Ambow Education Holding Ltd.
For the period ended Dec 31, 2024. Filed Mar 28, 2025.
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The yearly report of a company based outside the US. It covers much of what a 10-K does, and may follow accounting rules other than US ones.
FY2024 · Filed Mar 28, 2025
Contents
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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
For the fiscal year ended December 31,2024
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 SECTION 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
Date of the event requiring this shell company report ____________________
Commission file number:001-34824
AMBOW EDUCATION HOLDING LTD.
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
Not Applicable
(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)
Cayman Islands
(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
10080 N. Wolfe RD, Suite SW3-200, Cupertino, CA 95014
United States of America
(Address of principal executive offices)
Dr. Jin Huang, President and Chief Executive Officer
10080 N. Wolfe RD
Suite SW3-200, Cupertino, CA 95014 United States of America
Telephone:+1 (628) 888-4587
E-mail: Linlin.Duan@ambow.com
(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:
| Title of each class | Trading symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered |
|---|---|---|
| American depositary shares (one American depositary share representing twenty Class A Ordinary Shares, par value $0.003 per share) ** | AMBO | NYSE American LLC |
| Class A Ordinary Shares, par value $0.003 per share* | NYSE American LLC |
| * | Not for trading, but only in connection with the listing on the NYSE American |
| ** | Effective on February 20, 2024, the ratio of ADSs to our Class A Ordinary Shares was changed from one ADS representing two Class A Ordinary Shares to one ADS representing twenty Class A Ordinary Shares. |
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 stock as of the close of the period covered by this report.
52,419,109 Class A Ordinary Shares, par value
$0.003 per share,
and 4,708,415 Class C Ordinary Shares,
par value $0.003 per share, as of
December 31, 2024
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, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted 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 such files).
☒Yes ☐No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer ☐ | Accelerated filer ☐ | Non-accelerated filer ☒ | Emerging Growth Company ☐ |
|---|
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.
☐
| † | The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012. |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.
☐ Yes☒No
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements.
☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b).
☐
Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:
| U.S. GAAP ☒ | International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ☐ | Other ☐ |
|---|
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
| PART I | ||
|---|---|---|
| Item 1. | Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers | 1 |
| Item 2. | Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable | 1 |
| Item 3. | Key Information | 1 |
| Item 4. | Information on the Company | 26 |
| Item 4A | Unresolved Staff Comments | 39 |
| Item 5. | Operating and Financial Review and Prospects | 39 |
| Item 6. | Directors, Senior Management and Employees | 48 |
| Item 7. | Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions | 60 |
| Item 8. | Financial Information | 61 |
| Item 9. | The Offer and Listing | 61 |
| Item 10. | Additional Information | 62 |
| Item 11. | Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk | 71 |
| Item 12. | Description of Securities Other Than Equity Securities | 71 |
| PART II | ||
| Item 13. | Defaults, Dividend Arrearages and Delinquencies | 73 |
| Item 14. | Material Modifications to the Rights of Security Holders and Use of Proceeds | 73 |
| Item 15. | Controls and Procedures | 73 |
| Item 16. | [Reserved] | 74 |
| Item 16A. | Audit Committee Financial Expert | 74 |
| Item 16B. | Code of Ethics | 74 |
| Item 16C. | Principal Accountant Fees and Services | 74 |
| Item 16D. | Exemptions from the Listing Standards for Audit Committees | 74 |
| Item 16E. | Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers | 74 |
| Item 16F. | Change in Registrant’s Certifying Accountant | 74 |
| Item 16G. | Corporate Governance | 75 |
| Item 16H. | Mine Safety Disclosure | 75 |
| Item 16I. | Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections | 76 |
| Item 16J. | Insider Trading Policies | 76 |
| Item 16K. | Cybersecurity | 76 |
| PART III | ||
| Item 17. | Financial Statements | 77 |
| Item 18. | Financial Statements | 77 |
| Item 19. | Exhibits | 77 |
i
CONVENTIONS THAT APPLY IN THIS ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 20-F
Except where the context requires otherwise and for purposes of this annual report only:
| ● | “ADSs” refers to our American depositary shares, each representing twenty Class A Ordinary Shares. Prior to February 20, 2024, each of which represents two Class A Ordinary Shares, and “ADRs” refers to the American depositary receipts that evidence our ADSs. |
| ● | “Ambow” refers to Ambow Education Holding Ltd., a Cayman Island company; “we,” “us,” “our Company,” “the Company,” “the Group,” “our” or similar terms refer to Ambow Education Holding Ltd., its consolidated subsidiaries unless the context otherwise indicate. |
| ● | “IPO” refers to the initial public offering of our ADSs. |
| ● | “U.S. GAAP” refers to the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States. |
| ● | “$,” “US$” or “U.S. dollars” refers to the legal currency of the United States. |
ii
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This annual report on Form 20-F includes forward-looking statements that relate to future events or our future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Words such as, but not limited to, “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “likely,” “will,” “would,” “could,” and similar expressions or phrases identify forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operation, business strategy and financial needs. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about:
| ● | Anticipated trends and challenges in our business and the markets in which we operate; |
| ● | Our ability to anticipate market needs or develop new or enhanced services and products to meet those needs; |
| ● | Our ability to compete in our industry and innovation by our competitors; |
| ● | Our ability to protect our confidential information and intellectual property rights; |
| ● | Our need to obtain additional funding and our ability to obtain funding in the future on acceptable terms; |
| ● | Our ability to create and maintain our positive brand awareness and brand loyalty; |
| ● | Our ability to manage growth; |
| ● | Risks associated with school closures. |
All forward-looking statements involve risks, assumptions and uncertainties. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictors of future events. The occurrence of the events described, and the achievement of the expected results, depend on many events, some or all of which are not predictable or within our control. Actual results may differ materially from expected results. See the information under “Item 3.D Key Information—Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this annual report for a more complete discussion of these risks, assumptions and uncertainties and for other risks and uncertainties. These risks, assumptions and uncertainties are not necessarily all of the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any of our forward-looking statements. Other unknown or unpredictable factors also could harm our results. We undertake no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this annual report might not occur.
iii
The text of this filing, as the company filed it with the SEC, without its images or exhibits. This is not investment advice.