As filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 14, 2023

Registration No. 333-         

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

 

 

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

 

Skillsoft Corp.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Delaware   83-4388331

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification Number)

 

300 Innovative Way, Suite 201

Nashua, NH 03062

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

 

Skillsoft Corp. 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan

(Full titles of the plan)

 

Richard Walker

Chief Financial Officer

300 Innovative Way, Suite 201

Nashua, NH 03062

(603) 324-3000

(Name, address, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

 

Copies to:

 

David R. Crandall

Hogan Lovells US LLP

1601 Wewatta St., Suite 900

Denver, CO 80202

(303) 899-7300

 

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   x
Non-accelerated filer   ¨   Smaller reporting company   x
Emerging growth company   x        

 

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.  ¨

 

 

 

 

 

 

EXPLANATORY NOTE

 

Skillsoft Corp. (the “Registrant” or the “Company”) is filing this registration statement on Form S-8 (this “Registration Statement”) for the purpose of registering 12,353,687 shares (the “Shares”) of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, that may be issued to participants under the Company’s 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2020 Plan”), consisting of (i) an additional 8,229,020 Shares that have or will become reserved for issuance pursuant to Section 6(a) (the “evergreen” provision) of the 2020 Plan, which provides for an automatic annual increase in the number of shares of Class A common stock available for issuance under the 2020 Plan, and (ii) 4,124,667 Shares that have become available for issuance under the 2020 Plan as a result of expiration, cancelation, forfeiture, termination, settlement of cash, or repurchase of outstanding restricted stock units, which were previously registered pursuant to registration statements (File Nos. 333-258867 and 333-265182) on Form S-8 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on August 17, 2021 and May 24, 2022, respectively. Other than the 8,229,020 Shares that have become available for issuance pursuant to the “evergreen” provision of the 2020 Plan, the Shares registered by this Registration Statement do not represent an increase in the number of shares previously reserved for issuance under the 2020 Plan.

 

PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

 

The information specified in Item 1 and Item 2 of Part I of Form S-8 is omitted from this Registration Statement in accordance with the provisions of Rule 428 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the introductory note to Part I of Form S-8. The documents containing the information specified in Part I of Form S-8 will be delivered to the participants in the 2020 Plan as specified by Rule 428(b)(1) under the Securities Act.

 

PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

 

Item 3.Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

 

The following documents filed by the Registrant with the SEC under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), are incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement (in each case excluding any information furnished pursuant to Item 2.02 or Item 7.01 and any corresponding exhibits thereto on any Current Report on Form 8-K):

 

(a)The Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 31, 2023, filed with the SEC on April 14, 2023;
   
(b)The Registrant’s Current Reports on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on March 10, 2023 and March 30, 2023; and
   
(c)The description of the Registrant’s Class A common stock contained in the Registration Statement on Form 8-A (File No. 001-38960) filed June 26, 2019, pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act, as updated by the description of the Registrant’s Class A common stock filed as Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 31, 2022, including any amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description.

 

All documents subsequently filed by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement which indicates that all of the shares registered hereunder have been sold or which deregisters all of such shares then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement and to be a part hereof from the respective dates of filing of such documents; provided, however, that documents or information deemed to have been furnished and not filed in accordance with SEC rules shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement. 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 other subsequently filed document that also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein, modifies or supersedes such earlier 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.

 

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Item 4.Description of Securities.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 5.Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

 

None.

 

Item 6.Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

 

Section 102(b)(7) of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”) allows a corporation to provide in its certificate of incorporation that a director of the corporation will not be personally liable to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except where the director breached the duty of loyalty, failed to act in good faith, engaged in intentional misconduct or knowingly violated a law, authorized the payment of a dividend or approved a stock repurchase in violation of Delaware corporate law or obtained an improper personal benefit. The Company’s second amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides for this limitation of liability.

 

Section 145 of the DGCL, provides, among other things, that a Delaware corporation may indemnify any person who was, is or is threatened to be made, party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of such corporation), by reason of the fact that such person is or was an officer, director, employee or agent of such corporation or is or was serving at the request of such corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding, provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the corporation’s best interests and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful. A Delaware corporation may indemnify any persons who were or are a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation by reason of the fact that such person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit, provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the corporation’s best interests, provided further that no indemnification is permitted without judicial approval if the officer, director, employee or agent is adjudged to be liable to the corporation. Where an officer or director is successful on the merits or otherwise in the defense of any action referred to above, the corporation must indemnify him or her against the expenses (including attorneys’ fees) which such officer or director has actually and reasonably incurred.

 

Section 145 further authorizes a corporation to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise, against any liability asserted against such person and incurred by such person in any such capacity, or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the corporation would otherwise have the power to indemnify such person under Section 145.

 

The Company’s bylaws provide that it must indemnify and advance expenses to its directors and officers to the full extent authorized by the DGCL.

 

The Company has entered into indemnification agreements with each of its directors and executive officers. Such agreements may require the Company, among other things, to advance expenses and otherwise indemnify its executive officers and directors against certain liabilities that may arise by reason of their status or service as executive officers or directors, to the fullest extent permitted by law. The Company intends to enter into indemnification agreements with any new directors and executive officers in the future.

 

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The indemnification rights set forth above shall not be exclusive of any other right which an indemnified person may have or hereafter acquire under any statute, any provision of the Company’s second amended and restated certificate of incorporation, the Company’s bylaws, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company shall not be obligated to indemnify a director or officer in respect of a proceeding (or part thereof) instituted by such director or officer, unless such proceeding (or part thereof) has been authorized by the Board pursuant to the applicable procedure outlined in the Company’s bylaws.

 

Section 174 of the DGCL provides, among other things, that a director, who willfully or negligently approves of an unlawful payment of dividends or an unlawful stock purchase or redemption, may be held jointly and severally liable for such actions. A director who was either absent when the unlawful actions were approved or dissented at the time may avoid liability by causing his or her dissent to such actions to be entered in the books containing the minutes of the meetings of the board of directors at the time such action occurred or immediately after such absent director receives notice of the unlawful acts. The Company maintains and expect to maintain standard policies of insurance that provide coverage (1) to its directors and officers against loss rising from claims made by reason of breach of duty or other wrongful act and (2) to the Company with respect to indemnification payments that the Company may make to such directors and officers.

 

These provisions may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against the Company’s directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against directors and officers, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit the Company and its stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent the Company pays the costs of settlement and damage awards against officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.

 

Item 7.Exemption from Registration Claimed.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 8.Exhibits.

 

Exhibit Index

 

Exhibit
Number

 

Description

4.1   Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Skillsoft Corp. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 17, 2021).
4.2   Second Amended and Restated Bylaws of Skillsoft Corp. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 17, 2021).
5.1*   Opinion of Hogan Lovells US LLP.
23.1*   Consent of Ernst & Young LLP.
23.2*   Consent of Hogan Lovells US LLP (included as part of Exhibit 5.1).
24.1*   Power of Attorney (included in signature pages of this Registration Statement)
99.1   Skillsoft Corp. 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.12 to the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-257718) filed by the Registrant on July 6, 2021).
107*   Filing Fee Table

 

* Filed herewith

 

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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 of 1933;

 

(ii)To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the Registration Statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective Registration Statement;

 

(iii)To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration Statement or any material change to such information in the Registration Statement;

 

provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) of this section shall not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the SEC by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement.

 

(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 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) 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 SEC 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.

 

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SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, 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 Greenwood, Colorado, on this 14th day of April, 2023.

 

  SKILLSOFT CORP.
     
  By: /s/ Richard Walker
    Richard Walker, Chief Financial Officer

 

POWER OF ATTORNEY

 

KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Sarah Kinnick Hilty and Richard Walker, and each of them, individually, as his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, 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 the Registration Statement on Form S-8 of Skillsoft Corp., and any or all amendments (including post-effective amendments), and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite or necessary to be done in connection therewith and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or their substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement on Form S-8 has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

Signature  Title  Date
       
/s/ Jeffrey R. Tarr  Chief Executive Officer and Director  April 14, 2023
Jeffrey R. Tarr  (Principal Executive Officer)   
       
       
/s/ Richard Walker  Chief Financial Officer  April 14, 2023
Richard Walker  (Principal Financial Officer)   
       
       
/s/ Jose Torres  Chief Accounting Officer  April 14, 2023
Jose Torres  (Principal Accounting Officer)   
       
       
/s/ Ronald W. Hovsepian  Director  April 14, 2023
Ronald W. Hovsepian      
       
       
/s/ Lawrence Charles Illg  Director  April 14, 2023
Lawrence Charles Illg      
       
       
/s/ Helena B. Foulkes  Director  April 14, 2023
Helena B. Foulkes      
       
       
/s/ Patrick Kolek  Director  April 14, 2023
Patrick Kolek      
       
       
/s/ Michael S. Klein  Director  April 14, 2023
Michael S. Klein      
       
       
/s/ Karen G. Mills  Director  April 14, 2023
Karen G. Mills      
       
       
/s/ Peter Schmitt  Director  April 14, 2023
Peter Schmitt      
       
       
/s/ Lawrence H. Summers  Director  April 14, 2023
Lawrence H. Summers      

 

 

 

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