DarkPulse (DPLS) Risk Analysis

If our stockholders sell substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market, including upon the expiration of any statutory holding period under Rule 144, or issued upon the conversion of preferred stock or exercise of warrants, it could create a circumstance commonly referred to as an "overhang" and in anticipation of which the market price of our common stock could fall. The existence of an overhang, whether or not sales have occurred or are occurring, also could make more difficult our ability to raise additional financing through the sale of equity or equity-related securities in the future at a time and price that we deem reasonable or appropriate.

The market price of our common stock is likely to be highly volatile and could fluctuate widely in price in response to various factors, many of which are beyond our control, including the following: - Geo-political events, such as the crisis in Ukraine, government responses to such events and the related impact on the economy both nationally and internationally;         - Changes in our industry;- Competitive pricing pressures;- Our ability to obtain working capital financing;- Additions or departures of key personnel;- Sales of our common stock;- Our ability to execute our business plan;- Operating results that fall below expectations;- Loss of any strategic relationship;- Regulatory developments; and - Economic and other external factors. In addition, the securities markets have from time-to-time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

Rule 15g-9 under the Exchange Act establishes the definition of a "penny stock," for the purposes relevant to us, as any equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share or with an exercise price of less than $5.00 per share, subject to certain exceptions. For any transaction involving a penny stock, unless exempt, the rules require: (a) that a broker or dealer approve a person's account for transactions in penny stocks; and (b) the broker or dealer receive from the investor a written agreement to the transaction, setting forth the identity and quantity of the penny stock to be purchased. In order to approve a person's account for transactions in penny stocks, the broker or dealer must: (a) obtain financial information and investment experience objectives of the person and (b) make a reasonable determination that the transactions in penny stocks are suitable for that person and the person has sufficient knowledge and experience in financial matters to be capable of evaluating the risks of transactions in penny stocks. The broker or dealer must also deliver, prior to any transaction in a penny stock, a disclosure schedule prescribed by the SEC relating to the penny stock market, which, in highlight form: (a) sets forth the basis on which the broker or dealer made the suitability determination; and (b) confirms that the broker or dealer received a signed, written agreement from the investor prior to the transaction. Generally, brokers may be less willing to execute transactions in securities subject to the "penny stock" rules. This may make it more difficult for investors to dispose of our common stock and cause a decline in the market value of our common stock. Disclosure also has to be made about the risks of investing in penny stocks in both public offerings and in secondary trading and about the commissions payable to both the broker or dealer and the registered representative, current quotations for the securities and the rights and remedies available to an investor in cases of fraud in penny stock transactions. Finally, monthly statements have to be sent disclosing recent price information for the penny stock held in the account and information on the limited market in penny stocks.

There is currently no active public market for shares of our common stock, and one may never develop. Our common stock is quoted on the OTC Markets. The OTC Markets is a thinly traded market and lacks the liquidity of certain other public markets with which some investors may have more experience. We may not ever be able to satisfy the listing requirements for our common stock to be listed on a national securities exchange, which is often a more widely traded and liquid market. Some, but not all, of the factors which may delay or prevent the listing of our common stock on a more widely-traded and liquid market include the following: our stockholders' equity may be insufficient; the market value of our outstanding securities may be too low; our net income from operations may be too low; our common stock may not be sufficiently widely held; we may not be able to secure market makers for our common stock; and we may fail to meet the rules and requirements mandated by the several exchanges and markets to have our common stock listed. Should we fail to satisfy the initial listing standards of the national exchanges, or our common stock is otherwise rejected for listing, and remains listed on the OTC Markets or is suspended from the OTC Markets, the trading price of our common stock could suffer and the trading market for our common stock may be less liquid and our common stock price may be subject to increased volatility, making it difficult or impossible to sell shares of our common stock.

Until our common stock is listed on a national securities exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq, we expect our common stock to remain eligible for quotation on the OTC Markets, or on another over-the-counter quotation system. In those venues, however, the shares of our common stock may trade infrequently and in low volumes, meaning that the number of persons interested in purchasing our common shares at or near bid prices at any given time may be relatively small or non-existent. An investor may find it difficult to obtain accurate quotations as to the market value of our common stock or to sell his or her shares at or near bid prices or at all. In addition, if we fail to meet the criteria set forth in SEC regulations, various requirements would be imposed by law on broker-dealers who sell our securities to persons other than established customers and accredited investors. Consequently, such regulations may deter broker-dealers from recommending or selling our common stock, which may further affect the liquidity of our common stock. This would also make it more difficult for us to raise capital.

Our Board of Directors is authorized to issue up to 2,000,000 shares of preferred stock with powers, rights and preferences designated by it. Shares of voting or convertible preferred stock could be issued, or rights to purchase such shares could be issued, to create voting impediments or to frustrate persons seeking to effect a takeover or otherwise gain control of the Company.  The ability of the Board of Directors to issue such additional shares of preferred stock, with rights and preferences it deems advisable, could discourage an attempt by a party to acquire control of the Company by tender offer or other means. Such issuances could therefore deprive stockholders of benefits that could result from such an attempt, such as the realization of a premium over the market price for their shares in a tender offer or the temporary increase in market price that such an attempt could cause. Moreover, the issuance of such additional shares of preferred stock to persons friendly to the Board of Directors could make it more difficult to remove incumbent officers and directors from office even if such change were to be favorable to stockholders generally.

Our shares qualify as penny stocks and are covered by Section 15(g) of the Exchange Act which imposes additional sales practice requirements on broker/dealers who sell our securities in this offering or in the aftermarket. In particular, prior to selling a penny stock, broker/dealers must give the prospective customer a risk disclosure document that: contains a description of the nature and level of risk in the market for penny stocks in both public offerings and secondary trading; contains a description of the broker/dealers' duties to the customer and of the rights and remedies available to the customer with respect to violations of such duties or other requirements of Federal securities laws; contains a brief, clear, narrative description of a dealer market, including "bid" and "ask" prices for penny stocks and the significance of the spread between the bid and ask prices; contains the toll free telephone number for inquiries on disciplinary actions established pursuant to section 15(A)(i); defines significant terms used in the disclosure document or in the conduct of trading in penny stocks; and contains such other information, and is in such form (including language, type size, and format), as the SEC requires by rule or regulation. Further, for sales of our securities, the broker/dealer must make a special suitability determination and receive from you a written agreement before making a sale to you. Because of the imposition of the foregoing additional sales practices, it is possible that brokers will not want to make a market in our shares. This could prevent reselling of shares and may cause the price of the shares to decline.

We are authorized to issue an aggregate of 20,000,000,000 shares of common stock and 2,000,000 shares of "blank check" preferred stock. In the future, we may issue our authorized but previously unissued equity securities, resulting in the dilution of the ownership interests of our present stockholders. We may issue additional shares of our common stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable for our common stock in connection with hiring or retaining employees, future acquisitions, future sales of our securities for capital raising purposes, or for other business purposes. The future issuance of any such additional shares of our common stock may create downward pressure on the trading price of the common stock. We will need to raise additional capital in the near future to meet our working capital needs, and there can be no assurance that we will not be required to issue additional shares, warrants or other convertible securities in the future in conjunction with these capital raising efforts, including at a price (or exercise or conversion prices) below the price an investor paid for stock.

Our common shares are currently quoted on the OTC Markets under the symbol "DPLS." In the future, the trading price of our common shares may be subject to wide fluctuations. Trading prices of the common shares may fluctuate in response to a number of factors, many of which will be beyond our control. In addition, the stock market in general, and the market for technology companies in particular, has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of such companies. Market and industry factors may adversely affect the market price of the common shares, regardless of our operating performance. Readers should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below before deciding whether to invest in shares of our common stock. Our failure to successfully address the risks and uncertainties described below would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and/or results of operations, and the trading price of our common stock may decline and investors may lose all or part of their investment. We cannot assure you that we will successfully address these risks or other unknown risks that may affect our business. As an enterprise engaged in the development of new technology, our business is inherently risky. Our common shares are considered speculative during the development of our new business operations. Prospective investors should consider carefully the risk factors set out herein. The market price of our common stock has fluctuated significantly.

We currently expect to submit a Purchase Order to Sanmina Corp, our contract manufacturer, during Q2 2026 for the full manufacturing of our patented BOTDA sensor system hardware. However, this expectation is subject to significant uncertainty, including the availability of sufficient working capital, the completion of final engineering specifications, and other operational and market conditions. We previously anticipated submitting this Purchase Order in an earlier period, and the timeline has been extended. There can be no assurance that we will submit the Purchase Order on the anticipated timeline, or at all. A further delay or failure to submit the Purchase Order would materially delay our ability to manufacture and sell our patented BOTDA technology, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Our Certificate of Incorporation and bylaws contains provisions that could have the effect of rendering more difficult, delaying, or preventing an acquisition deemed undesirable by our board and therefore depress the trading price of our Common Stock. In addition, as a Delaware corporation, we will generally be subject to provisions of Delaware law, including the DGCL. These provisions could also make it difficult for stockholders to take certain actions, including electing directors who are not nominated by the current members of our board or taking other corporate actions, including effecting changes in management. Such provisions, alone or together, could delay or prevent hostile takeovers and changes in control or changes in our board or management. Any provision of our Certificate of Incorporation or bylaws or Delaware law that has the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control could limit the opportunity for stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our stock and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our Common Stock.

Our CEO, Dennis O'Leary, owns 100 shares of Series A Preferred Stock that gives him the right to a majority of the voting power of our Company. Because of this beneficial stock ownership, Mr. O'Leary is in a position to continue to elect our entire board of directors, decide all matters requiring stockholder approval, including potential mergers or business changes, and determine our policies. The interests of our management may differ from the interests of our minority stockholders with respect to the issuance of shares, business transactions with or sales to other companies, selection of officers and directors and other business decisions. Our minority stockholders have no way of overriding decisions made by our management. This level of control may also have an adverse impact on the market value of our shares because our management may institute or undertake transactions, policies or programs that may result in losses, may not take any steps to increase our visibility in the financial community and/or may sell sufficient numbers of shares to significantly decrease our price per share.

Our CEO, Dennis O'Leary, owns 100 shares of our Series A Preferred Stock that gives him the right to a majority of the voting power of the Company. Therefore, our management effectively controls all corporate activities and can approve transactions, including possible mergers, issuance of shares and compensation levels, without the approval of other stockholders. The decisions of our management may not be consistent with or in the best interests of other stockholders. This capital structure may have anti-takeover effects preventing a change in control transaction that the minority owners of our Common Stock might consider in their best interest.