Beyond (BYON) 10-K2019 FY Annual report

We use our internally developed Website and a combination of proprietary technologies and commercially available licensed technologies and solutions to support our retail operations. We use the services of multiple telecommunications companies to obtain connectivity to the Internet. Currently, our primary computer infrastructure is in a data center in Utah. We also have other data centers which we use for backups, redundancy, development, testing, disaster recovery, and corporate systems infrastructure.

Throughout this report we refer to "digital securities" to describe conventional uncertificated securities where the issuer arranges for a digital "courtesy carbon copy" of the transfer agent's share registry to be viewable on the blockchain to enhance the trading experience. Securities with such digital enhancements may also be referred to as "digitally-enhanced securities". Digital securities, however, are not issued, traded, cleared, settled or custodied using distributed ledger or blockchain technology. Instead, record ownership of digital securities is kept by a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") regulated transfer agent in its traditional books and records and they are traded on the relevant regulated trading venues on a book-entry basis. To enhance the investor experience, issuers arrange for a digital courtesy carbon copy of the transfer agent's share registry of holders of record to be viewable on the blockchain. The digital courtesy carbon copy of the transfer agents' books and records on the blockchain are pseudonymized (that is, such records do not identify the holders of record by name but each holder's assets are shown under a digital wallet address) and do not govern ownership of these securities. The transfer agent's conventional books and records remain as the only controlling record of ownership for corporate and securities law purposes. With respect to investors holding a digital security in a brokerage account, the controlling record of the underlying beneficial ownership is such investor's carrying broker-dealer's conventional books and records. The use of "digital" is intended solely to differentiate these securities from conventional securities which do not have the digital enhancements necessary to allow the transfer agents records to be viewable on the blockchain.

In certain other instances throughout this report we refer to "peer-to-peer digital assets" or "bearer digital assets", which may include virtual currencies or other pseudonymous bearer digital instruments (including instruments representing securities) which may trade peer-to-peer on a distributed ledger and/or rely on the distributed ledger to govern record

The businesses, products, and services that tZERO is pursuing or contemplating will require substantial additional funding, initially for technology development and regulatory compliance, as well as for working capital, marketing and sales, and other substantial costs of developing new products and businesses in emerging areas of technology. These costs have been and are expected to continue to be material, both to tZERO and to Overstock.

tZERO has received certain patents that it views as critical to its success. In particular, in January 2019, it received a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") for an order system that can integrate with conventional asset trading platforms and translate orders for "digital transaction items" (including securities, tokens, shares, cash and other assets) from broker-dealers into orders on a regulated venue which utilizes blockchain technology. In May 2019, tZERO also received a patent for a base layer technology that uses digital signatures to record and verify time-series data such as trades, executions and settlements, allowing low-latency systems, including traditional matching engines or private blockchain ledgers, to be anchored into public blockchain ledgers which are able to verify the existence of previous trades and simultaneously produce an auditable and immutable record of those transactions. These patents were recently awarded and to date have not had any material effect on tZERO's business. tZERO believes these patents provide valuable functionality to regulated market participants involved in the trading of digital securities and will assist in protecting tZERO's proprietary technologies against trading solutions developed by competitors.

We believe other organizations are or may be working to develop applications for distributed ledger or blockchain technologies or other novel technologies in the financial industry or capital markets that may be competitive with tZERO and its blockchain-focused subsidiaries. Although it is difficult to obtain reliable information about blockchain activities by companies that may be our competitors, they may include numerous entities including some that are operating trading venues offshore or otherwise structured to avoid aspects of U.S. regulation.

SpeedRoute and tZERO ATS, LLC compete with and tZERO Markets will, in the event its broker-dealer application is approved, in the future compete with, a large number of broker-dealers, many of which are substantially larger and have substantially greater financial resources than SpeedRoute, tZERO ATS, LLC, tZERO Markets, tZERO or Overstock.

To the extent tZERO attempts to market its "digital locate receipt" software (the "DLR Software") in the future, tZERO would be competing with virtually all of the largest broker-dealers in the U.S., all of which have substantially greater resources than tZERO or Overstock, and some of which may generate substantial revenues and profits from the existing firmly entrenched system.

See "Risk Factors—Additional Risks Relating to our tZERO Initiatives."

tZERO ATS, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of tZERO, operates the tZERO ATS, which is subject to Regulation ATS as well as other regulations, and partners with broker-dealers that are also subject to regulation by the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. ("FINRA"). The tZERO ATS facilitates the current trading of our outstanding Series A-1 Preferred stock as well as tZERO's Preferred Equity Tokens, Series A ("TZROP").

The joint venture that tZERO and BOX Digital announced in June 2018 is seeking regulatory approvals that would enable the parties to operate the Boston Security Token Exchange ("BSTX"), a national securities exchange facility to support trading in a type of digital security called a security token. BSTX, which will require approval from the SEC prior to beginning operations, would be subject to provisions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and regulation substantially greater than that applicable to tZERO's current operations. The SEC published proposed rule changes relating to BSTX on October 11, 2019, soliciting public comments thereon. The SEC extended the review period on November 29, 2019. BOX Exchange LLC filed an amendment to the proposal on December 26, 2019, and the SEC again extended the review period on January 16, 2020. A subsequent amendment was filed by BOX Exchange LLC on February 19, 2020.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Risks Relating to Our Company and to Our Current Review of Strategic Initiatives

We and certain of our former and current officers and directors have been named in shareholder class action lawsuits and shareholder derivative lawsuits, and may become subject to further litigation, government investigations or proceedings arising therefrom. The pending litigation and any future litigation, investigations or other actions that may be filed or initiated against us or our current or former officers or directors may be time consuming and expensive. We cannot predict what losses, if any, we may incur in these litigation matters, and expect to incur significant legal expenditures in defending and responding to these litigation matters.

We carry directors and officers liability insurance (D&O insurance) for losses and advancement of defense costs in the event legal actions are brought against our directors and officers for alleged wrongful acts in their capacity as directors or officers. Our current annual D&O insurance policy, effective on October 1, 2019, contains significantly larger self-insured-retention amounts and more exclusions to coverage than in the past. As such, our D&O insurance may not be adequate to fully protect the company against liability for the conduct of its directors and officers.

The costs of our D&O insurance policy premiums increased substantially in the most recent annual renewal, effective October 1, 2019, compared to the prior year policy premiums. If the costs of maintaining adequate insurance coverage increases significantly in the future, our operating results could be materially adversely affected.

We have a history of significant losses and our losses have accelerated in recent years and we expect to incur operating and net losses in the foreseeable future. Net cash used in operating activities were $81.6 million during 2019, and at December 31, 2019 our accumulated deficit was $580.4 million. Our losses have accelerated in recent years and we may not be able to achieve profitability promptly or at all. We are working to improve the efficiency of our operations but may be unable to do so. Cost reductions we may implement in the future may adversely affect our business operations. If we are unable to successfully manage our business while reducing our expenses, our ability to continue in business could depend on our ability to raise sufficient additional capital, obtain sufficient financing, or sell or otherwise monetize significant assets such as our corporate headquarters. We do not expect to be able to obtain significant debt financing in the near future. Additionally, we may not be able to raise capital on acceptable terms or at all. The occurrence of any of the foregoing risks would have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Our net working capital (current assets less current liabilities) was a negative $38.6 million at December 31, 2019 compared to a negative $26.2 million at December 31, 2018. Additionally, any significant declines in our revenues could result in decreases in our working capital, which would further reduce our cash balances. Our failure to generate sufficient revenues or profits or to obtain additional financing or raise additional capital could have a material adverse effect on our operations and on our ability to meet our obligations as they become due. The occurrence of any of the foregoing risks would have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Our performance is substantially dependent on the continued services and on the performance of our senior management and other key personnel. Our performance also depends on our ability to retain and motivate our officers and key employees. Our former chief executive officer and director, Dr. Patrick Byrne, and our former chief financial officer, Gregory Iverson, resigned in August 2019 and September 2019, respectively. The loss of the services of these executive officers, and any of our executive officers or other key employees for any reason, could harm our business. We do not have employment agreements with any of our key personnel. Our future success, in both our e-commerce business and in our Medici business, also depends on our ability to identify, attract, hire, train, retain and motivate other highly-skilled technical, managerial, editorial, merchandising, marketing and customer service personnel. Our failure to attract and retain the necessary personnel could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Sales or other distributions of a substantial number of shares of our common stock or our preferred stock, including our potential Series A-1 dividend, in the public market or otherwise, by us or by a significant stockholder, has in the past and could in the future, depress the trading price of our common or preferred stock and impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities. The transfer of ownership of a significant portion of our outstanding shares of common or preferred stock in the public market or otherwise, by us or by a significant stockholder, within a three-year period could adversely affect our ability to use our net operating losses and tax credit carryforwards to offset future taxable net income.

In addition, we may issue additional shares of our common or preferred stock from time to time in the future in amounts that may be significant. We are planning to issue approximately four million new shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock to pay the Dividend we announced in June of 2019. Further, we have sold common stock under our "at the market" sales agreement with JonesTrading in the past and may do so in the future. The sale of substantial amounts of our common or preferred stock, by us or a significant stockholder, or the perception that these sales may occur, could adversely affect the trading prices of either or both of these securities or subject us to limitations on our ability to use our net operating and tax credit carryforwards.

In prior years we added additional types of services and product offerings and in some cases, we modified or discontinued those offerings, and in some cases have re-launched offerings we had previously terminated. We may continue to try to offer additional types of products or services, and we do not know whether any of them will be successful. From time to time we have also modified aspects of our business model relating to our product mix and the mix of direct/partner sourcing of the products we offer. In addition, we continue to experiment with new technologies to enhance the customer experience and iterate on delivery of new features. The additions and modifications to our business have increased the complexity of our business and impacted our management, personnel, operations, systems, technical performance, financial resources, and internal financial control and reporting functions. Further, our efforts to promote a culture of experimentation amongst our technologists in an attempt to stay ahead of the competition may result in the introduction of technologies that are less mature

Our common stock is currently listed on the Nasdaq Global Market. In order to maintain this listing, we are required to comply with various continued listing standards, including corporate governance requirements, set forth in the Nasdaq Listing Rules. These standards and requirements include an obligation to maintain a Board of Directors, a majority of whom are deemed to be independent and that we maintain an Audit Committee consisting of at least three independent Board Members. Our Board of Directors currently has five members, four of whom are deemed independent, and our Audit Committee consists of three of these independent directors. If more than one of our independent directors should cease to be on the Board within a short period of time, we may not be able to recruit one or more additional independent directors in such time period in order to have a majority of independent directors on our Board and at least three independent directors on our Audit Committee. If such a scenario was not rectified in accordance with applicable Nasdaq Listing Rules, we could become subject to Nasdaq delisting procedures.

We have been and are currently implementing certain initiatives to improve the performance of our retail business, and any insufficiency in the size of our workforce or any insufficiency of certain required skills of our workforce, could prevent us from engaging in certain initiatives we had previously considered and could prevent us from executing such initiatives effectively, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Our wholly-owned subsidiary Medici Ventures owns approximately 80% of the outstanding common stock of tZERO, and tZERO employees, former employees and others own the balance of the shares. tZERO has issued employee stock options that may further dilute our ownership interest. In addition, tZERO may in the future engage in capital raising activities that could further dilute our ownership interest. Medici Ventures, tZERO and Medici Land Governance also issued employee stock options that could result in the dilution of our ownership interest in Medici Ventures, tZERO and Medici Land Governance in the future. The boards of directors of Medici Land Governance, tZERO and Medici Ventures must consider the interests of all of their stockholders, and the interests of the other stockholders may differ from our interests. Any significant divergence between our interests and the interests of other stockholders, a significant portion of whom are also likely to be employees, of our subsidiaries, could result in disagreements regarding business matters and could have an adverse effect on employee morale and on our business.

Medici Ventures, tZERO and Medici Land Governance have granted compensatory options under their respective stock option plans and warrants have also been sold to purchase Medici Ventures common stock. If all of the currently outstanding Medici Ventures options were vested and exercised and all of the currently outstanding warrants were exercised, our ownership of Medici Ventures would decrease from 100% to 89%.

tZERO has granted compensatory options under its equity incentive plan. If all of the currently outstanding tZERO options were vested and exercised, Medici Ventures' ownership of tZERO would decrease from 80% to 74%.

If all of the currently outstanding Medici Ventures options and warrants and all of the currently outstanding tZERO options were exercised, our effective indirect ownership of tZERO would decrease from 80% to 66%.

Medici Land Governance has granted compensatory options under its equity incentive plan. If all of the currently outstanding Medici Land Governance options were vested and exercised, Medici Ventures' ownership of Medici Land Governance would decrease from 35% to 34%.

If all of the currently outstanding Medici Ventures options and warrants and all of the currently outstanding Medici Land Governance options were exercised, our effective indirect ownership of Medici Land Governance would decrease from 35% to 30%.

We have been and are currently exploring certain strategic initiatives, and decisions we make could change our business fundamentally and increase the risks and uncertainties of our business substantially. We are considering a range of potential transactions, including additional equity or debt financings. There can be no assurance that we will pursue or consummate any strategic transaction or, if consummated, that any such transaction will ultimately be favorable to us or our stockholders. Any such transaction could materially adversely affect our business and financial results. In addition, our exploration of strategic and financing options has required and will continue to require significant time and attention by our management, and the incurrence of significant expenses. Further, our efforts to keep investors informed about our consideration of strategic alternatives may result in distraction and unrest among our employees, which may adversely affect employee engagement, morale and retention and which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

As a consequence of our previous discussions with potential bidders for our retail business, or any future discussions that may arise as a result of our previous efforts, it may be possible for potential bidders to misappropriate intellectual property and other confidential information from us, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business operations and prospects. Our previous efforts to sell our retail business could result in future offers from potential bidders and, if we sell our retail business as a result of any such offer, our revenues would decrease to an insignificant amount and we would become a much smaller company. Consequently, risks relating to our Medici businesses, including our tZERO initiatives, which may currently be immaterial to us, would likely each become material risks to us. See "Additional Risks Relating to our Medici Business," and "Additional Risks Relating to our tZERO Initiatives" below. Our retail business is a relatively mature and predictable business compared to our Medici initiatives, which have a short history, minimal revenues, significant expenses, significant losses and significant uncertainties, and conduct business in a new and rapidly changing industry. We would continue to bear most of the expenses we currently bear as a publicly held company but would have to build a new business and develop new sources of revenue based on our blockchain initiatives, and there is no assurance that we would be able to do so or, even if we could do so, that our new business could become profitable. Further, a sale of our retail business in a taxable transaction could result in a substantial corporate level income tax expense for the Company. If we sell our retail business, at present we do not expect to submit any transaction to a stockholder vote unless we are required to do so, whether by applicable law or otherwise, and we currently expect to retain all of the after-tax proceeds of the sale for use in our blockchain initiatives. If we sell our retail business, the Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors may accelerate the vesting, in whole or in part, of some or all outstanding restricted stock units ("RSUs") under our 2005 Equity Incentive Plan, which would result in an increase in the number of shares outstanding and would dilute stockholders' ownership of our company. As a result of any such actions, the market price of our securities, our business, financial results and prospects could be materially adversely affected.

We have developed strategic relationships, entered into joint ventures, purchased strategic interests in other companies, and acquired other companies, and we expect to pursue and engage in similar types of activities in the future. Each of these types of business transactions involve numerous risks, including difficulties in the evaluation of business opportunities and risks, including regulatory and integration risks, as well as difficulties in the assimilation of acquired operations and products. These types of transactions can also result in the diversion of management's attention from other business matters, employee retention issues, and the risk of liability for liabilities of acquired companies. We may not be able to successfully integrate businesses, operations, personnel, services, products or other assets that we have acquired or may acquire in the future. In addition, as discussed under "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources—Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements", we have a $5 million contingent obligation to provide additional funding in the future to our BSTX joint venture if and when, during the first 48 months after the establishment of the entity, the aggregate cash balance of BSTX's combined bank accounts fall below $2 million for any reason.

Further, acquisitions may also create a need for additional accounting, tax, compliance, documentation, risk management and internal control procedures, and may require us to hire additional personnel to implement, perform and/or monitor such procedures. To the extent our procedures are not adequate to appropriately implement, perform and/or monitor all necessary procedures relating to any new or expanded business, we could be exposed to a material loss or regulatory sanction. We may also recognize impairment charges as a result of future acquisitions. In addition, we may be unable to sell or otherwise monetize any of the interests or companies or other assets or rights we have acquired or may acquire in the future. We also may be unable to maintain our strategic relationships, including those with joint venture partners, or develop new strategic relationships. The occurrence of any of the foregoing which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

We have established a valuation allowance for our net deferred tax assets, primarily due to realized losses and uncertainty regarding our future taxable income. In addition, the transfer of ownership of a significant portion of our outstanding shares of common or preferred stock in the public market or otherwise, by us or by a significant stockholder, within a three-year period could adversely affect our ability to use our net operating losses and tax credit carryforwards to offset future taxable net income. Determining whether a valuation allowance for deferred tax assets is appropriate requires significant judgment and an evaluation of all positive and negative evidence. At each reporting period, we assess the need for, or the sufficiency of, a valuation allowance against deferred tax assets. We intend to maintain a valuation allowance on our net deferred tax assets until there is sufficient evidence to support the reversal of all or some portion of these allowances.

We are currently and may in the future be subject to claims that we have infringed the intellectual property rights of others, by offering allegedly infringing products or otherwise. We have contested and expect to continue to contest claims we consider unfounded rather than settling such claims, even when we expect the costs of contesting the claims to exceed the cost of settlement. Any claims may result in significant expenditure of our financial and managerial resources and may result in us making significant damages or settlement payments or changes to our business. We could be prohibited from using software or business processes, or required to obtain licenses from third parties, which could be expensive or unavailable. Any such difficulties could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Our success depends to a significant degree upon the protection of our software and other proprietary intellectual property rights. We rely on a combination of laws and contractual restrictions with our employees, customers, suppliers, affiliates, and others to establish and protect our proprietary rights, including the law pertaining to trade secrets. Despite these precautions, it may be possible for a third party to copy or otherwise obtain and use our intellectual property or trade secrets without authorization. In addition, we cannot ensure that others will not independently develop similar intellectual property. Third parties have in the past recruited and may in the future recruit our employees who have had access to our proprietary technologies, processes and operations. These recruiting efforts expose us to the risk that such employees and those hiring them will misappropriate and exploit our intellectual property and trade secrets. We may be unable to protect against such risks, in the United States or elsewhere, which could have a material adverse effect on our business. Although we have registered and are pursuing the registration of our key trademarks in the United States and some other countries, some of our trade names may not be eligible to receive registered trademark protection. In addition, effective trademark protection may not be available or we may not seek protection in every country in which we market or sell our products and services, including in the United States. Our competitors might adopt product or service marks like our marks or might try to prevent us from using our marks. Any claim by another party against us, or customer confusion related to our trademarks, or our failure to obtain trademark registration, could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Prior to the Supreme Court's 2018 decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, in which we were a named party, to overturn its 1992 decision in Quill v. North Dakota, we generally did not collect sales or other similar taxes on sales of goods into states where we had no duty to do so under Quill. Some jurisdictions where we did not collect sales or other taxes have asserted that we should have done so, and other jurisdictions could in the future assert that we should have collected sales taxes or other taxes when we did not, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, regardless of the ultimate outcome.

We sell products in international markets. International sales and transactions are subject to inherent risks and challenges that could adversely affect us, including:

Our international business could expose us to penalties for non-compliance with laws applicable to international business and trade, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which could have a material adverse effect on our business. Foreign data protection, privacy and other laws and regulations are different and often more restrictive than those in the United States. Compliance with such laws and regulations will result in additional costs and may necessitate changes to our business practices, which may adversely affect our business. To the extent that we make purchases or sales denominated in foreign currencies, we would have foreign currency risks, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Additional Risks Relating to our tZERO Initiatives

tZERO was formed in 2014 to develop blockchain and financial technology as part of Overstock's Medici initiatives. tZERO's limited operating history and the relative immaturity of the blockchain industry make it difficult to evaluate its current business and future prospects. tZERO has encountered, and will continue to encounter, risks and difficulties frequently experienced by growing companies in rapidly developing and changing industries, including challenges in forecasting accuracy, determining appropriate uses of its limited resources, gaining market acceptance, managing a complex and evolving regulatory landscape and developing new products. tZERO's current or future operating model may require changes in order for it to scale its operations efficiently and be successful. Investors in our common stock should consider tZERO's business and prospects in light of the risks and difficulties it faces as an early-stage company focused on developing products in the field of financial technology.

To date, tZERO has focused primarily on developing its business and exploring novel applications of blockchain technology. This has included developing a suite of technologies which enable the trading of digital securities (the "tZERO Technology Stack") and using this technology to offer products and services to potential issuers of digital securities and regulated market participants. Digital securities are conventional uncertificated securities where the issuer arranges for a digital "courtesy carbon copy" of the transfer agent's share registry to be viewable on the blockchain to enhance the trading experience and may also be referred to as "digitally-enhanced securities". tZERO has generated limited revenue, no meaningful portion of which can be attributed to its commercialization of the tZERO Technology Stack or the support of such issuers and regulated market participants and has accumulated losses since its inception. As such, tZERO has historically been dependent upon continued financial support from us. If we are unable to generate positive cash flow in our retail business, raise additional capital, obtain financing, or sell or otherwise monetize significant assets, we may be unable to continue funding tZERO at the rate or levels we would otherwise do, which could have a material adverse effect on us and on the current and future business of tZERO.

tZERO continues to develop the tZERO Technology Stack and offer it as part of its services to potential issuers of digital securities and regulated market participants. As of December 31, 2019, tZERO has only utilized the tZERO Technology Stack to digitally-enhance the Series A-1 Preferred stock (exchanged from the Series A Preferred stock in May 2019) and TZROP, which are the only digital securities trading on the tZERO ATS. tZERO has been engaged to provide technology services, which will utilize the tZERO Technology Stack, to a select number of other prospective issuers of digital securities but there can be no assurance that tZERO will be engaged to provide these services by additional issuers in the future, that these services, if provided, will be profitable, or that these securities will trade on the tZERO ATS.

Additionally, the tZERO Technology Stack is only utilized by regulated market participants facilitating the trading of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and TZROP. These entities include the tZERO ATS, which is owned by a subsidiary of tZERO, and Dinosaur and ETC. BSTX plans to use the tZERO Technology Stack but is not yet operational and requires regulatory approval before it may begin operations. The trading of digital securities and the technology used by regulated market participants to support the trading of digital securities implicates complex technological considerations and raises numerous legal and regulatory issues that will need to be addressed—likely, in consultation with the regulators of regulated market participants facilitating such trading. As a result of these technological, legal and regulatory considerations, tZERO may not be able to successfully market and commercialize the tZERO Technology Stack to other market participants. If tZERO is unable to successfully market and commercialize the tZERO Technology Stack, tZERO's business plans would be materially adversely affected. See "Risks Related to the Development of the tZERO Technology Stack" below.

The technology on which tZERO and its subsidiaries and licensees rely, including the technology underlying the tZERO Technology Stack and the wallet and exchange services provided by tZERO Crypto, may not function properly, which would have a material adverse effect on tZERO's plans, operations and financial condition. Although the tZERO Technology Stack has worked for the Series A Preferred stock, Series A-1 Preferred stock and TZROP, trading in these securities has been extremely limited, and consequently the tZERO Technology Stack has not been tested with significant trading volume. We could experience a significant increase in trading volume for the Series A-1 Preferred stock once the planned Dividend is distributed, which will stress the tZERO Technology Stack in new ways. Similarly, while tZERO Crypto's technology has proven suitable for its wallet and exchange services mobile application to date, the volume of activity on the application has been limited, and as a result has not been tested at scale. tZERO and its subsidiaries' technology may malfunction because of errors in the underlying technology, an unanticipated increase in transactions using the technology or as a result of cyber-attacks or external security breaches. If tZERO or its subsidiaries' technology does not work as anticipated or malfunctions, any resolution of the issue may take time and be costly to implement or there may be no solution or alternative technology available. The importance of this technology to tZERO's operations means that any problems in its functionality would have a direct materially adverse effect on tZERO's plans and expectations for revenues from its blockchain applications and expose it to material loss. Any such technological problems could have a material adverse effect on tZERO's prospects, operations and financial condition and a material adverse effect on us.

tZERO Markets, LLC ("tZERO Markets") was formed in May 2019 to offer certain brokerage (including for retail customers), investment banking, placement agent and best-efforts underwriting services for traditional equities and digital securities. tZERO Markets has applied for regulatory approval, including by filing a Form BD and New Member Application with FINRA, and is in correspondence with the relevant regulators, to permit it to offer such services.

We believe that digital securities should be treated as any other conventional, uncertificated book-entry security. However, various regulators may disagree with this assertion and conclude that the digital securities should not be treated as a traditional investment security. For example, we do not believe that tZERO Markets will offer brokerage services with respect to any "digital asset securities" within the meaning of the July 8, 2019 Joint Staff Statement on Broker-Dealer Custody of Digital Asset Securities. However, federal securities regulatory authorities may disagree with that conclusion and tZERO Markets could be required to take further steps with regulators to obtain approval to start business operations. Additionally, tZERO's other broker-dealer subsidiaries are subject to investigations by the SEC and FINRA, which may indirectly impact tZERO Markets' regulatory approvals. As a result, there may be delay in the receipt of the regulatory approvals tZERO Markets requires to operate, if they are received at all. In the event tZERO Markets is not able to receive the regulatory approvals it requires to provide the services it intends or there is significant delay in tZERO Markets' receipt of such approvals it may be

Broker-dealers are subject to extensive regulatory requirements under federal and state laws and regulations and self-regulatory organization ("SRO") rules. tZERO ATS, LLC and SpeedRoute, which currently generate substantially all of tZERO's revenues, are registered with the SEC as broker‑dealers under the Exchange Act and in the states in which they conduct securities business and are members, and subject to the rules, of FINRA, and other SROs (as applicable). In addition, tZERO ATS, LLC owns and operates the tZERO ATS, an SEC-registered alternative trading system. tZERO ATS, LLC and SpeedRoute are subject to regulation, examination, investigation and disciplinary action by the SEC, FINRA and state securities regulators, as well as other governmental authorities and SROs with which they are registered or licensed or of which they are a member.

tZERO Markets has applied for regulatory approvals to allow it to conduct certain brokerage and investment banking activities, including certain activities which tZERO's other broker-dealer subsidiaries have not historically provided, in particular by providing broker-dealer services to retail investors. If these approvals are received, tZERO Markets will become a registered broker-dealer under the Exchange Act and a member of FINRA and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation and will be subject to regulation, examination, investigation and disciplinary action by the SEC, FINRA and state securities regulators, as well as other governmental authorities and SROs with which it becomes registered or licensed or of which it becomes a member. In addition, because tZERO Markets intends to provide broker-dealer services that tZERO's other broker-dealer subsidiaries have not historically provided, in particular by providing broker-dealer services to retail investors, certain of these legal and regulatory requirements will be new to tZERO. We expect that federal and state securities regulators will require enhanced supervision, compliance and control procedures for tZERO Markets as a result of servicing retail investors, and that such requirements will be more expensive to establish, implement and maintain than those for tZERO ATS, LLC and SpeedRoute.

tZERO's broker-dealer subsidiaries, tZERO ATS, LLC and SpeedRoute, and tZERO have been and remain involved in ongoing oral and written communications with regulatory authorities in connection with ongoing examinations, inquiries, or investigations, which may result in trading halts on the tZERO ATS and financial and other settlements or penalties. Additionally, on December 9, 2019, we received a subpoena from the SEC requesting documents related to, among other things, the tZERO ATS. Any failure of tZERO or its broker-dealers to satisfy FINRA, the SEC, or any other regulatory authority that they are in compliance with all applicable rules and regulations could have a material adverse effect on tZERO's operations and financial condition and a material adverse effect on us.

Due to our ownership percentages of both tZERO common stock and TZROP, we own less than the required percentage to file a federal consolidated income tax return. tZERO therefore files a separate federal tax return from the rest of our U.S. domestic operations, and as a result, certain tax attributes, such as federal net operating losses and tax credits, generated by tZERO are not available to offset taxable income generated by the rest of our U.S. domestic operations, and vice versa. Additionally, among other gating factors, our ownership percentage is also currently below the level required to conduct a tax-free spin-off of tZERO, and therefore, at this time we do not believe that a tax-free spin-off of the tZERO business is a viable option.

tZERO and BOX Digital have entered into a joint venture intended to develop a national securities exchange facility of BOX Exchange LLC ("BSTX") that would facilitate the trading of a type of digital security called a security token that would utilize the tZERO Technology Stack. The SEC published proposed rule changes relating to BSTX on October 11, 2019, soliciting public comments thereon. The SEC extended the review period on November 29, 2019 and the SEC again extended the review period on January 16, 2020. In addition, a subsequent amendment was filed by BOX Exchange LLC on February 19, 2020.

    

The application of federal securities law and other bodies of law to assets enhanced by blockchain technology is subject to significant uncertainty and likely to rapidly evolve as government agencies take greater interest in them. As a result, there may be delay in the receipt of the regulatory approvals BSTX requires to operate, if they are received at all. In the event BSTX is not able to receive the regulatory approvals it requires to begin operations or there is significant delay in BSTX's receipt of such approvals it may be forced to revise its anticipated operations. Any such revision could have a material adverse effect on tZERO's operations and financial condition and a material adverse effect on us.

tZERO and its subsidiaries are subject to a variety of laws and regulations in the United States and abroad that involve matters central to its business, including user privacy, data protection and intellectual property, among others. Foreign data protection, privacy, and other laws and regulations are often more restrictive than those in the United States. These U.S. federal and state and foreign laws and regulations are constantly evolving and can be subject to significant change. In addition, the application and interpretation of these laws and regulations are often uncertain, particularly in the new and rapidly evolving industry in which tZERO and its subsidiaries operate.

tZERO and its subsidiaries have adopted policies and procedures they believe are appropriate to comply with these laws. The growth of their respective businesses and expansion outside of the United States may increase the potential of violating these laws or its internal policies and procedures. The risk of being found in violation of these or other laws and regulations is further increased by the fact that many of these have not been fully interpreted by the regulatory authorities or the courts and are open to a variety of interpretations. Any action brought against tZERO or its subsidiaries for violation of these or other laws or regulations, even if tZERO or its subsidiaries successfully defend against it, could cause tZERO or any of its subsidiaries to incur significant legal expenses and divert its management's attention from the operation of its business. If its operations are found to be in violation of any of these laws and regulations, it may be subject to any applicable penalty associated with the violation, including civil and criminal penalties, damages and fines, it could be required to refund payments received by it, and it could be required to curtail or cease its operations. Any of the foregoing consequences could seriously harm tZERO's or any of its subsidiaries' business and their financial results. These existing and proposed laws and regulations can be costly to comply with and can delay or impede the development of new products, result in negative publicity, increase tZERO's or any of its subsidiaries' operating costs, require significant management time and attention, and subject any of them to claims or other remedies, including fines or demands that they modify or cease existing business practices.

The ability of tZERO to operate its businesses, including its efforts to develop and market the tZERO Technology Stack, may depend on technology and intellectual property rights that tZERO may license from unaffiliated third parties. If for

We believe that a number of organizations are or may be working to develop applications for distributed ledger or blockchain technologies or other novel technologies in the financial industry or capital markets that may facilitate or enhance the experience of trading securities or other financial assets that may be competitive with tZERO's own technology, including its patented technology. As the blockchain industry matures, tZERO expects that larger existing companies in the financial services and technology industries may compete with it in providing technological solutions related to the capital markets or other potential areas of business tZERO may enter. Such competitors may develop technology for the trading of securities which may or may not utilize blockchain technology which may provide a more attractive trading solution than tZERO may be able to provide. Any or all of them may also compete with tZERO now or in the near future for the time and attention of regulators and for the services of persons with the expertise it needs. Some or all of such organizations may have substantially greater technological expertise, experience with blockchain technologies or the capital markets and/or financial resources than tZERO or Overstock has, and many of them appear to be attempting to patent technologies that may be competitive with or similar to the technology tZERO has developed and patented. tZERO does not have access to detailed information about the technologies these organizations may be attempting to patent. If other persons, companies or organizations obtain a valid patent covering technology critical to tZERO's business, tZERO, issuers of digital securities or regulated market participants that need the relevant technology in order to operate as intended might be unable or unwilling to license the technology, and it could become impossible for tZERO to successfully develop or market the tZERO Technology Stack, which could have a material adverse effect on tZERO's operations and financial condition and a material adverse effect on us.  

The business of tZERO's subsidiary tZERO Crypto, Inc. ("tZERO Crypto"), formerly known as Bitsy, Inc., is a mobile application that allows consumers to buy, sell and hold supported cryptocurrencies. Various aspects of the business that tZERO Crypto is engaging in are heavily regulated. Both the federal government and virtually every state in the U.S. regulates money transmitters and money services businesses. In some states, the licensing requirements and regulations expressly cover companies engaged in digital currency activities; in certain other states it is not clear whether or how the existing laws and regulations apply to digital currency activities. tZERO Crypto is applying for licenses to operate as a money transmitter (or its equivalent), as required, and has obtained such licenses in many states and territories. tZERO Crypto has also registered with FinCEN. There can be no assurance that tZERO Crypto will be able to obtain money transmitter licenses on a timely basis in all states where they have not already been obtained, that they will be obtained at all, or that it will be able to retain such licenses over time as its business or applicable law and regulation evolve, which may limit the services tZERO Crypto is able to offer in certain jurisdictions or require potential product changes.

As a money transmitter (or equivalent) licensed in multiple states and territories and due to its registration with FinCEN, tZERO Crypto is subject to obligations and restrictions with respect to various anti-money laundering, know-your-customer, record-keeping, reporting, capital and bonding requirements, limitations on the investment of customer funds, and examination and inspection by state and federal regulatory agencies. Regulations relating to money transmission and cryptocurrencies are evolving quickly and compliance with existing and evolving requirements requires the dedication of significant resources by tZERO Crypto. As a result, in the event tZERO Crypto was unable to comply with, or dedicate the resources necessary to comply with all rules and regulations or satisfy state and federal regulatory authorities with which it must comply, tZERO Crypto may be subject to additional liability, including governmental fines, restrictions on its business, or other sanctions, and it could be forced to cease conducting certain aspects of its business with residents of certain jurisdictions, be forced to otherwise change it business practices in certain jurisdictions, or be required to obtain additional licenses or regulatory approvals.

Any failure of tZERO Crypto to comply with all applicable rules and regulations or satisfy state or federal regulatory authorities with which it must comply could have a material adverse effect on tZERO's operations and financial condition and a material adverse effect on us.

Certain of tZERO's businesses store and transmit user's proprietary information (or may do so in the future) and create technology, including the tZERO Technology Stack, which is involved in third-parties' storage and transmission of users' proprietary information. As a result, tZERO's businesses may be the subject of security breaches, computer malware and other computer hacking attacks which could expose it to a risk of loss or misuse of this information, and to resulting claims, fines, and litigation. tZERO has experienced cyberattacks and believes its systems are probed by potential hackers on a daily basis. tZERO expects the problem will continue to grow worse over time. Cyber-attacks may also target tZERO's customers or third-parties and other services on which tZERO or its customers depend on. In the event such cyber-attacks target customers utilizing tZERO's technology they may attempt to identify and exploit weaknesses in tZERO's technology to conduct a cyber-attack.

 

Security breaches and cyber-attacks are also of particular concern to businesses, like tZERO Crypto, that directly interact with cryptocurrencies. While tZERO Crypto wallet users hold their cryptocurrency directly on their mobile devices (as opposed to being held in custody by tZERO Crypto), tZERO Crypto holds a limited cryptocurrency inventory on hand to facilitate its exchange services and has access to customer information. As a result, tZERO Crypto is subject to an increased risk of cyber-attacks, which could result in loss of cryptocurrency, unauthorized access to customer information and the resulting legal or financial exposures or the unexpected unavailability of tZERO Crypto's services.

Any compromise of tZERO's security or that of a third-party involving tZERO's technology could result in a violation of applicable privacy and other laws, and cause significant financial loss, legal fines and other legal exposure, damage to tZERO's reputation, and a loss of confidence in the maturity of tZERO's security program and tZERO's ability to implement security measures on par with its peers; further, a compromise of tZERO's security could reduce market participants' willingness to adopt and regularly use its technology (including the tZERO Technology Stack), any of which could have a material adverse effect on tZERO and our financial position and business.

The tZERO Technology Stack and other core technology used for tZERO's operations, have been or will be, as applicable, developed primarily by a small number of key technology employees of tZERO and its affiliates. This includes technology used for the operation of the regulated trading venues tZERO supports, including the tZERO ATS. The loss of the services of any of those key employees could have a material adverse effect on the ability of tZERO to develop, operate or maintain the tZERO Technology Stack or other technology used for tZERO's operations. If tZERO were to lose the services of any such key employees, it could be difficult or impossible to replace them, and the loss of any of them could have a material adverse effect on tZERO's operations and financial condition.

tZERO's business largely depends on the talents and efforts of highly skilled individuals, particularly those with technology, operational and regulatory backgrounds. tZERO's future success will depend on its continuing ability to identify, hire, develop, motivate, and retain highly skilled personnel. Without such individuals, tZERO may not have or may not be able to obtain the skills or expertise needed to successfully develop, maintain and implement the tZERO Technology Stack or its other initiatives. In addition, its compensation arrangements, such as its equity award program, may not always be successful in attracting new employees and retaining and motivating its existing employees, which would affect its future success. Any failure by tZERO to hire, retain or motivate qualified personnel would materially adversely affect tZERO's business and us.

To date, the primary source of revenue for SpeedRoute and tZERO ATS, LLC has been two major customers, making SpeedRoute and tZERO ATS, LLC vulnerable to changes in the business and financial condition of, or demand for services by,

tZERO has developed the DLR Software, which is intended to enable broker-dealer licensees with stock inventory to create a blockchain-based record of the shares that the licensee has made available for "locates" and of the daily purchases of the right to "locate" specifically identified shares for purposes of compliance with regulatory requirements. tZERO is temporarily postponing the further commercialization of the DLR Software as it focuses on other blockchain applications but may, in the future, resume commercialization thereof.

In the event tZERO were to recommence commercializing the DLR Software, its viability would be dependent on whether the DLR Software would be effective at satisfying regulatory obligations of those effecting short sales, which is currently uncertain. Confirming this regulatory compliance is the responsibility of broker-dealer licensees using the DLR Software, however, tZERO may be required to expend significant resources to assist licensees in doing so. Additionally, the existing system which the DLR Software is meant to replace is firmly entrenched and it would require the devotion of significant resources to persuade market participants to transition to the DLR Software. As a result, there can be no assurance that tZERO will choose to recommence commercialization of the DLR Software or that if it wishes to do so, that it will be successful in doing so, either due to the regulatory uncertainty relating to the DLR Software or due to a lack of sufficient resources available to tZERO at such time.

From time to time tZERO has engaged in strategic transactions, including acquisitions, strategic investments and partnerships and divestitures, and may do so again in the future. Many of tZERO's businesses and the counterparties with which it may engage in transactions with are heavily regulated which may complexify such strategic transactions. The identification, evaluation, and negotiation of potential strategic transactions may divert the attention of management and require the incurrence of significant expenses, whether or not such transactions are ultimately completed. We also may not achieve the anticipated benefits from such transactions due to a number of factors, including difficulties resulting from the integration or separation of technologies, accounting or other operational systems, culture or personnel involved in any acquisition or divestment; diversion of management's attention; litigation; prioritization of resources; regulatory constraints or other disruptions to tZERO's operations. Also, the anticipated benefits of such strategic transactions may not materialize or increase tZERO's revenue. If any strategic transaction fails to meet tZERO's expectations, tZERO's business may be materially and adversely effected, which could have a material adverse effect on us.

As part of the TZROP offering, we elected to accept TZROP in payment of $30 million of tZERO's indebtedness to us. As an affiliate of the issuer, we may only resell the TZROP we hold under certain circumstances, and are therefore subject to all of the risks of holding TZROP, including the risk that we will be unable to resell any TZROP. We do not have any contractual

Companies with total assets above $10 million and more than 2,000 holders of record of their equity securities, or 500 holders of record of its equity securities who are not accredited investors, at the end of their fiscal year must register the subject class of equity securities with the SEC under the Exchange Act. If tZERO is required to register TZROP with the SEC under the Exchange Act, it would be a laborious and expensive process and require a substantial portion of tZERO management's attention. Furthermore, if such registration takes place, tZERO would be subject to ongoing public reporting requirements and require additional accounting, tax, compliance, documentation, risk management and internal control procedures, necessitating the need for tZERO to hire additional personnel to implement, perform and/or monitor such procedures and creating materially higher compliance and reporting costs going forward.

Depending on the particular digital security and regulated trading venues on which a security would trade, numerous regulatory authorities, including FINRA and the SEC, may need to be consulted or provide their consent before any trading could occur. Any such regulatory authorities could prevent such trading from ever occurring if they objected to aspects of the anticipated method in which such trading would occur, including how the tZERO Technology Stack would be used and whether such regulated trading venues are permitted to trade digital securities. Applicable legal or regulatory requirements or authorities may also require changes to the manner in which such trading might occur before to permitting it to occur, which may require tZERO to make changes to the underlying technology for specific licensees or more broadly before trading may begin. The regulatory landscape that potential issuers and tZERO ATS and other regulated market participants involved in the trading of digital securities and their partners, need to navigate in order to successfully permit a digital security to begin trading is complex, and there can be no assurance that they will successfully do so. Assisting partners in addressing such considerations may require significant time and resources from tZERO both in navigating any legal and regulatory concerns or adapting the tZERO Technology Stack in a way that realizes the requirements of the particular digital security or regulated market participant.

Any such regulatory issues may limit the commercial viability of tZERO's business, including the tZERO Technology Stack and regulated trading venues trading digital securities which tZERO has an interest in or its subsidiaries operate, which would have a material adverse impact on tZERO's business and could have a material adverse effect on us.

It is possible that digital securities will not be used by a large number of issuers or investors or tradeable on many regulated trading venues (or venues with sufficient market participants) or that there will be limited public interest in the continued creation and development of digital securities. Additionally, it is possible that other technology for the trading of securities which may or may not utilize blockchain technology will be developed or receive greater public interest, competing with or limiting demand for digital securities. Such a lack of use or interest could negatively impact the continued development and commercialization of the tZERO Technology Stack and the growth of the tZERO ATS trading ecosystem and have a material adverse effect on the business and financial position of tZERO and have a material adverse effect on us.

Many participants in the system currently used for trading public securities in the United States may oppose the development of capital markets systems and processes that involve the use of blockchain technology, whether by permitting trading to occur directly on the blockchain or by adding digital courtesy carbon copies such as those used by digital securities. The market participants who may oppose such a system may include entities with significantly greater resources, including financial resources and political influence, than tZERO or we have. The ability of tZERO to operate and achieve its commercial goals could be adversely affected by any actions of any such market participants that result in additional regulatory requirements or other activities that make it more difficult for tZERO to operate could adversely affect tZERO's ability to achieve its commercial goals, which could have a material adverse effect on us.

Certain of tZERO's businesses transact directly in peer-to-peer digital assets while others intend to advance existing industries by promoting the integration of blockchain technologies, either by creating technology to enable or investing in regulated venues to enable the issuance, trading, clearance and settlement of digital securities. The application of blockchain technologies to the legal and regulatory regimes applicable to these businesses, many of which were developed for earlier technologies, is often unclear and varies significantly among international, federal, state and local jurisdiction. Such legal and regulatory regimes are also likely to rapidly evolve as legislators and regulatory authorities take greater interest in blockchain technology.

Various legislative and executive bodies in the United States and in other countries may in the future adopt laws, regulations, or guidance, or take other actions, which may severely impact the adoption of blockchain technologies. Additionally, in the future, tZERO expects to evolve its focus towards the advancement of financial industry through the

The growth of blockchain technology and the blockchain industry in general, as well as the specific blockchain networks which peer-to-peer digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and assets enhanced by blockchain technology, including digital securities such as TZROP, utilize, is subject to a high degree of uncertainty. The factors affecting the further development and acceptance of blockchain technology and the growth of the blockchain industry include, without limitation:

The blockchain industry as a whole has been characterized by rapid changes and innovations and are constantly evolving. Although it has experienced significant growth in recent years, the slowing or stopping of the development, general acceptance and adoption and usage of blockchain networks, peer-to-peer digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and assets enhanced by blockchain technology such as digital securities may materially adversely affect tZERO's business plans.

The prices of peer-to-peer digital assets, such as Bitcoin and Ether, and digital securities, including TZROP, have historically been subject to dramatic price fluctuations and are highly volatile. A fluctuation in the price of a single peer-to-peer digital asset or digital security may cause volatility in the value of such assets generally or a subset thereof. For example, a security breach that affects confidence and causes price fluctuations in Bitcoin or Ether may affect market perception of blockchain technology and may discourage potential investors from investing in or utilizing all peer-to-peer digital assets. Even though digital securities are conventional, uncertificated book-entry securities, investors may perceive them to be part of the same asset class as peer-to-peer digital assets due to their enhancement with a digital "courtesy carbon copy" of the transfer agent's share registry, and the price volatility of peer-to-peer digital assets may thereby affect investor perception of and demand for digital securities. This volatility may adversely affect interest in and demand for cryptocurrencies, such as those tZERO Crypto provides wallet and exchange services for, or digital securities which the tZERO Technology Stack is meant to enable and which trade on regulated venues tZERO invests in, each of which would materially adversely affect tZERO's business and us.

Additionally, tZERO Crypto holds a limited amount of cryptocurrency in an inventory to facilitate purchases and sales of cryptocurrency with its customers which have historically been subject to dramatic fluctuations and are highly volatile. This may subject tZERO Crypto to cryptocurrency price volatility risk which may materially adversely affect its financial condition.

Additional Risks Relating to our Retail Business

We are completely dependent on our infrastructure and on the availability, reliability and security of the Internet and related systems. A substantial amount of our computer and communications hardware is located at a single Overstock owned and operated facility. Our systems and operations are vulnerable to damage or interruption from fire, flood, power loss, telecommunications failure, terrorist attacks, cyber-attacks, acts of war, break-ins, earthquake and similar events. Our back-up facility is not adequate to support sales at a high level. Our servers and applications are vulnerable to malware, physical or electronic break-ins and other disruptions, the occurrence of any of which could lead to interruptions, delays, loss of critical data or the inability to accept and fulfill customer orders. Any system interruption that results in the unavailability of our Website or our mobile app or reduced performance of our transaction systems could interrupt or substantially reduce our ability to conduct our business. We have experienced periodic systems interruptions due to server failure, application failure, power failure and intentional cyber-attacks in the past, and may experience additional interruptions or failures in the future. Any failure or impairment of our infrastructure or of the availability of the Internet or related systems could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects. In addition, the occurrence of any event that would adversely affect e-commerce or discourage or prevent consumers from shopping online or via mobile apps could significantly decrease the volume of our retail sales.

We rely on paid and unpaid natural search engines to attract consumer interest in our product offerings, including Google, Bing, and Yahoo!. Changes to their ranking algorithms may further adversely affect our product offerings in paid and/or unpaid searches, and we may at times be subject to ranking penalties if the operators of search engines believe we are not in compliance with their guidelines. Search engine companies change their natural search engine algorithms periodically, and our ranking in natural searches may be adversely affected by those changes, as has occurred from time to time, and which have led us to pursue revenue growth in other more expensive marketing channels. Google's search engine is dominant in our business and has historically been a significant source of traffic to our website, much of it at essentially no incremental cost to us. Search engine companies may also determine that we are not in compliance with their guidelines from time to time, as has occurred in the past, and they may penalize us in their search algorithms as a result. In recent years, we have experienced declines in our rankings in Google's natural search engine, which has required us to utilize more expensive marketing channels or otherwise compensate for the loss of some of the natural search traffic. Any future declines in our rankings in Google's natural search engine could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We depend on effective marketing and high customer traffic. We depend on email to promote our site and offerings and to generate a substantial portion of our revenue. If a significant portion of our target customers no longer utilize email, or if we are unable to effectively and economically deliver email to our potential customers, whether for legal, regulatory or other reasons, it would have a material adverse effect on our business. We also rely on social networking messaging services for marketing purposes, and anything that limits our ability or our customers' ability or desire to utilize social networking services could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition to competing with us for customers, suppliers, and employees, our competitors have and may continue to directly increase our operating costs, by driving up the cost of various forms of online advertising. We may elect to decrease our use of sponsored search or other forms of marketing from time to time in order to decrease our costs, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial results and business. We may also elect to spend additional amounts on sponsored search or other forms of marketing from time to time in order to increase traffic to our Website, or to take other actions to increase traffic and/or conversion. If we are unable to develop, improve, implement and maintain effective and efficient cost-effective advertising and marketing programs, it would have a material adverse effect on our financial results and business.

Our business involves the storage and transmission of users' proprietary information, and security breaches could expose us to a risk of loss or misuse of this information, and to resulting claims, fines, and litigation. We have been subjected to a variety of cyber-attacks, which have increased in number and variety over time. We believe our systems are probed by potential hackers virtually 24/7, and we expect the problem will continue to grow worse over time. Cyber-attacks may target us,

The online retail market is evolving rapidly and intensely competitive. Barriers to entry are minimal, and current and new competitors can launch new websites at a relatively low cost. We currently compete with numerous competitors, including:

We expect that existing and future traditional manufacturers and retailers will continue to add or improve their e-commerce offerings, and that our existing and future e-commerce competitors, including Amazon, will continue to increase their offerings, their delivery capabilities, and the ways in which they enable shoppers to purchase goods, including their mobile technology and the voice-activated shopping services offered by Amazon. Further, large marketplace websites and sites which aggregate marketplace sellers with a large product selection are becoming increasingly popular, and we may not be able to place our products on these sites to take advantage of their internal search platforms and some shoppers may begin their searches at these websites rather than utilize traditional search engines at all. Many of our competitors specialize in one or more of the areas in which we offer products. For example, our furniture offerings compete with more than 100 online retail furniture websites, in addition to many more traditional furniture retail specialists. Some of our competitors run at net losses to gain market share in the online retail market. We also face competition from shopping services such as Google Express, which offers products from Walmart, Costco, Target and other retailers on a voice-activated shopping platform. Competition from Amazon and from other competitors, many of whom have longer operating histories, larger customer bases, greater brand recognition, greater access to capital and significantly greater financial, marketing and other resources than we do, affect us and have had and could continue to have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

We have expanded, contracted and otherwise modified our warehouse, distribution centers and customer service operations from time to time in the past, and expect that we will continue to do so. If we do not successfully optimize and operate our warehouse, distribution centers and customer service operations, it could significantly limit our ability to meet customer demand, customer shipping or return time expectations, or result in excessive costs and expenses for the size of our business. Because it is difficult to predict demand, we may not be able to manage our facilities in an optimal way, which may result in excess or insufficient inventory or warehousing capacity. We may also fail to staff our fulfillment and customer service centers at optimal levels. Our failure to manage our warehouse operations, distribution centers or our fulfillment and customer service centers optimally could adversely affect our financial results and customer experience and could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

We depend on third-party companies, including a large number of independent fulfillment partners whose products we offer for sale on our Website, to perform functions critical to our ability to deliver products and services to our customers. We depend on our fulfillment partners to perform traditional retail operations such as maintaining inventory, preparing merchandise for shipment to our customers and delivering purchased merchandise on a timely basis. We also depend on the delivery services that we and they utilize, on the payment processors that facilitate our customers' payments for their purchases, and on other third parties over which we have no control, for the operation of our business. Difficulties with any of our significant fulfillment partners, delivery services, payment processors or other third parties involved in our business, regardless of the reason, could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

We rely on our suppliers' and fulfillment partners' representations of product safety, content and quality. We also rely on our suppliers and partners to ensure proper labelling of products. Issues or concerns regarding product safety, labelling, content or quality could result in consumer or governmental claims and could adversely affect our financial results and business. Any indemnity agreement we may have with a supplier or partner of a product may be inadequate or inapplicable, and any insurance coverage we may carry may be inadequate. Even unsuccessful claims could result in the expenditure of funds and management time and could have a negative impact on our business. The occurrence of any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

In 2014, we began accepting bitcoin as a form of payment for purchases on our website. Neither bitcoin nor any of the other cryptocurrencies we may hold are considered legal tender or backed by any government, and bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies we may hold have experienced price volatility, technological glitches and various law enforcement and regulatory interventions. The use of cryptocurrency such as bitcoin has been prohibited or effectively prohibited in some countries. If we fail to comply with regulations or prohibitions applicable to us, we could face regulatory or other enforcement actions and potential fines and other consequences. Our Board of Directors has authorized us to retain, in bitcoin, up to 50% of our sales revenues paid for by customers in bitcoin. From time to time we hold bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies directly, and we have exchange rate risk on the amounts we hold as well as the risks that regulatory or other developments may adversely affect the value of the cryptocurrencies we hold. We may choose not to hedge or may be unable to fully hedge our exposure to cryptocurrencies and may at times be unable to convert cryptocurrencies to U.S. dollars. If any regulatory authority asserts that we require a license or other regulatory approval to conduct business or own an interest in other businesses involving cryptocurrencies, it could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and business.

The types, coverage, or the amounts of any insurance coverage we may carry from time to time may not be adequate to compensate us for any losses we may actually incur in the operation of our business. Further, any insurance we may desire to purchase may not be available to us on terms we find acceptable or at all. We are not indemnified by all of our suppliers, and any indemnification rights we may have may not be enforceable or adequate to cover actual losses we may incur as a result of our sales of their products. Actual losses for which we are not insured or indemnified, or which exceed our insurance coverage or the capacity of our indemnitors or our ability to enforce our indemnity agreements, could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Beginning January 1, 2017, we are partially self-insured with respect to our employees' health insurance, except to the extent of stop-loss coverage that limits our losses both on a per employee basis and an aggregate basis. The actual costs of our employees' health insurance claims could exceed our estimates of those costs for a number of reasons, including more claims or larger claims than we expect, and increases in the costs of healthcare generally. If the actual cost of our employees' health insurance claims and related expenses exceeds the amounts we have accrued, we may be required to record additional charges for these claims and/or to establish additional cash reserves, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Additional Risks Relating to our Medici Business

Pursuant to equity incentive plans entered into by our subsidiaries, Medici Ventures, tZERO and Medici Land Governance, upon a "change in control" (as defined in the plans), outstanding equity awards that were issued under such plans would be subject to acceleration, vesting, and/or the lapsing of applicable restrictions on such awards. For purposes of the relevant tZERO plan, a "change in control" includes Overstock and any entity or entities directly or indirectly controlled by Overstock ceasing to be the legal or beneficial owner of a majority of the total voting power of the outstanding stock of tZERO. As a result, a sale of a number of shares by tZERO that would result in Overstock owning less than a majority of the total voting of the outstanding stock of tZERO would result in the acceleration of the vesting of the awards granted by tZERO. Further, the exercise of a sufficient number of outstanding equity awards issued under such plans could constitute a "change of control" as defined in such plan and thereby cause the accelerated vesting of unvested awards.

Our subsidiary Medici Ventures has formed Medici Land Governance, Inc. ("MLG") as a public benefit corporation under Delaware law. Directors of traditional corporations, including Overstock and Medici Ventures, are required to make decisions they believe to be in the best interests of their stockholders. The directors of MLG are required by Delaware law to manage MLG in a manner that balances (1) MLG stockholders' pecuniary interests, (2) the best interests of those materially

Subsidiaries of Medici Ventures, including MLG, are in the early stages of their business and do not generate profits. Many of MLG's current projects are being done as pilot projects without charge, at MLG's expense, to demonstrate MLG's capabilities and develop its reputation. Although MLG intends to generate profits in the future, it has not done so to date. If subsidiaries of Medici Ventures, including MLG, cannot generate profits, such subsidiaries might require additional capital, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

Medici Ventures has acquired interests in various businesses, including financial technology companies, broker-dealers, and digital currency transfer and payment businesses. We have limited experience with the operation of such businesses. Virtually every state in the U.S. regulates money transmitters and money service businesses. In some states the licensing requirements and regulations expressly cover companies engaged in digital currency activities; in other states it is not clear whether or how the existing laws and regulations apply to digital currency activities. Further, U.S. federal law requires registration of most such businesses with FinCEN. These licenses and registrations subject companies to various anti-money laundering, know-your-customer, record-keeping, reporting and capital and bonding requirements, limitations on the investment of customer funds, and inspection by state and federal regulatory agencies. Under U.S. federal law, it is a crime for a person, entity or business that is required to be registered with FinCEN or licensed in any state to fail to do so. Further, under U.S. federal law, anyone who owns all or part of an unlicensed money transmitting business may be subject to civil and criminal penalties. For example, if Bitt, Spera, Ripio, or FinClusive take any action that could subject them to registration with FinCEN or to licensing requirements in any state before they become properly licensed and registered, we could be subject to potential civil and criminal penalties. In addition, our majority-owned subsidiary tZERO is working on financial applications of blockchain technology, including the development and management of a trading platform for digital "tokens," "coins," and digital securities. See "Additional Risks Relating to our tZERO Initiatives" below. These areas, along with other areas, are areas in which we do not have substantial experience, and which are subject to the risks of new and novel businesses, including technical, operational, financial, regulatory, legal and reputational risks, as well as the risk that we may be unable to market, license or sell our technology successfully or profitably. The occurrence of any such risks, any such penalties, or even allegations of criminal or civil misconduct, could have a material adverse effect on us and on our financial results and business.

At December 31, 2019, Overstock and its subsidiaries held minority interests totaling approximately $52.4 million in several companies that are in the startup or development stages and we may acquire additional minority interests in other entities in the future. Minority interests are inherently risky because we may not have the ability to influence business decisions. Further, these interests are inherently risky because the markets for the technologies or products these companies are developing are typically in the early stages and may never materialize. Additionally, since these interests are in companies that are in the early startup or development stages, even if their technology or products are viable, they may not be able to obtain the capital or resources necessary to successfully bring their technology or products to market. Furthermore, we have no assurance that the technology or products of companies we have funded would be successful, even if they were brought to market. We have written off amounts related to these interests in the past and may in the future write off additional amounts related to these interests. Any such write-offs could be material and could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and business.

The market for products and services based on blockchain technology is characterized by rapid technological change, frequent product and service innovation and evolving industry standards. The success of our Medici initiatives depends on several factors, including the timely completion, introduction and market acceptance of such products and services, as well as

Blockchain related products and services, in particular cryptocurrencies, have the potential to be used for financial crimes or other illegal activities. Because the Medici initiatives are novel there are uncertainties regarding any legal and regulatory requirements for preventing blockchain related products and services from being put to such uses, and there are uncertainties regarding the liabilities and risks to the Company if we are unable to prevent such uses. Even if we comply with all laws and regulations regarding financial and blockchain related products and services, we have no ability to ensure that our customers, partners or others to whom we license or sell our products and services comply with all laws and regulations applicable to them and their transactions. Any negative publicity we receive regarding any allegations of unlawful uses of our Medici initiatives could damage our reputation. More generally, any negative publicity regarding unlawful uses of blockchain technology in the marketplace could reduce the demand for our products and services. The occurrence of any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and business.

Risks Relating to Our Common Stock and Other Securities

The trading prices of our common stock and other securities have been and may continue to be volatile. Our stock price fluctuations may be due in part to short-selling activity related to our common stock. The practice of short-selling activity may adversely affect our common stock price, which in turn could adversely affect our ability to raise capital and could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

The trading prices of our common stock and other securities have been and may continue to be volatile. Our stock price fluctuations may be due in part to our disclosures about our exploration of strategic initiatives. Our stock price may be adversely affected by our future actions, including any decisions we may make or announcements to pursue or not to pursue such strategic initiatives, and by any announcements we may make regarding any such matters, any of which could cause the trading prices of our securities to decrease significantly which in turn could adversely affect our ability to raise capital and could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

The trading prices of our securities may be affected by the prices of cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, which may be the result of an apparent misperception that the value of our business is related to the value of Bitcoin, despite our disclosures that we generally hold very little Bitcoin. The market price of our securities may also be affected by perceptions regarding the business prospects of our Medici business and blockchain technology generally. To the extent that our blockchain initiatives do not succeed in a timely manner or at all, or the development or acceptance of blockchain networks, blockchain assets or blockchain applications slows or stops, the trading prices of our securities could decrease significantly, which in turn could adversely affect our ability to raise capital and could have a material adverse effect on our financial results, business and prospects.

A small number of our stockholders own a significant percentage of our common stock. In the past, our former executive officer and director Dr. Patrick Byrne owned a significant amount of our common stock that he sold in September of 2019, and which sale had an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock and increased the risk that we may trigger a limitation on our ability to use our net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards in the future. According to public filings with the SEC, at December 31, 2019, a small number of institutional investors were beneficial owners of significant percentages of our common stock. Sales by any of such stockholders could have a material adverse effect on the market prices of our common stock and/or preferred stock. In addition, the transfer of ownership of a significant portion of our outstanding shares of common or preferred stock in the public market or otherwise, by us or by a significant stockholder, within a three-year period could adversely affect our ability to use our net operating losses and tax credit carryforwards to offset future taxable net income. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on the holders of our securities.

We have experienced and expect to continue to experience significant fluctuations in our operating results in part because of seasonal fluctuations in traditional retail patterns. Our gross revenues have historically been significantly lower in the first and second calendar quarters than in the fourth quarter of the prior year due primarily to increased shopping activity during the fourth quarter holiday season. Further, we generally increase our inventories substantially in anticipation of holiday season shopping activity, which has a negative effect on our cash flow. As a result of the fourth quarter holiday season shopping, we also typically have unusually large payments due to our fulfillment partners in the first calendar quarter. Our revenues and operating results have varied in the past and may continue to vary significantly from quarter to quarter due to a number of other factors, many of which are outside our control. In addition to seasonal effects and the other risk factors described in this report, factors that have caused and/or could cause our quarterly operating results to fluctuate and in turn affect the market prices of our common stock and preferred stock include:

Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and business and our ability to raise capital and could have a material adverse effect on the holders of our common stock and of our preferred stock.

We have two series of preferred stock outstanding. The preferred stock could adversely affect the holders of our common stock in some circumstances. The preferred stock generally votes with the common stock, with holders of the preferred stock having one vote for each share held. As of December 31, 2019, the 481,259 outstanding shares of preferred stock constituted approximately 1.2% of the total number of shares of the preferred stock and the common stock, taken together. Holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock are entitled to an annual cash dividend of $0.16 per share, and holders of the Series B Preferred stock are entitled to an annual cash dividend at the annual rate of 1.0% multiplied by $15.68, in each case in preference to any dividend payment to the holders of the common stock, out of funds legally available for payment of dividends and subject to declaration by our Board of Directors. Holders of our preferred stock are also generally entitled to participate in any dividends we pay on the common stock. The preferred stock ranks equally with the common stock upon our liquidation, winding up or dissolution, with each share of Series A-1 Preferred stock and each share of Series B Preferred stock being treated as though it were a share of our common stock. Generally, in a business combination, we are obliged to use all commercially reasonable efforts to cause each share of the preferred stock to be treated as a share of common stock. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on the holders of the common stock in connection with any such transactions.

We generally have not received significant coverage by securities analysts, and the securities analysts who do cover us may stop coverage at any time. The lack of coverage may adversely affect our share price and trading volume and may cause our share price or trading volume to be lower than they might be if more analysts covered us.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, amended and restated bylaws and Delaware law contain provisions which could have the effect of rendering more difficult, delaying, or preventing an acquisition deemed undesirable by our Board of Directors. Among other things, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws include provisions:

These provisions, alone or together, could delay or prevent hostile takeovers and changes in control or changes in our management.

As a Delaware corporation, we are also subject to provisions of Delaware law, including Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation law, which prevents certain stockholders holding more than 15% of our outstanding common stock from engaging in certain business combinations without approval of the holders of at least two-thirds of our outstanding common stock not held by such 15% or greater stockholder.

Any provision of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, amended and restated bylaws or Delaware law that has the effect of delaying, preventing or deterring a change in control could limit the opportunity for our stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our common stock or other securities and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our common stock or other securities.

Additional Risks Related Primarily to our Series A-1 Preferred Stock

The amended and restated certificate of designation for the Series A-1 Preferred stock provides that shares of the Series A-1 Preferred stock can be sold only on the tZERO ATS. The Series A-1 Preferred stock is not and will not be listed on any national securities exchange or other trading market of any kind. The limitation on trading shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock through the tZERO ATS may adversely affect the liquidity for, and market price of, the shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock. It may at times be very difficult to sell any shares of the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

The Series A-1 Preferred stock may only be sold through a brokerage account established with a broker-dealer that subscribes to and effects trading on the tZERO ATS. Currently, Dinosaur is the only broker-dealer that facilitates trades of any security on the tZERO ATS. Unless and until another broker-dealer effects trading on the tZERO ATS or maintains an account with an ATS-executing broker-dealer, any holder of Series A-1 Preferred stock that wishes to sell its shares must open an account at Dinosaur. While tZERO ATS, LLC is working to add additional broker-dealer effects trading on the tZERO ATS, there is no assurance that any executing broker-dealers will be added, and Dinosaur could continue to be the only ATS-executing broker-dealer. If Dinosaur for any reason ceases to operate, there would be no broker-dealer to effect sales of the Series A-1 Preferred stock on tZERO ATS. This could prevent all trading in the Series A-1 Preferred stock and would likely materially and adversely affect the trading prices of the Series A-1 Preferred stock. In such a case, however, the Board could exercise its authority to change or add additional alternative trading systems, trading markets or venues on which the Series A-1 Preferred stock may be sold.

Likewise, Electronic Transaction Clearing, Inc., now doing business as Apex PRO ("Apex"), is the only broker-dealer that clears transactions effected on the tZERO ATS. If for any reason Apex ceases to clear trades for Dinosaur or refuses to clear trades for any future ATS-executing broker-dealers of tZERO ATS and no clearing firm succeeds Apex, trading in the Series A-1 Preferred stock on the tZERO ATS may be interrupted and such an interruption would likely materially and adversely affect the trading price of the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

The tZERO ATS has had limited volume. Even if a more liquid trading market for the Series A-1 Preferred does develop on the tZERO ATS utilizing the tZERO Technology Stack or other technology developed by tZERO, the depth and liquidity of that market and the ability to sell the Series A-1 Preferred stock may nevertheless be limited, which may have a material adverse effect on the liquidity for, and the market price of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

Moreover, peer-to-peer transfers of the Series A-1 Preferred stock outside of orders submitted to the tZERO ATS by an ATS-executing broker-dealer, or with a broker-dealer that itself maintains an account with an ATS-subscribing broker-dealer, on behalf of its customers ("peer-to-peer transfers"), are not permitted, subject to limited circumstances. Computershare will register peer-to-peer transfers of record ownership of the Series A-1 Preferred stock in limited circumstances that do not constitute "sales" for purposes of securities laws, such as a transfer from broker-dealer to broker-dealer, with the stockholder's carrying broker-dealer being reflected as the record holder, or a transfer by a stockholder who is the record holder pursuant to a divorce decree, death or gift (and then only following compliance with Computershare's procedures, including delivery of appropriate documentation). However, the Board is authorized to exclude additional transactions or classes of transactions from the requirement to make "sales" on the tZERO ATS.

Only one method of cost basis reporting (the first-in, first-out, or "FIFO" method) is available for the Series A-1 Preferred stock. As a result, sellers of Series A-1 Preferred stock may be required to pay more tax on their sales or to pay taxes earlier than if other normal methods of cost basis reporting had been available, which could have an adverse tax effect on sellers of Series A-1 Preferred stock and the market price of the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

Although the record of ownership included in the blockchain is a non-controlling digital "courtesy carbon copy" of the records maintained by Computershare, it will be made publicly available. The publicly available information will include the digital wallet address of each holder of record transacting in Series A-1 Preferred stock and the security position information of such holder of record and the entire history of debits and credits to the relevant security position information of each digital

Computershare serves as the transfer agent for the Series A-1 Preferred stock and ownership of the Series A-1 Preferred stock is determined by the books and records of Computershare. Our agreement with Computershare can be terminated by either party on 60 days' notice. If Computershare chooses to exercise its termination rights or otherwise ceases to operate as a transfer agent, we would seek to engage a successor transfer agent. In the absence of finding such a successor, Overstock would need to assume the role of transfer agent. While we believe we could successfully assume the role of transfer agent, no assurance can be given that we would be able to do so and if we are unable to do so the trading market for the Series A-1 Preferred stock would be adversely affected and it may be difficult or impossible for Overstock to pay dividends or liquidation preference or provide voting rights to the correct holders of record of the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

We believe that the Series A-1 Preferred stock should be treated as any other conventional, uncertificated book-entry security. However, various regulators may disagree with this assertion and conclude that the Series A-1 Preferred stock should not be treated as any other traditional investment security. For example, we believe that the Series A-1 Preferred stock is not a "digital asset security" within the meaning of the July 8, 2019 Joint Staff Statement on broker-dealer Custody of Digital Asset Securities (the "July Statement"), and that as a result, broker-dealers will have a good control location consistent with the July Statement. However, federal securities regulatory authorities may disagree with that conclusion and we could be required to take further steps with regulators to establish a good control location. The occurrence of any such issue or dispute could have a material adverse effect on the liquidity for, and market price of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock. In addition, if regulatory authorities take the position that Series A-1 Preferred stock is a "digital asset security," then broker-dealers may need to submit a Form CMA with FINRA in order to hold the Series A-1 Preferred stock on your behalf, and that could prevent other broker-dealers from becoming executing broker-dealers to the tZERO ATS. As a result, holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock may not be able to open an account with another ATS-executing broker-dealer authorized to facilitate trading of the Series A-1 Preferred stock on the tZERO ATS.

We do not currently intend to repurchase any of the Series A-1 Preferred stock on the tZERO ATS. However, we could do so, subject to applicable regulations regarding issuer repurchases of their capital stock. If we do so, we would do so only at prices lower than the prices at which we are entitled to redeem the shares. If we repurchase shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock, the trading market for the Series A-1 Preferred stock could become less liquid, which would likely cause the trading prices of the Series A-1 Preferred stock to decrease, which would give us an economic incentive to repurchase additional shares. The occurrence of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on the liquidity in, and trading prices of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock. There are no restrictions on our repurchase of shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock while there is any arrearage in the payment of dividends.

Pursuant to the amended and restated Series A-1 Preferred stock certificate of designation, we have the right to convert the Series A-1 Preferred stock into Series B Preferred stock at any time, and the terms of the Series B Preferred stock may be amended at any time without the consent of the holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock. Currently, there are not enough authorized shares of Series B Preferred stock to permit conversion of the Series A-1 Preferred stock into Series B Preferred stock. In the future, the Board could seek stockholder approval to increase the authorized number of shares of preferred stock in an amount sufficient to permit the Board to increase the authorized shares of Series B Preferred stock to permit conversion of the Series A-1 Preferred stock into Series B Preferred stock, and then we would have the ability to exercise this conversion right. Any such conversion and any such amendment of the Series B Preferred stock could have a material adverse effect on the trading price of the Series A-1 Preferred stock. If we were to do so at a time when the Series B Preferred stock were trading at a price lower than the trading price of the Series A-1 Preferred stock, holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock would likely experience an immediate and potentially material decrease in the market value of the Series A-1 Preferred stock they hold and

tZERO ATS and tZERO have been and remain involved in ongoing oral and written communications with, and have received subpoenas from, regulatory authorities in connection with ongoing examinations, inquiries, or investigations. Any failure of tZERO ATS, LLC, the tZERO ATS, or tZERO to satisfy FINRA, the SEC, or any other regulatory authority could result in trading halts on the tZERO ATS and fines and penalties being imposed. Any such trading halt will adversely affect the trading market for the Series A-1 Preferred stock and may prevent the sale of Series A-1 Preferred stock until the failure is rectified.

The technology on which the tZERO ATS relies, including the tZERO Technology Stack, may not function properly because of internal problems or as a result of cyber-attacks or external security breaches. Any such malfunction may adversely affect the ability of holders with a brokerage account at a tZERO ATS subscriber to execute trades of the Series A-1 Preferred stock on the tZERO ATS. Moreover, since trading in the Series A-1 Preferred stock has been limited, the tZERO ATS platform may not function properly in cases of increased trading volume. If the technology used by the tZERO ATS does not work as anticipated, trading of the Series A-1 Preferred stock could be limited or even suspended. In such as case, however, our board of directors has the authority to change or add alternative trading systems, trading markets or venues on which the Series A-1 Preferred stock may be sold, but there can be no assurance that they will choose to do so in the future, or that any such additional trading venues would be found or prove suitable to support the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

tZERO is an indirectly held majority-owned subsidiary of ours and owns 100% of the equity interest in tZERO ATS, LLC. tZERO licenses the technology to tZERO ATS, LLC, and tZERO uses tZERO technology, including the tZERO Technology Stack, to operate the tZERO ATS. tZERO is a growth-stage company, and neither tZERO nor tZERO ATS, LLC has substantial resources. If any one or more of Overstock, tZERO or tZERO ATS, LLC were unable to fund its operations in the future, or if any one or more of them were to become the subject of a bankruptcy or other insolvency proceeding, tZERO ATS, LLC might be unable to continue to operate the tZERO ATS, and the Series A-1 Preferred stock could be materially adversely affected. In any such event, or if the tZERO ATS, LLC or tZERO technology were to be unable to operate as intended for any reason, holders of our capital stock, including the Series A-1 Preferred stock, could lose their ability to trade our Series A-1 Preferred stock, which would have a material adverse effect on the market value of that stock, and may have a material adverse effect on the liquidity for, and the price of, our Common Stock.

A significant feature of the Series A-1 Preferred stock is that, while the records of Computershare (as our transfer agent) govern record ownership of the Series A-1 Preferred stock, for all record holders on the transfer agent's official and controlling records there is a "courtesy carbon copy" of certain Computershare ownership records on the blockchain. Following Computershare's approval of any change in record ownership, the security position information relevant to a record holder's digital wallets addresses on the blockchain is updated consistent with changes to Computershare's official books and records. To the extent that Computershare's records and the "courtesy carbon copy" get out of sync, there could be a delay while we correct any such inconsistencies and such inconsistencies may cause investor confusion with respect to their record holdings of the Series A-1 Preferred stock, which could adversely affect the liquidity for, and market value of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

The non-controlling blockchain-based "courtesy carbon copy" of record ownership uses tZERO technology, which, in turn, uses the Ethereum blockchain. Although tZERO's wholly owned subsidiary, tZERO Crypto maintains certain licenses in connection with its virtual currency applications, none of the parties involved in the operation of the tZERO ATS using tZERO technology is licensed under the virtual currency or money transmission regulations of any state in the United States or registered with FinCEN. If any regulatory authority were to assert that additional licensing or registration was required by tZERO ATS, LLC or tZERO, it could affect the operations or viability of either of them, and could adversely affect the availability of the tZERO ATS as a trading venue for the Series A-1 Preferred stock. This in turn would have a material adverse

Each share of Series A-1 Preferred stock is intended to have voting and dividend rights and rights upon liquidation substantially similar to those of one share of our common stock, except that the Series A-1 Preferred stock will have a dividend preference over the common stock, the Series A-1 Preferred stock will be limited to trading on the tZERO ATS, and we will have the right to convert the Series A-1 Preferred stock into Series B Preferred stock. These provisions may have a material adverse effect on the liquidity for, and trading price of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock.

Most securities that are publicly traded in the United States have one or more broker-dealers acting as "market makers" for the security. A market maker is a firm that stands ready to buy and sell the security on a regular and continuous basis at publicly quoted prices. We have no assurances that the Series A-1 Preferred stock will ever have any market makers. We expect the lack of market makers to continue to contribute to a lack of liquidity in the Series A-1 Preferred stock, which could have a material adverse effect on holders' ability to trade them.

Additional Risks Related to both our Series A-1 Preferred stock and our Series B Preferred stock

We do not intend to issue any additional shares of Series B Preferred stock. This will likely result in limited trading in the Series B Preferred and the number of shares of Series B is limited to 370,000.

The trading prices of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the Series B Preferred stock have been at times, and may be in the future, substantially lower than the trading price of our common stock, which could have a material adverse effect on holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock and holders of Series B Preferred stock.

We intend to treat the Series A-1 Preferred stock and Series B Preferred stock as common stock for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether the IRS will treat the Series A-1 Preferred stock and Series B Preferred stock as common stock for U.S. federal income tax purposes. If the IRS were not to treat either the Series A-1 Preferred stock or the Series B Preferred stock as common stock for U.S. federal income tax purposes, it could have a material adverse effect on the holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock and the holders of Series B Preferred stock.

Holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock and holders of the Series B Preferred stock will have no rights with respect to our common stock, and no right to convert shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock into shares of common stock or to exchange shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock for shares of common stock, except that holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock and holders of Series B Preferred stock will have the right to vote with the common stock on any matter submitted to a vote of the holders of the common stock, the right to receive payments upon liquidation equally with the holders of the common stock, and the right to receive dividends in preference to the holders of the common stock and to participate in any dividend paid to the holders of our common stock, subject to the limitations set forth in the respective certificates of designation of Series A-1 Preferred stock and Series B Preferred stock.

Our obligation to pay preferential dividends on the Series A-1 Preferred stock is subject to our Board declaring such dividend payments. Further, although we will be contractually restricted from paying a dividend on the common stock unless we have paid preferential cumulative $0.16 per share annual dividends on the Series A-1 Preferred stock and preferential cumulative 1.0% annual dividends on the Series B Preferred stock, we have never paid a cash dividend on the common stock and we have no present intention of doing so. Consequently, our failure to pay preferential dividends on the Series A-1 Preferred stock and on the Series B Preferred stock might have no legal effect on us at all, although it could adversely affect the liquidity for, and trading prices of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock and of the Series B Preferred stock. Further, our payment of any dividends will be subject to contractual and legal restrictions and other factors our Board deems relevant. Further, we may elect not to pay dividends on the Series A-1 Preferred stock, the Series B Preferred stock or both rather than limiting other proposed expenditures, including expenditures that may not be contractually required. Moreover, agreements governing any future indebtedness of ours may further limit our ability to pay dividends on our capital stock, including the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the Series B Preferred stock. In addition, our ability to pay dividends is limited by applicable law. Although there are no arrearages in cumulative preferred dividends and we declared and paid a cash dividend of $0.16 per share to the holders of our then outstanding preferred stock during 2017, 2018 and 2019, there is no assurance that we will be able or that our Board will decide to do so in 2020 or the future. Any of the foregoing facts or events could have a material adverse effect on the holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the holders of the Series B Preferred stock and on the liquidity for, and trading prices of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the Series B Preferred stock.

Voting rights of the Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock generally will be limited to voting together with the holders of the common stock, Series A-1 Preferred stock and Series B Preferred stock, as a single class. If an amendment requiring stockholder approval is proposed to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, the holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the holders of the Series B Preferred stock will vote together with the holders of the common stock as a single class, but neither the holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock nor the holders of the Series B Preferred stock will be entitled to a class vote on the amendment, unless the proposed amendment would adversely affect the special rights, preferences, privileges and voting powers of the Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock, respectively increases or decreases of the authorized number of shares of Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock, respectively. These limited voting rights could have a material adverse effect on holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock and holders of Series B Preferred stock and on the trading prices of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the Series B Preferred stock.

The holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and Series B Preferred stock will have no right as a separate class to elect any members of our board of directors under any circumstances, including upon any failure of our board of directors to declare or pay any dividend on the Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock. Further, the holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the holders of the Series B Preferred stock, together, also will have no right by themselves to elect any members of our board of directors under any circumstances. The holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the holders of the Series B Preferred stock will be entitled only to vote with the holders of the common stock as a single class in the election of directors and on any other matter coming before a vote of the holders of the common stock. Holders' lack of such rights could have a material adverse effect on holders of the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the holders of the Series B Preferred stock and the liquidity for, and trading prices of, the Series A-1 Preferred stock and the Series B Preferred stock.

In the event of our bankruptcy, liquidation or winding up, our assets will be available to make payments to holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock and to holders of Series B Preferred stock only after all of our liabilities have been paid, and neither the Series A-1 Preferred stock nor the Series B Preferred stock will have any preference over our common stock in the event of our bankruptcy, liquidation or winding up. In addition, the Series A-1 Preferred stock and Series B Preferred stock will rank structurally junior to all existing and future liabilities of our subsidiaries. Holders' rights to participate in the assets of our subsidiaries upon any liquidation or reorganization of any subsidiary will rank junior to the claims of creditors. In the event of our bankruptcy, liquidation or winding up, there may not be sufficient assets remaining, after paying our and our subsidiaries' liabilities, to pay any amounts to the holders of Series A-1 Preferred stock or Series B Preferred stock then outstanding. We may

Moreover, we do not own all of the equity securities of our subsidiaries, including tZERO. For example, we have adopted an employee equity incentive plan pursuant to which tZERO has issued, and may continue to issue, shares or other equity interests or awards having the economic effects of equity interests to employees. As a result, following satisfaction of the claims of creditors of those subsidiaries as discussed above, our right to receive distributions as a stockholder with respect to our equity interests in those majority owned subsidiaries will be shared with third party equity holders of tZERO and our other subsidiaries, whether now existing or created in the future, including our employees holding shares of any of them.

Our Retail business initiatives enable our long-term focus on our three brand pillars, "Product Findability," "Smart Value," and "Easy Delivery and Support." Initiatives for the Retail business include:

Strategies for our Medici Business

Medici Ventures' primary business focus continues to be accelerating adoption of blockchain technology to democratize capital, eliminate middlemen, and re-humanize commerce. Medici Ventures accomplishes this by doing the following:

Strategies for our tZERO Business

tZERO is a financial technology company pursuing initiatives to develop and commercialize the financial applications of blockchain technologies. tZERO's primary initiatives currently consist of the following:

    

tZERO also continues to identify, evaluate and pursue various opportunities for strategic transactions to enhance the services and expertise it offers its customers as well as to refine its strategic operational focus. Subject to board approval, tZERO's management exercises substantial discretion in identifying appropriate strategic transactions and negotiating the terms of such transactions. Management's determinations are based on numerous financial, strategic and operational assumptions, and there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be true. Moreover, such strategic transactions may fail to produce the benefits expected at the time tZERO enters into such transactions.    

We derive our revenue primarily from our retail business through our Website from merchandise sold at a point in time and shipped to customers. When we are the principal in a transaction and control the specific good or service before it is transferred to the customer, revenue is recorded gross; otherwise, revenue is recorded on a net basis.

Revenue is recognized when control of the product passes to the customer, typically at the date of delivery of the merchandise to the customer or the date a service is provided and is recognized in an amount that reflects the expected consideration to be received in exchange for such goods or services. As such, customer orders are recorded as deferred revenue prior to delivery of products or services ordered.

As we ship high volumes of packages through multiple carriers, we use estimates to determine which shipments are delivered and, therefore, recognized as revenue at the end of the period. Our delivery date estimates are based on average shipping transit times based on historical data. However, actual shipping times may differ from our estimates.

The following table shows the effect that hypothetical changes in the estimate of average shipping transit times would have had on the reported amount of revenue and income before taxes for the year ended December 31, 2019 (in thousands):

Comparison of Years Ended December 31, 2019 and 2018

Our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, filed March 15, 2019, includes a discussion and analysis of our year-over-year changes, financial condition, and results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 in Item 7 of Part II, "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations."

Revenue

International sales were less than 3% of total net revenues for 2019 and 2018.

    

We continue to seek opportunities for growth, in our retail business and through our Medici blockchain and financial technology initiatives and through other means. As a result of these initiatives, we will continue to incur additional expenses and may purchase interests in, or make acquisitions of, other technologies or businesses. We anticipate that our initiatives may lead to increased consolidated losses in the foreseeable future, and to reduced liquidity. Additionally, we may recognize additional impairment charges from our ownership interest in other entities.

We are proactively seeking opportunities to improve the efficiency of our operations. During the latter half of 2018 we began taking, and during 2019 took, significant steps to realize internal cost savings, including staff reductions in early 2019 and we continue to focus on process streamlining. We continue to seek opportunities for growth, in our retail business and through our Medici and tZERO blockchain and financial technology initiatives and through other means. See "Strategies for our Retail Business," "Strategies for our Medici Business" and "Strategies for our tZERO Business" above. We anticipate that our initiatives may lead to increased consolidated losses in the foreseeable future, and to reduced liquidity. Our ability to pursue some or all of these initiatives and the extent to which we would be able to pursue some or all of them, will depend on the resources we have available, and will require significantly more capital than we currently have. We continue to manage our costs carefully and seek to improve the efficiency of our operations, including through process improvement and added focus on machine learning automation. We believe that our cash and cash equivalents currently on hand and expected cash flows from future operations will be sufficient to continue operations for at least the next twelve months.

In August 2018, Overstock signed a Token Purchase Agreement with GSR Capital Ltd., a Cayman Islands exempted company ("GSR"), and a term sheet contemplating a sale of Overstock common stock to GSR. Concurrently, tZERO signed a term sheet contemplating a sale of tZERO common stock to GSR.

The Token Purchase Agreement sets forth the terms on which GSR had agreed to purchase, for $30 million, on May 6, 2019 or such other date as agreed by the parties, security tokens at a price of $6.67 per security token. On May 8, 2019, the parties executed an Investment Agreement to replace the Token Purchase Agreement under which GSR agreed to purchase 508,710 shares of tZERO common stock, representing approximately 0.5% of the issued and outstanding common stock of tZERO. In exchange, GSR agreed to transfer to tZERO a total $5.0 million in consideration. On September 16, 2019, in recognition of GSR's remaining obligations under the Investment Agreement, tZERO and GSR entered into a Promissory Note under which GSR promised to pay the remaining consideration due to tZERO under the Investment Agreement in the form of U.S. dollars in multiple installments by December 6, 2019. As of December 31, 2019, GSR had provided $4.4 million U.S. dollars, which represents principal, interest, and late payment fees pursuant to the Investment Agreement and Promissory Note, and such amount is included in Accrued liabilities. Approximately $911,000 of principal and accrued interest remained unpaid as of December 31, 2019. tZERO entered into an agreement with GSR in March 2020 under which GSR made a further $100,000 partial payment on March 5, 2020, with the remaining balance due by March 31, 2020. Under the same agreement, in the event such remaining payment is not made, tZERO will be entitled to retain all amounts previously paid by GSR pursuant to, or in connection with, the Investment Agreement and the Promissory Note as non-exclusive damages, and, notwithstanding any provision of the Investment Agreement or the Promissory Note, tZERO will be relieved of any obligation to issue shares to GSR. Overstock and tZERO also reserve the right to pursue additional rights and remedies they may have.

The previously-announced GSR equity investments in Overstock and tZERO contemplated by the term sheets described above did not occur, and the previously-announced memorandum of understanding in which GSR and Makara Capital would co-lead an investment of up to $100 million in tZERO common stock did not close in April 2019 as initially expected. Following further discussions, GSR and Makara Capital informed tZERO in the third quarter of 2019 that they would not be pursuing an investment in tZERO pursuant to the memorandum of understanding or under the separate term sheets.

We periodically evaluate opportunities to repurchase our equity securities, obtain credit facilities, or issue additional debt or equity securities. In addition, we may, from time to time, consider the investment in, or acquisition of, complementary businesses, products, services, or technologies, any of which might affect our liquidity requirements or cause us to issue additional debt or equity securities. There can be no assurance that financing arrangements will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all. Our future results may be significantly different from our historical results for several other reasons as well, including the possibility discussed in this Annual Report on Form 10-K that we may sell our retail business, which would have a dramatic effect on our future results. Other reasons that our future results may be significantly different from our historical results include the potential effects on us of the accounting and tax changes discussed in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and other reasons described in Item 1. "Business" under "Our Retail Business" and "Our Medici Business," as well as the risk factors described in Item 1A. "Risk Factors."

Any investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. Investors should consider carefully the risks and uncertainties described in this Form 10-K, including the risks described in Item 1A of Part I, "Risk Factors", and all other information in this Form 10-K and in our other filings with the SEC including those we file after we file this Form 10-K, before deciding whether to purchase or hold our securities. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also become important factors that may harm our business. The occurrence of any of the risks described under "Risk Factors" in this report could harm our business. The trading price of our securities could decline due to any of these risks and uncertainties, and investors may lose part or all of their investment.