Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited (AEHL) 20-F2022 FY Annual report (foreign)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

(Mark one)

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

OR

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

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.

OR

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

OR

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

for the transition period from ____________to ____________

Commission file number 001-34944

Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited

(Exact name of the Registrant as specified in its charter)

British Virgin Islands

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

Room 1802, Block D, Zhonghai International Center,

Hi-Tech Zone, Chengdu,

Sichuan Province, PRC

Telephone: +86 (28) 8532 4355

(Address of principal executive offices)

Weilai (Will) Zhang

Room 1802, Block D, Zhonghai International Center,

Hi-Tech Zone, Chengdu,

Sichuan Province, PRC

Telephone: +86 (28) 8532 4355

(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile Number and Address of Company Contact Person)

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

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

None.

(Title of Class)

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

None.

(Title of Class)

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

An aggregate of 8,055,188 ordinary shares, par value $0.024 each were issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2022. (On February 21, 2023, the Company amended its authorized share capital, as result, the ordinary share, par value $0.024 each, of the company were re-designated into Class A ordinary shares, no par value, and Class B ordinary shares, no par value.)

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

Yes ☐           No ☒

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Yes ☐           No ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes ☒           No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).

Yes ☒           No ☐

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

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

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

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

☐Item 17           ☐ Item 18

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Yes ☐           No ☒

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CERTAIN INFORMATION

In this Annual Report on Form 20-F (the “Annual Report”), unless otherwise indicated, “we,” “us,” “our,” and “Antelope Enterprises” refers to Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited (formerly China Ceramics Co., Ltd.), a British Virgin Islands company, and its subsidiaries, including Success Winner Limited (“Success Winner”), a British Virgin Islands company and wholly owned subsidiary of Antelope Enterprises, Stand Best Creation Limited (“Stand Best”), a Hong Kong company and wholly owned subsidiary of Success Winner and the entity that wholly owns Jinjiang Hengda Ceramics Co., Ltd. (“Hengda”), a PRC operating company that in turn wholly owns Jiangxi Hengdali Ceramic Materials Co., Ltd. (“Hengdali”), a PRC operating company, Vast Elite Limited (“Vast Elite”), a Hong Kong company and wholly owned Subsidiary of Success Winner and the entity that wholly owns Chengdu Future Talented Management and Consulting Co., Ltd, (“Chengdu Future”) a PRC operating company, Antelope Enterprise (HK) Holdings Limited (“Antelope HK”), a Hong Kong company and wholly owned subsidiary of Success Winner and the entity that wholly owns Antelope Holdings (Chengdu) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Chengdu”), a PRC operating company, and the entity that wholly owns Antelope Future (Yangpu) Investment Co., Ltd (“Antelope Yangpu”), a PRC operating company that in turn wholly owns Antelope Ruicheng Investment (Hainan) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Ruicheng”) that in turn owns 51% of Hainan Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Hainan Kylin”), and the entity that wholly owns Hainan Antelope Holdings Co., Ltd (“Hainan Antelope”), a PRC operating company that in turn wholly owns Antelope Investment (Hainan) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Investment”), Hainan Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Hainan Kylin”) that in turrn owns 100% of Hangzhou Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Hangzhou Kylin”) and Anhui Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Anhui Kylin”) ..

On November 20, 2009, China Holdings Acquisition Corp. (“CHAC”), our predecessor, merged with and into Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited, its wholly owned British Virgin Islands subsidiary, resulting in the redomestication of CHAC to the British Virgin Islands as “Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited”. Immediately following the merger and redomestication (the “Redomestication”), and as part of the same integrated transaction, Antelope Enterprises acquired all of the outstanding securities of Success Winner (the “Business Combination”). Unless the context indicates otherwise, the “Company” refers to CHAC prior to the Business Combination and Antelope Enterprises following the Business Combination.

Unless the context indicates otherwise, all references to “China” or “PRC” refer to the People’s Republic of China. All references to “provincial-level regions” or “regions” include provinces as well as autonomous regions and directly controlled municipalities in China, which have an administrative status equal to provinces, including Beijing.

All references to “Renminbi,” “RMB” or “yuan” are to the legal currency of the People’s Republic of China, and all references to “U.S. dollars,” “dollars,” “$” are to the legal currency of the United States. This Report contains translations of Renminbi amounts into U.S. dollars at specified rates solely for the convenience of the reader. We make no representation that the Renminbi or U.S. dollar amounts referred to in this Report could have been or could be converted into U.S. dollars or Renminbi, as the case may be, at any particular rate or at all. Changes in the exchange rate will affect the amount of our obligations and the value of our assets in terms of U.S. dollars which may result in an increase or decrease in the amount of our obligations (expressed in dollars) and the value of our assets, including accounts receivable (expressed in dollars).

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Report contains “forward-looking statements” that represent our beliefs, projections and predictions about future events. All statements other than statements of historical fact are “forward-looking statements” including any projections of earnings, revenue or other financial items, any statements of the plans, strategies and objectives of management for future operations, any statements concerning proposed new projects or other developments, any statements regarding future economic conditions or performance, any statements of management’s beliefs, goals, strategies, intentions and objectives, and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. Words such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “would”, “predicts”, “potential”, “continue”, “expects”, “anticipates”, “future”, “intends”, “plans”, “believes”, “estimates” and similar expressions, as well as statements in the future tense, identify forward-looking statements.

These statements are necessarily subjective and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements described in or implied by such statements. Actual results may differ materially from expected results described in our forward-looking statements, including with respect to correct measurement and identification of factors affecting our business or the extent of their likely impact, the accuracy and completeness of the publicly available information with respect to the factors upon which our business strategy is based on the success of our business.

Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether, or the times by which, our performance or results may be achieved. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time those statements are made and management’s belief as of that time with respect to future events, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those factors discussed under the headings “Risk Factors”, “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects,” “Information on the Company” and elsewhere in this Annual Report.

This Annual Report should be read in conjunction with our audited financial statements and the accompanying notes thereto, which are included in Item 18 of this Annual Report.

PART I

Not required.

Not required.

Our Corporate Structure

We are an offshore holding company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands. As a holding company with no material operations, our operations were conducted by our subsidiaries in China.

The following diagram illustrates our corporate structure as of the date of this annual report:

We are subject to certain legal and operational risks associated with our operation in China. PRC laws and regulations governing our current business operations are sometimes vague and uncertain, and therefore, these risks may result in a material change in our subsidiaries’ operations, significant depreciation of the value of our Class A ordinary shares, or a complete hindrance of our ability to offer our securities to investors in the future. Recently, the PRC government initiated a series of regulatory actions and statements to regulate business operations in China with little advance notice, including cracking down on illegal activities in the securities market, enhancing supervision over China-based companies listed overseas using variable interest entity structure, adopting new measures to extend the scope of cybersecurity reviews, and expanding the efforts in anti-monopoly enforcement.

Pursuant to the PRC Cybersecurity Law, which was promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on November 7, 2016 and took effect on June 1, 2017, personal information and important data collected and generated by a critical information infrastructure operator in the course of its operations in China must be stored in China, and if a critical information infrastructure operator purchases internet products and services that affects or may affect national security, it should be subject to cybersecurity review by the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”). Due to the lack of further interpretations, the exact scope of “critical information infrastructure operator” remains unclear. On December 28, 2021, the CAC and other relevant PRC governmental authorities jointly promulgated the Cybersecurity Review Measures (the “CAC Revised Measures”) to replace the original Cybersecurity Review Measures. The CAC Revised Measures took effect on February 15, 2022. Pursuant to the CAC Revised Measures, if critical information infrastructure operators purchase network products and services, or network platform operators conduct data processing activities that affect or may affect national security, they will be subject to cybersecurity review. On November 14, 2021, CAC published the Administration Measures for Cyber Data Security (Draft for Public Comments), or the “Cyber Data Security Measure (Draft)”, which requires cyberspace operators with personal information of more than one million users who want to list abroad to file a cybersecurity review with the Office of Cybersecurity Review. The cybersecurity review will evaluate, among others, the risk of critical information infrastructure, core data, important data, or a large amount of personal information being influenced, controlled or maliciously used by foreign governments and risk of network data security after going public overseas. As advised by our PRC counsel, Allbright Law Offices, we are not subject to cybersecurity review with the CAC in accordance with the CAC Revised Measures, because (i) we are not in possession of or otherwise holding personal information of over one million users and it is also very unlikely that it will reach such threshold in the near future; (ii) as of the date of this annual report, our data processing activities (including the collection, storage, usage, transmission and publicity of data) do not damage national security; and (iii) as of the date of this annual report, we have not received any notice or determination from applicable PRC governmental authorities identifying it as a critical information infrastructure operator. However, since these statements and regulatory actions are new, it is highly uncertain how soon legislative or administrative regulation making bodies will respond and what existing or new laws or regulations or detailed implementations and interpretations will be modified or promulgated, if any, and the potential impact such modified or new laws and regulations will have on our daily business operation, the ability to accept foreign investments and list on an U.S. exchange.

On February 17, 2023, the CSRC promulgated the Trial Administrative Measures of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies, or the Trial Measures, and five supporting guidelines, which came into effect on March 31, 2023. Pursuant to the Trial Measures, domestic companies that seek to offer or list securities overseas, both directly and indirectly, shall complete filing procedures with the CSRC pursuant to the requirements of the Trial Measures within three working days following its submission of initial public offerings or listing application. If a PRC company fails to complete required filing procedures or conceals any material fact or falsifies any major content in its filing documents, such PRC company may be subject to administrative penalties, such as order to rectify, warnings, fines, and its controlling shareholders, actual controllers, the person directly in charge and other directly liable persons may also be subject to administrative penalties, such as warnings and fines. In addition, on February 24, 2023, the CSRC, together with Ministry of Finance of the PRC, National Administration of State Secrets Protection and National Archives Administration of China, revised the Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration for Overseas Securities Offering and Listing which was issued by the CSRC, National Administration of State Secrets Protection and National Archives Administration of China in 2009, or the Provisions. The revised Provisions is issued under the title the Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies, and came into effect on March 31, 2023 together with the Trial Measures. One of the major revisions to the revised Provisions is expanding its application to cover indirect overseas offering and listing, as is consistent with the Trial Measures. The revised Provisions require that, including but not limited to (a) a domestic company that plans to, either directly or indirectly through its overseas listed entity, publicly disclose or provide to relevant individuals or entities including securities companies, securities service providers and overseas regulators, any documents and materials that contain state secrets or working secrets of government agencies, shall first obtain approval from competent authorities according to law, and file with the secrecy administrative department at the same level; and (b) domestic company that plans to, either directly or indirectly through its overseas listed entity, publicly disclose or provide to relevant individuals and entities including securities companies, securities service providers and overseas regulators, any other documents and materials that, if leaked, will be detrimental to national security or public interest, shall strictly fulfill relevant procedures stipulated by applicable national regulations. As advised by Allbright Law Offices, our PRC counsel, we have not received any formal inquiry, notice, warning, sanction, or objection from the CSRC with respect our listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market.  However, there remains significant uncertainty as to the enactment, interpretation and implementation of regulatory requirements related to overseas securities offerings and other capital markets activities. Any failure or perceived failure of us to fully comply with such new regulatory requirements could significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to continue to offer securities to investors, cause significant disruption to our business operations, and severely damage our reputation, which could materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations and could cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or be worthless. 

Furthermore, the audit report included in this Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022, was issued by our auditors, Centurion ZD CPA & Co. (“CZD CPA”), an audit firm headquartered in Hong Kong. CZD CPA are among those audit firms listed by the PCAOB Hong Kong Determination, a determination announced by the PCAOB on December 16, 2021, that the it was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region and dependency of the PRC, because of a position taken by one or more authorities in Hong Kong. The PCAOB made this determination pursuant to PCAOB Rule 6100, which provides a framework for how the PCAOB fulfills its responsibilities under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act (“HFCA Act”). On August 26, 2022, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (“CSRC”), the Ministry of Finance of the PRC (the “MOF”), and the PCAOB signed a Statement of Protocol (the “Protocol”), governing inspections and investigations of audit firms based in mainland China and Hong Kong, taking the first step toward opening access for the PCAOB to inspect and investigate registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong. Pursuant to the fact sheet with respect to the Protocol disclosed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), the PCAOB shall have independent discretion to select any issuer audits for inspection or investigation and has the unfettered ability to transfer information to the SEC. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB Board determined that the PCAOB was able to secure complete access to inspect and investigate registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong and voted to vacate its previous determinations to the contrary. However, should PRC authorities obstruct or otherwise fail to facilitate the PCAOB’s access in the future, the PCAOB Board will consider the need to issue a new determination. On December 29, 2022, a legislation entitled “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023” (the “Consolidated Appropriations Act”), was signed into law by President Biden, which amended the HFCA Act by reducing the number of consecutive non-inspection years required for triggering the prohibitions under the HFCA Act from three years to two. In the event it is later determined that the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely our auditor, then such lack of inspection could cause trading in our securities to be prohibited under the HFCA Act, as amended, and ultimately result in a determination by the Nasdaq Capital Market to delist our securities.

Our management monitors the cash position of each entity within our organization regularly and prepare budgets on a monthly basis to ensure each entity has the necessary funds to fulfill its obligation for the foreseeable future and to ensure adequate liquidity. As a holding company, we may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our subsidiary in Hong Kong, and the subsidiaries in China, for our cash and financing requirements. The payment of dividends to Antelope Enterprises by our Chinese subsidiaries is affected by means of dividends by those entities to their Hong Kong direct parent and a redividend by that Hong Kong entity to Antelope Enterprises. Such dividends are effected by resolution of the board of directors of each such entity (after provision for applicable tax obligations). China is a foreign exchange administration country. Capital injections, cross-border trade and services transactions settled in foreign exchange, overseas financing and profit repatriations are subject to the foreign exchange administration regulations. A Chinese subsidiary owned by foreign company must apply for registration of foreign exchange with the SAFE after the issuance of a business license and obtain a foreign exchange registration certificate. When the Chinese subsidiaries apply for repatriating dividends to foreign shareholders, it must submit the application form to SAFE with the proof that such dividends have been subjected to all applicable tax withholding. A Chinese subsidiary can only distribute dividends out of its accumulated profits, which means that any accumulated losses must be more than offset by its profits in other years, including the current year. Please refer to “Item 4 Information on the Company – History and Development of the Company - Cash Transfers Within Our Organization” for more information.

Permission or Approval Required from the PRC Authorities for Our PRC Subsidiaries’ Operation

To operate the general business activities currently conducted in China, each of our subsidiaries in China is required to obtain a business license from the State Administration for Market Regulation (“SAMR”). All of our PRC subsidiaries have obtained their valid business licenses from the SAMR, and no application for any such license has been denied.

We are aware, however, recently, the PRC government initiated a series of regulatory actions and statements to regulate business operations in China with little advance notice, including cracking down on illegal activities in the securities market, enhancing supervision over China-based companies listed overseas using variable interest entity structure, adopting new measures to extend the scope of cybersecurity reviews, and expanding the efforts in anti-monopoly enforcement.

On July 6, 2021, the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the General Office of the State Council jointly issued the “Opinions on Severely Cracking Down on Illegal Securities Activities According to Law,” or the Opinions. The Opinions emphasized the need to strengthen the administration over illegal securities activities, and the need to strengthen the supervision over overseas listings by Chinese companies. Effective measures, such as promoting the construction of relevant regulatory systems will be taken to deal with the risks and incidents of China-concept overseas listed companies, and cybersecurity and data privacy protection requirements and similar matters. The Opinions and any related implementing rules to be enacted may subject us to compliance requirement in the future. Given the current regulatory environment in the PRC, we are still subject to the uncertainty of different interpretation and enforcement of the rules and regulations in the PRC adverse to us, which may take place quickly with little advance notice.

On December 28, 2021, the CAC published the CAC Revised Measures, which further restates and expands the applicable scope of the cybersecurity review. The CAC Revised Measures took effect on February 15, 2022. Pursuant to the CAC Revised Measures, if a network platform operator holding personal information of over one million users seeks for “foreign” listing, it must apply for the cybersecurity review. In addition, operators of critical information infrastructure purchasing network products and services are also obligated to apply for the cybersecurity review for such purchasing activities. Although the CAC Revised Measures provides no further explanation on the extent of “network platform operator” and “foreign” listing, we do not believe we are obligated to apply for a cybersecurity review pursuant to the CAC Revised Measures, considering that (i) we are not in possession of or otherwise holding personal information of over one million users and it is also very unlikely that we will reach such threshold in the near future; (ii) as of the date of this this annual report, we have not received any notice or determination from applicable PRC governmental authorities identifying it as a critical information infrastructure operator. 

That being said, the CAC Revised Measures empowers the cybersecurity review office to initiate cybersecurity review when they believe any particular data processing activities “affect or may affect national security”. In addition, on November 14, 2021, the CAC promulgated the Regulations on the Administration of Cyber Data Security (Draft for Comments) (the “Draft CAC Regulations”), and according to the Draft CAC Regulations, any data processors shall, in accordance with relevant state provisions, apply for a cybersecurity review when carrying out, among other things, “other data processing activities that affect or may affect national security”. However, neither the CAC Revised Measures nor the Draft CAC Regulations provides for any further explanation or interpretation over what constitutes activities that “affect or may affect national security”. Therefore, if any competent government authorities deem that our PRC subsidiaries’ data processing activities may affect national security, we may be subject cybersecurity review, and in that scenario, failure to pass such cybersecurity review and/or to comply with the data privacy and data security requirements raised during such cybersecurity review could subject our PRC subsidiaries to penalties, damage its reputation and brand, and harm its business and results of operations.

In summary, we and our PRC subsidiaries are not required to obtain permission or approval from the PRC authorities including CSRC or CAC for our PRC subsidiaries, nor have we or our PRC subsidiaries, received any denial for our PRC subsidiaries’ operation. We are subject to the risks of uncertainty of any future actions of the PRC government in this regard including the risk that we inadvertently conclude that the permission or approvals discussed here are not required, that applicable laws, regulations or interpretations change such that we or any of our PRC subsidiaries are required to obtain approvals in the future, or that the PRC government could disallow our holding company structure, which would likely result in a material change in our operations, including our ability to continue our existing holding company structure, carry on our current business, accept foreign investments, and continue to offer securities to our investors. These adverse actions could cause the value of our Class A ordinary shares to significantly decline or become worthless. We may also be subject to penalties and sanctions imposed by the PRC regulatory agencies, including the CSRC, if we fail to comply with such rules and regulations, which would likely adversely affect the ability of our securities to be listed on the U.S. exchange, which would likely cause the value of our Class A ordinary shares to significantly decline or become worthless.

Not required.

Not required.

You should carefully consider the following risk factors, together with all of the other information included in this Annual Report.

Risk Factors Relating to Our Livestreaming Ecommerce Business

We have a limited operating history in a highly competitive technology segment.

We started operating our livestreaming ecommerce business through our indirect subsidiary, Hainan Kylin, in September 2021. Therefore, we have a limited operating history in the livestreaming ecommerce sector, which is competitive and subject to transformation. We may have limited information into trends that could affect the demand for our services. Our financial results and growth to date may not be indicative of our future performance. We may not be able to effectively manage our growth and experience operational, financial and human resource constraints. Our current procedures and controls may not be adequate to support our future operations, and if we are not able to manage our growth effectively, our business may be materially and adversely affected.

If certain consumer behavior trends do not continue develop as anticipated, our operating results will be adversely affected.

Our future financial performance is dependent on certain consumer and social trends and we may have overestimated factors attributable to its growth as well as our successful positioning in such markets. We are subject to both business and consumer activities in the livestreaming ecommerce industry as well as trends in specific demographics which are often difficult to ascertain and which can change quickly.

We have entered a potentially competitive market segment.

The livestreaming ecommerce industry in which we are participating may attract highly seasoned and better capitalized competitors, which could inhibit our success. The relatively low entry threshold and the rapid growth of livestreaming ecommerce in China could make this market become crowded which would decrease our existing and potential market share. We will need to promote and develop brand awareness as a competitive advantage and there can be no assurance that such branding will be successful or sustainable. We expect to continue to expend financial resources on the expansion of our livestreaming ecommerce business, and there can be assurance that we will be able to compete with larger, better capitalized firms. This may also affect our ability to scale our operations and successful execute our strategic growth plan.

We are subject to rapid technology change and certain of our livestreaming ecommerce business could have significant barriers to entry.

Some of our businesses will depend on the growth and evolution of the livestreaming ecommerce and technologies associated with the Internet, and we cannot be certain how Internet access or trends for our services will evolve over time. Also, the barriers to entry to our livestreaming ecommerce sector could erode due to strong competitors, low entry costs, competitive pricing, geographical advantages, and other parties’ affiliations and partnerships.

Our business depends on our ability to maintain and grow our network of high-quality suppliers of hosts and influencers. If we are unable to do so, our future growth would be limited and our business, financial condition and results of operations would be harmed.

Our success is dependent upon our continued ability to maintain and grow our credentialed network of high-quality suppliers of hosts and influencers. We have entered into contracts with different suppliers, usually staffing agencies, which have a growing and diverse pool of hosts and influencers. In addition, the perceived value of our solutions and our reputation may be negatively impacted if the services provided by the hosts or influencers from our suppliers are not satisfactory to customers and their members. The failure to maintain or grow our selective network of suppliers or the failure of those suppliers to meet and exceed our customers’ expectations, may result in a loss of or inability to grow or maintain our customer base, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We rely on existing technology systems, networks and platforms that are outside of our control.

Our livestreaming ecommerce business relies on existing technology systems, networks and platforms that we do not control, and changes to any of these technology formats could cause us our change our business model and operations. We may not be successful in developing relationships with industry participants that advance our business efforts or to engage customers to buy or use our services. A large or sudden increase in the cost of the technologies that we utilize may cause us to risk operational viability. Further, changes in technology can occur quickly and unpredictably, and our ability to adapt to such changes could be constrained by our limited experience in our new livestreaming social ecommerce business segment.

We are dependent on our management team and any loss of our key management personnel without timely and suitable replacements may reduce our revenues and profits.

Our business is also dependent on our executive officers who are responsible for implementing our business plans and driving growth. Please refer to “Directors, Senior Management and Employees” herein for more information about our directors and officers. The demand for such experienced personnel is intense and the search for personnel with the relevant skills set can be time consuming. The loss of our key management personnel without timely and suitable replacements may reduce our revenues and profits.

Risk Factors Relating to Our Ceramic Tile Business

We have entered into a share purchase agreement with a buyer to purchase the ceramic tile business. We expect the divestiture of this business segment to occur but it is possible that this will not happen. If the sale of this business is not consummated, this operating segment could continue to experience challenging market conditions attributable to the slowdown in China’s real estate sector.

In December 2022 the Company’s Board of Directors unanimously agreed to divest of its legacy ceramic tile building materials business. A special meeting of the Company’s shareholders was held on February 21, 2023, and the shareholders approved the divestiture of this business, which is expected to close pending satisfaction of customary closing conditions. However, if the sale of this business is not consummated, this operating segment could continue to experience challenging market conditions attributable to the slowdown in China’s real estate sector. Further, the following risk factors should continue to be considered should this divestiture not be consummated.

The Company may incur significant delays and/or expenses relating to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic in China and beyond.

Beginning in late 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) was reported and the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak to constitute a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern.” This has prompted government-imposed quarantines, closures of certain travel and businesses. In March 2022, the Company temporarily shut down its operations in Jinjiang City, Fujian Province, as mandated by the local authorities. In April 2022, the Company gradually resumed its operations in these cities and continues to operate such production facilities.   For the year ended December 31, 2022, revenue generated by the ceramic tile business decreased by RMB107.1 million as compared to fiscal 2021 mainly due to the 5.6 million decrease in sales volume because our customers’ business were declining due to the COVID 19 pandemic. For the full fiscal year 2021, revenue generated by the ceramic tile business decreased by 20.9% as compared to fiscal 2020 mainly due to the 14.0% decrease in sales volume and a decrease in our average selling price of 8.0% resulting from a contraction in business from our customers which was primarily caused by the COVID 19 pandemic. In early December 2022, China announced a nationwide loosening of its zero-COVID policy. However, the extent of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and financial results will depend largely on future developments, including the duration and extent of the spread of COVID-19 both globally and within our operating markets, the impact on our operating markets’ and global economies, and governmental or regulatory orders that impact our business, all of which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted. To the extent that COVID-19 or any health epidemic harms our operating markets’ and global economies in general, our results of operations could be adversely affected.

If China’s inflation increases or the prices of energy or raw materials increase, we may not be able to pass the resulting increased costs to our customers and this may adversely affect our profitability or cause us to suffer operating losses.

Economic growth in China has, in the past, been accompanied by periods of high inflation. In the past, the Chinese government has implemented various policies from time to time to control inflation. For example, the Chinese government has periodically introduced measures in certain sectors to avoid overheating of the economy, including tighter bank lending policies, increases in bank interest rates, and measures to curb inflation, which has resulted in a decrease in the rate of inflation. An increase in inflation could cause our costs for energy, labor costs, raw materials and other operating costs to increase, which would adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

We are dependent on our management team and any loss of our key management personnel without timely and suitable replacements may reduce our revenues and profits.

Our business is also dependent on our executive officers who are responsible for implementing our business plans and driving growth. Please refer to “Directors, Senior Management and Employees” herein for more information about our directors and officers. The demand for such experienced personnel is intense and the search for personnel with the relevant skills set can be time consuming. The loss of our key management personnel without timely and suitable replacements may reduce our revenues and profits.

Failure to compete successfully with our competitors and new entrants to the ceramics industry in the PRC may result in Antelope Enterprises losing market share.

We operate in a competitive and fragmented industry of ceramic tile manufacturing. There is no assurance that we will not face competition from our existing competitors and new entrants. We compete with a variety of companies, some of which have advantages that include: longer operating history, larger clientele base, superior products, better access to capital, personnel and technology, or are better entrenched. Our competitors may be able to respond more quickly to new and emerging technologies and changes in customer requirements or succeed in developing products that are more effective or less costly than our products. Any increase in competition could have a negative impact on our pricing (thus eroding our profit margins) and reduce our market share. If we are unable to compete effectively with our existing and future competitors and do not adapt quickly to changing market conditions, we may lose market share.

We have not purchased product liability insurance and any loss resulting from product liability claims must be paid by us.

Accidents may arise as a result of defects in our products. If there are any defects in the products designed and/or manufactured by us, we may face claims from our customers or third parties for the personal injury or property damage suffered as a result of such defects. We have not purchased insurance coverage for product liability or third party liability and are therefore not covered or compensated by insurance in respect of losses, damages, claims and liabilities arising from or in connection with product liability or third party liability.

Our production facilities may be affected by power shortages which could result in a loss of business.

Our production facilities consume substantial amounts of electrical power, which is the principal source of energy for our manufacturing operations. Although we have a back-up generator at both our production facilities, we may experience occasional temporary power shortages disrupting production due to power rationing activities conducted by the authorities, thunderstorms or other natural events beyond our control. Accordingly, these production disruptions could result in a loss of business.

Our research and development efforts may not result in marketable products.

Our research and development team develops products which we have identified as having good potential in the market. There is no assurance that we will not experience delays in future product developments. There is also no assurance that the products which we are currently developing or may develop in the future will be successful or that we will be able to market these new products to our customers successfully. If our new products are unable to gain the acceptance of our customers or potential customers, we will not be able to generate future sales from our investment in research and development.

We may not be able to ensure the successful implementation of our future plans and strategies, resulting in reduced financial performance.

We intend to expand our market presence and explore opportunities in strategic investments or alliances and acquisitions. These initiatives involve various risks including, but not limited to, the investment costs in setting up new offices and sales offices and working capital requirements. There is no assurance that any future plan can be successfully implemented as the successful execution could depend on several factors, some of which are not within our control. Failure to successfully implement our future plans or to effectively manage costs may lead to a material adverse change in our operating environment or affect our ability to respond to market or industry changes, resulting in reduced financial performance. Decelerating economic growth in China has caused challenging market conditions in the real estate and construction sectors resulting in a contraction in investment and new housing projects by property developers. The challenging market conditions has resulted in an expected contraction in demand for our products. Due to the reduced demand for our products, we have, from time to time, recorded an impairment of assets. As we are currently operating our Hengda facility at significantly less than our maximum capacity, this could reduce our profitability.

We may lose revenue if our intellectual property rights are not protected and counterfeit HD, Hengda, brand products are sold in the market.

We believe our intellectual property rights are important to our success and competitive position. A portion of our products are manufactured and marketed under our “HD” or “Hengda,” labels. We have filed our labels as trademarks in the PRC. We cannot assure you that there will not be any unauthorized usage or misuse of our trademarks or that our intellectual property rights will be adequately protected as it may be difficult and costly to monitor any infringements of our intellectual property rights in the PRC. If we cannot adequately protect our intellectual property, we may lose revenue. In addition, we believe the branding of our products and the brand equity in our “HD” or “Hengda” trademarks is critical to our expansion effort and the continued success of our business. Our efforts to build our brand may be undermined by the sale of counterfeit goods. The counterfeiting of our products may increase if our products become more popular. In order to preserve and enforce our intellectual property rights, we may have to resort to litigation against the infringing or counterfeiting parties. Such litigation could result in substantial costs and diversion of management resources which may have an effect on our financial performance.

We may inadvertently infringe third-party intellectual property rights, which could negatively impact our business and financial results.

We are not aware of, nor have we received any claims from third parties for, any violations or infringements of intellectual property rights of third parties by us as of the date of this Annual Report. Nevertheless, there can be no assurance that as we develop new product designs and production methods, we would not inadvertently infringe the intellectual property rights of others or others would not assert infringement claims against us or claim that we have infringed their intellectual property rights. Claims against us, even if untrue or baseless, could result in significant costs, legal or otherwise, cause product shipment delays, require us to develop non-infringing products, enter into licensing agreements or may be a distraction to our management. Licensing agreements, if required, may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. In the event of a successful claim of intellectual property rights infringement against us and our failure or inability to develop non-infringing products or to license the infringed intellectual property rights in a timely or cost-effective basis, our business and/or financial results will be negatively impacted.

The PRC government has historically introduced certain policy and regulatory measures to control the rapid increase in housing prices and cool down the real estate construction market and has more recently adopted policies to stimulate the real estate sector, and the government in the future may refrain from supporting the sector or adopt measures in the future that may further adversely affect our business.

Our business depends on the level of business activity in the property development and construction industries that use our products in their operations in the PRC. Our products are sold to customers in the property development and construction industries. If the property and construction industries fall into a recession in the future, the demand for construction materials, such as ceramic tiles, may consequently decrease and have a significant adverse effect on our business. The PRC government has committed to taking steps to regulate real estate development, promote the healthy development of the real estate industry in China, and strengthen the supervision over land for real estate development purposes. The PRC government has also enacted measures to cool down the real estate construction market and imposed lending curbs, higher mortgage rates, higher down payments, a price cap on new developments and restrictions on the number of homes each family can buy. This offered less incentive for property developers to develop new residential housing due to continued uncertainty, resulting in the recent slowing construction sector. However, the PRC government has also adopted an array of policies to stimulate the real estate sector from time to time which includes cutting benchmark interest rates, a lowering of the reserve requirement ratio for banks, lower first home down payment ratios and a cut in the minimum capital ratio for fixed asset investments which would help property developers. Although the PRC government’s measures have helped to sustain the real estate sector from time to time, there has been a substantial slowdown in construction activity, and it is not clear if supportive monetary and regulatory policies will continue in the future. We also cannot be certain that the PRC government will not issue additional and more stringent regulations or measures or that agencies and banks will not adopt restrictive measures or practices in response to PRC governmental policies and regulations, which could negatively affect the industries we serve in the PRC, and thereby harm our sales.

Our manufacturing activities are dependent upon availability of skilled and unskilled labor, a deficiency of which could result in a reduction in profits.

Our manufacturing activities are labor intensive and dependent on the availability of skilled and unskilled labor in large numbers. Large labor intensive operations call for good monitoring and maintenance of cordial relations. Non-availability of labor, poor labor management and/or any disputes between the labor and management may result in a reduction in profits. Further, we rely on contractors who engage on-site laborers for performance of many of our unskilled operations. The scarcity or unavailability of contract laborers may affect our operations and financial performance.

We face increasing labor costs and other costs of production in the PRC, which could limit our profitability.

The ceramic tile manufacturing industry is labor intensive. Labor costs in China have been increasing in recent years and our labor costs in the PRC could continue to increase in the future. If labor costs in the PRC continue to increase, our production costs will likely increase which may in turn affect the selling prices of our products. We may not be able to pass on these increased costs to consumers by increasing the selling prices of our products in light of competitive pressure in the markets where we operate. In such circumstances, our profit margin may decrease.

Risk Factors Relating to Our Operations in China

Violation of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or China anti-corruption law could subject us to penalties and other adverse consequences.

We are subject to the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which generally prohibits United States public companies from bribing or making prohibited payments to foreign officials to obtain or retain business. PRC law also strictly prohibits bribery of government officials. While we take precautions to educate our employees about the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Chinese anti-corruption law, there can be no assurance that we or the employees or agents of our subsidiaries will not engage in such conduct, for which we may be held responsible. If that were to occur, we could suffer penalties that may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our independent registered public accounting firm’s audit documentation related to their audit reports included in this annual report may be located in the People’s Republic of China. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board currently cannot inspect audit documentation located in China and, as such, you may be deprived of the benefits of such inspection.

Auditors of companies whose shares are registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and traded publicly in the United States, including our independent registered public accounting firm, must be registered with the U.S. PCAOB and are required by the laws of the United States to undergo regular inspections by the PCAOB to assess their compliance with the laws of the United States and professional standards applicable to auditors. Our financial statements contained in this annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022 have been audited by CZD CPA, an independent registered public accounting firm that is headquartered in Hong Kong. CZD CPA were among those audit firms listed by the PCAOB Hong Kong Determination, a determination announced by the PCAOB on December 16, 2021, that it was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region and dependency of the PRC, because of a position taken by one or more authorities in Hong Kong. The PCAOB made this determination pursuant to PCAOB Rule 6100, which provides a framework for how the PCAOB fulfills its responsibilities under the HFCA Act. On August 26, 2022, the CSRC, the MOF, and the PCAOB signed the Protocol, governing inspections and investigations of audit firms based in mainland China and Hong Kong, taking the first step toward opening access for the PCAOB to inspect and investigate registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong. Pursuant to the fact sheet with respect to the Protocol disclosed by the SEC, the PCAOB shall have independent discretion to select any issuer audits for inspection or investigation and has the unfettered ability to transfer information to the SEC. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB Board determined that the PCAOB was able to secure complete access to inspect and investigate registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong and voted to vacate its previous determinations to the contrary. However, should PRC authorities obstruct or otherwise fail to facilitate the PCAOB’s access in the future, the PCAOB Board will consider the need to issue a new determination. On December 29, 2022, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, was signed into law by President Biden, which amended the HFCA Act by reducing the number of consecutive non-inspection years required for triggering the prohibitions under the HFCA Act from three years to two. In the event it is later determined that the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely our auditor, it would make it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of our auditor’s audit procedures or quality control procedures as compared to auditors outside of China and Hong Kong that are subject to PCAOB inspections. Investors may lose confidence in our reported financial information and procedures and the quality of our financial statements. In addition, our securities may be prohibited from trading under the HFCA Act, as amended, and ultimately result in a determination by the Nasdaq Capital Market to delist our securities.  

Our shares may be delisted under the HFCA Act as the PCAOB is unable to inspect our auditor with presence in Hong Kong, and the delisting of our shares, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment.

The HFCA Act was enacted on December 18, 2020. The HFCA Act states if the SEC determines that we have filed audit reports issued by a registered public accounting firm that has not been subject to inspection by the PCAOB for three consecutive years beginning in 2021, the SEC shall prohibit our shares from being traded on a national securities exchange or in the over the counter trading market in the United States. Our financial statements contained in this annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022 have been audited by CZD CPA, an independent registered public accounting firm that is headquartered in Hong Kong. CZD CPA were among those audit firms listed by the PCAOB Hong Kong Determination, a determination announced by the PCAOB on December 16, 2021, that it was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region and dependency of the PRC, because of a position taken by one or more authorities in Hong Kong. The PCAOB made this determination pursuant to PCAOB Rule 6100, which provides a framework for how the PCAOB fulfills its responsibilities under the HFCA Act. On August 26, 2022, the CSRC, the MOF, and the PCAOB signed the Protocol, governing inspections and investigations of audit firms based in mainland China and Hong Kong, taking the first step toward opening access for the PCAOB to inspect and investigate registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong. Pursuant to the fact sheet with respect to the Protocol disclosed by the SEC, the PCAOB shall have independent discretion to select any issuer audits for inspection or investigation and has the unfettered ability to transfer information to the SEC. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB Board determined that the PCAOB was able to secure complete access to inspect and investigate registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong and voted to vacate its previous determinations to the contrary. However, should PRC authorities obstruct or otherwise fail to facilitate the PCAOB’s access in the future, the PCAOB Board will consider the need to issue a new determination. On December 29, 2022, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, was signed into law by President Biden, which amended the HFCA Act by reducing the number of consecutive non-inspection years required for triggering the prohibitions under the HFCA Act from three years to two.

The Company understands that in the event that the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely the Company’s independent auditor for consecutive two years, the SEC could prohibit trading of our Class A ordinary shares on the NASDAQ Capital Market, any other U.S. securities exchange, and in the over-the-counter market. Such a trading prohibition would substantially impair, if not preclude your ability to sell or purchase our securities, and the risks and uncertainties associated with a potential trading prohibition could have a negative impact on the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

We are dependent on political, economic, regulatory and social conditions in the PRC.

Approximately 100%, 100% and 100%  of our revenue in each of the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively, was derived from the PRC market and we anticipate that the PRC market will continue to be the major source of revenue for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, any significant slowdown in the PRC economy or decline in demand for our products from our customers in the PRC will have an adverse effect on our business and financial performance. Furthermore, as our operations and production facilities are located in the PRC, any unfavorable changes in the social and/or political conditions may also adversely affect our business and operations. While the current policy of the PRC government seems to be one of economic reform to encourage foreign investments and greater economic decentralization, there is no assurance that such a policy will continue to prevail in the future. There is no assurance that our operations will not be adversely affected should there be any policy changes.

In light of recent events indicating greater oversight by the Cyberspace Administration of China, or CAC, over data security, particularly for companies seeking to list or listed on a foreign exchange, we are subject to a variety of laws and other obligations regarding cybersecurity and data protection, and any failure to comply with applicable laws and obligations could have a material and adverse effect on our business, our listing on Nasdaq, financial condition, results of operations, and the offering.

We are subject to various risks and costs associated with to the collection, use, sharing, retention, security, and transfer of confidential and private information, such as personal information and other data. This data is wide ranging and relates to our investors, employees, contractors and other counterparties and third parties. Our compliance obligations include those relating to the relevant PRC laws in this regard. These PRC laws apply not only to third-party transactions, but also to transfers of information between us and our subsidiaries in China, and among us, our PRC subsidiaries, and other parties with which we have commercial relations. These laws continue to develop, and the PRC government may adopt other rules and restrictions in the future. Non-compliance could result in penalties or other significant legal liabilities.

Pursuant to the PRC Cybersecurity Law, promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on November 7, 2016 and took effect on June 1, 2017, personal information and important data collected and generated by a critical information infrastructure operator in the course of its operations in China must be stored in China, and if a critical information infrastructure operator purchases internet products and services that affects or may affect national security, it should be subject to cybersecurity review by the CAC. Due to the lack of further interpretations, the exact scope of “critical information infrastructure operator” remains unclear. On December 28, 2021, the CAC published the CAC Revised Measures which further restates and expands the applicable scope of the cybersecurity review. The CAC Revised Measures took effect on February 15, 2022. Pursuant to the CAC Revised Measures, if a network platform operator holding personal information of over one million users seeks for “foreign” listing, it must apply for the cybersecurity review. In addition, operators of critical information infrastructure purchasing network products and services are also obligated to apply for the cybersecurity review for such purchasing activities. Although the CAC Revised Measures provides no further explanation on the extent of “network platform operator” and “foreign” listing, as confirmed by our PRC counsel, Allbright Law Offices, we are not subject to cybersecurity review with the CAC , because (i) we are not in possession of or otherwise holding personal information of over one million users and it is also very unlikely that it will reach such threshold in the near future; (ii) as of the date of this annual report, our data processing activities (including the collection, storage, usage, transmission and publicity of data) do not damage national security; and (iii) as of the date of this annual report, we have not received any notice or determination from applicable PRC governmental authorities identifying it as a critical information infrastructure operator.  However, we cannot guarantee that we will not be subject to cybersecurity review in the future. During such review, we may be required to suspend our operation experience other disruptions to our operations. Cybersecurity review could also result in negative publicity with respect to our company and diversion of our managerial and financial resources.

Furthermore, if we were found to be in violation of applicable laws and regulations in China during such review, we could be subject to administrative penalties, such as warnings, fines, or service suspension. Therefore, cybersecurity review could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

In addition, the PRC Data Security Law, promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on June 10, 2021 and took effect on September 1, 2021, requires data collection to be conducted in a legitimate and proper manner, and stipulates that, for the purpose of data protection, data processing activities must be conducted based on data classification and hierarchical protection system for data security. As the Data Security Law was recently promulgated, we may be required to make further adjustments to our business practices to comply with this law. If our data processing activities were found to be not in compliance with this law, we could be ordered to make corrections, and under certain serious circumstances, such as severe data divulgence, we could be subject to penalties, including the revocation of our business licenses or other permits. Furthermore, the recently issued Opinions on Strictly Cracking Down Illegal Securities Activities in Accordance with the Law require (i) speeding up the revision of the provisions on strengthening the confidentiality and archives management relating to overseas issuance and listing of securities and (ii) improving the laws and regulations relating to data security, cross-border data flow, and management of confidential information. As there remain uncertainties regarding the further interpretation and implementation of those laws and regulations, we cannot assure you that we will be compliant such new regulations in all respects, and we may be ordered to rectify and terminate any actions that are deemed illegal by the regulatory authorities and become subject to fines and other sanctions. As a result, we may be required to suspend our relevant businesses, shut down our website, take down our operating applications, or face other penalties, which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

On August 20, 2021, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China promulgated the Personal Information Protection Law of the PRC, or the PIPL, which took effect in November 2021. As the first systematic and comprehensive law specifically for the protection of personal information in the PRC, the PIPL provides, among others, that (i) an individual’s consent shall be obtained to use sensitive personal information, such as biometric characteristics and individual location tracking, (ii) personal information operators using sensitive personal information shall notify individuals of the necessity of such use and impact on the individual’s rights, and (iii) where personal information operators reject an individual’s request to exercise his or her rights, the individual may file a lawsuit with a People’s Court. As uncertainties remain regarding the interpretation and implementation of the PIPL, we cannot assure you that we will comply with the PIPL in all respects, we may become subject to fines and/or other penalties which may have material adverse effect on our business, operations and financial condition.

While we take measures to comply with all applicable data privacy and protection laws and regulations, we cannot guarantee the effectiveness of the measures undertaken by us and our business partners. However, compliance with any additional laws could be expensive, and may place restrictions on our business operations and the manner in which we interact with our users. In addition, any failure to comply with applicable cybersecurity, privacy, and data protection laws and regulations could result in proceedings against us by government authorities or others, including notification for rectification, confiscation of illegal earnings, fines, or other penalties and legal liabilities against us, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and the value of our Ordinary Shares. In addition, any negative publicity on our website or platform’s safety or privacy protection mechanism and policy could harm our public image and reputation and materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We are subject to risks related to the laws and regulations of the PRC and the interpretation and implementation thereof.

Our business and operations, as well as those of our customers and suppliers in the PRC, are subject to the laws and regulations promulgated by relevant PRC governmental authorities. The PRC government is still in the process of developing a comprehensive set of laws and regulations in the course of the PRC’s transformation from a centrally planned economy to a market-oriented economy. As the legal system in the PRC is still in flux, laws and regulations or their interpretation may be subject to change. Furthermore, any change in the political and economic policy of the PRC government may also result in similar changes in the laws and regulations or the interpretation thereof. Such changes may adversely affect our operations and business in the PRC. The PRC legal system is a codified legal system comprising written laws, regulations, circulars, administrative directives, and internal guidelines as well as judicial interpretations. Decided cases do not form part of the legal structure of the PRC and thus have no binding effect. As such, the administration of PRC laws and regulations may be subject to a certain degree of discretion by the authorities. This has resulted in the outcome of dispute resolutions not having the level of consistency or predictability as in other countries with more developed legal systems. Due to such inconsistency and unpredictability, if we should be involved in any legal dispute in the PRC, we may experience difficulties in obtaining legal redress or in enforcing our legal rights. From time to time, changes in law, registration requirements, and regulations or the implementation thereof may also require us to obtain additional approvals and licenses from the PRC authorities for carrying out our operations in the PRC which would require us to incur additional expenses in order to comply with such requirements and in turn affect our financial performance with the increase in our business costs. Furthermore, there can be no assurance that approvals, registrations, or licenses will be granted to us promptly or at all. If we experience delays in obtaining or are unable to obtain such required approvals, registrations, or licenses, our operations and business in the PRC, and hence our overall financial performance will be adversely affected.

Our business activities are subject to certain PRC laws and regulations.

As our production and operations are carried out in the PRC, we are subject to certain PRC laws and regulations. In addition, being wholly foreign-owned enterprises, we are required to comply with certain additional laws and regulations. Pursuant to PRC laws and regulations, the breach or non-compliance with such laws and regulations may result in the PRC authorities suspending, withdrawing or terminating our business license, causing us to cease production of all or certain of our products, and this would materially and adversely affect our business and financial performance. Our corporate affairs in the PRC are governed by our articles of association and the corporate and foreign investment laws and regulations of the PRC. The principles of the PRC laws relating to matters such as the fiduciary duties of directors and other corporate governance matters and foreign investment laws in the PRC are relatively new. Hence, the enforcement of investors or shareholders’ rights under the articles of association of a PRC company and the interpretation of the relevant laws relating to corporate governance matters remain largely untested in the PRC.

PRC foreign exchange control may limit our ability to utilize our profits effectively and affect our ability to receive dividends and other payments from our PRC subsidiaries.

Hengda, Chengdu Future, Antelope Yangpu, Hainan Antelope, Antelope Chengdu are foreign investment enterprise, or “FIE,” and are subject to the rules and regulations in the PRC on currency conversion. In the PRC, State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, regulates the conversion of the RMB into foreign currencies. Currently, FIEs are required to apply to SAFE for “Foreign Exchange Registration Certificates for Foreign Investment Enterprise”. With such registration certifications (which need to be renewed annually), FIEs are allowed to open foreign currency accounts including the “current account” and “capital account”. Currently, conversion of currency within the scope of the “current account” (e.g. remittance of foreign currencies for payment of dividends, etc.) can be effected without requiring the approval of SAFE. However, conversion of currency in the “capital account” (e.g. for capital items such as direct investments, loans, securities, etc.) still requires the approval of SAFE. On October 21, 2005, SAFE promulgated the “Notice on Issues concerning Foreign Exchange Management in Financing by PRC Residents by Overseas Special Purpose Vehicle and Return Investments” (the “No. 75 Notice”). The No. 75 Notice came into effect on November 1, 2005 and requires the following matters, among others, to be complied with: every PRC domestic resident who establishes or controls an overseas special purpose vehicle, or “SPV,” must apply to the local bureau of SAFE for an “overseas investment foreign exchange registration.” Every PRC domestic resident of an SPV who has completed the “overseas investment foreign exchange registration”, or “Registrant,” must make an application to the local bureau of SAFE to amend their registration particulars upon (i) the injection of any PRC domestic assets or the equity interests of any PRC domestic company owned by the PRC domestic resident into the SPV, and (ii) the implementation of any overseas equity fund-raising by the SPV following an injection of PRC domestic assets or the equity interests of a PRC domestic company; every Registrant must apply to the local bureau of SAFE for change of registration particulars or recordation within 30 days after the occurrence of any capital increase or reduction, changes in shareholdings or share swap, merger, long-term investment in equities or debentures, guarantee of foreign indebtedness and other major capital changes not involving “return investment”, undertaken by an SPV; and every Registrant must repatriate, within 180 days, dividends or profits which he receives from an SPV and/or income derived from changes in the shareholding of an SPV. On July 14, 2014, China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), the foreign exchange control authority, released the Notice of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Administration for Overseas Investment, Financing and Round Trip Investment Undertaken by Domestic Residents via Special Purpose Vehicles (Notice 37). The regulation took effect July 4, 2014. At that time, the old regulation, “Notice on Issues concerning Foreign Exchange Management in Financing by PRC Residents by Overseas Special Purpose Vehicle and Return Investments” (the “No. 75 Notice”), which was issued in 2005, was repealed. Compared with Circular 75, Circular 37 reflects the trend of SAFE’s policy to gradually loosen the restrictions and simplify the procedures for overseas financing and investment by Chinese residents, so as to fully utilize the financial resources in domestic and overseas markets. However, as Circular 37 has only recently been issued, the actual interpretation and enforcement of the above changes by SAFE in practice remain to be seen. There can be no assurance that SAFE will not continue to issue new rules and regulations and/or further interpretations of the No. 37 Notice that will strengthen the foreign exchange control. As our operating entities are located in the PRC and all of our sales are denominated in RMB, our ability to pay dividends or make other distributions may be restricted by PRC foreign exchange control restrictions. There can be no assurance that the relevant regulations will not be amended to our detriment and that our ability to distribute dividends will not be adversely affected.

Introduction of new laws or changes to existing laws by the PRC government may adversely affect our business.

With the regulations concerning data privacy and cybersecurity are developing in China, we may be subject to new laws and regulations when we operate our business. 

On June 10, 2021, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress promulgated the Data Security Law of the PRC, which took effect on September 1, 2021. The Data Security Law clarifies the scope of data to cover a wide range of information records generated from all aspects of production, operation and management of government affairs and enterprises in the process of the gradual transformation of digitalization and requires that data collection shall be conducted in a legitimate and proper manner, and theft or illegal collection of data is not permitted. Data processors shall establish and improve the whole-process data security management rules, organize and implement data security trainings as well as take appropriate technical measures and other necessary measures to protect data security. In addition, data processing activities shall be conducted on the basis of the graded protection system for cybersecurity.

On July 30, 2021, the State Council promulgated the Regulations on Protection of Security of Critical Information Infrastructure, effective on September 1, 2021, under which, a “critical information infrastructure” refers to critical network facilities and information systems involved in important industries and sectors, such as public communication and information services, energy, transportation, water conservancy, finance, public services, governmental digital services, science and technology related to national defense industry, as well as those which may seriously endanger national security, national economy and citizen’s livelihood or public interests if damaged or malfunctioned, or if any leakage of data in relation thereto occurs. The competent governmental departments and supervision and management departments of the aforementioned important industries will be responsible for (i) organizing the identification of critical information infrastructures in their respective industries in accordance with relevant identification rules, and (ii) promptly notifying the identified operators and the public security department of the State Council of the identification results. In the event of occurrence of any major cybersecurity incident or discovery of any major cybersecurity threat for the critical information infrastructure, the operator shall report to the protection authorities and the public security authorities as required.

On July 7, 2022, the CAC promulgated the Measures on Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfer which has become effective on September 1, 2022. Such data export measures requires that any data processor which processes or exports personal information exceeding certain volume threshold under such measures shall apply for security assessment by the CAC before transferring any personal information abroad, including the following circumstances: (i) important data will be provided overseas by any data processor; (ii) personal information will be provided overseas by any operator of critical information infrastructure or any data processor who processes the personal information of more than 1,000,000 individuals; (iii) personal information will be provided overseas by any data processor who has provided the personal information of more than 100,000 individuals in aggregate or has provided the sensitive personal information of more than 10,000 individuals in aggregate since January 1 of last year; and (iv) other circumstances where the security assessment is required as prescribed by the CAC. A data processor shall, before applying for the security assessment of an outbound data transfer, conduct a self-assessment of the risks in the outbound data transfer. The security assessment of a cross-border data transfer shall focus on assessing risks that may be brought about by the cross-border data transfer to national security, public interests, or the lawful rights and interests of individuals or organizations.

On December 28, 2021, the CAC, the NDRC, the MIIT and several other PRC governmental authorities jointly issued the Cybersecurity Review Measures, which became effective on February 15, 2022 and replaced the Measures for Cybersecurity Review published on April 13, 2020. Pursuant to Cybersecurity Review Measures, critical information infrastructure operators that purchase network products and services and network platform operators engaging in data processing activities that affect or may affect national security are subject to cybersecurity review under the Cybersecurity Review Measures. According to the Cybersecurity Review Measures, before purchasing any network products or services, a critical information infrastructure operator shall assess potential national security risks that may arise from the launch or use of such products or services, and apply for a cybersecurity review with the cybersecurity review office of CAC if national security will or may be affected. In addition, network platform operators who possess personal information of more than one million users and intend to be listed at a foreign stock exchange shall go through the cybersecurity review. As advised by our PRC counsel, Allbright Law Offices, we are not subject to cybersecurity review with the CAC in accordance with the CAC Revised Measures, because (i) we are not in possession of or otherwise holding personal information of over one million users and it is also very unlikely that it will reach such threshold in the near future; (ii) as of the date of this annual report, our data processing activities (including the collection, storage, usage, transmission and publicity of data) do not damage national security; and (iii) as of the date of this annual report, we have not received any notice or determination from applicable PRC governmental authorities identifying it as a critical information infrastructure operator. However, since these statements and regulatory actions are new, it is highly uncertain how soon legislative or administrative regulation making bodies will respond and what existing or new laws or regulations or detailed implementations and interpretations will be modified or promulgated, if any, and the potential impact such modified or new laws and regulations will have on our daily business operation, the ability to accept foreign investments and list on an U.S. exchange.

In addition, given the lack of oversight of many offshore issuers with China-based operating companies, CSRC promulgated a package of rules and regulations to enhance the regulations on such companies.

On February 17, 2023, the CSRC promulgated the Trial Administrative Measures of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies, or the Trial Measures, and five supporting guidelines, which came into effect on March 31, 2023. The Trial Measures clarified that enterprises that have been listed overseas prior to March 31, 2023 constitute “Existing Issuers” and are not required to conduct the overseas listing filing procedure immediately, but shall carry out filing procedures as required if they conduct refinancing or are involved in other circumstances required by CSRC.

On February 24, 2023, the CSRC and certain other PRC regulatory authorities jointly published the revised Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration in Respect of Overseas Issuance and Listing of Securities by Domestic Enterprises, or the Confidentiality and Archives Administration Provisions, which came into effect on March 31, 2023. The Confidentiality and Archives Administration Provisions, among other things, (i) require PRC enterprises to comply with confidentiality obligations under applicable PRC rules and regulations when providing documents and materials to securities companies and securities service institutions; (ii) mandate that working papers created within the PRC by securities companies and securities service institutions in connection with their services for overseas securities offerings and listing of PRC enterprises shall be retained within the territory of the PRC; and (iii) prohibit the cross-border transfer of the aforementioned working papers outside the PRC absent prior examination and approval from competent PRC regulatory authorities. The Confidentiality and Archives Administration Provisions, together with Trial Measures, also emphasize that the investigation and evidence collection in relation to the overseas securities offering and listing by the domestic companies conducted by overseas securities regulator and the relevant competent authorities shall go through the cross-border regulatory cooperation mechanism and the CSRC or the relevant authorities shall provide the requisite assistance pursuant to the bilateral and multilateral cooperation mechanism.

The PRC legal system is based on the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China and is made up of written laws, regulations, circulars and directives. With the PRC’s entry into the WTO, the PRC government is in the process of developing its legal system so as to encourage foreign investments and to meet the needs of investors. As the PRC economy is developing at a generally faster rate than its legal system, some degree of uncertainty exists in connection with whether and how existing laws and regulations will apply to certain events or circumstances. Some of the laws and regulations, and the interpretation, implementation and enforcement thereof, are still at the experimental stage and therefore subject to policy changes. There is no assurance that the introduction of new laws or regulations, changes to existing laws and regulations and the interpretation or application thereof or the delays in obtaining approvals from the relevant PRC authorities will not have an adverse impact on our business or prospects. In particular, on August 8, 2006, the Ministry of Commerce, the CSRC, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the State Administration of Taxation, the State Administration of Industry and Commerce and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange promulgated the “Rules on the Mergers and Acquisition of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors” which came into effect on September 8, 2006, or “the M&A Rules.” Foreign investors should comply with the rules when they purchase shareholding equities of a PRC domestic non-foreign-funded enterprise, or Domestic Company, or subscribe to the increased capital of a Domestic Company, and thus changing the nature of the Domestic Company into a foreign investment enterprise. The rules stipulate, inter alia, (i) that the acquisition of a Domestic Company by an affiliated foreign enterprise established or controlled by PRC entities or individuals must be approved by the Ministry of Commerce; (ii) that the incorporation of a special purpose vehicle, which is directly or indirectly controlled by PRC entities for the purpose of an overseas listing of the equity interest of a Domestic Company, must be subject to the approval of the Ministry of Commerce; (iii) that the acquisition of a Domestic Company by a special purpose vehicle shall be subject to approval of the Ministry of Commerce and (iv) the offshore listing of a special purpose vehicle shall be subject to the prior approval from China Securities Regulatory Commission. As Hengda was incorporated as a FIE and Antelope Enterprises does not fall within the scope of being classified as a special purpose vehicle directly or indirectly established or controlled by PRC entities or individuals, the M&A Rules did not apply to the Business Combination, and we were not required to obtain the approval from the Ministry of Commerce, the approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission and/or any other approvals from PRC government authorities as stipulated by the M&A Rules. There is however no assurance that the PRC authorities will not issue further directives, regulations, clarifications or implementation rules, which may require us or other relevant parties to obtain further approvals with respect to the Business Combination. If new laws are promulgated or the existing laws are reinterpreted, our structure could be determined to be in violation of such laws and subject to sanction by applicable government authorities.

Environmental, health and safety laws have in the past and may in the future impose material liabilities on us and require us to incur material capital and operational costs.

We are subject to environmental, health and safety laws and regulations in the PRC that impose controls on our air, water and waste discharges, on our storage, handling, use, discharge and disposal of chemicals, and on exposure of our employees to hazardous substances. These laws and regulations could require us to incur costs to maintain compliance and could impose liability to remedy the effects of hazardous substance contamination. Although we do not believe that we have violated any of such laws and regulations and therefore have not incurred any significant liabilities under these laws and regulations in the past, the environmental laws and regulations are constantly evolving and becoming stricter in the PRC. The adoption of new laws or regulations or our failure to comply with these laws or regulations in the future could cause us to incur material liabilities and could require us to incur additional expenses, curtail operations and/or restrict our ability to expand.

Our business will suffer if we lose our land use rights.

There is no private ownership of land in China and all land ownership is held by the government of China, its agencies, and collectives. In the case of land used for business purposes, land use rights can be obtained from the government for a period up to 50 years, and are typically renewable. Land use rights can be granted upon approval by the land administrative authorities of China (State Land Administration Bureau) upon payment of the required land granting fee, the entry into a land use agreement with a competent governmental authority and certain other ministerial procedures. We have received land use certificates for certain parcels of land on which our operations reside, but we may not have followed all procedures required to obtain such certificates or paid all required fees.  If the Chinese administrative authorities determine that we have not fully complied with all procedures and requirements needed to hold a land use certificate, we may be forced by the Chinese administrative authorities to retroactively comply with such procedures and requirements, which may be burdensome and require us to make payments, or such Chinese administrative authorities may invalidate or revoke our land use certificate entirely. If the land use right certificates needed for our operations are determined by the government of China to be invalid or if they are not renewed, we may lose production facilities or employee accommodations that would be difficult or even impossible to replace. Should we have to relocate, our workforce may be unable or unwilling to work in the new location and our business operations will be disrupted during the relocation. The relocation or loss of facilities could cause us to lose sales and/or increase our costs of production, which would negatively impact our financial results.

We own certain buildings collectively, which may limit our right to use, renovate or dispose of such buildings.

We own several buildings located at the Junbing Industrial Zone in Jinjiang City with a total construction area of 29,120.83 square meters. As a result, our right to use, renovate and dispose of such buildings may be limited.

Our business will suffer if we fail to comply with environmental protection regulations

Companies which cause severe pollution to the environment are required to restore the environment or remedy the effects of the pollution within a prescribed time limit. If a company fails to report and/or register the environmental pollution it caused, it will receive a warning or be penalized. Companies that fail to restore the environment or remedy the effects of the pollution within the prescribed time will be penalized or have their business licenses terminated. Companies that have polluted and endangered the environment must bear the responsibility for remedying the danger and effects of the pollution, as well as to compensate any losses or damages suffered as a result of such environmental pollution.

It may be difficult for overseas shareholders and/or regulators to conduct investigation or collect evidence within China.

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

Our principal business operation is conducted in the PRC. If U.S. regulators carry out an investigation of us and there is a need to conduct investigation or collect evidence within the territory of the PRC, the U.S. regulators may not be able to carry out such investigation or evidence collection directly in the PRC under the PRC laws. The U.S. regulators may consider cross-border cooperation with securities regulatory authority of the PRC by way of judicial assistance, diplomatic channels or regulatory cooperation mechanism established with the securities regulatory authority of the PRC.

Fluctuations in exchange rates could adversely affect our business and the value of our shares.

The value of our shares will be indirectly affected by the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollars and the Renminbi and between those currencies and other currencies in which our revenue may be denominated. Because all of our earnings and cash assets are denominated in Renminbi, fluctuations in the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the Renminbi will affect the relative purchasing power of these proceeds, as well as our financial results reported in U.S. dollar terms without giving effect to any underlying change in our business, financial condition or results of operations. Fluctuations in the exchange rate will also affect the relative value of any dividend we issue that will be exchanged into U.S. dollars and earnings from, and the value of, any U.S. dollar-denominated investments we make in the future. Since July 2005, the Renminbi has not been pegged to the U.S. dollar. Although the People’s Bank of China regularly intervenes in the foreign exchange market to prevent significant short-term fluctuations in the exchange rate, the Renminbi may appreciate or depreciate significantly in value against the U.S. dollar in the medium to long term. Moreover, it is possible that in the future the Chinese authorities may lift restrictions on fluctuations in the Renminbi exchange rate and lessen intervention in the foreign exchange market. Therefore, the RMB exchange rate has become more flexible and the exchange rate regime more transparent and in line with changes in market supply and demand. However, significant fluctuations in the RMB’s value against the U.S. dollar could occur. Very limited hedging transactions are available in China to reduce our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations. To date, we have not entered into any hedging transactions in an effort to reduce our exposure to foreign currency exchange risk. While we may enter into hedging transactions in the future, the availability and effectiveness of these transactions may be limited, and we may not be able to successfully hedge our exposure at all. In addition, our foreign currency exchange losses may be magnified by Chinese exchange control regulations that restrict our ability to convert Renminbi into foreign currencies.

Under the EIT Law, Antelope Enterprises, Success Winner and/or Stand Best, Vast Elite and Antelope HK may be classified as a “resident enterprise” of the PRC. Such classification could result in PRC tax consequences to Antelope Enterprises, our non-PRC resident shareholders, Success Winner and/or Stand Best, Vast Elite and Antelope HK.

The EIT Law and its implementing rules provide that enterprises established outside of China whose “de facto management bodies” are located in China are considered “resident enterprises” under PRC tax laws. The implementing rules promulgated under the EIT Law define the term “de facto management bodies” as a management body which substantially manages, or has control over the business, personnel, finance and assets of an enterprise. In April 2009, the State Administration of Taxation, or SAT, issued a circular, known as Circular 82, which provides certain specific criteria for determining whether the “de facto management bodies” of a PRC-controlled enterprise that is incorporated offshore is located in China. However, there are no further detailed rules or precedents governing the procedures and specific criteria for determining “de facto management body.” If the PRC tax authorities determine that Antelope Enterprises, Success Winner and/or Stand Best, Vast Elite, Antelope HK are a “resident enterprise” for PRC enterprise income tax purposes, a number of PRC tax consequences could follow. First, Antelope Enterprises, Success Winner and/or Stand Best may be subject to the enterprise income tax at a rate of 25% on Antelope Enterprises’, Success Winner’s and/or Stand Best’s worldwide taxable income, as well as PRC enterprise income tax reporting obligations. Second, under the EIT Law and its implementing rules, dividends paid between “qualified resident enterprises” are exempt from enterprise income tax. As a result, if Antelope Enterprises, Success Winner and Stand Best are each treated as “qualified resident enterprises,” all dividends from Hengda to Antelope Enterprises (through Success Winner and Stand Best) should be exempt from the PRC enterprise income tax. If Stand Best, Antelope HK and Vast Elite were treated as a PRC “non-resident enterprise” under the EIT Law, then dividends that Stand Best receives from Hengda, Vast Elite receives from Chengdu Future, Antelope HK receives from Antelope Yangpu, Hainan Antelope and Antelope Chengdu (assuming such dividends were considered sourced within the PRC) (i) may be subject to a 5% PRC withholding tax, provided that Stand Best owns more than 25% of the registered capital of Hengda, continuously within 12 months immediately prior to obtaining such dividend from Hengda, Vast Elite owns more than 25% of the registered capital of Chengdu Future, continuously within 12 months immediately prior to obtaining such dividend from Chengdu Future, and Antelope HK owns more than 25% of the registered capital of Antelope Yangpu, Hainan Antelope and Antelope Chengdu, continuously within 12 months immediately prior to obtaining such dividend from Antelope Yangpu, Hainan Antelope and Antelope Chengdu and the Arrangement between the Mainland of China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income, or the “PRC-Hong Kong Tax Treaty,” were otherwise applicable, or (ii) if such treaty does not apply (i.e., because the PRC tax authorities may deem Stand Best to be a conduit not entitled to treaty benefits), may be subject to a 10% PRC withholding tax. Similarly, if Success Winner were treated as a “non-resident enterprise” under the EIT Law and Stand Best were treated as a “resident enterprise” under the EIT Law, then dividends Success Winner receives from Stand Best (assuming such dividends were considered sourced within the PRC) may be subject to a 10% PRC withholding tax. A similar situation may arise if Antelope Enterprises were treated as a “non-resident enterprise” under the EIT Law, and Success Winner were treated as a “resident enterprise” under the EIT Law. Any such taxes on dividends could materially reduce the amount of dividends, if any, we could pay to our shareholders. Finally, if Antelope Enterprises is determined to be a “resident enterprise” under the EIT Law, this could result in a situation in which a 10% PRC tax is imposed on dividends Antelope Enterprises pays to its shareholders that are not tax residents of the PRC, or “non-resident investors,” and that are enterprises but not individuals, and gains derived by them from transferring Antelope Enterprises’ shares, if such income is considered PRC-sourced income by the relevant PRC tax authorities. In such event, Antelope Enterprises may be required to withhold a 10% PRC tax on any dividends paid to such non-resident investors. Such non-resident investors also may be responsible for paying PRC tax at a rate of 10% on any gain derived by such investors from the sale or transfer of Antelope Enterprises’ shares in certain circumstances. Antelope Enterprises would not, however, have an obligation to withhold PRC tax with respect to such gain under the PRC tax laws. Also, if Antelope Enterprises is determined to be a “resident enterprise,” its nonresident investors who are individuals may also be subject to potential PRC individual income tax at a rate of 20% with respect to dividends received from Antelope Enterprises and/or gains derived by them from the sale or transfer of Antelope Enterprises’ shares. Moreover, the State Administration of Taxation, or “SAT,” released Circular Guoshuihan No. 698, or Circular 698, on December 10, 2009 that reinforces the taxation of certain equity transfers by non-resident investors through overseas holding vehicles. Circular 698 addresses indirect equity transfers as well as other issues. Circular 698 is retroactively effective from January 1, 2008. According to Circular 698, where a nonresident investor who indirectly holds an equity interest in a PRC resident enterprise through a non-PRC offshore holding company indirectly transfers an equity interest in the PRC resident enterprise by selling an equity interest in the offshore holding company, and the latter is located in a country or jurisdiction where the actual tax burden is less than 12.5% or where the offshore income of its residents is not taxable, the non-resident investor is required to provide the PRC tax authority in charge of that PRC resident enterprise with certain relevant information within 30 days of the execution of the equity transfer agreement. The tax authorities in charge will evaluate the offshore transaction for tax purposes. In the event that the tax authorities determine that such transfer is abusing forms of business organization and a reasonable commercial purpose for the offshore holding company other than the avoidance of PRC income tax liability is lacking, the PRC tax authorities will have the power to re-assess the nature of the equity transfer under the doctrine of substance over form. A reasonable commercial purpose may be established when the overall international (including U.S.) offshore structure is set up to comply with the requirements of supervising authorities of international (including U.S.) capital markets. If the SAT’s challenge of a transfer is successful, it may deny the existence of the offshore holding company that is used for tax planning purposes and subject the non-resident investor to PRC tax on the capital gain from such transfer. Since Circular 698 has a short history, there is uncertainty as to its application. We (or a nonresident investor) may become at risk of being taxed under Circular 698 and may be required to expend valuable resources to comply with Circular 698 or to establish that we (or such non-resident investor) should not be taxed under Circular 698, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations (or such non-resident investor’s investment in us). In additional, the PRC resident enterprise may be required to provide necessary assistance to support the enforcement of Circular 698. On February 3, 2015, the State Administration of Tax issued a Public Notice Regarding Certain Corporate Income Tax Matters on Indirect Transfer of Properties by Non-tax Resident Enterprise, or Public Notice 7. Public Notice 7 has introduced a new tax regime that is significantly different from that under Circular 698. Public Notice 7 extends its tax jurisdiction to not only indirect transfers set forth under Circular 698 but also transactions involving transfer of other taxable assets, through the offshore transfer of a foreign intermediate holding company. In addition, Public Notice 7 provides clearer criteria the Circular 698 on how to assess reasonable commercial purposes and has introduced safe harbors for internal group restructurings and the purchase and sale of equity through a public securities market. Public Notice 7 also brings challenges to both the foreign transferor and transferee (or other person who is obligated to pay for the transfer) of the taxable assets. Where a non-resident enterprise conducts an “indirect transfer” by transferring the taxable assets indirectly by disposing of the equity interests of an overseas holding company, the non-resident enterprise being the transferor, or the transferee, or the PRC entity which directly owned the taxable assets may report to the relevant tax authority such indirect transfer. Using a “substance over form” principle, the PRC tax authority may re-characterize such indirect transfer as a direct transfer of the equity interests in the PRC tax resident enterprise and other properties in China, As a result, gains derived from such indirect transfer may be subject on PRC enterprise income tax, and the transferee or other person who is obligated to pay for the transfer is obligated to withhold the applicable taxes, currently at a rate of up to 10% for the transfer of equity interests in a PRC resident enterprise. Both the transferor and the transferee may be subject to penalties under PRC tax laws if transferee fails to withhold the taxes and the transferor fails to pay the taxes.

We face uncertainties with respect to the reporting and consequences of private equity financing transactions, share exchange or other transactions involving the transfer of shares in our company by investors that are non-PRC resident enterprises, or sale or purchase of shares in other non-PRC resident companies or other taxable assets by us. Our company and other non-resident enterprises in our group may be subject to filing obligations or being taxed if our company and other non-resident enterprises in our group are transferors in such transactions, and may be subject to withholding obligations if our company and other non-resident enterprises in our group are transferees in such transactions, under Circular 698 and Public Notice 7. For the transfer to shares in our company by investors that are non-PRC resident enterprises, our PRC subsidiaries may be requested to assist in the filing under Circular 698 and Public Notice 7. As a result, we may be required to expend valuable resources to comply with Circular 698 and Public Notice 7 to request the relevant transferors from whom we purchase taxable assets to comply with these circulars, or to establish that our company and other non-resident enterprises in our group should not be taxed under these circulars, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. The PRC tax authorities have the discretion under Circular 698 and Public Notice 7 to make adjustments to the taxable capital gains based on the difference between the fair value of the taxable assets transferred and the cost of investment. If the PRC tax authorities make adjustments to the taxable income of the transactions under Circular 698 and Public Notice 7, our income tax costs associated with such potential acquisitions will be increased, which may have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. If any PRC tax applies to a non-resident investor, the non-resident investor may be entitled to a reduced rate of PRC tax under an applicable income tax treaty and/or a deduction for such PRC tax against such investor’s domestic taxable income or a foreign tax credit in respect of such PRC tax against such investor’s domestic income tax liability (subject to applicable conditions and limitations). Shareholders should consult with their own tax advisors regarding the applicability of any such taxes, the effects of any applicable income tax treaties, and any available deductions or foreign tax credits.  For a further discussion of these issues, see the section herein captioned “Taxation—PRC Taxation.”

Risks Factors Relating to Our Class A Ordinary Shares

The price of our shares could be volatile and could decline at a time when you want to sell your holdings.

The price of our shares has been and may continue to be volatile, and that volatility may continue for an extended period of time.

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

We are a “controlled company” as defined under the NASDAQ Stock Market Rules because our CEO and chairman, Mr. Weilai (Will) Zhang, beneficially owns more than 50% of voting power for the election of directors. As of the date of this annual report, Mr. Zhang holds all the issued and outstanding 977,755 Class B ordinary shares, each of which is entitled to twenty (20) votes. For so long as we are a controlled company under that definition, we are permitted to elect to rely, and may rely, on certain exemptions from corporate governance rules, including: 

As a result, if we elect to rely on the exemptions available for the controlled companies, you will not have the same protection afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to these corporate governance requirements.

If we cease to qualify as a foreign private issuer, we would be required to comply fully with the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act applicable to U.S. domestic issuers, and we would incur significant additional legal, accounting and other expenses that we would not incur as a foreign private issuer.

As a foreign private issuer, we are exempt from the rules under the Exchange Act prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements, and our officers, directors and principal shareholders are exempt from the reporting and short-swing profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we are not required under the Exchange Act to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as United States domestic issuers, and we are not required to disclose in our periodic reports all of the information that United States domestic issuers are required to disclose. While we currently expect to qualify as a foreign private issuer, we may cease to qualify as a foreign private issuer in the future.

There is a risk that Antelope Enterprises will be classified as a passive foreign investment company, or “PFIC,” which could result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. holders of its securities.

In general, Antelope Enterprises will be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which either (1) at least 75% of its gross income (including its pro rata share of the gross income of its 25% or more-owned corporate subsidiaries) is passive income or (2) at least 50% of the average value of its assets (including its pro rata share of the assets of its 25% or more-owned corporate subsidiaries) produce, or are held for the production of, passive income. Passive income generally includes dividends, interest, rents, royalties, and gains from the disposition of passive assets. If Antelope Enterprises is determined to be a PFIC for any taxable year (or portion thereof) that is included in the holding period of a U.S. Holder (as defined in the section entitled “Taxation—United States Federal Income Taxation—General”) of its shares, the U.S. Holder may be subject to increased U.S. federal income tax liability upon a sale or other disposition of the shares of Antelope Enterprises or the receipt of certain excess distributions from Antelope Enterprises and may be subject to additional reporting requirements. Based on the composition (and estimated values) of the assets and the nature of the income of Antelope Enterprises and its subsidiaries during its 2022 taxable year, Antelope Enterprises does not believe that it would be treated as a PFIC for such year.  However, because Antelope Enterprises has not performed a definitive analysis as to its PFIC status for its 2022 taxable year, there can be no assurance in respect to its PFIC status for such year.  There also can be no assurance with respect to Antelope Enterprises’ status as a PFIC for its current (2023) taxable year or any future taxable year. U.S. Holders of the shares of Antelope Enterprises are urged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the possible application of the PFIC rules. See the discussion in the section entitled “Taxation—United States Federal Income Taxation—U.S. Holders—Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules.”

As the rights of shareholders under British Virgin Islands law differ from those under U.S. law, you may have fewer protections as a shareholder.

Our corporate affairs will be governed by our memorandum and articles of association, the BVI Business Companies Act, 2022 (as amended) (the “BVI Act”), and the common law of the British Virgin Islands. The rights of shareholders to take legal action against our directors, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under British Virgin Islands law are governed by the common law of the British Virgin Islands and by the BVI Act. The common law of the British Virgin Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the British Virgin Islands as well as from English common law, which is applied in the British Virgin Islands by virtue of the Common Law (Declaration of Application) Act. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under British Virgin Islands law are not as clearly established as they would be under statutes or judicial precedents in some jurisdictions in the United States. In particular, the British Virgin Islands has a less developed body of securities laws as compared to the United States, and some states (such as Delaware) have more fully developed and judicially interpreted bodies of corporate law. As a result of all of the above, holders of our shares may have more difficulty in protecting their interests through actions against our management, directors or major shareholders than they would as shareholders of a U.S. company.

British Virgin Islands companies may not be able to initiate shareholder derivative actions, thereby depriving shareholders of the ability to protect their interests.

British Virgin Islands companies may not have standing to initiate a shareholder derivative action in a federal court of the United States. The circumstances in which any such action may be brought, and the procedures and defenses that may be available in respect to any such action, may result in the rights of shareholders of a British Virgin Islands company being more limited than those of shareholders of a company organized in the United States. Accordingly, shareholders may have fewer alternatives available to them if they believe that corporate wrongdoing has occurred. The British Virgin Islands courts are also unlikely to recognize or enforce against us judgments of courts in the United States based on certain liability provisions of U.S. securities law; and to impose liabilities against us, in original actions brought in the British Virgin Islands, based on certain liability provisions of U.S. securities laws that are penal in nature. There is no statutory recognition in the British Virgin Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, although the courts of the British Virgin Islands will generally recognize and enforce the non-penal judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without retrial on the merits. This means that even if shareholders were to sue us successfully, they may not be able to recover anything to make up for the losses suffered.

The laws of the British Virgin Islands may provide comparatively limited protection for minority shareholders, so minority shareholders will have limited recourse if the shareholders are dissatisfied with the conduct of our affairs.

Under the laws of the British Virgin Islands, there is limited statutory law for the protection of minority shareholders in the form of the provisions of the BVI Act dealing with shareholder remedies. The principal protection under statutory law is that shareholders may bring an action to enforce the constitutional documents of the company, i.e. the memorandum and articles of association as shareholders are entitled to have the affairs of the company conducted in accordance with the BVI Act and the memorandum and articles of association of the company. A shareholder may also bring an action under statute if he feels that the affairs of the company have been or will be carried out in a manner that is unfairly prejudicial or discriminating or oppressive to him. There are also common law rights for the protection of shareholders that may be invoked, largely dependent on English common law, since the common law of the British Virgin Islands for business companies is limited.

The market price for our shares has been and may continue to be volatile.

The market price for our shares has been and is likely to continue to be highly volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to factors including the following:

Volatility in the price of our shares may result in shareholder litigation that could in turn result in substantial costs and a diversion of our management’s attention and resources.

The financial markets in the United States and other countries have experienced significant price and volume fluctuations, and market prices have been and continue to be extremely volatile. Volatility in the price of our shares may be caused by factors outside of our control and may be unrelated or disproportionate to our results of operations. In the past, following periods of volatility in the market price of a public company’s securities, shareholders have frequently instituted securities class action litigation against that company. Litigation of this kind could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our management’s attention and resources.

Although we paid semi-annual dividends in July 2013, January 2014, July 2014 and January 2015, we did not pay a dividend after January 2015 and do not currently plan to pay a dividend in the near future. Therefore, shareholders will benefit from an investment in our shares only if those shares appreciate in value

We paid dividends in July 2013, January 2014, July 2014 and January 2015. The declaration and payment of cash dividends is at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on factors our board of directors deems relevant, including among others, our results of operations, financial condition and cash requirements, business prospects, and the terms of our credit facilities, if any, and any other financing arrangements. We currently do not plan to pay a dividend in the near future. Therefore, the realization of a gain on shareholders’ investments will depend on the appreciation of the price of our shares, and there is no guarantee that our shares will appreciate in value.

We may not be able to pay any dividends on our shares in the future due to British Virgin Islands law.

Under British Virgin Islands law, we may only pay dividends to our shareholders if the value of our assets exceeds our liabilities and we are able to pay our debts as they become due. We cannot give any assurance that we will declare dividends of any amounts, at any rate or at all in the future. Future dividends, if any, will be at the discretion of our board of directors, and will depend upon our results of operations, cash flows, financial condition, payment to us of cash dividends by our subsidiaries, capital needs, future prospects and other factors that our directors may deem appropriate.

We may need additional capital, and the sale of additional shares or equity or debt securities could result in additional dilution to our shareholders.

We believe that our current cash and cash equivalents and anticipated cash flow from operations will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash needs for the foreseeable future. We may, however, require additional cash resources due to changed business conditions or other future developments, including any investments or acquisitions we may decide to pursue. If these resources are insufficient to satisfy our cash requirements, we may seek to sell additional equity or debt securities or obtain one or more additional credit facilities. The sale of additional equity securities could result in additional dilution to our shareholders. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increased debt service obligations and could result in operating and financing covenants that would restrict our operations. It is uncertain whether financing will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all.

Our principal PRC-based operating subsidiary, Hengda, was established on September 30, 1993 under the laws of PRC. All of the equity interests in Hengda are 100% owned by Stand Best. Hengda is a wholly foreign-owned enterprise in China.

Hengdali was established on May 4, 2008 under the laws of PRC. All of the equity interests in Hengdali are 100% owned by Hengda.

Stand Best was established on January 17, 2008 under the laws of Hong Kong. Stand Best acquired the entire shareholdings of Hengda on April 1, 2008 for consideration of RMB 58,980,000. As a result of this acquisition, Hengda became the wholly owned subsidiary of Stand Best.

Success Winner was established on May 29, 2009 under the laws of British Virgin Islands with Mr. Wong Kung Tok as its sole shareholder and sole director.

On June 30, 2009, pursuant to the capitalization agreement dated June 30, 2009, Success Winner was issued the 9,999 shares allotted by Stand Best as per the capitalization exercise of a shareholder’s loan of HK$67.9 million (RMB 58.9 million). On the same date, the shareholder of Stand Best, Mr. Wong Kung Tok transferred all his shareholdings in Stand Best to Success Winner. Therefore, Mr. Wong Kung Tok, from June 30, 2009 to November 20, 2009, indirectly owned 100% of Stand Best and in turn, 100% of Hengda.

CHAC was incorporated in Delaware on June 22, 2007 and was organized as a blank check company for the purpose of acquiring, through a stock exchange, asset acquisition or other similar business combination, or controlling, through contractual arrangements, an operating business that had its principal operations in Asia, with a focus on potential acquisition target in China.

Pursuant to the terms of a merger and stock purchase agreement dated August 19, 2009, on November 20, 2009, CHAC merged with and into Antelope Enterprises, its wholly owned British Virgin Islands subsidiary, and immediately thereafter, as part of the same integrated transaction, Antelope Enterprises acquired all of the outstanding securities of Success Winner. Prior to Antelope Enterprises’ acquisition of Success Winner, neither CHAC nor Antelope Enterprises had any operations.

On November 19, 2009, Hengda entered into a definitive acquisition agreement to acquire a new production facility in Gaoan, Jiangxi Province, PRC by purchasing 100% of the equity interests in Hengdali. The closing of the acquisition was subject to the Gaoan City Administration for Industry and Commerce transferring the registration and business license of Hengdali from Hengdali’s former shareholders to Hengda. The transfer occurred on January 8, 2010. Hengda appointed an executive officer to take control over Hengdali’s operating and financing activities on the same day. In total, Hengda assumed loans of RMB 60.0 million and paid cash consideration of RMB 185.5 million for the acquisition, of which RMB 145.4 million was advanced to Hengdali’s former shareholders by December 31, 2009.

On September 22, 2017, Success Winner incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Vast Elite Limited (“Vast Elite”) in Hong Kong with initial registered capital of HKD1. Vast Elite is engaged in the trading of building materials but during the year ended December 31, 2020, Vast Elite had no operations.

On November 20, 2019, Vast Elite incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Chengdu Future Talented Management and Consulting Co, Ltd (“Chengdu Future”) in China. Chengdu Future is engaged in business management and consulting services.

On December 3, 2019, Success Winner incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited (“Antelope Holdings”) in Hong Kong. Antelope Holdings only serves the purpose of a holding company.

On May 9, 2020, Antelope HK incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Holdings (Chengdu) Co., Ltd in China, Antelope Chengdu is engaged in computer consulting and software development.

On August 10, 2021, Antelope HK incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Hainan Antelope Holdings Co., Ltd (“Antelope Hainan”) in China. Antelope Hainan is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Hainan does not have any operations as of this report date.

On August 11, 2021, Antelope HK incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Future (Yangpu) Investment Co., Ltd (“Antelope Yangpu”) in China. Antelope Yangpu is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Yangpu does not have any operations as of this report date.

On August 23, 2021, Antelope Hainan incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Investment (Hainan) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Investment”) in China.

Antelope Investment is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Investment does not have any operations as of this report date.

On September 9, 2021, Antelope Future incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Ruicheng Investment (Hainan) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Ruicheng”) in China. Antelope Ruicheng is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Ruicheng does not have any operations as of this report date.

On September 18, 2021, Antelope Ruicheng incorporated a 51% owned subsidiary Hainan Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Hainan Kylin”) in China. Hainan Kylin is engaged in the livestreaming ecommerce business.

On October 28, 2022, Hainan Kylin incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Hangzhou Kylin Cloud Services Technoligy Co., Ltd (“Hangzhou Kylin”) in China. Hangzhou Kylin is engaged in business management and consulting services for the livestreaming ecommerce industry.

On November 2, 2022, Hainan Kylin incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Anhui Kylin Cloud Sevices Technology Co., Ltd (“Anhui Kylin”) in China. Anhui Kylin is engaged in the business of management and consulting services for the livestreaming ecommerce industry.

On December 30, 2022, Stand Best and an unaffiliated entity, New Stonehenge Limited, entered into a purchase agreement, pursuant to which, Stand Best agreed to sell 100% equity interests in Hengda to New Stonehenge Limited, in exchange for a 5% unsecured promissory note with a principal amount of US$8.5 million. The promissory note will mature in four years and the 5% interest and principal amount on the note is to be paid in four annual installments. On February 21, 2023, the Company’s shareholders approved this transaction. On April 28, 2023, this transaction was closed. The has transferred its ownership of the ceramic tile manufacturing business to the New Stonehenge Limited, and New Stonehenge Limited has become the 100% owner of Hengda, which is the 100% owner of Hengdali.

On February 21, 2023, the shareholders of the Company approved and adopted an amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (the “Amended M&A”), which changed the authorized issued share capital of the Company from US$4,800,000 divided into 200,000,000 ordinary shares with a par value of US$0.024 each, to (i) 250,000,000 ordinary shares re-designated as (a) 200,000,000 Class A ordinary shares with no par value each, and (b) 50,000,000 Class B ordinary shares with no par value each, and (ii) 50,000,000 preferred shares with no par value each, (the “Re-Designation of the Authorized Capital”). Each Class A ordinary share is entitled to one (1) vote and each Class B ordinary share is entitled to twenty (20) votes. In connection with the Re-Designation of the Authorized Capital, 977,755 ordinary shares owned by Mr. Weilai (Will) Zhang then were converted into 977,755 Class B ordinary shares, and the rest of the then outstanding and issued outstanding ordinary shares were converted into Class A ordinary shares on a one-for-one basis.

Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries’ corporate structure as of December 31, 2022 is as follows:

Antelope Enterprise’s registered office is c/o Harneys Corporate Services Limited of Craigmuir Chambers, P.O. Box 71, Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands.

Recent Development

September 2022 Registered Direct Offering

On September 30, 2022, the Company commenced a registered direct offering of securities, and executed a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “SPA”) with two institutional accredited investors pursuant to which it sold 1,666,667 of the Company’s common shares at the per share price of $0.60 In a concurrent private placement, the Company sold to such investors warrants to purchase 1,666,667 common shares (the “Investor Warrants”). The Investor Warrants have an exercise price per share of $0.80, subject to adjustment, contain variable pricing features, and have a term of five years. The Investor Warrants were sold without registration under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”) in reliance on the exemptions provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act as transactions not involving a public offering and Rule 506 promulgated under the Securities Act as sales to accredited investors. The proceeds of the transaction will be used for working capital and general working purposes. The Investor Warrants issued in the concurrent private placement are not listed on any securities exchange, and the Company does not expect to list the Investor Warrants. The transactions yielded gross proceeds to the Company of approximately $1,000,000, before payment of commissions and expenses.

In addition, the Company issued warrants (the “Placement Agent Warrants”) to the Placement Agent to purchase a number of common shares equal to 5.0% of the aggregate number of shares sold to the investors in this offering, as well as the warrant shares issuable upon exercise of the Investor Warrants issued in the concurrent private placement, as additional placement agency compensation. The Placement Agent Warrants have substantially the same terms as the Investor Warrants, except that the Placement Agent Warrants will have an exercise price of $0.75. The Placement Agent received customary indemnification in connection with the offering.

December 2022 Private Placement Offering

On December 12, 2022, the Company entered into a note purchase agreement with Atlas Sciences, LLC, a Utah limited liability company (“Atlas”), pursuant to which the Company issued Atlas an unsecured promissory note in the original principal amount of $1,332,500.00 (the “Note”), for $1,250,000.00 in gross proceeds.

The Note bears interest at a rate of eight percent (8%) per annum compounding daily. All outstanding principal and accrued interest on the Note becomes due and payable eighteen (18) months after the closing date, when the purchase price of the Note is delivered by Atlas to the Company. The Note includes an original issue discount of $62,500.00 along with $20,000.00 for Atlas’s fees, costs and other transaction expenses incurred in connection with the purchase and sale of the Note. The Company may prepay all or a portion of the Note at any time by paying 120% of the outstanding balance elected for pre-payment. Atlas has the right to redeem the Note at any time six (6) months after the closing date (the “Redemption Start Date”), subject to maximum monthly redemption amount of $200,000. At the end of each month following the Redemption Start Date, if the Company has not reduced the Outstanding Balance (as defined in the Note) by at least $200,000, then by the fifth (5th) day of the following month, the Company must pay in cash to the Investor the difference between $200,000 and the amount actually redeemed in such month or the Outstanding Balance will automatically increase by one percent (1%) as of such fifth (5th) day.

Under the purchase agreement, while the Note is outstanding, the Company agreed to keep adequate public information available and maintain its Nasdaq listing. Upon the occurrence of a Trigger Event (as defined in the Note), the Investor shall have the right to increase the balance of the Note by fifteen percent (15%) for Major Trigger Event (as defined in the Note) and five percent (5%) for Minor Trigger Event (as defined in the Note). In addition, the Note provides that upon occurrence of an Event of Default, the interest rate shall accrue on the outstanding balance at the rate equal to the lesser of twenty-two percent (22%) per annum or the maximum rate permitted under applicable law.

January 2023 Private Placement Offerings

On January 10, 2023, the Company entered into a certain securities purchase agreement with Mr. Weilai (Will) Zhang, the Chief Executive Officer of the Company, Mr. Ishak Han, a director of the Company, and another sophisticated purchaser, pursuant to which the Company sold 1,625,000 ordinary shares, par value $0.024 per share at a per share purchase price of $0.80. This transaction was unanimously approved by the disinterested directors and the board of directors of the Company. The gross proceeds to the Company were $1.3 million, before deducting any fees or expenses. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this transaction for the expansion of its livestreaming ecommerce business and for general corporate purposes.

On January 13, 2023, the Company entered into a certain securities purchase agreement with a certain purchaser, pursuant to which the Company sold 1,234,568 ordinary shares, par value $0.024 per share, at a per share purchase price of $0.81, the closing price of the Company’s ordinary shares reported on the Nasdaq Capital Market as of January 10, 2023. The gross proceeds to the Company from this transaction were approximately $1.0 million, before deducting any fees or expenses. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this transaction for the expansion of its livestreaming ecommerce business and for general corporate purposes.

March 2023 Private Placement Offering

On March 30, 2023, the Company entered into a certain securities purchase agreement with five sophisticated investors, pursuant to which the Company sold 5,681,820 Class A ordinary shares, no par value, at a per share purchase price of $0.88. On April 12, 2023, the transaction was closed. Upon closing, the beneficial owner of the five investors had approximately 15.15% of the total voting power of the Company, and the Company’s CEO and Chairman, Weilai (Will) Zhang, had about 52.13% of the total voting power of the Company. The gross proceeds to the Company from this transaction were approximately $5 million, before deducting any fees or expenses. The Company plans to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes.

Cash Transfers Within Our Organization

During each of the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020, 2021 and 2022, the only transfer of assets among Antelope Enterprises and its subsidiaries have consisted of cash.  During that same period, there have been no distributions, dividends or loans extended by any of our direct or indirectly held subsidiaries to Antelope Enterprises. During that same period Antelope Enterprises has not declared any dividends or made any distributions to its shareholders.

Antelope Enterprises routinely provides cash to its subsidiaries either by way of capital contribution or by way of loan.

Antelope Enterprises is a holding company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands, and we do not have any substantive operations other than indirectly holding the equity interest in our operating subsidiaries in China. Antelope Enterprises relies on dividends paid by our Hong Kong and Chinese subsidiaries and capital raised from the sale of our securities to satisfy our cash needs. The payment of dividends to Antelope Enterprises by our Chinese subsidiaries is affected by means of dividends by those entities to their Hong Kong direct parent and a redividend by that Hong Kong entity to Antelope Enterprises. Such dividends are effected by resolution of the board of directors of each such entity (after provision for applicable tax obligations).

China is a foreign exchange administration country. Capital injections, cross-border trade and services transactions settled in foreign exchange, overseas financing and profit repatriations are subject to the foreign exchange administration regulations. A Chinese subsidiary owned by foreign company must apply for registration of foreign exchange with the SAFE after the issuance of a business license and obtain a foreign exchange registration certificate. When the Chinese subsidiaries apply for repatriating dividends to foreign shareholders, it must submit the application form to SAFE with the proof that such dividends have been subjected to all applicable tax withholding. A Chinese subsidiary can only distribute dividends out of its accumulated profits, which means that any accumulated losses must be more than offset by its profits in other years, including the current year.

The cash transfers within the organization during the years ended December 31, 2020, 2021 and 2022 were as follows:

For the year 2022

Overview

We are a British Virgin Islands limited liability company with no material operations. Our operations were conducted in China by our subsidiaries. We provide livestream e-commerce services, business management and information systems consulting services, with a legacy ceramic tile manufacturing business.

Livestreaming Ecommerce Business

Our livestreaming ecommerce business is operated in China through our 51% subsidiary, Hainan Kylin and its subsidiaries, Hangzhou Kylin and Anhui Kylin.  We aim to provide one-stop solutions for our customers to adopt the emerging sales channel of livestreaming ecommerce. We believe that livestreaming ecommerce is an important growth engine for consumer good brands as it leverages the content of livestreaming to boost customers engagement and sales as it combines instant purchasing of a featured product and audience participation through a chat function or reaction buttons. Our customers usually include consumer goods brands, merchants, and small-scale ecommerce platforms. Our product management office assesses and selects the products from our customers. Then, we connect with different suppliers, usually staffing agencies that have a growing and diverse pool of hosts and influencers. The hosts and influencers register and claim the jobs for livestreaming for our customers’ products via Hainan Kylin’s SaaS platform. We track the sales of products of each host on this SaaS platform and report the sales results to our customers. We are currently expanding our reach to second and third tiers cities in China where livestreaming ecommerce has a high conversion rate.

Hainan Kylin’s SaaS platform also includes a job-listing page designed especially for our enterprise customers to retain and engage freelancers and independent contractors in a cost effective manner. We expect to further develop this function of the SaaS platform to provide value-added services to our livestreaming ecommerce customers.

Hainan Kylin has a limited operating history as it started its business in September 2021. For fiscal year 2022, Hainan Kylin comprised virtually all of our ongoing business operations and accounted for 84.5% of our total revenue.

Ceramic Tile Business

We have historically operated a ceramic tile business which are used for exterior siding and for interior flooring and design in residential and commercial buildings. We are manufacturer of ceramic tiles used for exterior siding and for interior flooring and design in residential and commercial buildings in China. The ceramic tiles, sold under the “HD” or “Hengda,” brands are available in over two thousand styles, colors and size combinations. Currently, we have five principal product categories: (i) porcelain tiles, (ii) glazed tiles, (iii) glazed porcelain tiles, (iv) rustic tiles, and (v) polished glazed tiles. Porcelain tiles are our best-selling products, accounting for over 96.9% of our total revenue of ceramic tile business in fiscal 2022. 

For the year ended December 31, 2022, we utilized production facilities capable of producing 1.40 million square meters ceramic tiles, as compared with the year ended December 31, 2021, when we utilized production facilities capable of producing 2.38 million square meters. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we had 10 production lines available for production and utilized two production lines during the peak season. As of December 31, 2022, we had seven production lines available for production (all were from Hengda), one of which was in use as of December 31, 2022.

We primarily sell our ceramic tile products through an exclusive distributor network. We have long-term relationships with our customers; most of our top ten customers in 2022 have been purchasing from us for over ten years.  We have been in discussions with some large property developers in China to be their exclusive or primary provider of ceramic tiles and, although no arrangements or agreements have been entered into, we expect to enter into arrangements of that type in the foreseeable future.

We focus our research and development efforts on developing innovative and environmentally friendly products. We own eighteen utility model patents. Our stringent tile management and marketing efforts have created a strong business reputation and high brand awareness as demonstrated by us receiving the “Chinese Well-Known Trademark” award from the Intermediate People’s Court of Xiangtan City and “Asia’s 500 Most Influential Brands 2014” award from the World Brand Laboratory.

Since the ceramic tiles manufacturing business has experienced significant hurdles due to the significant slowdown of the real estate sector and the impacts of COVID-19 in China, we decided to divest the ceramic tiles manufacturing business, which is conducted through our two subsidiaries, Hengda and Hengdali. On December 30, 2022, our operating entities for the ceramic tile business entered into an agreement with an unaffiliated buyer to sell 100% equity interests of our ceramic tile business. On February 21, 2023, our shareholders approved the sale. On April 28, 2023, this transaction was closed. The buyer is now the 100% owner of Hengda, which is the 100% owner of Hengdali.

Business Management and Consulting Business

We also provide business management and consulting services which consists of computer consulting services and software development through our subsidiaries in China, including Chengdu Future and Antelope Chengdu. We diagnose difficulties in infrastructure and enterprise systems and addresses business challenges that enterprises confront by developing strategies to surmount such hurdles to ensure the healthy growth and development of our customers. Our consulting teams have advanced technological knowledge and capabilities to implement workflow solutions via proprietary software products and services to help our customers with customized solutions to solve complex problems. 

Impacts of COVID-19 

We experienced significant adverse impacts in our legacy ceramic tile business resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the related public health orders. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted supply chains and affected production and sales across a range of industries as a result of quarantines, facility closures, and travel and logistics restrictions in connection with the outbreak. We experienced reduced demand for our ceramic tile products and an increased level of purchase order cancellations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak had a material adverse impact on our operations and financial results for our legacy ceramic tile business. Our consulting income also decreased significantly due to the impact of Covid-19 pandemic. However, our livestreaming ecommerce was not impacted by Covid-19 pandemic but instead realized a significant growth due to its nature of internet-based business without in-person interaction. In early December 2022, China announced a nationwide loosening of its zero-COVID policy. However, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic still depends on the future mutations of the virus, including new information concerning the global severity of and actions taken to contain the pandemic, or the appearance of new or more severe strains of the virus, which are highly uncertain and unpredictable. Therefore, while we do not expect the COVID-19 pandemic to negatively impact our business, results of operations, and financial position, the related financial impact cannot be reasonably estimated at this time.

Competitive Advantages

We believe we have a unique business model in the livestreaming ecommerce business in China and our competitors include multi-channel networks (“MCNs”), studios of hosts and influencers, We may also compete with other digital service platforms for enterprises for some or all of the services we offer. We believe that we have the following competitive advantages:

We offer a cost-efficient turnkey solution with less risks exposure to our customers. We have connections with many suppliers through which we can offer competitive pricing packages and a diverse group of hosts and influencers to our customers comparing to MCNs. We make sure that all the suppliers we work with have all the required licenses and permission to operate, to reduce compliance risks that our customers are exposed to.

We provide better benefits to our suppliers as well as the hosts and influencers. We provide more stable and reliable services in terms of qualifications, cash flow, and resources. Our standardized management process ensures the smooth progress of the service and can handle emergencies in the process in a timely manner Hosts and Influencers usually experience issues like arrears of service fees and long settlement cycles with their clients or MCNs. However, we pay the hosts and the influencers the next business days following the completion of their work. All of our customers deposit the service fee into an escrow account upon signing contracts with us. Once the services are delivered, we and our customers will authorize the release of the funds. Therefore, the suppliers, as well as the hosts and influencers, are more willing to work with us than dealing directly with the consumer goods brands.

Growth Strategies

We will continue to leverage on our competitive advantages to execute our growth plan in the following manners.

We will continue to strengthen our business by increasing our sales and marketing efforts. We plan to continue our marketing efforts to further enhance our brand awareness and recognition and to promote our campaigns, services and initiatives. This may include social media marketing, placement of advertisements, as well as search engine marketing and search engine optimization. We plan to allocate resources to enhance our brand image, to boost customer and user spending and to further extend our customers. We plan on investing in content and campaign ideation and production, brand positioning and communication, brand awareness campaigns and digital and performance marketing, as well as other forms of marketing and promotional tactics to expand and broaden our customer base.

We may expand by opportunistic and strategic acquisitions of business and/or companies. Although we will continue to focus on the organic growth of our business, should opportunities arise for the strategic growth through acquisition of other players in the livestreaming ecommerce industry, we would consider consolidating their business with us. In identifying suitable acquisition targets, we will take into account factors including their reputation, popularity, statistics on MUVs, Information technology, revenue and customer base, our financial capability and whether the target company’s business is complementary to our business.

We will invest to enhance our services. We will invest to improve our data analytics capabilities through upgrading our database and IT systems to analyze the preferences and therefore the demand of our customers so as to select the best suitable suppliers of hosts and influencers for them. We are also building and planning to provide our training program to empower the hosts and influencers, or anyone who wants to work as a host and influencer, teaching them how to gain and grow their followers and conversion rate.

Customers

Livestreaming Ecommerce Business 

For the year ended December 31, 2022, we had two customers which accounted for 17.7% and 16.2% of the total revenue generated from the livestreaming ecommerce business. We expect to scale and add more new customers as we operate in a dynamic and competitive industry. With the addition of new customers, we believe customer concentration will decline over time even as we expect to continue to grow our relationships with existing large customers.

Business Management Consulting Services

Our business and profitability of our business management and consulting business is not materially dependent on any industrial, commercial or financial contract with any of our business management consulting customers. Our business management and consulting revenue accounted for 4.4% of our total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022. None of our directors or executive officers or their respective affiliates has any interest, direct or indirect, in any of our customers.

Ceramic Tile Business

We primarily sell our ceramic tiles products through an exclusive distributor network or directly to property developers. Distributors are located in major cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenyang and second and third tier cities such as Chengdu, Haikou, Hefei, Tianjin, Wuhan and other rural areas in the PRC. We have long-term relationships with many of our customers; most of our top ten customers in 2022 have been purchasing from us for several years. There were three customers which accounted for 34.9%, 23.6%, and 18.5% of the total revenue generated from the ceramic tile business for the year ended December 31, 2022. There were no customer which generated more than 10% of the total revenue of our ceramic tile business for the year ended December 31, 2021. There were three customers which accounted for 27.2%, 19.1, and 16.3% of the total revenue generated from the ceramic tile business for the year ended December 31, 2020.

Our business and profitability of our ceramic tile business segment is not materially dependent on any industrial, commercial or financial contract with any of our ceramic tile customers. None of our directors or executive officers or their respective affiliates has any interest, direct or indirect, in any of our customers.

Sales and Marketing

The sales and marketing department is responsible for formulating sales policies and pricing based on market analysis, surveys and forecasts, developing and implementing our sales and marketing campaigns, and promoting our products and brand. Additionally, our sales department is responsible for cultivating new customers and business relationships, as well as servicing existing accounts.

We participate in a variety of sales and marketing activities including trade shows, in-house sales and marketing seminars, factory tours, outdoor advertising, B2B catalogs and customer calls. We believe that these techniques allow us to gather and better understand customers’ needs and requirements and to obtain feedback on our products and services and intend to continue utilizing these techniques.

In the future, we intend to participate in international trade fairs and seminars from time to time to promote our brand and products, and to establish a network with industry professionals outside the PRC. To augment our plan to expand our markets internationally, our products will also be advertised on and available to purchase on the Internet.

Major Suppliers & Raw Materials

Ceramic Tile Business

Our suppliers of ceramic tile business are selected by our purchasing department and are assessed on criteria such as the quality of materials supplied, duration of their business relationship with us, pricing, delivery reliability and response time to orders placed by us. We have sufficient raw materials on hand to support, on average, three weeks of production at any point in time to minimize any potential production delays that could arise due to a delay in raw material delivery.

We have not experienced significant production disruptions due to a supply shortage from our suppliers, nor have we had a major dispute with a supplier.

For the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company did not have any large suppliers. Except for Jinjiang Xinao Gas Company Limited and Foshan City Sanshui Baoligao Inorganic Materials Co., Ltd., no suppliers accounted for more than 15% of our total purchases of raw materials and energy sources for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2021.

Our business or profitability is not materially dependent on any industrial, commercial or financial contract with any of our suppliers of ceramic tile business.

Livestreaming Ecommerce Business

For the year ended December 31, 2022, there were four vendors that accounted for 31.5%, 20.1%, 18.9%, and 15.1%, respectively, for the total purchase of the livestreaming ecommerce business. Our business or profitability is not materially dependent on any industrial, commercial or financial contract with any of our suppliers of livestreaming ecommerce business.

Business Management and Consulting Business

For the year ended December 31, 2022, there were three vendors that accounted for 39.6%, 38.7%, and 21.7%, respectively, for the total purchases of the business management consulting business. Our business or profitability is not materially dependent on any industrial, commercial or financial contract with any of our suppliers of business management and consulting business.  

None of our officers or directors or their respective affiliates has any interest, direct or indirect, in any of the above major suppliers. There are no arrangements or understanding with any suppliers pursuant to which any of our directors and executive officers were appointed.

Research and Development

Livestreaming Ecommerce Business

Our research and development team for the livestreaming ecommerce business focus on developing the SaaS platform to provide comprehensive services to our consumer goods brands customers, including refining our search algorithm for a compatible group of hosts and influencers based on the products feature of our customers. We also hired an outside consultant to help upgrade the SaaS platform. As of December 31, 2022, our research and development team for livestreaming ecommerce business had 3 employees and 25 independent contractors.

Business Management and Information System Business

We currently do not have a designated team of research and development for this business line. 

Ceramic Tile Business

We had devoted substantial resources to establishing research and development capabilities in an effort to improve our products and diversify our product mix. Our research and development team focused on new products as well as developing energy and resource efficient production methods.

We focused our research and development efforts on the following:

Our research and development costs were approximately RMB 1.21 million, RMB 0.14 million, and RMB 1.27 million for fiscal years 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Competition

We face intense competition from our existing competitors and new market entrants. Our primary competitors are usually privately owned companies that are located mainly in the PRC. Our principal competitors are Guangdong White Rabbit Ceramics, Foshan Shiwan Yulong Ceramics Co., Ltd, Jinjiang Haoyuan Ceramics, Co., Ltd, Jinjiang Wanli Ceramics Co., Ltd, Jinjiang Tengda Ceramics Co., Ltd and Jinjiang Haoshan Construction Materials Co., Ltd. We compete primarily based on product quality, brand recognition, and an extensive distributor network. 

Intellectual Property

We protect our intellectual property primarily through a mix of patent and trademark registrations.

Registered Trademarks

Our brand name distinguishes our products and promotes consumer awareness of our products.

We have registered the following trademarks in the PRC:

Trademark		Class/Products		Validity Term		Registration No.
		19/ Tile, ceramic tile and wave pattern tile		From April 27, 2019 to April 27, 2029		4971249

Registered Software Copyrights

We have registered the following software copyrights in the PRC:

Except as disclosed above, as of December 31, 2022, our business or profitability is not materially dependent on any other trademarks, copyrights, registered designs, patents, grant of licenses from third parties, new manufacturing processes or other intellectual property rights.

Legal Proceedings

We are currently not involved in any legal proceedings; nor are we aware of any claims that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Seasonality

The second and third calendar quarters have been the peak season for the real estate development industry, and, therefore, our quarterly sales are usually highest from May to September compared to the rest of the year. We have lower sales between the months of January and March due to the effects of cold weather and the Chinese New Year. The seasonality information above is based on our turnover trend in the last three years and may vary slightly from year to year depending on the demand from our customers and end customers for our products. However, management believes that the seasonality information for the last three years is representative of the seasonality trend going forward.

Governmental Regulations

Environmental Protection Regulations

In accordance with the PRC Environmental Protection Law adopted on December 26, 1989, the Administration Supervisory Department of Environmental Protection of the State Council sets the national guidelines for the discharge of pollutants. The People’s Governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities may also set their own guidelines for the discharge of pollutants within their own provinces or districts in the event that the national guidelines are inadequate. A company which causes environmental pollution and discharges other polluting materials which endanger the public should implement environmental protection methods and procedures into their business operations. This may be achieved by setting up a system of accountability within the company’s business structure for environmental protection, adopting effective procedures to prevent environmental hazards such as waste gases, water and residues, dust powder, radioactive materials and noise arising from production, construction and other activities from polluting and endangering the environment. The environmental protection system and procedures should be implemented simultaneously with the commencement of and during the operation of construction, production and other activities undertaken by the company. Any company which discharges environmental pollutants should report and register such discharge with the Administration Supervisory Department of Environmental Protection and pay any fines imposed for the discharge. A fee may also be imposed on the company for the cost of any work required to restore the environment to its original state. Companies which have caused severe pollution to the environment are required to restore the environment or remedy the effects of the pollution within a prescribed time limit. If a company fails to report and/or register the environmental pollution it caused, it will receive a warning or be penalized. Companies that fail to restore the environment or remedy the effects of the pollution within the prescribed time will be penalized or have their business licenses terminated. Companies that have polluted and endangered the environment must bear the responsibility for remedying the danger and effects of the pollution, as well as to compensate any losses or damages suffered as a result of such environmental pollution. Our Hengda facility obtained a Temporary Pollutant Discharge Permit (No.350582-2014-000260) granted by Jinjiang City Environmental Protection Bureau that will expire on May 1, 2016, and we are currently in the process of applying for the renewal of the permit.

Livestreaming Ecommerce Regulations

The PRC government extensively regulates the telecommunications industry, and we may be subject to new laws and regulations revised or promogulated from time to time that will require us to obtain additional licenses and permits.

The Telecommunications Regulations of the PRC (2016 Revision) amended on February 6, 2016 distinguished “basic telecommunication services” from “value-added telecommunications services.” The value-added telecommunications service provider shall obtain an operating license from provincial Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (“MIIT”) offices prior to its commencement of operations. The Administrative Measures for Telecommunication Business Operating License, promulgated by the MIIT with latest amendments becoming effective in September 2017, set forth the types of licenses required for value-added telecommunication services and the qualifications and procedures for obtaining such licenses. Moreover, the Administrative Measures on Internet Information Services (2011 Revision), amended on January 8, 2011 by the State Council, further provided that commercial internet information services providers shall obtain an Internet Content Provider License (“ICP”) License, from competent government authorities before providing any commercial internet content services within the PRC. The Catalog of Classification of Telecommunications Services (2015 Edition) amended in June 2019 further defined internet information services, which includes information publication platform and delivery services, information search and inquiry services, information community’s platform services, instant message services, and information security and management services. As a SaaS provider, we cooperated with dozens of livestreaming platforms. As of the date of this annual report, we are not required to hold a valid ICP License.

Besides, the Ministry of Culture (replaced by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of PRC) promulgated Interim Administrative Provisions on Internet Culture, or the Internet Culture Provisions, on May 10, 2003, and amended on December 15, 2017 which stipulates that providers of internet cultural products or services including but not limited internet entertainment, internet games, internet shows or programs and internet animations shall obtain operating permit on internet culture. If any entity engages in commercial internet culture activities without approval, the cultural administration authorities may order such entity to cease to operate internet culture activities as well as levying penalties including administrative warning and fines up to RMB30,000 depending on the severity of cases. As a SaaS provider, we cooperated with dozens of livestreaming platforms. As of the date of this annual report, we are not required to hold a valid operating permit on internet culture activities.

Government Regulations Relating to Foreign Exchange Controls

The principal regulation governing foreign exchange in the PRC is the Foreign Currency Administration Rules and a series of implementing rules and regulations, as amended. Under these rules, the Renminbi, the PRC’s currency, is freely convertible for trade and service related foreign exchange transactions (such as normal purchases and sales of goods and services from providers in foreign countries), but not for direct investment, loan or investment in securities outside of China unless the prior approval of the State Administration for Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, of the PRC is obtained. Foreign investment enterprises, or FIEs, are required to apply to the SAFE for Foreign Exchange Registration Certificates for FIEs. With such registration certificates, which need to be renewed annually, FIEs are allowed to open foreign currency accounts including a basic account and capital account. Currency translation within the scope of the basic account, such as remittance of foreign currencies for payment of dividends, can be effected without requiring the approval of the SAFE. Such transactions are subject to the consent of PRC banks which are authorized by the SAFE to review basic account currency transactions. However, conversion of currency in the capital account, including capital items such as direct investment, loans and securities, still require approval of the SAFE. On November 21, 2005, the SAFE issued Circular No. 75 on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Control on Domestic Residents Corporate Financing and Roundtrip Investment Through Offshore Special Purpose Vehicles. Circular No. 75 confirms that the use of offshore special purpose vehicles as holding companies for PRC investments are permitted, but proper foreign exchange registration applications are required to be reviewed and accepted by the SAFE.

Regulation of Foreign Currency Exchange

Foreign currency exchange in the PRC is governed by a series of regulations, including, without limitation, the Foreign Currency Administrative Rules (1996), as amended, and the Administrative Regulations Regarding Settlement, Sale and Payment of Foreign Exchange (1996), as amended. Under these regulations, the Renminbi is freely convertible for trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, but not for direct investment, loans or investments in securities outside China without the prior approval of the SAFE. Pursuant to the Administrative Regulations Regarding Settlement, Sale and Payment of Foreign Exchange, foreign-invested enterprises in China may purchase foreign exchange without the approval of the SAFE for trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions by providing commercial documents evidencing these transactions. They may also retain foreign exchange, subject to a cap approved by SAFE, to satisfy foreign exchange liabilities or to pay dividends. However, the relevant Chinese government authorities may limit or eliminate the ability of foreign-invested enterprises to purchase and retain foreign currencies in the future. In addition, foreign exchange transactions for direct investment, loan and investment in securities outside China are still subject to limitations and require approvals from the SAFE. On August 29, 2008, SAFE issued Circular No. 142 on Relevant Business Operations Issues Concerning Improving the Administration of the Payment and Settlement of Foreign Exchange Capital of Foreign-Invested Enterprises, with respect to the administration of conversion of foreign exchange capital contributions of FIEs into Renminbi, unless otherwise permitted by PRC laws or regulations, Renminbi converted from foreign exchange capital contributions can only be applied to activities within the approved business scope of FIEs and cannot be used for domestic equity investment or acquisitions.

Regulation of Dividend Distribution

The principal laws and regulations in China governing distribution of dividends by foreign-invested companies include:

Under these regulations, foreign-invested enterprises in China may pay dividends only out of their accumulated profits, if any, determined in accordance with Chinese accounting standards and regulations. In addition, wholly foreign-owned enterprises in China are required to set aside at least 10% of their respective accumulated profits each year, if any, to fund certain reserve funds unless such reserve funds have reached 50% of their respective registered capital. These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends.

Insurance

We have not purchased insurance coverage for product liability or third party liability and are therefore not covered or compensated by insurance in respect of losses, damages, claims and liabilities arising from or in connection with product liability or third party liability. In addition, we currently do not maintain business interruption insurance. As a result, our business and prospects could be adversely affected in the event of such problems in our operations and may suffer losses that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows.

The following chart illustrates Antelope Enterprises’ organizational structure as of December 31, 2022:

Corporate Structure and Background

Our principal PRC-based operating subsidiary, Hengda, was established on September 30, 1993 under the laws of PRC. All of the equity interests in Hengda are 100% owned by Stand Best. Hengda is a wholly foreign-owned enterprise in China.

Hengdali was established on May 4, 2008 under the laws of PRC. All of the equity interests in Hengdali are 100% owned by Hengda.

Stand Best was established on January 17, 2008 under the laws of Hong Kong. Stand Best acquired the entire shareholdings of Hengda on April 1, 2008 for consideration of RMB 58,980,000. As a result of this acquisition, Hengda became the wholly owned subsidiary of Stand Best.

Success Winner was established on May 29, 2009 under the laws of British Virgin Islands with Mr. Wong Kung Tok as its sole shareholder and sole director.

On June 30, 2009, pursuant to the capitalization agreement dated June 30, 2009, Success Winner was issued the 9,999 shares allotted by Stand Best as per the capitalization exercise of a shareholder’s loan of HK$67.9 million (RMB 58.9 million). On the same date, the shareholder of Stand Best, Mr. Wong Kung Tok transferred all his shareholdings in Stand Best to Success Winner. Therefore, Mr. Wong Kung Tok, from June 30, 2009 to November 20, 2009, indirectly owned 100% of Stand Best and in turn, 100% of Hengda.

CHAC was incorporated in Delaware on June 22, 2007 and was organized as a blank check company for the purpose of acquiring, through a stock exchange, asset acquisition or other similar business combination, or controlling, through contractual arrangements, an operating business that had its principal operations in Asia, with a focus on potential acquisition target in China.

Pursuant to the terms of a merger and stock purchase agreement dated August 19, 2009, on November 20, 2009, CHAC merged with and into Antelope Enterprises, its wholly owned British Virgin Islands subsidiary, and immediately thereafter, as part of the same integrated transaction, Antelope Enterprises acquired all of the outstanding securities of Success Winner.

Prior to Antelope Enterprises’ acquisition of Success Winner, neither CHAC nor Antelope Enterprises had any operations.

On November 19, 2009, Hengda entered into a definitive acquisition agreement to acquire a new production facility in Gaoan, Jiangxi Province, PRC by purchasing 100% of the equity interests in Hengdali. The closing of the acquisition was subject to the Gaoan City Administration for Industry and Commerce transferring the registration and business license of Hengdali from Hengdali’s former shareholders to Hengda. The transfer occurred on January 8, 2010. Hengda appointed an executive officer to take control over Hengdali’s operating and financing activities on the same day. In total, Hengda assumed loans of RMB 60.0 million and paid cash consideration of RMB 185.5 million for the acquisition, of which RMB 145.4 million was advanced to Hengdali’s former shareholders by December 31, 2009.

On September 22, 2017, Success Winner incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Vast Elite Limited (“Vast Elite”) in Hong Kong with initial registered capital of HKD1. Vast Elite is engaged in the trading of building materials but during the year ended December 31, 2020, Vast Elite had no operations.

On November 20, 2019, Vast Elite incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Chengdu Future Talented Management and Consulting Co, Ltd (“Chengdu Future”) in China. Chengdu Future is engaged in business management and consulting services.

On December 3, 2019, Success Winner incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited (“Antelope Holdings”) in Hong Kong. Antelope Holdings only serves the purpose of a holding company.

On May 9, 2020, Antelope HK incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Holdings (Chengdu) Co., Ltd in China, Antelope Chengdu is engaged in computer consulting and software development.

On August 10, 2021, Antelope HK incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Hainan Antelope Holdings Co., Ltd (“Antelope Hainan”) in China. Antelope Hainan is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Hainan does not have any operations as of this report date.

On August 11, 2021, Antelope HK incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Future (Yangpu) Investment Co., Ltd (“Antelope Yangpu”) in China. Antelope Yangpu is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Yangpu does not have any operations as of this report date.

On August 23, 2021, Antelope Hainan incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Investment (Hainan) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Investment”) in China.

Antelope Investment is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Investment does not have any operations as of this report date.

On September 9, 2021, Antelope Future incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Antelope Ruicheng Investment (Hainan) Co., Ltd (“Antelope Ruicheng”) in China. Antelope Ruicheng is engaged in business management and consulting services. Antelope Ruicheng does not have any operations as of this report date.

On September 18, 2021, Antelope Ruicheng incorporated a 51% owned subsidiary Hainan Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Hainan Kylin”) in China. Hainan Kylin is engaged in the livestreaming ecommerce industry.

On October 28, 2022, Hainan Kylin incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Hangzhou Kylin Cloud Services Technology Co., Ltd (“Hangzhou Kylin”) in China. Hangzhou Kylin is engaged in the livestreaming ecommerce industry.

On November 2, 2022, Hainan Kylin incorporated a 100% owned subsidiary Anhui Kylin Cloud Sevices Technology Co., Ltd (“Anhui Kylin”) in China. Anhui Kylin is engaged in the livestreaming ecommerce industry.

On December 30, 2022, Stand Best and an unaffiliated entity, New Stonehenge Limited, entered into a purchase agreement, pursuant to which, Stand Best agreed to sell 100% equity interests in Hengda to New Stonehenge Limited, in exchange for a 5% unsecured promissory note with a principal amount of US$8.5 million. The promissory note will mature in four years and the 5% interest and principal amount on the note is to be paid in four annual installments. On February 21, 2023, the Company’s shareholders approved this transaction. On April 28, 2023, this transaction was closed. The has transferred its ownership of the ceramic tile manufacturing business to New Stonehenge Limited, and New Stonehenge Limited has become the 100% owner of Hengda, which is the 100% owner of Hengdali.

We jointly own six buildings comprised of one office building and five workshops in Jinjiang, Fujian Province. We recorded the related fixed assets in proportion to the amount we paid for our part of the buildings, which represents our interests in the buildings. As co-owners of these six buildings under the relevant Building Ownership Certificate, all co-owners have collective rights and obligations to the jointly-owned property under PRC law, and typically the disposal of such jointly owned property by one owner without the consent of all other owners is prohibited.

The land-use rights of the workshop and the co-owned six buildings expire in 2055 and cover approximately 10,023 square meters. We also own land-use rights at two locations and seven buildings in Gaoan for office buildings, workshops, warehouses, and raw material yards and staff quarters. The land-use rights for these two facilities expire in 2058 and cover an aggregate of approximately 244,324 square meters.

We currently lease 17 properties in Jinjiang, Fujian Province in the PRC for various uses including warehouses, office space, workshops, staff quarters and stock yards.

In March 2016, we entered into an eight-year contract to lease out one of the production lines from our Hengdali facility. The production line has the capacity to produce approximately 10 million square meters of ceramic tiles annually. The term of the contract is from March 1, 2016 to February 29, 2024, and the contract stipulates for the receipt of rental income of RMB 15.0 million (US$ 0.5 million) per year, including 6% value added tax. The purpose of this arrangement was to generate income from the unused production capacity. In 2021, Hengdali retired two old furnaces. Therefore, for the term of the eight-year lease, and as a result of two old furnaces having been put out of use at the facility, we may only produce up to 22.4 million square meters of ceramic tiles from our Hengdali facility. In 2017, Hengda retired two old furnaces; in July of 2018, Hengda retired two more old furnaces, which caused Hengda’s annual maximum production capacity to be reduced to approximately 22.8 million. Therefore, the Company’s annual production capacity has been effectively reduced from 72 million square meters of ceramic tiles, to 45.2 million ceramic tiles as of fiscal year end 2021.  In addition, effective November 1, 2021, Hengdali cancelled the eight-year lease with lessee, and entered a new lease agreement with the same lessee to lease out the building, plant and facilities, and all the machinery and equipment, instead of just the production lines, for a term of five years from November 1, 2021 through October 31, 2026 for an annual rent of RMB 18 million. The leased Hengdali facility has an annual production capacity of 22.4 million square meters of ceramic tiles. Due to the lease agreement, the Company’s total annual production capacity of ceramic tiles is 22.8 million square meters which is solely attributable to its Hengda facility.

Since 2014, our Hengda facility has been required by the local governmental agency to use natural gas to operate the facility, as opposed to coal. Fuel source (comprising coal and natural gas) accounted for 5.2%, 3.7% and 8.9% of the total cost of sales in 2020 2021, and 2022 respectively.  There is no assurance that in the future our other production facilities will not be required to make similar modifications which could have similar adverse effects on our operations.

Not applicable.

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and related notes thereto.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This report contains certain statements that may be deemed “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of United States of America securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that we intend, expect, project, believe or anticipate and similar expressions or future conditional verbs such as will, should, would, could or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon certain assumptions and assessments made by our management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate.

These statements include, without limitation, statements about our anticipated expenditures, including those related to general and administrative expenses; the potential size of the market for our services, future development and/or expansion of our services in our markets, our ability to generate revenues, our ability to obtain regulatory clearance and expectations as to our future financial performance. Our actual results will likely differ, perhaps materially, from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including: our need and ability to raise additional cash. The forward-looking statements included in this report are subject to a number of additional material risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to the risks described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read together with our financial statements and the related notes to those statements included in this filing. In addition to historical financial information, this discussion may contain forward-looking statements reflecting our current plans, estimates, beliefs and expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. As a result of many important factors, our actual results and the timing of events may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements.

Overview

We are a British Virgin Islands limited liability company with no material operations. Our operations were conducted in China by our subsidiaries. We provide livestreaming ecommerce services, business management and information systems consulting services, with a legacy ceramic tile manufacturing business.

Livestreaming ecommerce Business

Our livestreaming ecommerce business is operated in China through our 51% subsidiary, Hainan Kylin and its subsidiaries, Hangzhou Kylin and Anhui Kylin.  We aim to provide one-stop solutions for our customers to adopt the emerging sales channel of livestreaming ecommerce. We believe that livestreaming ecommerce is an important growth engine for consumer good brands as it leverages the content of livestreaming to boost customers engagement and sales as it combines instant purchasing of a featured product and audience participation through a chat function or reaction buttons. Our customers usually include consumer goods brands, merchants, and small-scale ecommerce platforms. Our product management office assesses and selects the products from our customers. Then, we connect with different suppliers, usually staffing agencies that have a growing and diverse pool of hosts and influencers. The hosts and influencers register and claim the tasks for livestreaming for our customers’ products via Hainan Kylin’s SaaS platform. We track the sales of products of each host on this SaaS platform and report the sales results to our customers. We expand our reach to the second and third tiers cities in China where the livestreaming ecommerce has high conversion rate.

Hainan Kylin’s SaaS platform also includes a job-listing page designed especially for our enterprises customers to retain and engage freelancers and independent contractors at a cost-efficient way. We expect to further develop this function of the SaaS platform to provide value-added services to our livestreaming ecommerce customers.

Hainan Kylin has a limited operating history as it started its business in September 2021. For fiscal year 2022, Hainan Kylin comprised virtually all of our ongoing business operations and accounted for 84.5% of our total revenue.

Ceramic Tile Business

We have historically operated a ceramic tile business which are used for exterior siding and for interior flooring and design in residential and commercial buildings. We are manufacturer of ceramic tiles used for exterior siding and for interior flooring and design in residential and commercial buildings in China. The ceramic tiles, sold under the “HD” or “Hengda,” brands are available in over two thousand styles, colors and size combinations. Currently, we have five principal product categories: (i) porcelain tiles, (ii) glazed tiles, (iii) glazed porcelain tiles, (iv) rustic tiles, and (v) polished glazed tiles. Porcelain tiles are our best-selling products, accounting for over 96.9% of our total revenue of ceramic tile business in 2022. 

For the year ended December 31, 2022, we utilized production facilities capable of producing 1.40 million square meters ceramic tiles, as compared with the year ended December 31, 2021, when we utilized production facilities capable of producing 2.38 million square meters. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we had 7 production lines available for production and utilized two production lines during the peak season. As of December 31, 2022, we had seven production lines available for production (all were from Hengda), one of which was in use as of December 31, 2022.

We primarily sell our ceramic tile products through an exclusive distributor network. We have long-term relationships with our customers; most of our top ten customers in 2022 have been purchasing from us for over ten years.  We have been in discussions with some large property developers in China to be their exclusive or primary provider of ceramic tiles and, although no arrangements or agreements have been entered into, we expect to enter into arrangements of that type in the foreseeable future.

We focus our research and development efforts on developing innovative and environmentally friendly products. We own eighteen utility model patents. Our stringent tile management and marketing efforts have created a strong business reputation and high brand awareness as demonstrated by us receiving the “Chinese Well-Known Trademark” award from the Intermediate People’s Court of Xiangtan City and “Asia’s 500 Most Influential Brands 2014” award from the World Brand Laboratory.

Business Management and Consulting Business

We also provide business management and consulting services which consists of computer consulting services and software development through our subsidiaries in China, including Chengdu Future and Antelope Chengdu. We diagnose difficulties in infrastructure and enterprise systems and addresses business challenges that enterprises confront by developing strategies to surmount such hurdles to ensure the healthy growth and development of our customers. Our consulting teams have advanced technological knowledge and capabilities to implement workflow solutions via proprietary software products and services to help our customers with customized solutions to solve complex problems. 

Impacts of COVID-19 

We experienced significant adverse impacts in our legacy ceramic tile business resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the related public health orders. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted supply chains and affected production and sales across a range of industries as a result of quarantines, facility closures, and travel and logistics restrictions in connection with the outbreak. We experienced reduced demand for our ceramic tile products and an increased level of purchase order cancellations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak had a material adverse impact on our operations and financial results for our legacy ceramic tile business. Our consulting income also decreased significantly due to the impact of Covid-19 pandemic. However, our livestreaming ecommerce was not impacted by Covid-19 pandemic but realized a significant growth due to its nature of internet-based business without in-person interaction. In early December 2022, China announced a nationwide loosening of its zero-COVID policy. However, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic still depends on the future developments of the virus, including new information concerning the global severity of and actions taken to contain the pandemic, or the appearance of new or more severe strains of the virus, which are highly uncertain and unpredictable. Therefore, while we do not expect the COVID-19 pandemic to negatively impact our business, results of operations, and financial position, the related financial impact cannot be reasonably estimated at this time.

Basis of Presentation

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on the selected financial information as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022 and has been prepared based on the consolidated financial statements of Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries. The consolidated financial statements of Antelope Enterprise Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries have been prepared in accordance with IFRS as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, or “IASB.” The consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost basis, except for derivative financial instruments that have been measured at fair value.

The following table sets forth our financial results for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively:

The following table shows the Company’s operations by business lines for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively:

Description of Selected Income Statement Items

Revenue from sales of livestreaming ecommerce business. Beginning in 2021, we started to generate revenue from our livestreaming ecommerce business which is operated by Hainan Kylin. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively, we generated RMB 273.7 million and RMB 58.5 million in revenue from this sector.

Revenue from sales of ceramic tile products. We generate revenue from the sales of ceramic tiles, including porcelain tiles, glazed porcelain tiles, glazed tiles, rustic tiles and polished glazed tiles, net of rebates and discounts. For the past three fiscal years, the second and third calendar quarters have been the peak season of the property developing industry, and, therefore, our quarterly sales are usually highest from May to September compared to the rest of the year. Conversely, our sales were lower between the months of January to March. This is because property developing activities tend to be low due to the effects of cold weather and the PRC Spring Festival. While we adjusted the pricing of our products in previous years, in 2020 we did not have any price adjustments of our ceramic tile products. In July 2021, Hengda increased the pricing of its ceramic tile products by an average of 15% and Hengdali decreased the pricing of its ceramic tile products by an average of 5%, and our total sales of ceramic tiles was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Revenue from the sale of ceramic tile products decreased by 74.0% for the year ended December 31, 2022 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2021, mainly due to the 78.5% decrease in sales volume which was only partially offset by the increase in the average selling price of 20.1%.

Revenue from business management and information system consulting services. We also generated revenue from business management consulting, information system technology consulting services, including the sales of software use rights for digital data deposit platforms and asset management systems. For the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we generated RMB 12.7 million and RMB 13.0 million from Antelope Chengdu and Chengdu Future who are engaged in these sectors. 

Cost of revenues.

Cost of revenues for livestreaming ecommerce. Cost of sales for the livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 245.6 million (US$ 36.5 million) and RMB 55.5 million (US$ 8.6 million) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021. For the year ended December 31, 2022, we had cost of sales related to livestreaming ecommerce of RMB 245.6 million, mainly consisting of professional costs for outsourcing technology services.

Cost of revenues for tile products. Cost of revenues for tile products consists of costs directly attributable to production, including the cost of clay, color materials, glaze materials, coal, salaries for staff engaged in production activity, electricity, depreciation, packing materials and related expenses.

Clay is a key material for making ceramic tiles, and accounted for approximately 13.0% and 5.7% of our cost of sales for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Fujian and Jiangxi Provinces, where our production facilities are located, are the largest clay resources areas in China.

Dyes are another key material for making ceramic tiles, and accounted for approximately 17.0% and 6.6% of our cost of sales for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. A number of dyes are used in ceramic tiles, and the prices of different dyes have experienced fluctuations over the past few years.

Our Hengda facility used natural gas instead of coal for manufacturing ceramic tiles, and natural gas accounted for approximately 8.9% and 3.6% of our cost of sales for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Cost of revenues for business management and information system consulting services. For the year ended December 31, 2022, we had cost of revenues related to business management and consulting income of RMB 12.8 million, which mainly consisted of professional costs for outsourcing technology services.

Other income and other expenses. Other income consists of interest income, foreign exchange gain/loss, gain on disposal of equipment and rental income by leasing out one of its production lines. Other expenses primarily consist of the loss on disposal of equipment and the depreciation by leasing out one of our production lines.

Selling and distribution expenses. Selling and distribution expenses consist of payroll, travel expenses, transportation and advertising expenses incurred by our selling and distribution team.

Administrative expenses. Administrative expenses consist primarily of R&D expense, employee remuneration, payroll taxes and benefits, general office expenses and depreciation. We expect administrative expenses to remain constant as compared to the prior year.

Income taxes. Our subsidiaries in the PRC are subject to the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, and the applicable income tax rate pursuant to such law for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 is 25% for Hengda, Hengdali and Hainan Kylin Cloud Services Technology, and 5% for Chengdu Future, Antelope Chengdu, Anhui Kylin Cloud Services Technology and Hangzhou Kylin Cloud Services Technology.

Results of Operations

Fiscal Year Ended 2022 Compared to the Fiscal Year Ended 2021

Revenue from livestreaming ecommerce. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, revenue from the livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 273.7 million (US$ 40.7 million) and RMB 58.5 million (US$ 9.1 million), representing an increase of RMB 215.2 million, or 368%. The significant increase was because we started operating the livestreaming ecommerce business in September 2021. The revenue generated from livestreaming ecommerce business increased significantly as a result of the rapid growth of e-commence livestreaming industry in China. 

Revenue from sales of tile products. The following table sets forth the breakdown of revenue, by product categories, for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Revenue from sales of tile products was RMB 37.7 million (US$ 5.6 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to RMB 144.7 million (US$ 22.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, representing a decrease of RMB 107.0 million, or 74.0%. The decrease in revenue was primarily due to the decrease in sales volume of 78.5% and which was only partially offset by an increase in the average selling price of 20.8%. The decrease in sales resulted from the continued slowdown of China’s economy, and both the manufacturing sector and the real estate industry were affected by the weaker economy and the adverse impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. Moreover, the Company leased out its Hengdali facility beginning in November 2021.

Cost of revenues for livestreaming ecommerce. Cost of sales for the livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 245.6 million (US$ 36.5 million) and RMB 55.5 million (US$ 8.6 million) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, our cost of sales mainly consisted of professional costs for outsourcing technology services. The increase in the cost of revenues for our livestreaming ecommerce resulted from the rapid growth of this business.  

Cost of revenues for sales of tile products. The following table sets forth the breakdown of cost of sales, by product segment, for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021:

Cost of revenues for sales of tile products was RMB 41.3 million (US$ 6.1 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to RMB 83.4 million (US$ 12.9 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, representing a decrease of RMB 42.2 million, or 50.6%. The decrease in cost of sales was primarily due to decreased sales and production, which was partly offset by the decrease in the reversal of an inventory impairment provision.

Cost of sales for business management and information system consulting services. Cost of sales for business management and consulting services was RMB 12.8 million (US$ 1.9 million) and RMB 10.0 million (US$ 1.6 million) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Gross profit for livestreaming ecommerce. Gross profit for the livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 28.1 million (US$ 4.2 million) and RMB 3.0 million (US$ 0.5 million) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Gross profit (loss) for sales of tile products. The following table sets forth the breakdown of our gross profit (loss) and gross profit (loss) margin by product segment for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021:

Gross loss was RMB 3.5 million (US$ 0.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, as compared to a gross profit of RMB 61.3 million (US$ 9.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase loss of RMB 64.9 million.

Gross profit (loss) for business management and consulting. Gross profit (loss) for the business management and consulting services was RMB (157,000) (US$ (23,331)) and RMB 3.0 million (US$ 0.5 million) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Other income. Other income for the year ended December 31, 2022 was RMB 3.0 million (US$ 0.4 million), as compared to RMB 32,000 (US$ 4,500) for the same period of 2021. For the year ended December 31, 2022, other income mainly consists of a government grant of RMB 0.8 million and VAT receivable of 1.4 million from Hainan Kylin, and exchange gain of RMB 73,203.

For both 2022 and 2021, we had other income from discontinued operation of RMB 14.2 million (US$ 2.1million) and RMB 9.4 million (US$1.5 million) was mainly attributable to the income from leasing out one of the production lines from our Hengdali facility pursuant to an eight-year lease contract.

Selling and distribution expenses. Selling and distribution expenses were RMB 16.4 million (US$ 2.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to RMB 24,000 (US$ 4,000) for the year ended December 31, 2021, representing an increase of RMB 16.4 million. The increase in selling and distribution expenses was primarily due to an increased advertising expense of RMB 7.0 million and the increased commission expense of RMB 9.3 million due to the significant growth of our livestreaming ecommerce business. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we had selling and distribution expenses RMB 5.9 million (US$ 0.9 million) and RMB 6.3 million (US$ 1.0 million) from discontinued operations.

Administrative expenses. Administrative expenses were RMB 22.8 million (US$ 3.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to RMB 16.0 million (US$ 2.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, representing an increase of RMB 6.8 million, or 42.5%. The increase in administrative expenses was primarily due to an increase in (i) insurance expense of RMB 2.1 million, (ii) an RMB 1.3 million increase in research and development expenses, (iii) an RMB 1.4 million increase in payroll expenses, (iv) an RMB 1.3 million increase in other compensation expense, (v) an RMB 71,000 increase in auto expense, (vi) an RMB 0.2 million increase in depreciation expense and an RMB 0.5 million increase in other G&A expenses due to the increased expense resulting from our new subsidiaries. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we have administrative expenses of RMB 51.3 million (US$ 7.6 million) and RMB 131.9 million (US$ 20.8 million) from discontinued operations.

Bad debt expense (reversal). Bad debt reversal was RMB 2.8 million (US$ 0.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to bad debt expense of RMB 10.1 million (US$ 1.6 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021. We recognize a loss allowance for expected credit loss on our financial assets, primarily on trade receivables, which are subject to impairment under IFRS 9, Financial Instruments, first effective for year 2018. We believe that we have undertaken appropriate measures to resolve the bad debt expense. We will continue to review each of our customers for credit quality as well as assiduously test their accounts receivables balances in each upcoming fiscal period. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we have bad debt reversal of RMB 33.4 million (US$ 4.95 million) and bad debt expense of RMB 115.4 million (US$ 17.9 million) from discontinued operations.

Finance costs. Finance costs were RMB 25,000 (US$ 3,715) for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to RMB 51,000 (US$ 7,906) for the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease was mainly due to the decrease of interest expense on lease liabilities. We adopted IFRS 16 during the year ended December 31, 2019, and recognized lease liabilities in relation to leases which had previously been classified as “operating leases”. These liabilities were measured at the present value of the remaining lease payments, discounted using the lessee’s incremental borrowing rate as of January 1, 2019. The difference between the actual payment and lease liabilities was the interest expense. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we have financial cost of RMB 1.5 million (US$ 0.2 million) and RMB 2.2 million (US$ 0.3 million) from discontinued operations.

Other expenses. Other expenses were RMB 42,000 (US$ 6,000) for the year ended December 31, 2022, as compared to RMB 33,000 (US$ 5,000) for the year ended December 31, 2021, representing an increase of RMB 9,000 or 27.3%. The increased other expenses were mainly due to an increase in the foreign currency transaction exchange loss. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we had a financial cost of RMB nil (US $nil) and RMB 90,000 (US $13,952) from discontinued operations.

Loss before taxation. Loss before taxation was RMB 5.4 million (US$ 0.8 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, as compared to a loss before taxation of RMB 20.2 million (US$ 3.1 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease in loss before taxation was mainly due to an increased reversal of the bad debt expense and increased gross profit for the year ended December 31, 2022 which was partly offset by increased selling and distribution expense and increased administrative expenses as described above. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we had a loss before taxation of RMB 48.0 million (US$ 7.1 million) and RMB 69.7 million (US$ 10.8 million) from discontinued operations.

Income taxes. We incurred an income tax expense of RMB 0.2 million (US$ 31,000) for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to an income tax expense of RMB 0.2 million (US$ 34,000) for the year ended December 31, 2021. Our PRC statutory enterprise income tax rate was 25% for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Net loss attributable to equity holders of the Company. Net loss attribute to equity holders of the Company from continue operation was RMB 5.7 million (US$ 0.8 million) for the year ended December 31, 2022, as compared to a loss attributable to the Company’s shareholders of RMB 20.4 million (US$ 3.2 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease in net loss attributable to shareholders in 2021 was attributable to the reasons described above. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we had a loss attributable to equity holders of the Company of RMB 48.0 million (US$ 7.1 million) and RMB 69.7 million (US$ 10.8 million) from discontinued operations.

Net income (loss) attributed to non-controlling interest. Net income attributed to non-controlling interest was RMB 4.3 million (US$ 0.6 million) and net loss of RMB 1.3 million (US$ 0.2 million) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021. Non-controlling interest represented the 49% ownership of Hainan Kylin and its subsidiaries.

Fiscal Year Ended 2021 Compared to the Fiscal Year Ended 2020

Revenue from sales of tile products. The following table sets forth the breakdown of revenue, by product categories, for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.

Revenue from sales of tile products was RMB 144.7 million (US$ 22.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to RMB 183.0 million (US$ 26.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020, representing a decrease of RMB 38.3 million, or 20.9%. The decrease in revenue was primarily due to the decrease in sales volume of 14.0% and a decrease in average selling price of 7.3%. The decrease in sales resulted from the continued slowdown of China’s economy, and both the manufacturing sector and the real estate industry were affected by the weaker economy and the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Porcelain tiles. Revenue from the sales of porcelain tiles decreased 14.6%, from RMB 142.2 million (US$ 20.6 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020 to RMB 121.5 million (US$ 18.8 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease was primarily attributable to a decrease in our sales volume for the year 2021 as compared to the same period of 2020. Porcelain tiles for exterior walls are still our most popular product and have the largest market potential of all of our tiles.

Glazed porcelain tiles. Revenue from glazed porcelain tiles decreased 76.2%, from approximately RMB 1.6 million (US$ 0.2 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020 to RMB 0.4 million (US$ 59,960) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Glazed tiles. Revenue from glazed tiles decreased 92.6%, from RMB 2.7 million (US$ 0.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020 to RMB 0.2 million (US$ 31,370) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Rustic tiles. Revenue from rustic tiles decreased 8.2%, from RMB 24.5 million (US$ 3.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020 to RMB 22.4 million (US$ 3.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Polished glazed tiles. Revenue from polished glazed tiles decreased 98.3%, from RMB 11.9 million (US$ 1.7 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020 to RMB 0.2 million (US$ 31,460) for the year ended December 31, 2021. We believe that this product represents both a functional and cost-effective replacement for actual marble or stone materials used in a decorative fashion inside homes. However, the demand for this type of tile decreased significantly due to the impact of the continued effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Revenue from business management and consulting. For the year ended December 31, 2021, revenue from our new sector of business management and consulting income was RMB 13.0 million (US$ 1.9 million).

Revenue from the livestreaming ecommerce. For the year ended December 31, 2021, revenue from our new livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 58.5 million (US$ 9.1 million).

Cost of sales for sales of tile products. The following table sets forth the breakdown of cost of sales, by product segment, for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020:

Cost of sales for sales of tile products was RMB 83.4 million (US$ 12.9 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to RMB 209.0 million (US$ 30.3 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020, representing a decrease of RMB 125.6 million, or 60.0%. The decrease in cost of sales was primarily due to decreased sales and production, and the substantial increase in the reversal of an inventory impairment provision.

Cost of sales for business management and consulting. Cost of sales for business management and consulting services was RMB 10.0 million (US$ 1.9 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Cost of sales for the livestreaming ecommerce. Cost of sales for the livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 55.5 million (US$ 8.6 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Gross profit for sales of tile products. The following table sets forth the breakdown of our gross profit (loss) and gross profit (loss) margin by product segment for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020:

Gross profit was RMB 61.3 million (US$ 9.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, as compared to a gross loss of RMB 26.0 million (US$ 3.8 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020, an increase of RMB 87.3 million.

Gross profit for business management and information system consulting services. Gross profit for the business management and consulting services was RMB 3.0 million (US$ 0.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Gross profit for the livestreaming ecommerce. Gross profit for the livestreaming ecommerce was RMB 3.0 million (US$ 0.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Other income. Other income for the year ended December 31, 2021 was RMB 9.4 million (US$ 1.5 million), as compared to RMB 21.9 million (US$ 3.2 million) for the same period of 2020. For both 2021 and 2020, other income was mainly attributable to the income from leasing out one of the production lines from our Hengdali facility pursuant to an eight-year lease contract. In addition, we generated RMB 7.2 million from computer consulting and software development during the year ended December 31, 2020. Since these new businesses had just launched and their income was fairly modest, it was included in this reporting line item for fiscal 2020.

Selling and distribution expenses. Selling and distribution expenses were RMB 6.3 million (US$ 1.0 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to RMB 9.4 million (US$ 1.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020, representing a decrease of RMB 3.0 million, or 32.4%. The decrease in selling and distribution expenses was primarily due to the decreased advertising expense of RMB 2.0 million and the decreased salary expense for salespersons of RMB 1.0 million.

Administrative expenses. Administrative expenses were RMB 32.4 million (US$ 5.0 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to RMB 26.6 million (US$ 3.9 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020, representing an increase of RMB 5.8 million, or 21.9%. The increase in administrative expenses was primarily due to an increase in consultant fees of RMB 8.5 million which was partly offset by (i) an RMB 1.1 million decrease in research and development expenses, (ii) an RMB 1.4 million decrease in professional fees, and (iii) an RMB 0.2 million decrease in directors’ fees.

Bad debt expense. Bad debt expense was RMB 125.6 million (US$ 19.5 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to RMB 150.3 million (US$ 21.8 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020. We recognize a loss allowance for expected credit loss on our financial assets, primarily on trade receivables, which are subject to impairment under IFRS 9, Financial Instruments, first effective for year 2018. We believe that we have undertaken appropriate measures to resolve the bad debt expense.

Finance costs. Finance costs were RMB 2.2 million (US$ 0.3 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to RMB 2.7 million (US$ 0.4 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020. The decrease was mainly due to the decrease of interest expense on lease liabilities. We adopted IFRS 16 during the year ended December 31, 2019, and recognized lease liabilities in relation to leases which had previously been classified as “operating leases”. These liabilities were measured at the present value of the remaining lease payments, discounted using the lessee’s incremental borrowing rate as of January 1, 2019. The difference between the actual payment and lease liabilities was the interest expense.

Other expenses. Other expenses were RMB 124,000 (US$ 19,000) for the year ended December 31, 2021, as compared to RMB nil (US$ nil) for the year ended December 31, 2020. The increased other expenses were mainly due to an increase in the foreign currency transaction exchange loss.

Loss before taxation. Loss before taxation was RMB 89.8 million (US$ 13.9 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, as compared to a loss before taxation of RMB 193.1 million (US$ 28.0 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020. The decrease in loss before taxation was mainly due to an increase in the reversal of the inventory provision, decreased bad debt expense and increased gross profit for the year ended December 31, 2021 as described above.

Income taxes. We incurred an income tax expense of RMB 0.2 million (US$ 34,000) for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to an income tax expense of RMB 33,000 (US$ 5,000) for the year ended December 31, 2020. Our PRC statutory enterprise income tax rate was 25% for the year ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.

Net loss attributable to equity holders of the Company. Net loss attributable to equity holders of the Company was RMB 88.8 million (US$ 13.8 million) for the year ended December 31, 2021, as compared to a loss attributable to the Company’s shareholders of RMB 193.1 million (US$ 28.0 million) for the year ended December 31, 2020. The decrease in net loss attributable to shareholders in 2021 was due to the reasons described above.