-PRC citizens residing in China for a continuous period of not less than one year, subject to a few exceptions, are required to register with SAFE through a domestic agency as regulated in SAFE Circular 7.

In addition, the SAT has issued certain circulars concerning employee stock options and restricted shares, including the Circular on Issues Concerning the Individual Income Tax on Share-option Incentives (“Circular 461”) which was promulgated and took effect on August 24, 2009. Under Circular 461 and other relevant laws and regulations, employees working in the PRC who exercise stock options or are granted restricted shares will be subject to PRC individual income tax. The PRC subsidiaries of an overseas listed company are required to file documents related to employee stock options and restricted shares with relevant tax authorities and to withhold individual income taxes of employees who exercise their stock option or purchase restricted shares. If the employees fail to pay or the PRC subsidiaries fail to withhold income tax in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, the PRC subsidiary may face sanctions imposed by the tax authorities or other PRC governmental authorities.

Regulations Related to Mergers and Acquisitions

M&A Rules

On August 8, 2006, six PRC governmental and regulatory agencies, including MOFCOM and CSRC, promulgated the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors (the “M&A Rules”), governing the mergers and acquisitions of domestic enterprises by foreign investors that became effective on September 8, 2006, and was revised on June 22, 2009. The M&A Rules requires that an offshore special vehicle, or a special purpose vehicle formed for overseas listing purposes and controlled directly or indirectly by the PRC companies or individuals, shall obtain the approval of the CSRC prior to overseas listing and trading of such special purpose vehicle’s securities on an overseas stock exchange. The M&A Rules also establish procedures and requirements that could make some acquisitions of PRC companies by foreign investors more time-consuming and complex, including requirements in some instances that the Ministry of Commerce be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise. In addition, the Rules on Implementation of Security Review System for the Merger and Acquisition of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors issued by the Ministry of Commerce in 2011 specify that mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors that raise “national defense and security” concerns and mergers and acquisitions through which foreign investors may acquire de facto control over domestic enterprises that raise “national security” concerns are subject to strict review by the Ministry of Commerce, and prohibit any activities attempting to bypass such security review, including by structuring the transaction through a proxy or contractual control arrangement.

It remains uncertain as to how the M&A Rules will be interpreted or implemented in the context of an overseas offering and its opinions summarized above are subject to any new laws, regulations and rules or detailed implementations and interpretations in any form relating to the M&A Rules. See “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing business in China — Recent regulatory development in China may result in the PRC government exerting more oversight and control over listing and offerings that are conducted overseas. The approval of the CSRC may be required in connection with our capital raising activities, and, if required, we cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain such approval.”

Regulations Related to Overseas Listings

SAFE Circular 37

Under SAFE Circular 37, PRC residents are required to register with the local SAFE branch prior to the establishment or control of an offshore special purpose vehicle (the “SPV”), which is defined as offshore enterprises directly established or indirectly controlled by PRC residents for offshore equity financing of the enterprise assets or interests they hold in China. An amendment to registration or subsequent filing with the local SAFE branch by such PRC resident is also required if there is any change in basic information of the offshore company or any material change with respect to the capital of the offshore company. At the same time, SAFE has issued the Operation Guidance for the Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Administration over Round-trip Investment regarding the procedures for SAFE registration under SAFE Circular 37, which became effective on July 4, 2014 as an attachment of SAFE Circular 37.

Under the relevant rules, failure to comply with the registration procedures set forth in SAFE Circular 37 may result in bans on the foreign exchange activities of the relevant onshore company, including the payment of dividends and other distributions to its offshore parent or affiliates, and may also subject relevant PRC residents to penalties under PRC foreign exchange administration regulations.

CSRC Filing

On February 17, 2023, CSRC promulgated the Trial Measures of the Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies (the “Overseas Listing Trial Measures”) and the related guidelines, which became effective on March 31, 2023. The Overseas Listing Trial Measures, which reformed the existing regulatory regime for overseas offering and listing of securities by PRC domestic companies and both direct and indirect overseas offering and listing of securities by PRC domestic companies, imposes a filing-based regulatory regime. According to the Overseas Listing Trial Measures, PRC domestic companies that seek to offer and list securities in overseas markets, either in direct or indirect means, are required to fulfill the filing procedure with the CSRC and report relevant information. The Overseas Listing Trial Measures provides that an overseas listing or offering is explicitly prohibited, if any of the following factors are present: (1) such securities offering and listing is explicitly prohibited by provisions in laws, administrative regulations and relevant state rules; (2) the intended securities offering and listing may endanger national security as reviewed and determined by applicable authorities under the State Council in accordance with law; (3) the domestic company intending to make the securities offering and listing, or its controlling shareholder(s) and the actual controller, have committed relevant crimes such as corruption, bribery, embezzlement, misappropriation of property or undermining the order of the socialist market economy during the latest three years; (4) the domestic company intending to make the securities offering and listing is currently under investigation for suspicion of criminal offenses or major violations of laws and regulations, and no conclusion has yet been made thereof; or (5) there are material ownership disputes over equity held by the domestic company’s controlling shareholder(s) or by other shareholder(s) that are controlled by the controlling shareholder(s) and/or actual controller.

The Overseas Listing Trial Measures further stipulate that a fine between RMB1 million and RMB10 million may be imposed if an applicant fails to fulfill the filing requirements with the CSRC.

As of the date of this annual report, the Overseas Listing Trial Measures has just been released, and uncertainties remain as to its practice and future interpretations and implementations. See “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing business in China — Recent regulatory development in China may result in the PRC government exerting more oversight and control over listing and offerings that are conducted overseas. The approval of the CSRC may be required in connection with our capital raising activities, and, if required, we cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain such approval.”

C. Organizational Structure.

The following simplified diagram illustrates our corporate structure as of December 31, 2023.

Contractual Arrangements and Corporate Structure

Baijiayun Group Ltd is an exempted company with limited liability incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and currently conducts substantially all of its business and operations through the VIEs in China. The VIEs also hold our key operating licenses for our video-centric technology solution business, provide services to our customers, and enter into contracts with our suppliers. Current PRC laws and regulations impose certain restrictions or prohibitions on foreign ownership of companies that engage in internet-related services. Accordingly, certain contractual arrangements were established for our business operations in the PRC. From September 7, 2021 to January 1, 2023, BJY, through Beijing WFOE, entered into a series of agreements with BaiJiaYun Group, and its shareholders, including exclusive business cooperation agreement, powers of attorney, exclusive option agreements, and equity interest pledge agreements (collectively, the “Beijing WFOE Contractual Arrangements”). As part of our efforts to streamline our corporate structure, (1) each of Beijing WFOE, BaiJiaYun Group and its shareholders terminated each of the Beijing WFOE Contractual Arrangements, as a result of which Beijing WFOE will no longer receive substantially all of the economic benefits of BaiJiaYun Group; and (2) on January 2, 2023, Zhejiang WFOE, entered into a series of contractual arrangements, including exclusive technical and consulting services agreement, powers of attorney, exclusive option agreements and equity interest pledge agreements with BaiJiaYun Group and its shareholders, through which we are considered as the primary beneficiary of BaiJiaYun Group and consolidate the financial results of BaiJiaYun Group in our financial statements under U.S. GAAP. On June 29, 2023, Zhejiang WFOE entered into a series of agreements and established new contractual arrangements with BaiJiaYun Group and its shareholders to reflect the changes in BaiJiaYun Group’s shareholders, and the previous contractual arrangements were terminated.

To further streamline our corporate structure and business operations, Baijia Cloud Technology, a then wholly-owned subsidiary of BaiJiaYun Group, became directly owned by the shareholders of BaiJiaYun Group. On December 29, 2023, Zhejiang WFOE entered into a series of contractual arrangements with Baijia Cloud Technology and its shareholders, including exclusive business cooperation agreement, powers of attorney, exclusive option agreements, and equity interest pledge agreements.

A summary of certain material terms of the currently effective contractual arrangements among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and their respective shareholders is as follows:

In the opinion of Zhong Lun Law Firm, our PRC legal counsel, subject to any risk factors disclosed under the section of “Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure,” (1) the ownership structures of Zhejiang WFOE and the VIEs in China do not and will not violate any explicit PRC law, regulation or rule currently in effect; and (2) the contractual agreements among Zhejiang WFOE, the VIEs and the VIEs’ shareholders governed by PRC laws are valid and binding in accordance with their terms and applicable PRC laws, rules and regulations currently in effect, and will not violate any explicit PRC law, regulation or rule currently in effect. However, these contractual arrangements may not be as effective in providing control as direct ownership. There are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current and future PRC laws, rules and regulations. Accordingly, the PRC regulatory authorities may in the future take a view that is contrary to the opinion of our PRC legal counsel. We have been further advised by Zhong Lun Law Firm that if the PRC government finds that the agreements that establish the structure for operating our business do not comply with PRC government restrictions on foreign investment, we could be subject to severe penalties including being prohibited from continuing operations. See “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure.”

All the agreements under the our contractual arrangements are governed by PRC laws and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in China. See “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Ordinary Shares — As a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands, we are permitted to adopt certain home country practices for corporate governance matters that differ significantly from the Nasdaq corporate governance listing standards; these practices may afford less protection to shareholders than they would enjoy if we complied fully with the corporate governance listing standards.” Such arbitration provisions have no effect on the rights of our shareholders to pursue claims against us under United States federal securities laws.

D. Property, Plants and Equipment

Our principal executive offices are located at 24F, A1 South Building, No. 32 Fengzhan Road, Yuhuatai District, Nanjing, China. As of June 30, 2023, we leased and occupied office space with an aggregate floor area of approximately 1,790 square meters in Beijing, and maintained other leased offices and warehouse space in other cities in China totaling approximately 5,419 square meters. We lease our premises from unrelated third parties under operating lease agreements. The lease terms for all of our leased properties as of June 30, 2023 ranged from approximately one to eight years.

We believe our existing leased facilities are adequate for its current business operations and that additional facilities can be obtained on commercially reasonable terms to accommodate our future expansion plans.

Item 4A. Unresolved Staff Comments

None.

Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects

The following discussion of our results of operations and financial condition is based upon and should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and their related notes included in this annual report. This discussion includes forward-looking statements, and involves numerous risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, those described under “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors” in this annual report. We caution you that the business and financial performance may differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.

A. Operating Results

Overview

We are a one-stop AI video solution provider with core expertise in SaaS and PaaS solutions. Leveraging industry-leading video-centric technologies, we offer a wealth of video-centric technology solutions, including SaaS/PaaS solutions, cloud and software related solutions, and enterprise AI and system solutions, catered to the evolving communication and collaboration needs of enterprises of all sizes and across industries.

We generate revenues primarily from our SaaS/PaaS solutions, cloud and software related solutions, and enterprise AI and system solutions. We generally charge customers of SaaS/PaaS solutions usage-based fees for real-time engagement services, SMS services, and CDN services. For cloud and software related solutions, we generally charge our customers customized platform development service fees, or software license fees. We generally generate revenues of our enterprise AI and system solutions from the sales of hardware together with AI solutions that are tailor-made or purchased from third parties for the customers’ needs and integrated into the hardware.

Our business scale continued to grow in recent years. We had revenues of US$41.4 million, US$68.6 million and US$82.2 million for the 2021, 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, respectively. We had net income from continuing operations of US$3.6 million for the 2021 fiscal year, and net loss from continuing operations of US$12.6 million and US$7.2 million for the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, respectively.

Key Components of Results of Operations

Revenues

The following table sets forth a breakdown of the total revenues, both in absolute amount and as a percentage of total revenues, for the fiscal years indicated.

We record revenues from SaaS/PaaS solutions as SaaS/PaaS services revenues, which primarily include usage-based fees for (1) real-time engagement services that either provide customers the access to our enterprise cloud computing platform or directly provide services to customers in relation to their real-time video and audio communications through our platform, (2) SMS services and (3) CDN services, all of which are calculated with the unit price fixed in relevant service contracts. The usage-based fees are recognized as revenues in the period in which the usage occurs. Certain service contracts for SaaS/PaaS solutions provide for both hardware and real-time engagement services for a pre-determined period of time regardless of usage. In such cases, revenues generated from hardware are recognized at the time of acceptance by customers, while revenues generated from real-time engagement services are recognized over the pre-determined period.

We record revenues from cloud and software related solutions as cloud related services revenues. We provide cloud related services by providing customized platform development services to customers who aim to create a system that is integrated and large in nature. In this arrangement, we develop certain modules, which, once developed, together with other modules from other vendors, will be integrated into the customer’s system. The module is not functional and does not benefit the customer on its own. The module is highly customized and developed specifically for the customer’s needs. We do not provide any technical support service for such module and have no further obligation once the module is accepted. We recognize revenue from customized platform development services at the point of customer acceptance.

Cloud related services also include software license and other cloud related service where we primarily provide to our customer software licenses created based on an existing software framework with certain customization or design to meet the needs of different customers. We recognize revenue of software license at the point of customer acceptance. Certain software license contracts include technical support service to the customer associated with the software license provided to the customers for a period of time. We recognize revenue of technical support service over the service period.

We record revenues from enterprise AI and system solutions as AI solution services revenues, which are generated from the sales of hardware together with AI solutions that are tailor-made or purchased from third parties for the customers’ needs and integrated into the hardware. We recognize revenues from AI solution services at the time of acceptance.

Cost of Revenues

The cost of revenues primarily consists of (1) staff costs related to service delivery and system maintenance, (2) bandwidth costs, (3) costs of hardware and software products purchased for certain solutions, (4) costs of SMS telecommunications resources purchased from major mobile operating companies in the PRC, and (5) costs of CDN resources.

The following table sets forth a breakdown of the cost of revenues by service type, both in absolute amount and as a percentage of total cost of revenues, for the fiscal years indicated.

Gross Profit

The following table sets forth a breakdown of the gross profit and gross profit margin by service type for the fiscal years indicated.

Operating Expenses

The following table sets forth the operating expenses, both in absolute amount and as a percentage of our total operating expenses, for the fiscal years indicated.

Selling and marketing expenses primarily consist of compensation paid to our sales and marketing personnel, share-based compensation, marketing expenses, travel and transportation expenses, entertainment expenses and others.

General and administrative expenses primarily consist of compensation paid to our administrative staff and management team, share-based compensation, rental expenses, office expenses, bad debt expenses and others.

Research and development expenses primarily consist of compensation paid to our research and development staff, share-based compensation, technical service fees paid to third-party R&D service providers, office expenses and others.

Results of Operations

The following table sets forth a summary of the consolidated results of operations for the fiscal years indicated. This information should be read together with the consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this annual report on Form 20-F. The results of operations in any period are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for any future period.