NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--#Action--Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized stockholder rights law firm, reminds investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Bakkt Holdings, Inc. (“Bakkt” or the “Company”) (NYSE: BKKT) in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York on behalf of all persons and entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Bakkt securities traceable to the October 15, 2021 IPO or between March 31, 2021 and November 19, 2021, both dates inclusive (the “Class Period”). Investors have until June 20, 2022 to apply to the Court to be appointed as lead plaintiff in the lawsuit.
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Bakkt was formerly known as “VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings” and operated as a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), also called a blank-check company, which is a development stage company that has no specific business plan or purpose or has indicated its business plan is to engage in a merger or acquisition with an unidentified company or companies, other entity, or person.
On January 11, 2021, the Company and Legacy Bakkt announced entry into a definitive agreement for the Business Combination that would result in Legacy Bakkt becoming a publicly traded company with an enterprise value of approximately $2.1 billion.
On March 31, 2021, the Company filed a registration statement on Form S-4 with the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) in connection with the Business Combination, which, after several amendments, was declared effective by the SEC on September 17, 2021 (the “Registration Statement”). Also on September 17, 2021, the Company filed a proxy statement and prospectus on Form 424B3 with the SEC in connection with the Business Combination, which formed part of the Registration Statement (the “Proxy” and, together with the Registration Statement, the “Offering Documents”).
On or about October 15, 2021, the Company and Legacy Bakkt completed the Business Combination pursuant to the Offering Documents. Thereafter, the Company changed its name to “Bakkt Holdings, Inc.” and began operating a digital asset platform that enables consumers to buy, sell, convert, and spend digital assets.
The complaint alleges that the Offering Documents were negligently prepared and, as a result, contained untrue statements of material fact or omitted to state other facts necessary to make the statements made not misleading and were not prepared in accordance with the rules and regulations governing their preparation, and that throughout the Class Period Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company’s business, operations, and compliance policies. Specifically, the Offering Documents and Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) the Company had defective financial controls; (ii) as a result, there were errors in the Company’s financial statements related to the misclassification of certain shares issued prior to the Business Combination; (iii) accordingly, the Company would need to restate certain of its financial statements; (iv) the Company downplayed the true scope and severity of these issues; (v) the Company overstated its remediation of its defective financial controls; and (vi) as a result, the Offering Documents and Defendants’ public statements throughout the Class Period were materially false and/or misleading and failed to state information required to be stated therein.
On May 17, 2021, Bakkt—then still operating as VIH—notified the SEC of its inability to timely file its quarterly report for the quarter ended March 31, 2021. Specifically, the Company advised that, as a result of a statement issued by the SEC, “the Company reevaluated the accounting treatment of its public warrants and private placement warrants” and “is currently determining the extent of the SEC Statement’s impact on its financial statements[.]”
On this news, the Company’s share price fell $0.13 per share, or 1.26%, to close at $10.18 per share on May 18, 2021.
Then, on October 13, 2021, the Company disclosed in an SEC filing that it had also previously failed to properly account for the classification of its Class A ordinary shares and “adjust[ed] . . . the initial carrying value of the Class A ordinary shares subject to possible redemption with the offset recorded to additional paid-in capital (to the extent available), accumulated deficit and Class A ordinary shares.” Notably, the Company revised its balance sheet as of December 31, 2020, including, among other changes, additional paid-in capital that was reduced from $9,860,338 to nil, an accumulated deficit that ballooned from $4,861,190 to $29,250,419, and total shareholders’ equity of $5,000,009 that swung to a total shareholders’ deficit of $29,249,901.
Following these additional disclosures, the Company’s share price fell $0.47 per share, or 4.73%, to close at $9.46 per share on October 14, 2021.
Finally, on November 22, 2021, Bakkt disclosed in another SEC filing that the Company’s management “has re-evaluated . . . the accounting classification of the Class A ordinary shares . . . of [VIH] . . . and has identified errors in the historical financial statements of VIH . . . related to the misclassification . . . of the Class A Ordinary Shares prior to the [Business Combination].” Specifically, the Company found that, as a result of errors in its condensed consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020, and the quarterly periods ended March 31, 2021, June 30, 2021 and September 30, 2021, Bakkt should “restate certain of VIH’s condensed consolidated financial statements from” those periods.
On this news, Bakkt’s stock price fell $2.70 per share, or 13.69%, to close at $17.02 per share on November 22, 2021.
As of the time the complaint was filed, Bakkt’s Class A common stock was trading between $4 to $5 per share and continues to trade below its initial value from the Business Combination, damaging investors.
If you purchased or otherwise acquired Bakkt shares and suffered a loss, are a long-term stockholder, have information, would like to learn more about these claims, or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Brandon Walker or Alexandra Raymond by email at investigations@bespc.com, telephone at (212) 355-4648, or by filling out this contact form. There is no cost or obligation to you.
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Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York, California, and South Carolina. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in commercial, securities, derivative, and other complex litigation in state and federal courts across the country. For more information about the firm, please visit www.bespc.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
Contacts
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.
Brandon Walker, Esq.
Alexandra B. Raymond, Esq.
(212) 355-4648
investigations@bespc.com
www.bespc.com
