grepcent public filings, reorganized for comparison

Bakkt, Inc. (BKKT) FY 2023 MD&A

Verbatim Item 7 Management's Discussion and Analysis from Bakkt, Inc.'s 10-K for fiscal year 2023. Filing date: 2024-03-25. Report date: 2023-12-31. Accession: 0001820302-24-000056.

This page reproduces the company's own Item 7 MD&A text from the linked SEC filing. It is filer text, not grepcent analysis, scoring, or investment advice.

Extracted structurally from real Item 7 body heading to real Item 7A/8 boundary. Confidence: high.

Company profile: BKKT · All MD&A years: index · Previous year: FY 2022 · Next year: FY 2024

Item 7. Management’s Discussion And Analysis Of Financial Condition And Results Of Operations

The following discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations should be read together with our audited consolidated financial statements and the related notes included under Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K (the “audited consolidated financial statements”). References in this section to “we,” “us,” “our,” “Bakkt” or the “Company” and like terms refer to Bakkt Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries for the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, unless the context otherwise requires. Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis or set forth elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including information with respect to our plans and strategy for our business, includes forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of our management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, our management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those factors discussed above in “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.”

Overview

Founded in 2018, Bakkt builds technology that connects the digital economy by offering one ecosystem for crypto and loyalty points. We enable our clients to deliver new opportunities to their customers through software as a service (“SaaS”) and API solutions that unlock crypto and drive loyalty, powering engagement and performance. The global market for crypto, while nascent, is rapidly evolving and expanding. We believe we are well-positioned to provide

-77-

Table of Contents

innovative, multi-faceted product solutions and grow with this evolving market. Our platform is uniquely positioned to power commerce by enabling consumers, brands, and financial institutions to better manage, transact with and monetize crypto in exciting new ways.

Our platform is built to operate across various crypto assets and offers clients the flexibility to choose some or all of our capabilities, and the manner in which these capabilities are enabled for consumers, based on their needs and objectives. Some clients may choose to enable our capabilities directly in their experience, while others may want a “ready-to-go” storefront and leverage capabilities such as our web-based technology. Our institutional-grade platform, born out of our former parent company, Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (“ICE”), supports "know your customer" ("KYC"), anti-money laundering ("AML"), and other anti-fraud measures to combat financial crime.

Recent Developments

Crypto Market Developments

Over approximately the last eighteen months, the crypto markets were impacted by, among other developments, significant decreases and volatility in crypto asset prices, a loss of confidence in many participants in the crypto asset ecosystem, regulatory actions and adverse publicity around specific companies, the crypto industry and crypto assets more broadly, including as a result of continued industry-wide consequences from the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings of crypto asset exchange FTX, crypto hedge fund Three Arrows, crypto miners Compute North and Core Scientific, and crypto lenders Celsius Network, Voyager Digital and BlockFi. In addition, the liquidity of the crypto asset markets has been adversely impacted by these bankruptcy filings as, among other things, certain entities affiliated with FTX and other former participants had engaged in significant trading activity. Although we did not have any exposure to these companies, and we do not have material assets that may not be recovered or may otherwise be lost or misappropriated due to the bankruptcies, we were nonetheless impacted by, and continue to be impacted by, the broader conditions in the crypto markets.

The crypto markets also have been and continue to be impacted by the broader macroeconomic conditions, including the strength of the overall macroeconomic environment, high and rising interest rates, spikes in inflation rates, general market volatility, and geopolitical concerns. We expect the macroeconomic environment and the state of the crypto markets to remain dynamic in the near-term.

In addition, crypto assets and crypto market participants have recently faced increased scrutiny by regulators. For example, in 2023, the SEC has brought charges against a number of crypto asset exchanges, including Bittrex, Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, and other crypto asset service providers, identifying a number of crypto assets as securities and alleging violations of, and non-compliance with, U.S. federal securities laws. We continue to monitor regulatory developments in this area and assess our business model and the assets we support in light of such developments. For more information see “—Regulation—Regulation of Our Virtual Currency Business,” below.

February 2024 Concurrent Registered Direct Offerings

On February 29, 2024, we entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “Third-Party Purchase Agreement”) with certain institutional investors (the “Third-Party Purchasers”). The consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Third-Party Purchase Agreement (the “Third-Party Closing”) occurred on March 4, 2024. At the Third-Party Closing, pursuant to the Third-Party Purchase Agreement, we issued and sold to the Third-Party Purchasers an aggregate of 34,917,532 shares of our Class A Common Stock, Class 1 Warrants (“Class 1 Warrants”) to purchase an aggregate of 23,068,051 shares of Class A Common Stock, Class 2 Warrants (“Class 2 Warrants”) to purchase an aggregate of 23,068,051 shares of Class A Common Stock and Pre-Funded Warrants (“Pre-Funded Warrants”) to purchase an aggregate of 11,218,570 shares of Class A Common Stock. As of the date of this report, holders have exercised all of the Pre-Funded Warrants. The offering of such securities was conducted in a registered direct offering (the “Third-Party Offering”). The purchase price of each share of Class A Common Stock and accompanying Class 1 Warrant or Class 2 Warrant (each, a “Warrant”) was $0.8670 and the purchase price of each Pre-Funded Warrant and accompanying Warrant was $0.8669.

-78-

Table of Contents

In a concurrent registered direct offering (the “ICE Offering” and, together with the Third-Party Offering, the “Concurrent Offerings”), we entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “ICE Purchase Agreement” and, together with the Third-Party Purchase Agreement, the “Purchase Agreements”) with ICE, pursuant to which we agreed to sell to ICE up to 11,534,024 shares of Class A Common Stock, Class 1 Warrants to purchase up to 5,767,012 shares of Class A Common Stock, and Class 2 Warrants to purchase up to 5,767,012 shares of Class A Common Stock. The purchase price of each share of Class A Common Stock and accompanying Warrant in the ICE Offering is $0.8670.

In the ICE Offering, we closed the sale and issuance to ICE of 2,762,009 shares of Class A Common Stock, Class 1 Warrants to purchase up to 1,381,004 shares of Class A Common Stock and Class 2 Warrants to purchase up to 1,381,004 shares of Class A Common Stock, concurrently with the Third-Party Closing (the “Initial ICE Closing”). The closing of the issuance and sale of the remaining 8,772,016 shares of Class A Common Stock, Class 1 Warrants to purchase up to 4,386,008 shares of Class A Common Stock and Class 2 Warrants to purchase up to 4,386,008 shares of Class A Common Stock in the ICE Offering is conditioned on us obtaining stockholder approval for such issuances under the rules and regulations of the NYSE and other customary closing conditions.

See “Liquidity and Capital Resources” below for management’s assertions on the impact of the Concurrent Offerings on our going concern considerations.

Apex Crypto Acquisition

On April 1, 2023, we completed the acquisition of 100% of the ownership interests of Apex Crypto LLC (“Apex Crypto”) and subsequently changed the name of the legal entity to Bakkt Crypto Solutions, LLC (“Bakkt Crypto”). We are leveraging Bakkt Crypto’s proprietary trading platform and existing relationships with liquidity providers to provide a wider range of assets and competitive pricing to our customers. Our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto complements our B2B2C growth strategy by broadening our business partnerships to fintechs and neobanks. Specifically, Bakkt Crypto offers customers the ability to purchase, sell, store and, in approved jurisdictions, deposit and withdraw approved crypto assets, all from within the applications of its clients with whom customers already have a relationship. Using Bakkt Crypto’s platform, customers can purchase approved crypto assets, store crypto assets in custodial wallets, liquidate their holdings, and transfer supported crypto assets between a custodial wallet maintained by Bakkt Crypto and external wallets in certain jurisdictions, if enabled by the client.

In addition, Bakkt Crypto is in the process of developing, subject to applicable regulatory approvals, functionalities enabling transfers of supported crypto assets between registered customers, and conversion of certain loyalty and rewards points into supported crypto assets. Bakkt Crypto is also in the process of enhancing capabilities on its trading platform, including support for larger orders and recurring buys, and extending the platform to support institutional execution.

As part of our ongoing review of potential services, we continually evaluate how we can most effectively improve our platform and service offerings in a manner that is compliance with applicable governance and regulatory considerations. In such review, we may determine to stop pursuing a potential service offering in light of, among other things, revenue expectations and compliance with applicable laws. For example, following discussion with our clients we have elected to suspend the development of our Bakkt Payouts product indefinitely. Furthermore, we considered developing the capability for registered customers to transfer crypto assets to and from other registered customers within our platform but have indefinitely postponed further development and rollout of such functionality. In addition, we evaluated opportunities to offer staking, as well as opportunities to offer non-fungible tokens, and have postponed further development and rollout for both such functionalities indefinitely.

At the time our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto closed, Bakkt Crypto had agreements with more than 30 fintech clients pursuant to which the clients made Bakkt Crypto’s crypto asset trading service available to their customer base. Our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto resulted in us obtaining access to such partners. The majority of these fintech clients are also part of Apex Fintech Solutions’ client network.

-79-

Table of Contents

The agreements with these fintech clients provide for licensing of their front-end trading platforms by Bakkt Crypto and cooperation between the parties in facilitating consumers’ transactions in crypto assets. The agreements are for a term of either one or two years and can be terminated by either party for breach or in case of a change of control. In most cases, the agreements also contain provisions giving Bakkt Crypto discretion in the choice of crypto assets offered to each client through its platform, and, in some cases, exclusivity covenants pursuant to which clients have agreed not to refer their customers to other crypto asset trading platforms.

Following the closing of the acquisition of Bakkt Crypto and in light of recent regulatory developments, we reviewed all crypto assets then available on the Bakkt Crypto platform and determined it was appropriate to delist certain of such crypto assets. In effecting such delisting decisions, we attempted to mitigate impacts on our business and customers by affording customers a period in which to exit their positions in the impacted crypto assets as part of an orderly wind-down. The delisting process was completed on September 21, 2023 and we recognized transactional revenue associated with delisted crypto assets of approximately $27.6 million on that date.

Bumped Acquisition

On February 8, 2023, we acquired 100% of the units of Bumped Financial, LLC, which we subsequently renamed Bakkt Brokerage, LLC ("Bakkt Brokerage"), a broker-dealer registered with the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., for cash consideration of $0.6 million. Bakkt Brokerage is not engaged in any business activities at this time and we have no current plans for it to engage in future business activities.

Key Factors Affecting Our Performance

Growing Our Client Base

Our ability to increase our revenue stream depends on our ability to grow clients on our platform. We collaborate with leading brands and have built an extensive network across numerous industries including financial institutions, merchants and travel and entertainment. To date, management has been focused on building through clients within a business-to-business-to-consumer (“B2B2C”) model. Our goal is to provide these clients opportunities to leverage our capabilities either through their existing environment or by leveraging our platform. Our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto complements our B2B2C growth strategy by broadening our business partnerships to fintechs and neobanks. See “Apex Crypto Acquisition” above.

Product Expansion and Innovation

The crypto marketplace is rapidly evolving. We believe our ability to continue innovating our platform will increase the attractiveness of our platform to clients. Our ability to meet the capability demands of our clients will allow us to continue to grow revenue.

Competition

The crypto marketplace is highly competitive with numerous participants competing for the same clients. We believe we are well positioned with our ability to provide capabilities around emerging crypto assets alongside loyalty points on a single, highly secure, institutional-grade technology platform.

General Economic and Market Conditions

Our performance is impacted by the strength of the overall macroeconomic environment and crypto market conditions, which are beyond our control. Negative market conditions hinder client activity, including extended decision timelines around implementing crypto strategies. See “Crypto Market Developments” above.

-80-

Table of Contents

Regulations in US & International Markets

We are subject to many complex, uncertain and overlapping local, state and federal laws, rules, regulations, policies and legal interpretations (collectively, “laws and regulations”) in the markets in which we operate. These laws and regulations govern, among other things, consumer protection, privacy and data protection, labor and employment, anti-money laundering, money transmission, competition, and marketing and communications practices. These laws and regulations will likely have evolving interpretations and applications, particularly as we introduce new products and services and expand into new jurisdictions.

We are seeking to bring trust and transparency to crypto. We are and will continue to be subject to laws and regulations relating to the collection, use, retention, security, and transfer of information, including the personally identifiable information of our clients and all of the users in the information chain. We have developed and frequently evaluate and update our compliance models to ensure that we are complying with applicable restrictions.

We continue to work with regulators to address the emerging global landscape for crypto. As investment continues, the intersection of technology and finance will require ongoing engagement as new applications emerge. Crypto asset and distributed ledger technology have significant, positive potential with proper collaboration between industry and regulators. For more information around regulations, please see “Item 1. Business”.

Safeguarding Obligation Liability and Safeguarding Asset Related to Crypto Held for Other Parties

As detailed in Note 18 to our audited consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, upon the adoption of Staff Accounting Bulletin 121 (“SAB 121”), we recorded a safeguarding obligation liability and a corresponding safeguarding asset related to the crypto held for other parties. As of December 31, 2023, the safeguarding obligation liability related to crypto held for other parties was $701.6 million. We have taken steps to mitigate the potential risk of loss for the crypto we hold for other parties, including holding insurance coverage specifically for certain crypto incidents and using secure cold storage to store the vast majority of crypto that we hold. SAB 121 also asks us to consider the legal ownership of the crypto held for other parties, including whether the crypto held for other parties would be available to satisfy general creditor claims in the event of our bankruptcy.

The legal rights with respect to crypto held on behalf of third parties by a custodian, such as us, upon the custodian’s bankruptcy have not yet been settled by courts and are highly fact-dependent. However, based on the terms of our terms of service and applicable law, in the event that we were to enter bankruptcy, we believe the crypto that we hold in custody for users of our platform should be respected as users’ property (and should not be available to satisfy the claims of our general creditors). We do not allow users to purchase crypto on margin, and crypto held on our platform does not serve as collateral for margin loans. We hold crypto in custody for users in one or more omnibus crypto wallets. We hold cryptographic key information and maintain internal record keeping for the crypto we hold in custody for users, and we are obligated to secure such assets from loss or theft. Our contractual arrangements state that our customers and clients retain legal ownership of the crypto custodied by us on their behalf; they also benefit from the rewards and bear the risks associated with their ownership, including as a result of any price fluctuations. We have been monitoring and will continue to actively monitor legal and regulatory developments and may consider further steps, as appropriate, to support this contractual position so that in the event of our bankruptcy, the crypto custodied by us should not be deemed to be part of our bankruptcy estate. We do not expect potential future cash flows associated with the crypto safeguarding obligation liability.

-81-

Table of Contents

Key Performance Indicators

We use four key performance indicators (“KPIs”) that are key to understanding our business performance, as they reflect the different ways we enable clients to engage with our platform.

•Crypto-enabled accounts. We define crypto-enabled accounts as the total crypto accounts open on our platform. There were 6.2 million and less than 0.1 million crypto-enabled accounts as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

•Transacting accounts. We define transacting accounts as unique accounts that perform transactions on our platform each month. We use transacting accounts to reflect how users across our platform use the variety of services we offer, such as buying and selling crypto to facilitate everyday purchases, redeeming loyalty points for travel or merchandise, or converting loyalty points to cash or gift cards. There were 3.8 million and 3.0 million unique monthly transacting accounts during the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

•Notional traded volume. We define notional traded volume as the total notional volume of transactions across crypto and loyalty platforms. The figures we use represent gross values recorded as of the order date. Notional traded volumes were $1,531.7 million and $832.3 million during the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

•Assets under custody. We define assets under custody as the sum of coin quantities held by customers multiplied by the final quote for each coin on the last day of the period. Assets under custody were $701.6 million and $15.8 million as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

-82-

Table of Contents

Results of Operations

The following table is our consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively (in thousands):

Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022
Revenues:
Crypto services$726,988$1,745
Loyalty services, net53,14854,479
Total revenues780,13656,224
Operating expenses:
Crypto costs718,5111,657
Execution, clearing and brokerage fees3,772
Compensation and benefits102,042139,049
Professional services10,38211,483
Technology and communication20,83717,079
Selling, general and administrative33,38535,414
Acquisition-related expenses4,2995,675
Depreciation and amortization13,93225,350
Related party expenses3,9021,168
Goodwill and intangible assets impairments60,4991,822,089
Impairment of long-lived assets30,26511,494
Restructuring expenses4,6082,336
Other operating expenses1,5922,343
Total operating expenses1,008,0262,075,137
Operating loss(227,890)(2,018,913)
Interest income, net4,3381,877
(Loss) gain from change in fair value of warrant liability(1,571)16,638
Other expense, net(245)(856)
Loss before income taxes(225,368)(2,001,254)
Income tax (expense) benefit(444)11,320
Net loss(225,812)(1,989,934)
Less: Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interest(150,958)(1,411,829)
Net loss attributable to Bakkt Holdings, Inc.$(74,854)$(578,105)
Net loss per share attributable to Class A common stockholders:
Basic$(0.84)$(8.12)
Diluted$(0.84)$(8.12)

Year Ended December 31, 2023 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2022

Financial Summary

The year ended December 31, 2023 included the following notable items relative to the year ended December 31, 2022:

•Revenue increased $723.9 million primarily driven by a significant increase in crypto services revenue due to our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto; and

-83-

Table of Contents

•Operating expenses decreased $1,067.1 million primarily driven by goodwill and intangible asset impairments recorded in the prior year, partially offset by increased crypto trading costs in connection with our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto

Revenue

Revenues consist of crypto and loyalty revenue. We earn revenue when consumers use our services to buy, sell, and store crypto and redeem loyalty points. We generate revenue across our platform in the following key areas:

•Subscription and service revenue. We receive a recurring subscription revenue stream from client platform fees as well as service revenue from software development fees and call center support.

•Transaction revenue. We generate transaction revenue from crypto buy/sell trades where we earn a spread on both legs of the transaction (reported gross) and through loyalty redemption volumes where we receive a percentage fee based on the volume (reported net of associated costs).

Our loyalty revenue has seasonality and is typically higher in the fourth quarter, driven by holiday spending and the booking of travel. Revenue generated from our crypto services had been immaterial prior to our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto; however, revenue from crypto services is now a significant driver of our business, and we expect crypto revenue to increase as we grow our client base and our customers. As a result of our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto, we expect loyalty revenue, which prior to the Bakkt Crypto acquisition was the source of substantially all of our revenue, to be a smaller percentage of overall revenue in the future as the revenue from our crypto product and service offerings grows.

Crypto Services Revenue

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Crypto services$726,988$1,745$725,243n/m

Crypto services revenue increased by $725.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase was primarily driven by increased crypto trading volume due to our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto.

Loyalty Services Revenue

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Loyalty services, net$53,148$54,479$(1,331)(2.4%)

Loyalty services revenue decreased by $1.3 million, or 2.4%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily related to reduced volume-based service revenue, partially offset by increased transaction volume.

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses consist of crypto costs, execution, clearing and brokerage fees, compensation and benefits, professional services, technology and communication expenses, selling, general and administrative expenses, acquisition-related expenses, depreciation and amortization, related party expenses, goodwill and intangible assets impairments, impairment of long-lived assets, restructuring charges, and other operating expenses.

-84-

Table of Contents

Crypto Costs

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Crypto costs$718,511$1,657$716,854n/m

Crypto costs represent the gross value of crypto sold by our customers on our platform. These costs are measured at the executed price at the time of the trade. Crypto costs increased by $716.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, which reflects increased volume driven by our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto.

Execution, Clearing and Brokerage Fees

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Execution, clearing and brokerage fees$3,772$$3,772n/m

Execution, clearing and brokerage fees primarily represent payments to clients in exchange for driving order flow to our platform. Execution, clearing and brokerage fees were $3.8 million during the year ended December 31, 2023. The increase reflects increased volume driven by our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto.

Compensation and Benefits

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Compensation and benefits$102,042$139,049$(37,007)(26.6%)

Compensation and benefits expense include all salaries and benefits, compensation for contract labor, incentive programs for employees, payroll taxes, share-based and unit-based compensation and other employee related costs.

Our headcount decreased year over year as we undertook restructuring actions and right sized our expense base to meet current market demand. We expect to limit future hiring and further optimize our headcount as we complete development projects on our platform. Compensation and benefits expense is a significant component of our operating expenses, and we expect this will continue to be the case. However, we expect that our compensation and benefits expenses will decrease as a percentage of our revenue over time. Compensation and benefits decreased by $37.0 million, or 26.6%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to decreases of $21.9 million in non-cash compensation and incentive bonuses, $10.2 million in contract labor, net of capitalized software development and $2.6 million in recruiting fees, as well as $1.8 million of non-recurring severance payments made during the year ended December 31, 2022 that were not related to the restructuring actions.

Professional Services

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Professional services$10,382$11,483$(1,101)(9.6%)

Professional services expense includes fees for accounting, legal and regulatory fees. Professional services decreased by $1.1 million, or 9.6%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to decreases of $0.9 million in audit and tax fees and $1.3 million in other professional fees, which was partially offset by an increase in legal fees of $1.0 million.

-85-

Table of Contents

Technology and Communication

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Technology and communication$20,837$17,079$3,75822.0%

Technology and communication costs represent all non-headcount related costs to deliver technological solutions. Such costs principally include amounts paid for software licenses and software-as-a-service arrangements utilized for operating, administrative and information security activities, fees paid for third-party data center hosting arrangements, and fees paid to telecommunications service providers and for telecommunication software platforms necessary for operation of our customer support operations. These costs are driven by client requirements, system capacity, functionality and redundancy requirements.

Technology and communications expense also includes fees paid for access to external market data and associated licensing costs, which may be impacted by growth in electronic contract volume, our capacity requirements, changes in the number of telecommunications hubs, and connections with customers to access our electronic platforms directly. Technology and communications expense increased by $3.8 million, or 22.0%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase was primarily due to an increase in software license fees.

Selling, General and Administrative

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Selling, general and administrative$33,385$35,414$(2,029)(5.7%)

Selling, general and administrative expenses include marketing, advertising, business insurance, rent and occupancy, bank service charges, dues and subscriptions, travel and entertainment, rent and occupancy, and other general and administrative costs. Our marketing activities primarily consist of web-based promotional campaigns, promotional activities with clients, conferences and user events, and brand-building activities. Selling, general and administrative expenses do not include any headcount cost, which is reflected in the “Compensation and benefits” financial statement line item. We expect these costs will decrease as a percentage of our revenue in future years as we gain improved operating leverage from our projected revenue growth.

Selling, general and administrative costs decreased by $2.0 million, or 5.7%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to a $4.3 million reduction in marketing expenses and decreased travel and entertainment expenses of $0.3 million, partially offset by increases of $1.2 million in occupancy costs, $1.0 million in dues and subscriptions and $0.3 million in regulatory filing fees. In 2022, the majority of marketing expenses were web-based promotional campaigns associated with our direct to consumer app, which we retired in the first quarter of 2023. We expect marketing efforts going forward to reflect our B2B2C focus and we will scale investments up or down depending on market conditions and opportunities.

Acquisition-related Expenses

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Acquisition-related expenses$4,299$5,675$(1,376)(24.2%)

Acquisition-related expenses increased by $1.4 million, or 24.2%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. Acquisition-related expenses for the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily consisted of fees for investment banking advisors, lawyers, accountants, tax advisors and public relations firms

-86-

Table of Contents

related to the acquisitions of Bakkt Crypto and Bakkt Brokerage. Acquisition-related expenses for the year ended December 31, 2022 consisted of fees for investment banking advisors, lawyers, accountants, tax advisors and public relations firms directly related to the acquisition of Bakkt Crypto and Bakkt Brokerage. The amount and timing of acquisition-related expenses is expected to vary across periods based on potential transaction activities.

Depreciation and Amortization

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Depreciation and amortization$13,932$25,350$(11,418)(45.0%)

Depreciation and amortization expense consists of amortization of intangible assets from business acquisitions, internally developed software and depreciation of purchased software and computer and office equipment over their estimated useful lives. Intangible assets subject to amortization consist primarily of acquired technology and client relationships from completed acquisitions, including our acquisition of Bakkt Crypto. Depreciation and amortization decreased by $11.4 million, or 45.0%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to lower net book values of intangible assets after impairments were recognized in 2022 and 2023.

Related Party Expenses

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Related party expenses$3,902$1,168$2,734234.1%

Related party expenses consist of fees for transition services agreements. Related party expenses increased by $2.7 million, or 234.1%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase was due to fees associated with Bakkt Crypto's transition services agreement, as well as higher fees associated with ICE's transition services agreement.

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Impairments

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Goodwill and intangible assets impairments$60,499$1,822,089$(1,761,590)n/m

We recorded intangible asset impairments of $60.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2023. We recorded impairments of goodwill and other intangible assets of $1,822.1 million during the year ended December 31, 2022. Refer to Note 5 in audited our consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information. Impairment of our remaining goodwill or intangible assets may occur in the future.

Impairment of long-lived assets

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Impairment of long-lived assets$30,265$11,494$18,771163.3%

Impairment of long-lived assets expense increased by $18.8 million, or 163.3%, for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded impairment charges of $12.9 million related to certain fixed assets, $8.9 million related to our right of use assets, $7.5 million related to

-87-

Table of Contents

certain internally developed software assets and $0.8 million related to other assets. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we recorded impairment charges of $8.7 million related to certain internally developed software assets pursuant to our fourth quarter impairment described in Note 5 to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and $2.8 million in unrelated charges for another software product that was cancelled prior to being placed in service. Impairment of our remaining long-lived assets may occur in the future.

Restructuring expenses

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Restructuring expenses$4,608$2,336$2,27297.3%

Restructuring expenses of $4.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 consist of severance costs as part of our business simplification initiatives to focus on capabilities with strong product market fit and scalability. Restructuring expenses of $2.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 consist of severance costs as part of our business simplification initiatives to focus on capabilities with strong product market fit and scalability.

(Loss) Gain from Change in Fair Value of Warrant Liability

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
(Loss) gain from change in fair value of warrant liability$(1,571)$16,638$(18,209)(109.4%)

We recorded a loss of $1.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 for the change in fair value on the revaluation of our warrant liability associated with our public warrants. We recorded a gain of $16.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2022 for the change in fair value on the revaluation of our warrant liability associated with our public warrants. This is a non-cash charge and is driven by fluctuations in the market price of our warrants.

Other Expense, net

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Other expense, net$(245)$(856)$611(71.4%)

Other expense, net primarily consists of non-operating gains and losses. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded expense of $0.4 million related to foreign currency transaction loss. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we recorded expense of $1.2 million for the loss on sale of assets, partially offset by $0.3 million of foreign currency transaction gains.

Income Tax (Expense) Benefit

($ in thousands)Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022$ Change% Change
Income tax (expense) benefit$(444)$11,320$(11,764)(103.9%)

Income tax expense in the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily consists of current state tax expense related to certain state jurisdictions wherein we are required to file income tax returns. Income tax expense in the year ended December 31, 2022 primarily consists of $11.6 million of deferred tax benefit resulting from book-tax differences stemming from investments in Opco and its subsidiaries.

-88-

Table of Contents

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2023, we had $52.9 million and $31.8 million of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, respectively. Additionally, as of December 31, 2023, we had $17.4 million of available-for-sale debt securities that mature over the next four months. Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash deposits at banks and money market funds. Restricted cash is held to satisfy certain minimum capital requirements pursuant to regulatory requirements, or as collateral for insurance contracts. Restricted cash increased during 2023 primarily due to insurance collateral requirements.

As discussed above, we consummated the initial closings related to Concurrent Offerings in March 2024. As of February 29, 2024, we had $38.1 million and $36.9 million of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, respectively. Additionally, as of February 29, 2024, we did not have any available-for-sale debt securities. As of March 18, 2024, we have raised net proceeds from the Concurrent Offerings of approximately $40.0 million, after deducting the placement agent’s fees and estimated offering expenses payable by us, and may raise an additional $7.6 million in gross proceeds from the ICE Offering, assuming all securities are issued in the ICE Offering. Approximately $2.4 millions of proceeds from the ICE Offering were received concurrently with the closing of the Third-Party Offering.

We intend to use our unrestricted cash, inclusive of the net proceeds from the Concurrent Offerings, and proceeds from maturity of available-for-sale debt securities to (i) fund our day-to-day operations, including, but not limited to funding our regulatory capital requirements, compensating balance arrangements and other similar commitments, each of which is subject to change, (ii) activate new crypto clients, (iii) maintain our product development efforts, and (iv) optimize our technology infrastructure and operational support. We expect to leverage the team we have built to date as well as our Bakkt Crypto acquisition to execute our growth strategy. We are undertaking further strategic analysis of our headcount and expense base and will take further action to right-size both in 2024. We expect that we will be able to reduce the amount of cash that is restricted associated with regulatory capital and insurance requirements through the integration of Bakkt Crypto. Excluding the cash purchase price to acquire Bakkt Crypto, we expect our operating cash usage in 2024 (exclusive of potential acquisitions or other strategic initiatives) to decline from 2023 levels driven by the combined impact of increased revenue and expense reductions related to the completion of large-dollar investments in 2023 and benefits from restructuring actions. In addition, we may in the future enter into arrangements to acquire or invest in complementary businesses, services, technologies or intellectual property rights. However, we have no agreements or commitments with respect to any such acquisitions or investments at this time. Our expected uses of available funds are based on our present plans, objectives and business condition.

Our future cash requirements will depend on many factors, including our revenue growth rate, the timing and extent of overhead, sales and marketing expenditures to support projected growth, and our ability to limit our software development investments to features and functionality with a clear line of sight to revenue generation. We made substantial investments in our platforms in 2022 and 2023, which we expect will enable us to simplify our organization and focus on the core capabilities that are critical to our strategy.

Our losses and projected cash needs, combined with our liquidity level, raised substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Management believes the expected impact on our liquidity and cash flows resulting from the Concurrent Offerings, entity integration and operational initiatives outlined above are probable of occurring, sufficient to enable us to meet our obligations for at least twelve months from the date the audited financial statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are issued and alleviate the conditions that raised substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. However, there are certain risks associated with this determination. Please see “Risk Factors - Risks Related to Our Business, Finance and Operations - We might not be able to continue as a going concern.” for more information.

-89-

Table of Contents

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods presented:

Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022
Net cash used in operating activities$(60,697)$(117,597)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities:$65,970$(171,961)
Net cash used in financing activities:$(2,634)$(2,584)

Operating Activities

Since our inception, we have yet to achieve positive cash flow from operations. Our primary uses of cash include compensation and benefits for headcount-related expenses, investment in software and product development of our technology platforms, and associated non-headcount technology and communication cost to develop, operate and support our customer-facing technology platforms.

Net cash used in operating activities of $60.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily related to our net loss of $225.8 million, offset by non-cash charges of $123.2 million and changes in our operating assets and liabilities of $41.9 million. The non-cash charges for the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily consisted of intangible and long-lived asset impairments of $90.8 million, share-based compensation of $15.5 million, depreciation and amortization of $13.9 million, non-cash lease expense of $3.1 million and the loss from the change in fair value of our warrant liability of $1.6 million, partially offset by the change in fair value of the contingent consideration of $3.0 million. Net cash inflows from changes in our operating assets and liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2023 resulted primarily from a $32.3 million increase in customer funds, a non-recurring return of a $15.2 million deposit with ICE Clear US, Inc., a decrease in prepaid insurance of $9.8 million, and an increase in amounts due to related parties of $2.1 million, which were partially offset by an increase in accounts payable and accrued liabilities of $8.0 million, an increase in operating lease liabilities of $3.0 million, and an increase in accounts receivable of $10.0 million.

Net cash used in operating activities of $117.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 was primarily related to our net loss of $1,989.9 million, offset by non-cash charges of $1,869.4 million and changes in our operating assets and liabilities of $2.9 million. The non-cash charges for the year ended December 31, 2022 primarily consisted of goodwill and intangible assets impairments of $1,822.1 million, share-based compensation of $31.6 million, depreciation and amortization of $25.4 million and impairment of long-lived assets of $11.5 million, partially offset by the gain from the change in fair value of our warrant liability of $16.6 million and deferred tax expense of $11.6 million. Net cash inflows from changes in our operating assets and liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2022 resulted primarily from a decrease in prepaid insurance of $9.4 million, an increase in operating lease liabilities of $4.2 million, and an increase in accounts payable and accrued liabilities of $0.7 million, which were partially offset by an increase in accounts receivable of $7.2 million, an increase in other assets and liabilities of $2.4 million and an decrease in deferred revenue of $2.4 million.

Investing Activities

Net cash flows provided by investing activities of $66.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily consisted of the receipt of $185.8 million of proceeds from the sale of available-for-sale securities, partially offset by the purchase of $61.8 million of available-for-sale debt securities, $47.9 million net cash used to acquire Bakkt Crypto, $0.6 million cash used to acquire Bakkt Brokerage and $9.4 million of capitalized costs of internally developed software for our technology platforms.

Net cash flows used in investing activities of $172.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 primarily consisted of $306.6 million related to the purchase of available for sale debt securities and $30.5 million of capitalized costs of internally developed software for our technology platforms, partially offset by the receipt of $165.2 million of proceeds from the sale of available-for-sale securities.

-90-

Table of Contents

Financing Activities

Net cash flows used in financing activities of $2.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 resulted from proceeds from the repurchase and retirement of Class A Common Stock of $2.6 million.

Net cash flows used in financing activities of $2.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 resulted from proceeds from the repurchase and retirement of Class A Common Stock of $2.6 million.

Tax Receivable Agreement

Concurrently with the completion of the VIH Business Combination, we entered into a Tax Receivable Agreement (“TRA”) with certain Bakkt Equity Holders. Pursuant to the TRA, among other things, holders of Bakkt Common Units may, subject to certain conditions, from and after April 16, 2022, exchange such Common Units (along with a corresponding number of shares of our Common Stock), for Class A Common Stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to the terms of the Exchange Agreement, including our right to elect to deliver cash in lieu of Class A Common Stock and, in certain cases, adjustments as set forth therein. Bakkt will have in effect an election under Section 754 of the Internal Revenue Code for each taxable year in which an exchange of Bakkt Common Units for Class A Common Stock (or cash) occurs.

The exchanges are expected to result in increases in the tax basis of the tangible and intangible assets of Bakkt. These increases in tax basis may reduce the amount of tax that we would otherwise be required to pay in the future. These increases in tax basis may also decrease gains (or increase losses) on future dispositions of certain capital assets to the extent tax basis is allocated to those capital assets.

The TRA provides for the payment by us to exchanging holders of Bakkt Common Units of 85% of certain net income tax benefits, if any, that we realize (or in certain cases is deemed to realize) as a result of these increases in tax basis related to entering into the TRA, including tax benefits attributable to payments under the TRA. This payment obligation is an obligation of the Company and not of Bakkt. For purposes of the TRA, the cash tax savings in income tax will be computed by comparing our actual income tax liability (calculated with certain assumptions) to the amount of such taxes that we would have been required to pay had there been no increase to the tax basis of the assets of Bakkt as a result of Bakkt having an election in effect under Section 754 of the Code for each taxable year in which an exchange of Bakkt Common Units for Class A Common Stock occurs and had we not entered into the TRA. Such change will be calculated under the TRA without regard to any transfers of Bakkt Common Units or distributions with respect to such Bakkt Common Units before the exchange under the Exchange Agreement to which Section 743(b) or 734(b) of the Code applies. As of December 31, 2023, 25,952,197 Opco common units were exchanged for Class A Common Stock. Based on the Company's history of taxable losses, the Company has concluded that it is not probable to expect cash tax payments in the foreseeable future and as such, no value has been recorded under the TRA.

Contractual Obligations and Commitments

The following is a summary of our significant contractual obligations and commitments as of December 31, 2023 (in thousands):

Payments Due by Period
Less than 1 year1-3 years3-5 yearsMore than 5 yearsTotal
Purchase obligations(1)$6,800$14,100$$$20,900
Future minimum operating lease payments(2)4,9939,6247,54910,70432,870
Total contractual obligations11,79323,7247,54910,70453,770

-91-

Table of Contents

(1)Represents minimum commitment payments under a four-year cloud computing arrangement and a separate five-year marketing partnership. In December 2023, we agreed to amend the cloud computing arrangement and extended the payment period for an additional year.

(2)Represents rental payments under operating leases with remaining non-cancellable terms in excess of one year.

Additionally, we, through our loyalty business, had a purchasing card facility with a bank that we utilized for redemption purchases made from vendors as part of our loyalty redemption platform. Expenditures made using the purchasing card facility were payable monthly, were not subject to formula-based restrictions and did not bear interest if amounts outstanding were paid when due and in full. Among other covenants, the purchasing card facility required that we maintain a month-end cash balance of $40.0 million. In January 2021, the purchasing card facility was extended to April 15, 2022 in order to facilitate a long-term agreement on more favorable terms for us. In April 2022, we further extended the maturity date of the purchasing card facility to August 12, 2022, to transition over to the purchasing card facility with Bank of America described below. The maturity date of the purchasing card facility was further extended as of August 12, 2022 to January 13, 2023. During September 2022 we paid off the majority of the remaining balance of the purchasing card facility. The purchasing card facility was closed during October 2022.

On April 7, 2022, we entered into a corporate card services agreement with Bank of America to provide a new purchasing card facility. Total borrowing capacity under the facility is $35 million and there is no defined maturity date. Expenditures made using the purchasing card facility are payable monthly, are not subject to formula-based restrictions and do not bear interest if amounts outstanding are paid when due and in full. The purchasing card facility requires us to maintain a concentration account with the lender subject to a minimum liquidity maintenance requirement of $7.0 million as collateral along with the accounts receivable of our subsidiary, within the loyalty business. Bakkt Holdings, Inc. serves as the guarantor on behalf of our subsidiary under the commercial purchasing card facility. We began using the purchasing card facility in August 2022.

In February 2024, Bank of America reduced our credit line associated with the purchasing card facility from $35.0 million to $15.0 million, increased the payment frequency and required us to pledge as collateral the amounts which were previously required to be maintained in the concentration account.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

We use non-GAAP financial measures to assist in comparing our performance on a consistent basis for purposes of business decision-making by removing the impact of certain items that management believes do not directly reflect our core operations. We believe that presenting non-GAAP financial measures is useful to investors because it (a) provides investors with meaningful supplemental information regarding financial performance by excluding certain items that we believe do not directly reflect our core operations, (b) permits investors to view performance using the same tools that we use to budget, forecast, make operating and strategic decisions, and evaluate historical performance, and (c) otherwise provides supplemental information that may be useful to investors in evaluating our results.

We believe that the presentation of the following non-GAAP financial measures, when considered together with the corresponding GAAP financial measures and the reconciliations to those measures provided herein, provides investors with an additional understanding of the factors and trends affecting our business that could not be obtained absent these disclosures.

Adjusted EBITDA

We present Adjusted EBITDA as a non-GAAP financial measure.

We believe that Adjusted EBITDA provides relevant and useful information, which is used by management in assessing the performance of our business. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation, amortization, acquisition-related expenses, share-based and unit-based compensation expense, goodwill and intangible assets impairments, restructuring charges, changes in the fair value of our warrant liability and certain other non-

-92-

Table of Contents

cash and/or non-recurring items that do not contribute directly to our evaluation of operating results and are not components of our core business operations. Adjusted EBITDA provides management with an understanding of earnings before the impact of investing and financing transactions and income taxes, and the effects of aforementioned items that do not reflect the ordinary earnings of our operations. This measure may be useful to an investor in evaluating our performance. Adjusted EBITDA is not a measure of our financial performance under GAAP and should not be considered as an alternative to net income (loss) or other performance measures derived in accordance with GAAP. Our definition of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies.

Non-GAAP financial measures like Adjusted EBITDA have limitations, should be considered as supplemental in nature and are not meant as a substitute for the related financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. The non-GAAP financial measures should be considered alongside other financial performance measures, including net loss and our other financial results presented in accordance with GAAP.

The following table presents a reconciliation of net loss, the most directly comparable GAAP operating performance measure, to our Adjusted EBITDA for each of the periods indicated (in thousands):

Year Ended December 31, 2023Year Ended December 31, 2022
Net loss$(225,812)$(1,989,934)
Depreciation and amortization13,93225,350
Interest income, net(4,338)(1,877)
Income tax expense (benefit)444(11,320)
EBITDA(215,774)(1,977,781)
Acquisition-related expenses4,2995,675
Share-based and unit-based compensation expense16,76132,114
Cancellation of common units(13)(185)
Loss (gain) from change in fair value of warrant liability1,571(16,638)
Goodwill and intangible assets impairments60,4991,822,089
Impairment of long-lived assets30,26511,494
Restructuring expenses4,6082,336
Transition services expense3,9021,168
Adjusted EBITDA loss$(93,882)$(119,728)

Adjusted EBITDA loss for the year ended December 31, 2023 decreased by $25.8 million, or 21.6%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to a $15.6 million decrease in compensation and benefits expense, a $4.3 million reduction of marketing expenses and a $1.3 million reduction in professional services fees.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP, which requires us to make estimates and apply judgments that affect the reported amounts. In our notes to the audited consolidated financial statements, we describe the significant accounting policies used in preparing the consolidated financial statements. Our management has discussed the development, selection, and disclosure of our critical accounting policies and estimates with the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors. The following items require significant estimation or judgement:

Going Concern

At each reporting period, in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") 205-40, Going Concern, we evaluate whether there are conditions or events that raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date the financial statements are issued. In accordance with ASC 250-40, our initial

-93-

Table of Contents

evaluation can only include management’s plans that have been fully implemented as of the issuance date. Operating forecasts for new products/markets cannot be considered in the initial evaluation as those product/market launches have not been fully implemented.

Accordingly, our evaluation entails analyzing prospective fully implemented operating budgets and forecasts for expectations of our cash needs and comparing those needs to the current cash and cash equivalent balances. This evaluation initially does not take into consideration the potential mitigating effect of management’s plans that have not been fully implemented as of the date the financial statements are issued. When substantial doubt exists under this methodology, we evaluate whether the mitigating effect of its plans sufficiently alleviates substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. The mitigating effect of management’s plans, however, is only considered if both (1) it is probable that the plans will be effectively implemented within one year after the date that the financial statements are issued, and (2) it is probable that the plans, when implemented, will mitigate the relevant conditions or events that raise substantial doubt about the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that these consolidated financial statements are issued.

Business Combinations

We account for our business combinations using the acquisition accounting method, which requires us to determine the fair value of identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including any contingent consideration, to properly allocate the purchase price to the individual assets acquired and liabilities assumed and record any residual purchase price as goodwill in accordance with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 805, Business Combinations. We identify and attribute fair values and estimated lives to the intangible assets acquired and allocate the total cost of an acquisition to the underlying net assets based on their respective estimated fair values. Determining the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed requires management’s judgment and involves the use of significant estimates, including projections of future cash inflows and outflows, discount rates and asset lives. These determinations will affect the amount of amortization expense recognized in future periods. Contingent consideration is initially recorded at its fair value at the acquisition date and is revalued every financial reporting date thereafter. Adjustments to contingent consideration liabilities after the completion of acquisition accounting are recorded in the consolidated statement of operations. We base our fair value estimates on assumptions we believe are reasonable but recognize that the assumptions are inherently uncertain.

If the initial accounting for the business combination has not been completed by the end of the reporting period in which the business combination occurs, provisional amounts are reported to present information about facts and circumstances that existed as of the acquisition date. Once the measurement period ends, which in no case extends beyond one year from the acquisition date, revisions to the accounting for the business combination are recorded in earnings.

All acquisition-related costs, other than the costs to issue debt or equity securities, are accounted for as expenses in the period in which they are incurred.

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Goodwill and intangible assets that have indefinite useful lives are accounted for in accordance with ASC 350, Intangibles — Goodwill and Other. We allocate the cost of an acquired entity to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values at the date of acquisition. The excess of the acquisition consideration transferred over the fair value of the net assets acquired, including other intangible assets, is recorded as goodwill. Goodwill is tested for impairment at the reporting unit level, and we are organized and operate as a single reporting unit. Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets are tested at least annually or more frequently when events or circumstances occur that indicate that it is more likely than not that an impairment has occurred. In assessing goodwill and intangible assets for impairment, we first assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is necessary to perform the quantitative impairment test. In the qualitative assessment, we may consider factors such as economic conditions, industry and market conditions and developments, overall financial performance and other relevant entity-specific events in determining whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than the carrying amount. Should we conclude that it is more

-94-

Table of Contents

likely than not that the recorded goodwill and intangible assets amounts have been impaired, we would perform the impairment test. An impairment loss is recognized in earnings if the estimated fair value of a reporting unit or indefinite lived intangible asset is less than the carrying amount of the reporting unit or intangible asset. Significant judgment is applied when goodwill and intangible assets are assessed for impairment.

Identifiable intangible assets with finite lives are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives and are also reviewed at least annually for impairment or more frequently if conditions exist that indicate that an asset may be impaired.

We recorded impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets of $60.5 million and $1,822.1 million during the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. See Note 5 to our audited consolidated financial statements for additional disclosures related to the impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets. The carrying value of our tradename intangible asset was equal to its fair value and our single reporting unit had no cushion on its goodwill impairment analysis immediately after the impairment was recorded. Therefore if there are further delays in our ability to execute on our strategy, negative deviations from the budgets utilized in these analyses or further declines in our market capitalization further impairment of our assets is possible.

Crypto Revenue Recognition

Bakkt Crypto offers customers the ability to purchase or sell certain crypto on its platform. Bakkt Crypto partners with a number of liquidity providers to provide customers with immediate liquidity and access to crypto. Bakkt Crypto settles with the liquidity partners on a daily basis. The contract with a customer is created when a customer agrees to execute a trade on our platform. Each customer purchase transaction includes multiple performance obligations including execution, custody of the customer's purchased crypto, and material rights for ongoing custody beyond the original contractual period. Customer sales only carry a single performance obligation which is execution of the trade. We consider the sale of customer crypto associated with delisted crypto to be revenue in the context of our contracts with customers. We own the crypto during the period of time between the customer transaction and the liquidity provider settlement and accordingly act as a principal in the arrangement. We report the gross proceeds of a sale to a customer or liquidity provider, including a spread on the market price of the crypto as revenue. Substantially all of the consideration is allocated to the execution performance obligation, which is satisfied when we record the transaction to the customer's account. Custody services are rendered over the initial contract term which we have concluded is one day. Customers have a material right to obtain additional custody services at no cost by not selling the purchased crypto, which is recognized over the period that the assets are held on our platform. The consideration allocated to the custody and material right performance obligations is estimated on the basis of a cost plus a margin approach and was not material to the year ended December 31, 2023.

Judgment is required in determining whether the Company is the principal or the agent in our contracts with customers. We have determined that we are the principal in transactions with customers as we control the crypto prior to its delivery to the customer and we are primarily responsible for the delivery of the crypto to the customer. Accordingly, revenue and costs associated with Bakkt Crypto's services are presented gross in our consolidated statement of operations.

Where applicable, we make payments to introducing brokers based on the transaction volume from resulting customer volume. These payments are expensed in the period they are incurred and are included in "Clearing, Execution and Brokerage Fees" on the consolidated statement of operations.

Loyalty Redemption Platform Revenue Recognition

We host, operate and maintain a loyalty redemption platform connecting loyalty programs to ecommerce merchants allowing loyalty point holders to redeem a spectrum of loyalty currencies for crypto, merchandise and services. Our customer in these arrangements is generally the loyalty program sponsor (our client). Our contracts related to our loyalty redemption platform consist of two performance obligations: (1) access to our SaaS-based redemption platform and customer support services and (2) facilitation of order fulfillment services. We are the principal related to providing access

-95-

Table of Contents

to our redemption platform. We are acting as the agent to facilitate order fulfillment services on behalf of the loyalty program sponsor. Revenues generated from our loyalty redemption platform include the following:

•Platform subscription fees: Monthly fixed fee charged to clients to access the redemption platform and receive customer support services. We recognize revenue for these fees on a straight-line basis over the related contract term as the client receives benefits evenly throughout the term of the contract. These fees are allocated to our performance obligation to provide access to our redemption platform, and thus are recognized on a gross basis. Revenue from our platform subscription fees is included in “Subscription and services revenue” in the disaggregation of revenue table by service type in Note 3 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

•Transaction fees: Transaction fees are earned for most transactions processed through our platform. These fees are allocated to our performance obligation to provide order placement services on behalf of the loyalty program sponsor, and therefore are recognized net of the related redemption cost. We allocate transaction fees to the period in which the related transaction occurs. Revenue from our transaction fees is included in “Transaction revenue, net” in the disaggregation of revenue table by service type in Note 3 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

•Revenue share fees: We are entitled to revenue share fees in the form of rebates from third-party commerce merchants and other clients which provide services facilitating redemption order fulfillment. We allocate revenue share fees to the period in which the related transaction occurs. Revenue from our revenue share fees is included in “Transaction revenue, net” in the disaggregation of revenue table by service type in Note 3 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

•Service fees: We earn fees for certain software development activities associated with the implementation of new clients on our loyalty redemption platform and other development activities if a client requests that we customize certain features and functionalities for their loyalty program. We also earn fees from providing call center services to clients. We recognize service fees as revenue on a straight-line basis, beginning when the internally developed software resulting from such implementation or other development activities are operational in our platform over the longer of the remaining anticipated client life and 3 years, which represents the estimated useful life of our internally developed software. Implementation and development service fees are generally billed when the implementation and development activities are performed. We recognize deferred revenue when all such fees are billed. Revenue from our services fees is included in “Subscription and services revenue” in the disaggregation of revenue table by service type in Note 3 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Deferred Revenue

Deferred revenue includes amounts invoiced prior to us meeting the criteria for revenue recognition. We invoice clients for service fees at the time the service is performed, and such fees are recognized as revenue over time as we satisfy our performance obligation. The portion of deferred revenue to be recognized in the succeeding twelve-month period is recorded as current deferred revenue, and the remaining portion is recorded as non-current deferred revenue. We have determined that these arrangements do not contain a significant financing component, and therefore the transaction price is not adjusted.

Warrants

We account for our ordinary share warrants in accordance with applicable accounting guidance provided in ASC Topic 815, Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (“ASC Topic 815”), as either derivative liabilities or as equity instruments depending on the specific terms of the warrant agreement. We classify as equity any equity-linked contracts that (1) require physical settlement or net-share settlement or (2) give us a choice of net-cash settlement or settlement in our own shares (physical settlement or net-share settlement). We classify as assets or liabilities any equity-linked contracts that (1) require net-cash settlement (including a requirement to net-cash settle the contract if an event occurs and if that event is outside our control) or (2) give the counterparty a choice of net-cash settlement or settlement in

-96-

Table of Contents

shares (physical settlement or net-share settlement). All public and private placement warrants issued by us were deemed to qualify for liability classification.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

Our long-lived assets are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the asset may not be recoverable. We also evaluate the period of depreciation and amortization of long-lived assets to determine whether events or circumstances warrant revised estimates of useful lives. When indicators of impairment are present, we determine the recoverability of our long-lived assets by comparing the carrying value of our long-lived assets to future undiscounted net cash flows expected to result from the use of the assets and their eventual disposition. If the estimated future undiscounted cash flows demonstrate the long-lived assets are not recoverable, an impairment loss would be calculated based on the excess of the carrying amounts of the long-lived assets over their fair value.

We recorded impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets of $30.3 million and $11.5 million during the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. See Notes 5 and 6 to our audited consolidated financial statements for additional disclosures related to impairment of long-lived assets.

Unit-Based Compensation

Unit-based compensation expense relates to the replacement incentive units and phantom units (“participation” units) granted prior to the VIH Business Combination on October 15, 2021, that were issued to employees as purchase consideration. The replacement incentive units and participation units were measured at fair value on the Closing Date, and we recognize expense in “Compensation and benefits” in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss over the requisite service period. Additionally, we recognize variable compensation expense for participation units based on changes to the fair value of the awards at each reporting date. We elect to account for forfeitures as they occurred. See Note 11 to our audited consolidated financial statements for additional disclosures related to unit-based compensation.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in our audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. We base our estimates and assumptions on various judgments that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. The significant estimates and assumptions that affect the financial statements may include, but are not limited to, going concern, those that are related to income tax valuation allowances, useful lives of intangible assets and property, equipment and software, fair value of financial assets and liabilities, determining provision for credit losses, valuation of acquired tangible and intangible assets, the impairment of intangible assets and goodwill, and fair market value of Bakkt common units, incentive units and participation units. Actual results and outcomes may differ from management’s estimates and assumptions and such differences may be material to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Recently Issued and Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

Recently issued and adopted accounting pronouncements are described in Note 2 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Back to the BKKT company profile or the MD&A index.