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):  March 28, 2023

IRIS ACQUISITION CORP

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

3rd Floor Zephyr House

122 Mary Street, George Town

PO Box 10085

Grand Cayman KY1-1001, Cayman Islands

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)  

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: 971 4 3966949

(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 x

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

Item 3.01. Notice of Delisting or Failure to Satisfy a Continued Listing Rule or Standard; Transfer of Listing.

On March 28, 2023, Iris Acquisition Corp (the “Company”) received a written notice ( the “MVLS Notice”) from the Listing Qualifications Department (the “Staff”) of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq”) notifying the Company that for the last 30 consecutive business days, the Company’s Market Value of Listed Securities (“MVLS”) was below the minimum of $35 million required for continued listing on The Nasdaq Capital Market pursuant to Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(b)(2) (the “MVLS Requirement”).

The MVLS Notice does not impact the listing of the Company’s common stock at this time, and the Company’s common stock continues to trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “IRAA.”

The MVLS Notice provided that, in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5810(c)(3)(C), the Company has 180 calendar days, or until September 25, 2023, to regain compliance. The MVLS Notice states that to regain compliance, the Company’s MVLS must close at $35 million or more for a minimum of ten consecutive business days during the compliance period ending September 25, 2023, at which time the Staff will provide written notification to the Company that it has achieved compliance with the MVLS Requirement and the matter will be closed.

The Company intends to actively monitor the market value of its common stock and will evaluate available options to regain compliance with the MVLS Requirement. In the event the Company does not regain compliance by September 25, 2023, then Nasdaq will notify the Company that its common stock is subject to delisting. At that time, the Company may appeal the delisting determination to a Nasdaq Hearings Panel.

On March 30, 2023, the Company, received an additional written notice (the “Minimum Public Holders Notice”) from the Staff indicating that the Company was not in compliance with Listing Rule 5550(a)(3), which requires the Company to have at least 300 public holders for continued listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market (the “Minimum Public Holders Rule”). The Minimum Public Holders Notice is only a notification of deficiency, not of imminent delisting, and has no current effect on the listing or trading of the Company’s securities on the Nasdaq Capital Market.

The Minimum Public Holders Notice states that the Company has 45 calendar days to submit a plan to regain compliance with the Minimum Public Holders Rule. If the Company is unable to regain compliance by that date, the Company intends to submit a plan to regain compliance with the Minimum Public Holders Rule within the required timeframe. If Nasdaq accepts the Company’s plan, Nasdaq may grant the Company an extension of up to 180 calendar days from the date of the Minimum Public Holders Notice to evidence compliance with the Minimum Public Holders Rule. If Nasdaq does not accept the Company’s plan, the Company will have the opportunity to appeal the decision in front of a Nasdaq Hearings Panel.

While the Company is exercising diligent efforts to maintain the listing of its common stock on the Nasdaq, there can be no assurance that the Company will be able to regain or maintain compliance with Nasdaq listing criteria.

The Company, by filing this Form 8-K, discloses its receipt of the MVLS Notice and the Minimum Public Holders Notice in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5810(b).

Forward Looking Statements

Certain information contained in this report consists of forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Words such as “will,” “would,” “may,” “intends,” “potential,” and similar expressions, or the use of future tense, identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance and actual actions or events could differ materially from those contained in such statements. For example, there can be no assurance that the Company will regain compliance with the MVLS Requirement or the Minimum Public Holders Rule during any compliance period or in the future, or otherwise meet Nasdaq compliance standards, that the Company will be eligible for a second compliance period, or that Nasdaq will grant the Company any relief from delisting as necessary or that the Company can ultimately meet applicable Nasdaq requirements for any such relief. The forward-looking statements contained in this report speak only as of the date of this report and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements to reflect changes in information, events or circumstances after the date of this report, unless required by law.

SIGNATURE

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 hereunto duly authorized.