WAFU Wah Fu Education Group Ltd

ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION

Contractual Arrangements and Corporate Structure 

Wah Fu Education Group Ltd. is a British Virgin Islands holding company and currently conducts substantially all of our business operations in the PRC through our wholly foreign owned entities (“WFOEs”) incorporated in the PRC and certain business operations through our PRC consolidated variable interest entity (“VIE”) as a subsidiary of our WFOE. Due to PRC legal restrictions on foreign ownership and investment in the value-added telecommunications market, we rely on a series of contractual arrangements among VIE and its shareholders to operate our online and mobile platforms in China. These contractual arrangements entered into with the VIE allow us to (i) exercise effective control over the VIE, (ii) receive substantially all of the economic benefits of the VIE, and (iii) have an exclusive option to purchase all or part of the equity interests in the VIE when and to the extent permitted by PRC law. These contractual arrangements include exclusive business cooperation agreement, exclusive option agreement, equity interest pledge agreement, power of attorney, as the case may be. As a result of these contractual arrangements, we exert effective control over, and are considered the primary beneficiary of, the VIE and consolidate its operating results in our financial statements under U.S. GAAP. As used in this annual report, , unless otherwise indicated, “we,” “us,” “our,” the “Company” and “Wah Fu” refer to Wah Fu Education Group Limited, a company organized in the British Virgin Islands; “we,” “us,” “our,” “our company,” the “Company” or similar terms refer to Wah Fu Education Group Limited and/or its consolidated subsidiaries, other than the variable interest entity, Beijing HuaXiaDadi Digital Information Technology Co. (“Beijing Digital Information”), a PRC company, and its subsidiaries, , unless the context otherwise indicates; and “VIE” refers respectively to the variable interest entity and its subsidiaries, Huafu Wanrun (Guangzhou) Education Technology, Sichuan Huafu Gengyun Education Technology Co., Ltd., Hunan Huafu Haihui Learing Technology Co., Ltd., and Liaoning Huafu Zhongtai Learing Technology Co., Ltd.

Beijing Digital Information holds our Internet Content Provider (“ICP”) license necessary to operate our online platform in China, our domain names, including www.edu-edu.com, our registered trademarks in China and our registered software copyrights that are essential to the Company’s online operation in the PRC. For the year ended March 31, 2022 and 2021, 0.6% and 1.7% of our consolidated revenue was derived from Beijing Digital Information. Our affiliated variable interest entity, Beijing Digital Information, did not pay any fee to our PRC subsidiary, Beijing Huaxia Dadi Distance Learning Services Co., Ltd (“Beijing Distance Learning”) for fiscal years ending March 31, 2022 and 2021 since the VIE Agreements were executed in August 2017. We did not receive any dividends from our PRC subsidiaries in the past two fiscal years and expect that we will receive dividends in the near future.

As a result of such series of contractual arrangements, Wah Fu and its subsidiaries become the primary beneficiary of the VIE for accounting purposes and the VIE as a PRC consolidated entity under U.S. GAAP. We consolidate the financial results of the VIE and its subsidiaries in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Neither we nor Wah Fu’s investors own any equity ownership in, direct foreign investment in, or control through such ownership/investment of the VIE. These contractual arrangements have not been tested in a court of law in the PRC. As a result, investors in Wah Fu’s ordinary shares are not purchasing an equity interest in the VIE or its subsidiaries but instead are purchasing an equity interest in Wah Fu, the BVI holding company.

The diagram below shows our corporate structure as of the date of this Amendment, including the WFOEs, the VIE and its subsidiaries. However, investors are cautioned that the enforceability of such VIE Agreements has not been tested in a court of law. Wah Fu conducts operations in China primarily through WFOEs and its subsidiaries in China, including the VIE as a subsidiary of the WFOE. As a result, Wah Fu does not conduct any business on its own. The VIE structure is used to provide investors with contractual exposure to foreign investment in China-based companies where Chinese law prohibits or restricts direct foreign investment in the operating companies. Due to PRC legal restrictions on foreign ownership in internet-based businesses, we do not have any equity ownership of the VIE, instead we receive the economic benefits of the VIE’s business operations through certain contractual arrangements. As a result of such series of contractual arrangements, Wah Fu and its subsidiaries become the primary beneficiary of the VIE for accounting purposes and the VIE as a PRC consolidated entity under U.S. GAAP. We consolidate the financial results of the VIE and its subsidiaries in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Neither we nor Wah Fu’s investors own any equity ownership in, direct foreign investment in, or control through such ownership/investment of the VIE. Investors are purchasing an interest in Wah Fu, the BVI holding company.

If the PRC government deems that our contractual arrangements with the VIEs do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in the relevant industries, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change in the future, we could be subject to material penalties or be forced to relinquish our interests in those operations or otherwise significantly change our corporate structure. See “Risk Factors – Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure - Any failure by Beijing Digital Information or its shareholders to perform their obligations under our contractual arrangements with them would have a material and adverse effect on our business.” If we are unable to maintain effective control, we would not be able to continue to consolidate Beijing Digital Information’s financial results. See “Risk Factors – Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure - If the PRC government finds that the contractual arrangements that establish the structure for holding our ICP license do not comply with applicable PRC laws and regulations, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our interests in those operations” and “Risk Factors – Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure - We rely on contractual arrangements with Beijing Digital Information and its shareholders for a portion of our business operations, which may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing operational control.”

VIE Financial Information

Set forth below is selected consolidated statements of operations and cash flows for the fiscal years ended March 31, 2020, 2021 and 2022, and selected balance sheet information as of March 31, 2021 and 2022 showing financial information for the parent company Wah Fu Education Group Limited, the WFOE (as defined below) and WFOE’s subsidiaries (as defined below), the VIE and VIE’s subsidiaries, eliminating entries and consolidated information (in dollars). In the tables below, the column headings correspond to the following entities in the organizational diagram on page 5. See also VIE and consolidated financial information in Note 2 of our financial statements.

For the purposes of this section:

Cash and Asset Flows through Our Organization

Wah Fu is a holding company with no operations of its own. We conduct our operations through our subsidiaries in China. As a result, although other means are available for us to obtain financing at the holding company level, Wah Fu’s ability to pay dividends to its shareholders and to service any debt it may incur may depend upon dividends paid by our PRC subsidiaries. If any of our PRC subsidiaries incurs debt on its own behalf in the future, the instruments governing such debt may restrict our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to pay dividends to Wah Fu. In addition, our PRC subsidiaries are permitted to pay dividends to Wah Fu only out of their retained earnings, if any, as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. Further, our PRC subsidiaries are required to make appropriations to certain statutory reserve funds or may make appropriations to certain discretionary funds, which are not distributable as cash dividends except in the event of a solvent liquidation of the companies.

Under PRC laws and regulations, our PRC subsidiaries are subject to certain restrictions with respect to paying dividends or otherwise transferring any of their net assets to us. Remittance of dividends by a wholly foreign-owned enterprise out of China is also subject to examination by the banks designated by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE. The amounts restricted include the paid-up capital and the statutory reserve funds of our PRC subsidiaries, totaling $862,323, $529,404 and $437,008 as of March 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

Furthermore, cash transfers from our PRC subsidiaries to entities outside of China are subject to PRC government controls on currency conversion. To the extent cash in our business is in the PRC or a PRC entity, such cash may not be available to fund operations or for other use outside of the PRC due to restrictions and limitations imposed by the governmental authorities on the ability of us or our PRC subsidiaries to transfer cash outside of the PRC. Shortages in the availability of foreign currency may temporarily delay the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to remit sufficient foreign currency to pay dividends or other payments to us, or otherwise satisfy their foreign currency denominated obligations. In view of the foregoing, to the extent cash in our business is held in China or by a PRC entity, such cash may not be available to fund operations or for other use outside of the PRC. For risks relating to the fund flows of our operations in China, see “Item 3.D. Risk Factors- Risks Related to Doing Business in China”

Under PRC law, Wah Fu may provide funding to our PRC subsidiaries only through capital contributions or loans, subject to satisfaction of applicable government registration and approval requirements. As of the date of this annual report, there have been no cash flows between Wah Fu and our subsidiaries.

Funds are transferred among our PRC subsidiaries for working capital purposes, primarily between our WOFE, Beijing Huaxia Dadi Distance Learning Services Co., Ltd., and our VIE, Beijing HuaXiaDadi Digital Information Technology Co., a PRC company, and its subsidiaries. The following table provides a summary of the distributions and working capital funds transferred between the VIE and the WOFE.

The transfer of funds among companies are subject to the Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Private Lending Cases (2020 Revision, the “Provisions on Private Lending Cases”), which was implemented on August 20, 2020 to regulate the financing activities between natural persons, legal persons and unincorporated organizations. The Provisions on Private Lending Cases set forth that private lending contracts will be upheld as invalid under the circumstance that (i) the lender swindles loans from financial institutions for relending; (ii) the lender relends the funds obtained by means of a loan from another profit-making legal person, raising funds from its employees, illegally taking deposits from the public; (iii) the lender who has not obtained the lending qualification according to the law lends money to any unspecified object of the society for the purpose of making profits; (iv) the lender lends funds to a borrower when the lender knows or should have known that the borrower intended to use the borrowed funds for illegal or criminal purposes; (v) the lending is violations of public orders or good morals; or (vi) the lending is in violations of mandatory provisions of laws or administrative regulations.

Permissions Required from the PRC Authorities for Our Operations

We have determined that the laws and regulations of the PRC do not currently have any material impact on our business, financial condition or results of operations. However, there is no assurance that there will not be any changes in the economic, political and legal environment in China, where Wah Fu operates, in the future. In addition, in light of the recent statements and regulatory actions by the PRC government, the promulgation of regulations prohibiting foreign ownership of Chinese companies operating in certain industries, which are constantly evolving, and anti-monopoly concerns, we may be subject to the risks of uncertainty of any future actions of the PRC government in this regard including the risk that the PRC government could disallow our holding company structure, which may 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 offer or continue to offer securities to our investors. These adverse actions could cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or become worthless.

We also have operations in mainland China and we are aware that, recently, the PRC government initiated a series of regulatory actions and statements to regulate business operations in certain areas 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. For example, on July 6, 2021, the General Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the General Office of the State Council jointly issued a document to crack down on illegal activities in the securities market and promote the high-quality development of the capital market, which, among other things, requires the relevant governmental authorities to strengthen cross-border oversight of law-enforcement and judicial cooperation, to enhance supervision over China-based companies listed overseas, and to establish and improve the system of extraterritorial application of the PRC securities laws. Also, on July 10, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China (the “CAC”) issued a revised draft of the Measures for Cybersecurity Review for public comments, or the Revised Draft, which required that, among others, in addition to “operator of critical information infrastructure”, any “data processor” controlling personal information of no less than one million users (which to be further specified) which seeks to list in a foreign stock exchange should also be subject to cybersecurity review, and further elaborated the factors to be considered when assessing the national security risks of the relevant activities.

We have also determined that we, and our subsidiaries, are not currently required to obtain any permission approval or business licenses from the CSRC, the CAC or any other regulatory authority in the PRC for our operations, the trading of our securities on Nasdaq and the offering of our securities to foreign investors. To the extent that if we become subject to such PRC laws in the future, we do not believe we are required to conduct a cybersecurity review because (i) we do not possess a large amount of personal information on more than one million users in our business operations; and (ii) data processed in our business does not have a bearing on national security and thus may not be classified as core or important data by the authorities. However, our operations could be adversely affected, directly or indirectly, by future laws and regulations relating to our business or industry, if we inadvertently conclude that such approvals or permissions are not required when they are, or applicable laws, regulations, or interpretations change and we are required to obtain approvals or permissions in the future. We may 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 could adversely affect the ability of the Company’s securities to continue to trade on Nasdaq, which may cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or become worthless.

There may be further prominent risks associated with Wah Fu’s operations in the PRC. For example, as a U.S.-listed public company with business revenue derived primarily from our in the PRC, we may face heightened scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity, which could result in a material change in our operations and the value of our ordinary shares. PRC laws and regulations governing our current business operations are sometimes vague and uncertain, and we may face the risk that changes in the policies of the PRC government could have a significant impact upon the business we conduct in the PRC and the profitability of such business. Therefore, these risks associated with having our operations in the PRC could likely cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or be worthless. Furthermore, these risks would likely result in a material change in our business operations or a complete hinderance of our ability to offer or continue to offer our securities to investors. In addition, changes in Chinese internal regulatory mandates, such as the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors (the “M&A Rules”), the Anti-Monopoly Law, the Cybersecurity Law and the Data Security Law, may target the Company’s corporate structure and impact our and our subsidiaries’ ability to conduct business in Hong Kong and in Shenzhen, accept foreign investments, or list on an U.S. or other foreign exchange.

The U.S. government, including the SEC, has recently made statements and taken certain actions that may lead to significant changes to U.S. and international relations, and will impact companies with connections to the United States or China. The SEC has issued statements primarily focused on companies with significant China-based operations. For example, on July 30, 2021, Gary Gensler, Chairman of the SEC, issued a Statement on Investor Protection Related to Recent Developments in China, pursuant to which Chairman Gensler stated that he has asked the SEC staff to engage in targeted additional reviews of filings for companies with significant China-based operations.

For a detailed description of the risks facing the Company and the risks associated with having our operations in China, please refer to “Item 1A. Risk Factors - Risks Related to Doing Business in China.”

3.A. Selected Financial Data

The following selected financial information should be read in connection with, and is qualified by reference to, our consolidated financial statements and their related notes and the section entitled “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” included elsewhere in this annual report. The consolidated statements of operations and other comprehensive income (loss) data for the fiscal years ended March 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 and the consolidated balance sheets data as of March 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 are derived from audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report. Our historical results for any prior period are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected in any future period.

Selected Consolidated Statements of Operations and Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) Data:

3.B. Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not Applicable.

3.C. Reasons For The Offer And Use Of Proceeds

Not Applicable.

3.D. Risk Factors

An investment in our ordinary shares involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below together with all other information contained in this annual report, including the matters discussed under the headings “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” before you decide to invest in our ordinary shares. We are a holding company with substantial operations in China and are subject to a legal and regulatory environment that in many respects differs from the United States. If any of the following risks, or any other risks and uncertainties that are not presently foreseeable to us, actually occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity and our future growth prospects could be materially and adversely affected.

RISK FACTORS SUMMARY

Our business is subject to numerous risks described in the section titled “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this annual report. The main risks set forth below and others you should consider are discussed more fully in the section entitled “Risk Factors”, which you should read in its entirety.

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry:

Risks and uncertainties related to our business and industry include, but are not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

We are also subject to risks and uncertainties relating to doing business in China in general, including, but are not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to Our Ordinary Shares

In addition to the risks and uncertainties described above, we are subject to risks relating to ordinary shares, including, but not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

If we are not able to continue to attract students to purchase our course packages and to increase the spending of our students on our platforms, our business and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.

Our ability to continue to attract students to purchase our course packages and to increase their spending on our platforms are critical to the continued success and growth of our business. This in turn will depend on several factors, including our ability to effectively market our platforms to a broader base of prospective students, continue to develop, adapt or enhance quality educational content and services to meet the evolving demands of our existing or prospective students and expand our geographic reach. We must also manage our growth while maintaining consistent and high quality of course materials, and respond effectively to competitive pressures. If we are unable to continue to attract students to purchase our course packages and to increase the spending of our students on our platform, our revenues may decline, which may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to improve the content of our existing courses, develop new courses or services in a timely or cost-effective manner.

Historically, our core business centered on the exam preparation courses offered through our B2C platform. We have since expanded our course offerings to target students that not only need to take self-taught higher education exams but who desire to educate themselves in other fields of study, as well as a broader range of situation-based education and test preparation targeting a wide range of student demographics. We constantly update and improve the content of our existing courses and develop new courses or services to meet changing market demands. Revisions to our existing courses and our newly developed courses or services may not be well received by existing or prospective students. If we cannot respond effectively to changes in market demands, our business may be adversely affected. Even if we are able to develop new courses or services that are well received, we may not be able to introduce them in a timely or cost-effective manner. If we do not respond adequately to changes in market demands, our ability to attract and retain students may be impaired and our financial results could suffer.

The effectiveness of our program depends on the success of our personalized learning approach to self-taught and adult higher education, which in turn is determined by the efficiency of our data analytics know-how. We might not be able to continue to efficiently monitor and analyze relevant data important for us to provide a personalized learning experience for our students, or to continue to drive our teaching training, curriculum development and other operational aspects of our platforms.

The timing of the introduction of new courses is subject to risks and uncertainties, including our ability to find and retain teachers and attract students. Offering new courses or services or modifying existing courses may require us to invest in content development, increase marketing efforts and re-allocate resources away from other uses. Unexpected technical, operational, logistical or other problems could delay or prevent the introduction of one or more new courses. Moreover, we cannot assure you that any of these courses or programs will match the quality or popularity of those developed by our competitors, achieve widespread market acceptance or contribute the desired level of income. We may have limited experience with the content of new courses or services and may need to adjust our systems and strategies to incorporate new courses or services into our existing course catalogue. If we are unable to continuously improve the content of our existing courses, or offer new courses or services in a timely or cost-effective manner, our results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

Our business depends on the market recognition of our brand, and if we are unable to maintain and enhance brand recognition, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

We believe that the market recognition of our “Huaxiadadi” brand has significantly contributed to the success of our business and that maintaining and enhancing our brand recognition is critical to sustaining our competitive advantages. Our ability to maintain and enhance brand recognition and reputation depends primarily on the perceived effectiveness and quality of our curriculum and teachers, as well as the success of our branding efforts. Our branding efforts, however, may not be successful and we may incur significant branding costs. If we are unable to maintain and further enhance our brand recognition and reputation and promote awareness of our platforms, we may not be able to maintain our current level of students, fees and engage qualified teachers, and our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, any negative publicity relating to our company, our courses, teachers, platforms and services, regardless of its veracity, could harm our brand image and in turn materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

If we are unable to conduct sales and marketing activities cost-effectively, our results of operations and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected.

We incurred selling and marketing expenses of $1,547,665 and $1,270,582 for the years ended March 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. As we continue to increase our marketing efforts for our B2C service by establishing office in more provinces, we expect our selling and marketing expenses to increase for the next three years.

Our sales activities may not be well received by students and may not result in the levels of sales that we anticipate and our free trials may not be attractive to our prospective institution customers and students. Furthermore, we may not be able to achieve the operational efficiency necessary to increase the gross billings per sales and marketing staff. We also may not be able to retain or recruit experienced sales staff, or to efficiently train junior sales staff. Further, marketing and branding approaches and tools in the online education market in China are evolving, especially for mobile platforms. This further requires us to enhance our marketing and branding approaches and experiment with new methods to keep pace with industry developments and student preferences. Failure to refine our existing marketing and branding approaches or to introduce new marketing and branding approaches in a cost-effective manner may reduce our market share, cause our revenues to decline and negatively impact our profitability.

Collectability of our accounts receivable has adversely impacted our operating cash flow, and may continue to do so.

Our net accounts receivable balance was $1.7 million and $1.9 million as of March 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. As of March 31, 2022 and 2021, the accounts receivable derived from our online education cloud service accounted for 100% and 100%, respectively, of the total accounts receivable balance. The aging of such accounts receivable ranged from 3 months to over one year. As of March 31, 2022 and 2021, accounts receivable aging more than 3 months and less than 12 months was $3,244 and $449,343, respectively, and accounts receivable aging more than 12 months was $822 and $216,039 respectively.

Although we have been taking measures to mitigate the risk of not being able to collect accounts in a timely fashion, including negotiating and entering into repayment plans with certain major customers, there is no assurance that we will be able to collect accounts receivables pursuant to such plans. Such risk is even higher due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on certain university and academic institution customers due to their business closures required by government protocols. If the accounts receivables cannot be collected in time, or at all, a significant amount of bad debt expense will occur, and our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected. In addition, if the market competition becomes more intense and we extend more credit sales to our customers, the balance of our accounts receivables may further increase, which may adversely affect our financial conditions and operation results.

If we are not able to continue to engage and retain qualified teachers, we may not be able to maintain consistent teaching quality on our platforms, and our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially and adversely affected.

Our teachers are critical to the learning experience of our students and our reputation. We seek to engage highly qualified teachers with strong teaching skills. We must provide competitive pay and other benefits to attract and retain them. Furthermore, as we continue to develop new course contents and lesson formats, we may need to engage additional teachers with appropriate skill sets or backgrounds to deliver instructions effectively. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to effectively engage such teachers quickly, or at all. Further, given other potential more attractive opportunities for our quality teachers, over time, some of them may choose to end their relationship with us. We have not experienced major difficulties in engaging, or retaining qualified teachers in the past, however, we may not always be able to engage and retain enough qualified teachers to keep pace with our growth while maintaining consistent education quality. We may also face significant competition in engaging qualified teachers from our competitors or from other opportunities that are perceived as more desirable. A shortage of qualified teachers, a decrease in the quality of our teachers’ performances, whether actual or perceived, or a significant increase in the cost to engage or retain qualified teachers would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our historical financial and operating results, growth rates and profitability may not be indicative of future performance.

We had a net income $902,531and net income $1,020,761 for the year ended March 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Any evaluation of our business and our prospects must be considered in light of the risks and uncertainties encountered by companies at our stage of development. The private education market in China is still at the development stage, which makes it difficult to evaluate our business and future prospects. In addition, our past results may not be indicative of future performance because of new businesses developed or acquired by us. Furthermore, our results of operations may vary from period to period in response to a variety of other factors beyond our control, including general economic conditions, global pandemics, and regulations or government actions pertaining to the private education service sector in China, changes in spending on private education and non-recurring charges incurred under unexpected circumstances or in connection with acquisitions, equity investments or other extraordinary transactions. Due to these and other factors, our historical financial and operating results, growth rates and profitability as well as comparisons of our semi-annual and annual operating results may not be indicative of our future performance and you should not rely on them to predict our future performance.

If our students’ level of performance deteriorates or satisfaction with our services declines, the students may decide to withdraw from our courses and request refunds and our business, financial condition, results of operations and reputation would be adversely affected.

The success of our business depends in part on our ability to deliver a satisfactory learning experience and improved academic results. Our services may fail to improve a student’s academic performance and a student may perform below expectations even after completing our courses. Additionally, student satisfaction with our services may decline. A student’s learning experience may also suffer if his or her relationship with our teachers does not meet expectations. We generally offer refunds for the remaining classes in a course to students who withdraw from the course. If a significant number of students fail to improve their academic performance after attending our courses or if their learning experiences with us are unsatisfactory, they may decide to withdraw from our courses and request refunds, and our business, financial condition, results of operations and reputation would be adversely affected.

We face significant competition, and if we fail to compete effectively, we may lose our market share or fail to gain additional market share, which would adversely impact our business, financial condition and operating results.

The private education market in China is fragmented, rapidly evolving and highly competitive. We face competition in self-taught higher education and adult higher education, from existing online and offline education companies. In the future, we may also face competition from new entrants into the private education market.

Some of our competitors may be able to devote more resources than we can to the development and promotion of their education programs and respond more quickly than we can to changes in student demands, market trends or new technologies. In addition, some of our competitors may be able to respond more quickly to changes in student preferences or engage in price-cutting strategies. We cannot assure you that we will be able to compete successfully against current or future competitors. If we are unable to maintain our competitive position or otherwise respond to competitive pressure effectively, we may lose market share or be forced to reduce our fees for course packages, either of which would adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.

Our new courses and services may compete with our existing courses and services.

We are constantly developing new courses and services to meet changes in student demands, school curriculum, testing materials, admission standards, market trends and technologies. While some of the courses and services that we develop will expand our current course catalogue and services and increase student enrollment, others may compete with or render obsolete our existing courses and services without increasing our total student enrollment. If we are unable to increase our total student enrollment and profitability as we expand our course catalogue and services, our business and growth may be adversely affected.

If we fail to successfully execute our growth strategies, our business and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

Our growth strategies include further enhancing our brand image to grow our student base and increase student enrollments, developing our online course catalogue and online education platforms, increasing our market penetration, expanding into additional markets, improving the learning experience of our students, and advancing our technology. We may not succeed in executing these growth strategies due to a number of factors, including the following:

If we fail to successfully execute our growth strategies, we may not be able to maintain our growth rate and our business and prospects may be materially and adversely affected as a result.

We may not be able to adopt new technologies important to our business.

Technology standards in internet and value-added telecommunications services and products in general, and in online education in particular, may change over time. If we fail to anticipate and adapt to technological changes, our market share and our business development could suffer, which in turn could have a material and adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. If we are unsuccessful in addressing any of the risks related to new courses, our reputation and business may be materially and adversely affected.

Unexpected network interruptions, security breaches or computer virus attacks and system failures could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our business depends on the performance and reliability of the internet infrastructure in China. In China, almost all access to the internet is maintained through state-controlled telecommunications operators. In many parts of China, the internet infrastructure is relatively underdeveloped, and internet connections are generally slower and less stable than in more developed countries. We cannot assure you that the internet infrastructure in China will remain sufficiently reliable for our needs or that either country will ever develop and make available more reliable internet access to our students and teacher. Any failure to maintain the performance, reliability, security or availability of our network infrastructure may cause significant damage to our ability to attract and retain students and teachers. Major risks involving our network infrastructure include:

Any network interruption or inadequacy that causes interruptions in the availability of our online and mobile platforms or deterioration in the quality of access to our online and mobile platforms could reduce student satisfaction and result in a reduction in the activity level of our students and the number of students purchasing our course packages. Furthermore, increases in the volume of traffic on our online and mobile platforms could strain the capacity of our existing computer systems and bandwidth, which could lead to slower response times or system failures. The internet infrastructure in China may not support the demands associated with continued growth in internet usage. This would cause a disruption or suspension in our lesson delivery, which could hurt our brand and reputation. We may need to incur additional costs to upgrade our technology infrastructure and computer systems in order to accommodate increased demand if we anticipate that our systems cannot handle higher volumes of traffic in the future.

All of our servers and routers, including backup servers, are currently hosted by third-party service providers in Tianjin and Wuhan in China. We also rely on major telecommunication companies to provide us with data communications capacity primarily through local telecommunications lines and internet data centers to host our servers. We may not have access to alternative services and we have no control over the costs of services. If the prices that we pay for telecommunications and internet services in China rise significantly, our gross profit and net income could be adversely affected. In addition, if internet access fees or other charges to internet users increase, our visitor traffic may decrease, which in turn may harm our revenues.

Some students may decide not to continue taking our courses for a number of reasons, including a perceived lack of improvement in their performance in specific courses, a change in requirements or general dissatisfaction with our programs, which may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and reputation.

The success of our business depends in large part on our ability to retain our students by delivering a satisfactory learning experience and improving their performance in the courses they have taken. If students feel that we are not providing them the experience they are seeking, they may choose not to renew their existing packages. For example, our courses may fail to significantly improve a student’s performance in the relevant subject area. Student satisfaction with our programs may decline for a number of reasons, many of which may not reflect the effectiveness of our lessons and teaching methods. Students also need to be self-motivated in order to successfully complete the courses in which they enroll. If students’ performances decline as a result of their own study habits or inability to learn the course material, they may not purchase additional lessons from us or refer other students to us, which could materially adversely affect our business.

A student’s learning experience may also suffer if his or her relationship with our teaching assistants does not meet expectations. If a significant number of students fail to significantly improve their proficiency in the applicable course subject after taking our lessons or if their learning experiences with us are unsatisfactory, they may not purchase additional lessons from us or refer other students to us and our business, financial condition, results of operations and reputation would be adversely affected.

Our failure to protect our intellectual property rights may undermine our competitive position, and litigation to protect our intellectual property rights or defend against third party allegations of infringement may be costly and ineffective.

We believe that our copyrights, trademarks and other intellectual property are essential to our success. We depend to a large extent on our ability to develop and maintain the intellectual property rights relating to our technology and course materials. We have devoted considerable time and energy to the development and improvement of our websites, mobile apps, and our course materials.

We rely primarily on copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and other contractual restrictions for the protection of the intellectual property used in our business. Nevertheless, these provide only limited protection and the actions we take to protect our intellectual property rights may not be adequate. Our trade secrets may become known or be independently discovered by our competitors. Third parties may in the future pirate our course materials and may infringe upon or misappropriate our other intellectual property. Infringement upon or the misappropriation of, our proprietary technologies or other intellectual property could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or operating results. Policing the unauthorized use of proprietary technology can be difficult and expensive.

Also, litigation may be necessary to enforce our intellectual property rights, protect our trade secrets or determine the validity and scope of the proprietary rights of others. Such litigation may be costly and divert management’s attention away from our business. An adverse determination in any such litigation would impair our intellectual property rights and may harm our business, prospects and reputation. Enforcement of judgments in China is uncertain, and even if we are successful in litigation, it may not provide us with an effective remedy. In addition, we have no insurance coverage against litigation costs and would have to bear all costs arising from such litigation to the extent we are unable to recover them from other parties. The occurrence of any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may encounter disputes from time to time relating to our use of intellectual property of third parties.

We cannot be certain that third parties will not claim that our business infringes upon or otherwise violates trademarks, patents, copyrights or other intellectual property rights that they hold. We cannot assure you that third parties will not claim that our courses and marketing materials, online courses, products, and platform or other intellectual property developed or used by us infringe upon valid copyrights or other intellectual property rights that they hold. We may be subject to claims by educational institutions and organizations, content providers and publishers, competitors and others on the grounds of intellectual property rights infringement, defamation, negligence or other legal theories based on the content of the materials that we or our teachers distribute or use in our business operation. These types of claims have been brought, sometimes successfully, against print publications and educational institutions in the past. We may encounter disputes from time to time over rights and obligations concerning intellectual property, and we may not prevail in those disputes.

Any claims against us, with or without merit, could be time consuming and costly to defend or litigate, divert our management’s attention and resources or result in the loss of goodwill associated with our brand. If a lawsuit against us is successful, we may be required to pay substantial damages and/or enter into royalty or license agreements that may not be based upon commercially reasonable terms, or we may be unable to enter into such agreements at all. We may also lose, or be limited in, the rights to offer some of our programs, parts of our platform and products or be required to make changes to our course materials or websites. As a result, the scope of our course materials could be reduced, which could adversely affect the effectiveness of our curriculum, limit our ability to attract new students, harm our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial position.

Failure to protect confidential information of our teachers, students and other customers against security breaches could damage our reputation and brand and substantially harm our business and results of operations.

A significant challenge to the online education industry is the secure storage of confidential information and its secure transmission over public networks. Most purchases of our course packages are made through our website and our mobile apps. In addition, online payments for our course packages are settled through third-party online payment services. Maintaining complete security for the storage and transmission of confidential information on our technology platform, such as student names, personal information and billing addresses, is essential to maintaining student confidence.

We have adopted security policies and measures to protect our proprietary data and student information]. However, advances in technology, the expertise of hackers, new discoveries in the field of cryptography or other events or developments could result in a compromise or breach of the technology that we use to protect confidential information. We may not be able to prevent third parties, especially hackers or other individuals or entities engaging in similar activities, from illegally obtaining such confidential or private information we hold as a result of our users’ visits to our website and use of our mobile apps. Such individuals or entities obtaining our clients’ confidential or private information may further engage in various other illegal activities using such information. Any negative publicity regarding our website’s or mobile apps’ safety or privacy protection mechanisms and policies, and any claims asserted against us or fines imposed upon us as a result of actual or perceived failures, could have a material and adverse effect on our public image, reputation, financial condition and results of operations.

Practices regarding the collection, use, storage, transmission and security of personal information by companies operating over the internet and mobile platforms have recently come under increased public scrutiny. Increased regulation by the PRC government of data privacy on the internet may occur and we may become subject to new laws and regulations applying to the solicitation, collection, processing or use of personal or consumer information that could affect how we store and process the data of our teachers, students and clients. We generally comply with industry standards and are subject to the terms of our own privacy policies. Compliance with any additional laws could be expensive, and may place restrictions on the conduct of our business and the manner in which we interact with our students and other clients. Any failure to comply with applicable regulations could also result in regulatory enforcement actions against us.

Significant capital and other resources may be required to protect against information security breaches or to alleviate problems caused by such breaches or to comply with our privacy policies or privacy-related legal obligations. The resources required may increase over time as the methods used by hackers and others engaged in online criminal activities are increasingly sophisticated and constantly evolving. Any failure or perceived failure by us to prevent information security breaches or to comply with privacy policies or privacy-related legal obligations, or any compromise of security that results in the unauthorized release or transfer of personally identifiable information or other student data, could cause our students to lose trust in us and could expose us to legal claims. Any perception by the public that online transactions or the privacy of user information are becoming increasingly unsafe or vulnerable to attacks could inhibit the growth of online education services generally, which may negatively impact our business prospects.

Our employees may engage in misconduct or other improper activities or misuse our platforms, which could harm our reputation.

We are exposed to the risk of employee fraud or other misconduct. Employee misconduct could include intentionally failing to comply with government regulations, engaging in unauthorized activities and misrepresentation to our potential students and clients during marketing activities, which could harm our reputation. Employee misconduct could also involve improper use of our clients’ and teachers’ sensitive or classified information, which could result in regulatory sanctions against us and serious harm to our reputation. Employee misconduct could also involve making payments to government officials or third parties that would expose us to being in violation of laws. It is not always possible to deter employee misconduct, and the precautions we take to prevent and detect this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses, which could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Allegations, harassment or other detrimental conduct by third parties, as well as the public dissemination of negative, inaccurate or misleading information about us, could harm our reputation and adversely affect the price of our ordinary shares.

We may be subject to allegations by third parties or purported current or former employees, negative internet postings and other negative, inaccurate or misleading publicity related to our business and operations. We may also become the target of harassment or other detrimental conduct by third parties or disgruntled former or current employees. Such conduct may include complaints, anonymous or otherwise, to our board, advisors, regulatory agencies, media or other organizations. Depending on their nature and significance, we may need to conduct internal investigations to appropriately review any such allegations. We may also be subject to government or regulatory inquiries or, investigations or other proceedings as a result of such third-party conduct and may be required to spend significant time and incur substantial costs to address such conduct, and there is no assurance that we will be able to conclusively refute each of the allegations within a reasonable period of time, or at all. Allegations may be posted on the internet, including social media platforms, by anyone anonymously. Any negative, inaccurate or misleading publicity about us or our management can be quickly and widely disseminated. Social media platforms and devices immediately publish the content of their subscribers’ and participants’ posts, often without filters or checks on the accuracy of the content posted. Information posted on the internet or otherwise publicly released, including by us or our employees, may be inaccurate or misleading, and the information or the inaccurate or misleading nature of the information, may harm our reputation, business or prospects. The harm may be immediate without affording us an opportunity for redress or correction. Our reputation may be negatively affected as a result of the public dissemination of negative, inaccurate, or misleading information about our business and operations, which in turn may cause us to lose market share or students, and adversely affect the price of our ordinary shares.

The wide variety of payment methods that we accept subjects us to third-party payment processing-related risks.

We accept payments using a variety of methods, including bank transfers, online payments with credit cards and debit cards issued by major banks in China, and payment through third-party online payment platforms such as Alipay and WeChat Pay. For certain payment methods, including credit and debit cards, we pay interchange and other fees, which may increase over time and raise our operating costs and lower our profit margins. We may also be susceptible to fraud and other illegal activities in connection with the various payment methods we offer. We are also subject to various rules, regulations and requirements, regulatory or otherwise, governing electronic funds transfers which could change or be reinterpreted to make it difficult or impossible for us to comply. If we fail to comply with these rules or requirements, we may be subject to fines and higher transaction fees and become unable to accept credit and debit card payments from our students, process electronic funds transfers or facilitate other types of online payments, and our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

If our senior management is unable to work together effectively or efficiently or if we lose their services, our business may be severely disrupted.

Our success heavily depends upon the continued services of our management. In particular, we rely on the expertise and experience of Yang Yu, Xinghui Yang and Cuntao Hou. We also rely on the experience and services from other senior management. If such individuals cannot work together effectively or efficiently, our business may be severely disrupted. If one or more of our senior managers were unable or unwilling to continue in their present positions, we might not be able to replace them easily or at all, and our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. If any of our senior management joins a competitor or forms a competing business, we may lose students, teachers, and other key professionals and staff members. Our senior management has entered into employment agreements with us, including confidentiality and non-competition clauses. However, if any dispute arises between our officers and us, we may have to incur substantial costs and expenses in order to enforce such agreements in China or we may be unable to enforce them at all.

Our results of operations are subject to seasonal fluctuations.

Our industry generally experiences seasonality, reflecting a combination of traditional education industry patterns and new patterns associated with the online platforms in particular. Seasonal fluctuations have affected, and are likely to continue to affect, our business. In general, our self-taught examination services experiences lower student enrollment during the month following the four examination periods but enjoys higher student enrollment during the two months before the four examination periods. As to our continuing education services, our sales generally slow down when our cooperating universities and colleges are summer and winter breaks. Our financial condition and results of operations for future periods may continue to fluctuate. As a result, the trading price of our ordinary shares may fluctuate from time to time due to seasonality.

We have limited insurance coverage for our operations in China, which could expose us to significant costs and business disruption.

We do not maintain any liability insurance or property insurance policies covering students, equipment and facilities for injuries, death or losses due to fire, earthquake, flood or any other disaster. Consistent with customary industry practice in China, we do not maintain business interruption insurance, nor do we maintain key-man life insurance. However, as the insurance industry in China is still in an early stage of development, insurance companies in China currently offer limited business-related insurance products. We do not maintain business interruption insurance, nor do we maintain key-man life insurance. We cannot assure you that our insurance coverage is sufficient to prevent us from any loss or that we will be able to successfully claim our losses under our current insurance policy on a timely basis, or at all. If we incur any loss that is not covered by our insurance policies, or the compensated amount is significantly less than our actual loss, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

Any significant interruption in the operations of our customer hotline could adversely affect our ability to respond to potential customers’ inquiries and other service requests in a timely manner.

We have a customer hotline which responds to inquiries from potential customers and provides customer service to our existing customers. We have not experienced any significant interruption in the operations of our customer hotline. We do not currently have a risk mitigation plan for our customer hotline to prevent an interruption of its operation due to natural disasters, accidents or other events. Any significant interruptions as a result of these events or our failure to successfully expand or upgrade our systems or manage the necessary expansions or upgrades in the customer hotline could reduce our ability to respond to customer inquiries or service requests, which could in turn result in the loss of potential customers and damage our reputation.

The impact of any kind of epidemic, such as the COVID-19, on our operations, may harm our business.

Affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the daily offline education and teaching activities of colleges and universities across the country were suspended due to government health containment measures. In the second half of 2021, the COVID-19 coronavirus remerged in China due to the Omicron and Delta variants. Most recently, Shanghai began a strict zero-positive-case lockdown in late March 2022 due to another outbreak of COVID-19, resulting in a lockdown of the city, closures of ports and airports, and disruption of commercial activities. However, our business activities were not significantly affected or interrupted in 2021 and early 2022. Although the number of existing continuing education users and new customers has increased in the year ended 2022, the new demand for continuing education platform in a certain period of time in the future remains uncertain.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure

If the PRC government finds that the contractual arrangements that establish the structure for holding our Internet Content Provider (“ICP”) license do not comply with applicable PRC laws and regulations, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our interests in those operations.

Foreign ownership in entities that provide value-added telecommunication services, is subject to restrictions under current PRC laws and regulations. For example, in accordance with the Guidance Catalog of Industries for Foreign Investment, as amended in June 2017, and other applicable laws and regulations, foreign investors are not allowed to own more than 50% of the equity interests in a value-added telecommunication service provider (except for e-commerce) and any such foreign investor must have experience in providing value-added telecommunications services overseas and maintain a good track record.

We are a British Virgin Islands company and our PRC subsidiary, Beijing Distance Learning is considered a foreign-invested enterprise. To comply with PRC laws and regulations, we operate our website, www.edu-edu.com, through our PRC consolidated VIE, Beijing Digital Information, which holds our ICP License for www.edu-edu.com. Beijing Digital Information is 51.5% owned by Yang Yu and 48.5% owned by Xinghui Yang. All shareholders of Beijing Digital Information are PRC citizens. We entered into a series of contractual arrangements with Beijing Digital Information and its shareholders, which enable us to:

Because of these contractual arrangements, we are the primary beneficiary of Beijing Digital Information and treat it as our PRC consolidated VIE under U.S. GAAP. We consolidate the financial results of Beijing Digital Information in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

Jingtian & Gongcheng, our PRC legal counsel, is of the opinion that (i) the ownership structure of Shanghai Xin Fu and Beijing Distance Learning will not result in any violation of PRC laws or regulations currently in effect; and (ii) the contractual arrangements among Beijing Digital Information and Beijing Distance Learning and its shareholders governed by PRC law are valid, binding and enforceable, and will not result in any violation of PRC laws or regulations currently in effect. Our PRC legal counsel is also of the opinion that there are, however, substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current or future PRC laws and regulations concerning foreign investment in the PRC, and their application to and effect on the legality, binding effect and enforceability of the contractual arrangements. In particular, we cannot rule out the possibility that PRC regulatory authorities, courts or arbitral tribunals may in the future adopt a different or contrary interpretation or take a view that is inconsistent with the opinion of our PRC legal counsel.

On March 15, 2019, the National People’s Congress, China’s national legislative body (the “NPC”) approved the Foreign Investment Law, which took effect on January 1, 2020. Since it is relatively new, uncertainties exist in relation to its interpretation and its implementation rules that are yet to be issued. The Foreign Investment Law does not explicitly classify whether variable interest entities that are controlled through contractual arrangements would be deemed as foreign-invested enterprises if they are ultimately “controlled” by foreign investors. However, it has a catch-all provision under definition of “foreign investment” that includes investments made by foreign investors in China through other means as provided by laws, administrative regulations or the State Council. Therefore it still leaves leeway for future laws, administrative regulations or provisions of the State Council to provide for contractual arrangements as a form of foreign investment. Therefore, there can be no assurance that our control over our consolidated VIE through contractual arrangements will not be deemed as foreign investment in the future.

The Foreign Investment Law grants national treatment to foreign-invested entities, except for those foreign-invested entities that operate in industries specified as either “restricted” or “prohibited” from foreign investment in a “negative list” that is yet to be published. It is unclear whether the “negative list” to be published will differ from the current Special Administrative Measures for Market Access of Foreign Investment (Negative List). The Foreign Investment Law provides that foreign-invested entities operating in “restricted” or “prohibited” industries will require market entry clearance and other approvals from relevant PRC government authorities. If our control over our consolidated VIE through contractual arrangements are deemed as foreign investment in the future, and any business of our consolidated VIE is “restricted” or “prohibited” from foreign investment under the “negative list” effective at the time, we may be deemed to be in violation of the Foreign Investment Law, the contractual arrangements that allow us to have control over our consolidated VIE may be deemed as invalid and illegal, and we may be required to unwind such contractual arrangements and/or restructure our business operations, any of which may have a material adverse effect on our business operation.

If, as a result of such contractual arrangement, we or Beijing Digital Information is found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws or regulations, or such contractual arrangement is determined as illegal and invalid by the PRC court, arbitral tribunal or regulatory authorities, or we fail to obtain, maintain or renew any of the required permits or approvals, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities would have broad discretion to take action in dealing with such violations or failures, including:

The imposition of any of these penalties could result in a material and adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business and on our results of operations. If any of these penalties results in our inability to direct the activities of Beijing Digital Information that most significantly impact its economic performance, and/or our failure to receive the economic benefits from Beijing Digital Information, we may not be able to consolidate Beijing Digital Information in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

We rely on contractual arrangements with Beijing Digital Information and its shareholders for a portion of our business operations, which may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing operational control.

We have relied and expect to continue to rely on contractual arrangements with Beijing Digital Information, as well as its respective shareholders, to operate our www.edu-edu.com website and mobile apps. For a description of these contractual arrangements, see “History and Development of the Company.” These contractual arrangements may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing us with control over Beijing Digital Information. For example, Beijing Digital Information and its shareholders could breach their contractual arrangements with us by, among other things, failing to conduct their operations, including maintaining our website and using the domain names and trademarks, in an acceptable manner or taking other actions that are detrimental to our interests.

If we had direct ownership of Beijing Digital Information, we would be able to exercise our rights as a shareholder to change the executive director of Beijing Digital Information, which in turn could effect changes, subject to any applicable fiduciary obligations, at the management level. However, under the current contractual arrangements, we rely on the performance by Beijing Digital Information and its shareholders of their obligations under the contracts to exercise control over Beijing Digital Information. However, the shareholders of Beijing Digital Information may not act in the best interests of the Company or may not perform their obligations under these contracts. Such risks exist throughout the period in which we intend to operate our business through the contractual arrangements with Beijing Digital Information. We may replace the shareholders of Beijing Digital Information at any time pursuant to our contractual arrangements with it and its shareholders. However, if any dispute relating to these contracts remains unresolved, we will have to enforce our rights under these contracts through the operations of PRC law and therefore will be subject to uncertainties in the PRC legal system. See “—Any failure by Beijing Digital Information or its shareholders to perform their obligations under our contractual arrangements with them would have a material and adverse effect on our business.” Therefore, our contractual arrangements with Beijing Digital Information may not be as effective in ensuring our control over the relevant portion of our business operations as direct ownership would be.

Substantial uncertainties exist with respect to the enactment timetable, interpretation and implementation of draft PRC Foreign Investment Law and how it may impact the viability of our current corporate structure, corporate governance and business operations.

The MOC published a discussion draft of the proposed Foreign Investment Law in January 2015 aiming to, upon its enactment, replace the trio of existing laws regulating foreign investment in China, namely, the Sino-foreign Equity Joint Venture Enterprise Law, the Sino-foreign Cooperative Joint Venture Enterprise Law and the Wholly Foreign-invested Enterprise Law. The Draft Foreign Investment Law embodies an expected PRC regulatory trend to rationalize its foreign investment regulatory regime in line with prevailing international practice and the legislative efforts to unify the corporate legal requirements for both foreign and domestic investments. While the MOC solicited comments on this draft in early 2015, substantial uncertainties exist with respect to its enactment timetable, interpretation and implementation.