UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 10, 2019

CHANTICLEER HOLDINGS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

7621 Little Avenue, Suite 414

Charlotte, North Carolina 28226

(Address of principal executive offices)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (704) 366-5122

N/A

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

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

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company [  ]

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. [  ]

Merger Agreement

On October 10, 2019, Chanticleer Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Chanticleer”), entered into a definitive Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) with Sonnet BioTherapeutics, Inc., a New Jersey corporation (“Sonnet”), and Biosub Inc., a Delaware corporation and wholly-owned subsidiary of Chanticleer (“Merger Sub”). Upon the terms and subject to the satisfaction of the conditions described in the Merger Agreement, including approval of the transaction by Chanticleer’s shareholders and Sonnet’s shareholders, Merger Sub will be merged with and into Sonnet (the “Merger”), with Sonnet surviving the Merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chanticleer. The shareholders of Sonnet will become the majority owners of Chanticleer’s outstanding common stock upon the closing of the Merger. Additionally, as part of this transaction, Chanticleer will spin-off its current restaurant operations, including all assets and liabilities, into a newly created entity (the “Spin-Off Entity”), the equity of which will be distributed out to the current stockholders of Chanticleer. Terms of the Merger include a payment of $6,000,000 to Chanticleer from Sonnet, a portion of which is intended to repay certain of Chanticleer’s outstanding indebtedness in conjunction with the spin-off of the existing Chanticleer assets and liabilities.

Prior to the execution of the Merger Agreement, the Board of Directors of Chanticleer (the “Board”), unanimously (i) determined that the terms and provisions of the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby, including the Merger, are fair to, advisable and in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders, (ii) approved and declared advisable the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby, including the Merger, (iii) determined that it is advisable and in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders to enter into the Merger Agreement and to consummate the transactions contemplated thereby, including the Merger, and (iv) resolved to recommend the adoption of the Merger Agreement by the shareholders of the Company (the “Company Board Recommendation”).

Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, each share of common stock of Sonnet, no par value per share (the “Sonnet Common Stock”) (other than Cancelled Shares (as defined in the Merger Agreement) and Dissenting Shares (as defined in the Merger Agreement)), issued and outstanding immediately prior to the effective time of the Merger (the “Effective Time”) shall be automatically converted into the right to receive an amount of shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of Chanticleer ( “Chanticleer Common Stock”) equal to the Common Stock Exchange Ratio (as defined in the Merger Agreement) (the “Merger Consideration”). As a result, immediately following the Effective Time, the former Sonnet shareholders will hold approximately 94% of the outstanding shares of Chanticleer Common Stock and the shareholders of Chanticleer will retain ownership of approximately 6% of the outstanding shares of Chanticleer Common Stock. In addition, at the closing of the Merger, Chanticleer will issue to the Spin-Off Entity a warrant to purchase that number of shares of Chanticleer Common Stock equal two percent (2%) of the number of shares of issued and outstanding Chanticleer Common Stock of Chanticleer at Closing. The Warrant will be a five year warrant, will have an exercise price of $0.01 per share and will not be exercisable for 180 days following the Closing. Upon completion of the Merger, Chanticleer will change its name to Sonnet BioTherapeutics Holdings, Inc.

Subject to approval of the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq”), the proposed Merger will result in a publicly-traded company operating under the Sonnet name and the proposed Nasdaq ticker symbol “SONN” that will focus on advancing Sonnet’s pipeline of oncology candidates and the strategic expansion of Sonnet’s technology platform into other human diseases. Sonnet is a clinical stage, oncology-focused biotechnology company with a proprietary platform for innovating biologic medicines of single- or bi-specific action. Known as FHAB™ (Fully Human Albumin Binding), the technology utilizes a fully human single chain antibody fragment (scFv) that binds to and “hitch-hikes” on human serum albumin (HSA) for transport to target tissues. FHAB is the foundation of a modular, plug-and-play construct for potentiating a range of large molecule therapeutic classes, including cytokines, peptides, antibodies and vaccines, across a range of disease areas. Sonnet’s pipeline of therapeutic compounds for oncology indications of high unmet medical need includes lead candidate, SON-080, a fully human version of low dose Interleukin-6 (IL-6) that has successfully completed Phase I clinical trials and will advance to a pilot efficacy study in patients with chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) during 2020. SON-1010 (IL12-FHAB), Sonnet’s most advanced FHAB-derived compound, utilizes a fully human version of Interleukin-12 (IL-12) linked to FHAB. Sonnet’s first bi-specific candidate, SON-1210 (IL15-FHAB-IL12), combines FHAB with IL-12 and fully human Interleukin-15 (IL-15). Both of these compounds are being developed for solid tumor indications underpinning large commercial market opportunities and are expected to enter Phase I clinical trials during 2020 and 2021, respectively. The discovery pipeline contains two additional bi-specific assets. Upon completion of the Merger, the board of directors of the public company will be comprised of the current members of the board of directors of Sonnet, and Dr. Pankaj Mohan will serve as its Chairman, as well as its President and Chief Executive Officer of the public company.

The Merger Agreement contains customary representations, warranties and covenants made by Chanticleer and Sonnet, including covenants relating to obtaining the requisite approvals of the shareholders of Chanticleer and Sonnet, indemnification of directors and officers and Chanticleer’s and Sonnet’s conduct of their respective businesses between the date of signing of the Merger Agreement and the closing of the transaction.

In connection with the Merger, Chanticleer will prepare and file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) a registration statement on Form S-4 that will contain a prospectus and a proxy statement, and will seek the approval of Chanticleer’s shareholders with respect to certain actions, including the following:

The closing is subject to satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions including, among other things, (i) the required approvals by the parties’ shareholders, (ii) the accuracy of the representations and warranties, subject to certain materiality qualifications, (iii) compliance by the parties with their respective covenants, (iv) no law or order preventing the merger and related transactions, and (v) the listing of the shares issued in the Merger on The Nasdaq Capital Market.

The Merger Agreement contains certain termination rights for both Chanticleer and Sonnet. In connection with the termination of the Merger Agreement under specified circumstances, Chanticleer and Sonnet may be required to pay the other party a termination fee of $500,000, including upon breach of either party’s due acceptance of a third-party competing proposal during the term or within 12 months after termination of the Merger Agreement.

The foregoing description of the Merger Agreement is not complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Merger Agreement, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 2.1 to this report and incorporated herein by reference.

The Merger Agreement (and the foregoing description of the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby) has been included to provide investors and shareholders with information regarding the terms of the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby. It is not intended to provide any other factual information about Chanticleer or Sonnet. The representations, warranties and covenants contained in the Merger Agreement were made only as of specified dates for the purposes of the Merger Agreement, were solely for the benefit of the parties to the Merger Agreement and may be subject to qualifications and limitations agreed upon by such parties. In particular, in reviewing the representations, warranties and covenants contained in the Merger Agreement and discussed in the foregoing description, it is important to bear in mind that such representations, warranties and covenants were negotiated with the principal purpose of allocating risk between the parties, rather than establishing matters as facts. Such representations, warranties and covenants may also be subject to a contractual standard of materiality different from those generally applicable to shareholders and reports and documents filed with the SEC. Investors and shareholders are not third-party beneficiaries under the Merger Agreement. Accordingly, investors and shareholders should not rely on such representations, warranties and covenants as characterizations of the actual state of facts or circumstances described therein. Information concerning the subject matter of such representations, warranties and covenants may change after the date of the Merger Agreement, which subsequent information may or may not be fully reflected in the parties’ public disclosures.

Additional Information about the Proposed Merger and Where to Find It

In connection with the proposed Merger, Chanticleer and Sonnet intend to file relevant materials with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, including a registration statement on Form S-4 that will contain a prospectus and a proxy statement. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF CHANTICLEER AND SONNET ARE URGED TO READ THESE MATERIALS WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT CHANTICLEER, SONNET AND THE PROPOSED MERGER. The proxy statement, prospectus and other relevant materials (when they become available), and any other documents filed by Chanticleer with the SEC, may be obtained free of charge at the SEC website at www.sec.gov. In addition, investors and security holders may obtain free copies of the documents filed with the SEC by Chanticleer by directing a written request to: Chanticleer Holdings, c/o Michael D. Pruitt, Chief Executive Officer, 7621 Little Avenue, Suite 414, Charlotte, NC 28226. Investors and security holders are urged to read the proxy statement, prospectus and the other relevant materials when they become available before making any voting or investment decision with respect to the proposed Merger.

This report shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offering of securities in connection with the proposed Merger shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Participants in the Solicitation

Chanticleer and its directors and executive officers and Sonnet and its directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the shareholders of Chanticleer in connection with the proposed transaction under the rules of the SEC. Information about the directors and executive officers of Chanticleer and their ownership of shares of Chanticleer’s Common Stock is set forth in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, which was filed with the SEC on April 1, 2019, and in subsequent documents filed with the SEC, including the joint proxy statement/prospectus referred to above. Additional information regarding the persons who may be deemed participants in the proxy solicitations and a description of their direct and indirect interests in the proposed merger, by security holdings or otherwise, will also be included in the joint prospectus/proxy statement and other relevant materials to be filed with the SEC when they become available. These documents are available free of charge at the SEC web site (www.sec.gov) and from the Chief Executive Officer at Chanticleer at the address described above.

Forward-Looking Statements

This report and the press release attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 contain forward-looking statements based upon Chanticleer’s and Sonnet’s current expectations. This communication contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Chanticleer and Sonnet generally identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “target,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar words. These statements are only predictions. Chanticleer and Sonnet have based these forward-looking statements largely on their then-current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends as well as the beliefs and assumptions of management. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond each of Chanticleer’s and Sonnet’s control. Chanticleer’s and Sonnet’s actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to: (i) risks associated with Chanticleer’s ability to obtain the shareholder approval required to consummate the proposed merger transaction and the timing of the closing of the proposed merger transaction, including the risks that a condition to closing would not be satisfied within the expected timeframe or at all or that the closing of the proposed merger transaction will not occur; (ii) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against the parties and others related to the Merger Agreement; (iii) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance or condition that could give rise to the termination of the Merger Agreement, (iv) unanticipated difficulties or expenditures relating to the proposed merger transaction, the response of business partners and competitors to the announcement of the proposed merger transaction, and/or potential difficulties in employee retention as a result of the announcement and pendency of the proposed merger transaction; and (v) those risks detailed in Chanticleer’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent reports filed with the SEC, as well as other documents that may be filed by Chanticleer from time to time with the SEC. Accordingly, you should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Neither Chanticleer nor Sonnet can assure you that the events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or occur, and actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements made in this communication relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. Except as required by applicable law or regulation, Chanticleer and Sonnet undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which the statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

On October 10, 2019, Chanticleer and Sonnet issued a joint press release announcing the execution of the Merger Agreement. A copy of the joint press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated by reference herein.

(d) Exhibits

* Schedules and exhibits have been omitted pursuant to Item 601(b)(2) of Regulation S-K. Chanticleer hereby undertakes to furnish supplementally copies of any of the omitted schedules upon request by the SEC.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned duly authorized.