Quarterly Report for Quarter Ending September 30, 2025 (Form 10-Q)

Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Statements

References to the "Company," "Aquaron," "our," "us" or "we" refer to Aquaron Acquisition Corp. The following discussion and analysis of the Company's financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the unaudited interim condensed financial statements and the notes thereto contained elsewhere in this report, as well as the Company's 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on April 16, 2025, and the amended Form 10-K/A filed with the SEC on July 24, 2025. Certain information contained in the discussion and analysis set forth below includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "may," "should," "could," "would," "expect," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "continue," or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. Factors that might cause or contribute to such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, those described in our other U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") filings.

Overview

We are a blank check company formed under the laws of the State of Delaware in March 2021. We were formed for the purpose of entering into a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization or other similar business combination. Our efforts to identify a target business will not be limited to a particular industry or geographic region, although we intend to focus on operating businesses in the new energy sector. We affirmatively exclude as an initial business combination target any company of which financial statements are audited by an accounting firm that the PCAOB is unable to inspect for two consecutive years beginning in 2021 and any target company with China operations consolidated through a VIE structure. We intend to utilize cash derived from the proceeds of our IPO and the private placement of Private Units, our securities, debt or a combination of cash, securities and debt, in effecting our initial Business Combination.

We expect to continue to incur significant costs in the pursuit of our acquisition plans. We cannot assure you that our plans to complete a Business Combination will be successful.

Risks and Uncertainties

Management has evaluated the impact of persistent inflation and rising interest rates, financial market instability, including the recent bank failures, the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and certain geopolitical events, including the conflict in Ukraine and the surrounding region, and has concluded that while it is reasonably possible that the risks and uncertainties related to or resulting from these events could have a negative effect on the Company's financial position, results of its operations and/or search for a target company, the specific impact is not readily determinable as of the date of these condensed financial statements. The unaudited condensed financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of these risks and uncertainties.

On August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the "IR Act") was signed into federal law. The IR Act provides for, among other things, a new U.S. federal 1% excise tax on certain repurchases (including redemptions) of stock by publicly traded domestic (i.e., U.S.) corporations and certain domestic subsidiaries of publicly traded foreign corporations. The excise tax is imposed on the repurchasing corporation itself, not its shareholders from which shares are repurchased. The amount of the excise tax is generally 1% of the fair market value of the shares repurchased at the time of the repurchase. However, for purposes of calculating the excise tax, repurchasing corporations are permitted to net the fair market value of certain new stock issuances against the fair market value of stock repurchases during the same taxable year. In addition, certain exceptions apply to the excise tax. The U.S. Department of the Treasury (the "Treasury") has been given authority to provide regulations and other guidance to carry out and prevent the abuse or avoidance of the excise tax. The IR Act applies only to repurchases that occur after December 31, 2022.

At this time, it has been determined that the IR Act tax provisions have an impact to the Company's tax provisions in each of the fiscal years from 2023 to 2025 as there were redemptions by the public stockholders in June 2023, May 2024 and May 2025; as a result, the Company recorded excise tax liability of $739,679 (including total estimated penalties and interest of $166,705) and $546,877 (including total estimated penalties and interest of $55,670) as of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, respectively. During the second quarter of 2024, the Internal Revenue Service issued final regulations with respect to the timing and payment of the Excise Tax. Pursuant to those regulations, the Company would need to file a return and remit payment for any liability incurred during the period from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023 on or before October 31, 2024. The Company is currently evaluating its options with respect to payment of this obligation. If the Company is unable to pay its obligation in full, it will be subject to additional interest and penalties which are currently estimated at 8% interest per annum and a 5% underpayment penalty per month or portion of a month up to 25% of the total liability for any amount that is unpaid from November 1, 2024 until paid in full. As of December 16, 2025, the Company has not paid excise taxes.

Results of Operations

We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any operating revenues to date except the preparation and completion of the IPO and search for target candidate following the consummation of the IPO. Our only activities from inception through September 30, 2025 were organizational activities and those necessary to prepare for the IPO, and subsequent to the IPO, identifying a target company for an initial business combination. We do not expect to generate any operating revenue until after the completion of our initial Business Combination. We expect to generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on marketable securities held after the IPO. We expect that we will incur increased expenses as a result of being a public company (for legal, financial reporting, accounting and auditing compliance), as well as for due diligence expenses in connection with searching for, and completing, a Business Combination.

For the three months ended September 30, 2025, we had a net loss of $81,473, which consists of loss of $94,045 derived from general and administrative expenses of $93,145, franchise tax expense of $900 and income tax expense of $1,270, partially offset by unrealized loss on investments held in Trust Account of $4, and interest earned on investments held in Trust Account of approximately $13,846.

For the three months ended September 30, 2024, we had net loss of $257,656, which consisted of loss of $351,448 derived from general and administrative expenses of $345,648, franchise tax expense of $5,800, income tax expense of $22,612, offset by unrealized loss on investments held in Trust Account of $519, and interest earned on investments held in Trust Account of $116,923.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2025, we had a net loss of $621,695, which consists of loss of $757,066 derived from general and administrative expenses of $749,366, franchise tax expense of $7,700 and income tax expense of $27,950, partially offset by unrealized gain on investments held in Trust Account of $4,452, and interest earned on investments held in Trust Account of approximately $158,869.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, we had net loss of $103,471, which consisted of loss of $567,426 derived from general and administrative expenses of $545,126, franchise tax expense of $22,300, income tax expense of $180,914 and deferred income tax expense of $144,680, offset by unrealized gain on investments held in Trust Account of $37,433, and interest earned on investments held in Trust Account of $752,116.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

On October 6, 2022, we consummated our IPO of 5,000,000 Units. Each Unit consists of one share of common stock of the Company, par value $0.0001, and one right to receive one-fifth (1/5th) of one share of Common Stock upon the consummation of the Company's initial business combination. The Units were sold at an offering price of $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $50,000,000. Simultaneously with the closing of the IPO, the Company consummated the Private Placement with the Sponsor of 256,250 Private Units, at a price of $10.00 per Private Unit, generating gross proceeds of $2,562,500.

We granted the underwriter a 45-day option to purchase up to an additional 750,000 Units at the IPO price to cover over-allotments, if any. Subsequently, on October 14, 2022, the underwriter partially exercised the over-allotment, and the closing of the issuance and sale of the Units occurred on October 14, 2022. The total aggregate issuance by the Company of 417,180 Units at a price of $10.00 per Unit resulted in total gross proceeds of $4,171,800.00. On October 14, 2022, simultaneously with the sale of the Over-Allotment Option Units, the Company consummated the private sale of an additional 12,515.40 Private Units, generating gross proceeds of $125,154.

On October 14, 2022, the underwriters canceled the remainder of the over-allotment option. In connection with the cancellation of the remainder of the over-allotment option, the Company has cancelled an aggregate of 83,205 shares of Common Stock issued to the Sponsor, prior to the IPO and Private Placement.

A total of $54,984,377 of the net proceeds from the sale of the Units in the IPO (including the Over-Allotment Option Units) and the Private Placements on October 6, 2022 and October 14, 2022 respectively, were deposited in a trust account established for the benefit of the Company's public stockholders and maintained by Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as trustee.

As of September 30, 2025, the Company had $3,317 in cash and a working capital deficit of $3,994,463. During 2023, the Sponsor provided loans totaling $449,780 (excluding $99,846 converted from amount due to related party), to be used, in part, for transaction costs related to the business combination. On January 4, 2024 and March 30, 2024, the Company issued an unsecured promissory note to the Sponsor in the aggregate principal amount of $300,000 (including the conversion of $97,052 which was outstanding balance as of December 31, 2023 due to Sponsor) and $100,000, respectively, to be used, in part, for transaction costs related to the Business Combination.

On June 29, 2023, October 4, 2023 and December 29, 2023, Bestpath deposited into the Trust Account $210,000, $210,000 and $70,000 (totaling $490,000), respectively, and from January 2024 to April 2024, Bestpath provided loans of $70,000 each month to the Company to fund the amount required to extend the Business Combination Period to May 6, 2024. On May 2, 2024, June 4, 2024 and July 9, 2024, Bestpath provided a loan of $20,000 each time to the Company to fund the amount required to extend the Business Combination Period to August 6, 2024. From August 2024 to April 2025, Huture provided a loan of $20,000 each time to the Company to fund the amount required to extend the Business Combination Period to May 6, 2025. From May 2025 to December 2025, Huture provided a loan of approximately $16,198 each month to the Company to fund the amount required to extend the Business Combination Period to January 6, 2026. The Company expects to continue to incur significant professional costs to remain as a publicly traded company and to incur significant transaction costs in pursuit of the consummation of a Business Combination. The Company may need to obtain additional financing either to complete its Business Combination or because it becomes obligated to redeem a significant number of public shares upon consummation of its Business Combination, in which case the Company may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such Business Combination. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, the Company would only complete such financing simultaneously with the completion of our Business Combination. If the Company is unable to complete its Business Combination because it does not have sufficient funds available, it will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the Trust Account. In addition, following the Business Combination, if cash on hand is insufficient, the Company may need to obtain additional financing in order to meet its obligations.

In connection with the Company's assessment of going concern considerations in accordance with Financial Accounting Standard Board's Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2014-15, "Disclosures of Uncertainties about an Entity's Ability to Continue as a Going Concern", management has determined that if the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination by January 6, 2026 (unless the Company extends the time to complete a Business Combination), then the Company will cease all operations except for the purpose of liquidating. The date for liquidation and subsequent dissolution, along with its liquidity condition and delisting from Nasdaq raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. The unaudited condensed financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Off-Balance Sheet Financing Arrangements

We have no obligations, assets or liabilities, which would be considered off-balance sheet arrangements as of September 30, 2025. We do not participate in transactions that create relationships with unconsolidated entities or financial partnerships, often referred to as variable interest entities, which would have been established for the purpose of facilitating off-balance sheet arrangements. We have not entered into any off-balance sheet financing arrangements, established any special purpose entities, guaranteed any debt or commitments of other entities, or purchased any non-financial assets.

Contractual Obligations

We do not have any long-term debt, capital lease obligations, operating lease obligations or long-term liabilities, other than described below.

The holders of the Founder Shares, the Private Shares, and any common stock that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any underlying securities) will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration and shareholder rights agreement entered into in connection with the IPO. The holders of these securities are entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that we register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain "piggy-back" registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to our completion of our initial Business Combination. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.

Upon closing of a business combination, the underwriters will be entitled to a deferred fee of $0.35 per public share, or $1,896,013 in the aggregate. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the Trust Account solely in the event that we complete a business combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement. The underwriters will also be entitled to 0.75% of the gross proceeds of the IPO in the form of common stock of the Company at a price of $10.00 per share, and 54,172 Private Units, to be issued if the Company closes a business combination.

Critical Accounting Estimates

We prepare our financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The preparation of financial statements also requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, costs and expenses and related disclosures. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could differ significantly from the estimates made by our management. We did not identify critical accounting estimates for the nine months ended September 30, 2025.

Recent Accounting Standards

In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-07, Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures, which requires the disclosure of additional segment information. ASU No. 2023-07 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024. The Company adopted this guidance on January 1, 2025.

In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-09, "Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures" ("ASU 2023-09"). This ASU requires that public business entities must annually "(1) disclose specific categories in the rate reconciliation and (2) provide additional information for reconciling items that meet a quantitative threshold (if the effect of those reconciling items is equal to or greater than 5 percent of the amount computed by multiplying pretax income or loss by the applicable statutory income tax rate).". The Company is currently assessing the impact, if any, that ASU 2023-09 would have on its financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Management does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on our financial statements.