As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 5, 2025
Registration No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM S-8
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
WORLD KINECT CORPORATION
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Florida | 59-2459427 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
9800 N.W. 41st Street
Miami, FL 33178
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)
WORLD KINECT CORPORATION 2025 OMNIBUS PLAN
(Full title of the plan)
Jeffrey Weissman, Esq.
General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
9800 N.W. 41st Street
Miami, FL 33178
(Name and address of agent for service)
(305) 428-8000
(Telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☒ | Accelerated filer | ☐ | |||
| Non-accelerated filer | ☐ | Smaller reporting company | ☐ | |||
| Emerging growth company | ☐ | |||||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐
PART I
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS
Item 1. Plan Information
The documents containing the information specified in this Part I will be sent or given to the participants in the World Kinect Corporation 2025 Omnibus Plan of World Kinect Corporation, a Florida corporation (the “Registrant”), as specified by Rule 428(b)(1) promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”). In accordance with the instructions to Part I of Form S-8, such documents will not be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) either as part of this registration statement on Form S-8 (this “Registration Statement”) or as prospectuses or prospectus supplements pursuant to Rule 424 promulgated under the Securities Act. These documents and the documents incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement pursuant to Item 3 of Part II of this Registration Statement, taken together, constitute a prospectus that meets the requirements of Section 10(a) of the Securities Act.
Item 2. Registrant Information and Employee Plan Annual Information
Upon written or oral request, the Registrant will provide, without charge, the documents incorporated by reference in Item 3 of Part II of this Registration Statement. The documents are incorporated by reference in the Section 10(a) prospectus. The Registrant will also provide, without charge, upon written or oral request, other documents required to be delivered to employees pursuant to Rule 428(b). Requests for the above-mentioned information should be directed to the Registrant’s Corporate Secretary, at the address and telephone number listed on the cover of this Registration Statement.
PART II
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT
Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference
The following documents of the Registrant filed with the Commission (File No. 001-09533), other than information furnished pursuant to Item 2.02 or Item 7.01, or related exhibits under Item 9.01, of Form 8-K, are incorporated by reference:
| (a) | The Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, including portions of the Registrant’s Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed on April 25, 2025, to the extent incorporated by reference in such Annual Report on Form 10-K; |
| (b) | The Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025; |
| (c) | The Registrant’s Current Reports on Form 8-K filed on April 25, 2025 and April 29, 2025; and |
| (d) |
All reports and definitive proxy or information statements filed pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 after the date of this Registration Statement and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities offered hereby have been sold or which de-registers all securities then remaining unsold, other than information furnished pursuant to Item 2.02 or Item 7.01, or related exhibits under Item 9.01, of Form 8-K, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents.
2
Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any subsequently filed document which also is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this Registration Statement.
Item 4. Description of Securities
Not applicable.
Item 5. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel
Not applicable.
Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers
The Florida Business Corporation Act (the “Florida Act”) authorizes the indemnification of officers, directors, employees and agents under specified circumstances. Under Section 607.0831 of the Florida Act, a director is not personally liable for monetary damages to the corporation or any other person for any statement, vote, decision to take or not to take action, or any failure to take any action, as a director, unless (1) the director breached or failed to perform his or her duties as a director and (2) the director’s breach of, or failure to perform, those duties constitutes any of the following: (a) a violation of the criminal law, unless the director had reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was lawful or had no reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful, (b) a circumstance under which the transaction at issue is one from which the director derived an improper personal benefit, either directly or indirectly, (c) a circumstance under which the liability provisions of Section 607.0834 of the Florida Act are applicable, (d) in a proceeding by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor or by or in the right of a shareholder, conscious disregard for the best interest of the corporation, or willful or intentional misconduct, or (e) in a proceeding by or in the right of someone other than the corporation or a shareholder, recklessness or an act or omission which was committed in bad faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton and willful disregard of human rights, safety, or property. A judgment or other final adjudication against a director in any criminal proceeding for a violation of the criminal law estops that director from contesting the fact that his or her breach, or failure to perform, constitutes a violation of the criminal law; but does not estop the director from establishing that he or she had reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was lawful or had no reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful.
Under Section 607.0851 of the Florida Act, a corporation may indemnify an individual who is a party to a proceeding (other than an action by, or in the right of the corporation), by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a director or officer of the corporation against liability incurred in connection with such proceeding if he or she acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the corporation and, in the case of any criminal proceeding, the director or officer had no reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful. The termination of any proceeding by judgment, order, settlement or conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, does not, of itself, create a presumption that the director or officer did not meet the relevant standard of conduct described in Section 607.0851. A corporation also has the power to indemnify a director or an officer in connection with a proceeding by or in the right of the corporation for expenses and amounts paid in settlement not exceeding, in the judgment of the board of directors, the estimated expense of litigating the proceeding to conclusion, actually and reasonably incurred in connection with the defense or settlement of such proceeding, including any appeal thereof. Such indemnification shall be authorized if such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the corporation.
3
Under Section 607.0852 of the Florida Act, a corporation must indemnify an individual who is or was a director or officer who was wholly successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of any proceeding to which the individual was a party because he or she is or was a director or officer of the corporation against expenses incurred by the individual in connection with the proceeding. Further, under Section 607.0853 of the Florida Act, a corporation may, before final disposition of a proceeding, advance funds to pay for or reimburse expenses incurred in connection with the proceeding if the director or officer delivers to the corporation a signed written undertaking of the director or officer to repay any funds advanced if: (a) the director or officer is not entitled to mandatory indemnification under Section 607.0852; and (b) it is ultimately determined that the director or officer has not met the relevant standard of conduct described in Section 607.0851 or the director or officer is not entitled to indemnification under Section 607.0859 (as described below).
Under Section 607.0854 of the Florida Act, unless the corporation’s articles of incorporation provide otherwise, notwithstanding the failure of a corporation to provide indemnification, and despite any contrary determination of the board of directors or of the shareholders in the specific case, a director or officer of the corporation who is a party to a proceeding because he or she is or was a director or officer may apply for indemnification or an advance for expenses, or both, to a court having jurisdiction over the corporation which is conducting the proceeding, or to a circuit court of competent jurisdiction. After receipt of an application and after giving any notice it considers necessary, the court may: (a) order indemnification if the court determines that the director or officer is entitled to mandatory indemnification under Section 607.0852, (b) order indemnification or advance for expenses if the court determines that the director or officer is entitled to indemnification or advance for expenses pursuant to a provision authorized by Section 607.0858, or (c) order indemnification or advance for expenses if the court determines, in view of all the relevant circumstances, that it is fair and reasonable to indemnify the director or officer or to advance expenses to the director or officer, even if he or she has not met the relevant standard of conduct set forth in Section 607.0851(1), has failed to comply with Section 607.0853, or was adjudged liable in a proceeding referred to in Section 607.0859. If the director or officer was adjudged liable, indemnification shall be limited to expenses incurred in connection with the proceeding.
Section 607.0857 of the Florida Act also provides that a corporation shall have the power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director or officer of the corporation against any liability asserted against the person and incurred by him or her in any such capacity or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the corporation would have the power to indemnify him or her against such liability under Chapter 607 of the Florida Act.
Under Section 607.0858 of the Florida Act, the indemnification pursuant to Sections 607.0851 and the advancement of expenses pursuant to Sections 607.0851, 607.0852 and 607.0853 are not exclusive, and a corporation may, by a provision in its articles of incorporation, bylaws or any agreement, or by vote of shareholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise, obligate itself in advance of the act or omission giving rise to a proceeding to provide any other or further indemnification or advancement of expenses to any of its directors or officers. However, a corporation may not indemnify a director or officer under Sections 607.0851 or 607.0858 or advance expenses under Sections 607.0853 or 607.0858 if a judgment or other final adjudication establishes that his or her actions, or omissions to act, were material to the cause of action so adjudicated and constitute: (a) willful or intentional misconduct or a conscious disregard for the best interests of the corporation in a proceeding by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor or in a proceeding by or in the right of a shareholder; (b) a transaction in which the director or officer derived an improper personal benefit; (c) a violation of the criminal law, unless the director or officer had reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was lawful or had no reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful; or (d) in the case of a director, a circumstance under which the liability provisions of Section 607.0834 are applicable.
Our Articles of Incorporation, as amended, provide that we shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, indemnify our current and former directors and officers. Our Amended and Restated By-Laws also provide for indemnification of our directors and officers as well as employees and agents. In addition, we have executed indemnity agreements with each of our directors under the terms of which we agree to indemnify them against claims, liabilities, damages, expenses, penalties, and amounts paid in settlement that are incurred by any such director in, or arising out of, his or her service as a director.
4
Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed
Not applicable.
Item 8. Exhibits
Item 9. Undertakings
| (a) | The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes: |
| (1) | To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement: |
| (i) | To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act; |
| (ii) | To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the Registration Statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than a 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Filing Fee Tables” or “Calculation of Registration Fee” table, as applicable, in the effective registration statement; |
| (iii) | To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration Statement or any material change to such information in the Registration Statement; |
provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply if the Registration Statement is on Form S-8, and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement.
5
| (2) | That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
| (3) | To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering. |
| (b) | The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new Registration Statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
| (c) | Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue. |
6
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Miami, State of Florida, on this June 5, 2025.
| World Kinect Corporation | ||
| By: | /s/ Michael J. Kasbar | |
| Michael J. Kasbar | ||
| Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ||
7
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS:
Each person whose signature appears below hereby constitutes and appoints each of Michael J. Kasbar and Ira M. Birns as his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities to sign any and all amendments or supplements to this Registration Statement, whether pre-effective or post-effective, any related registration statements filed pursuant to Rule 462 under the Securities Act, and any other documents filed in connection with any such registration statement, and to file or cause to be filed the same, with all exhibits thereto and all other documents in connection therewith, with the Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary or appropriate to be done, as fully to all intents and purposes as such person could or might do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, or their substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration Statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities indicated and on June 5, 2025.
| Signatures |
Title | |
| /s/ Michael J. Kasbar Michael J. Kasbar |
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) | |
| /s/ Ira M. Birns Ira M. Birns |
President and Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial Officer) | |
| /s/ Jose-Miguel Tejada Jose-Miguel Tejada |
Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer (Principal Accounting Officer) | |
| /s/ Ken Bakshi Ken Bakshi |
Director | |
| /s/ Jorge L. Benitez Jorge L. Benitez |
Director | |
| /s/ Sharda Cherwoo Sharda Cherwoo |
Director | |
| /s/ Richard A. Kassar Richard A. Kassar |
Director | |
| /s/ Jeffrey M. Kottkamp Jeffrey M. Kottkamp |
Director | |
| /s/ John L. Manley John L. Manley |
Director | |
| /s/ Stephen K. Roddenberry Stephen K. Roddenberry |
Director | |
| /s/ Paul H. Stebbins Paul H. Stebbins |
Director | |
8