The Wyoming Reserve Opportunity Zone Fund Corporation Launches Common Stock Offering for Tax-Advantaged Company Focused on the Acquisition, Sale, Transportation and Third-Party Storage of Precious Metals

The Wyoming Reserve seeks to provide accredited investors with both qualified opportunity zone and qualified small business stock tax advantages

CASPER, Wyo., Jan. 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Wyoming Reserve Opportunity Zone Fund Corporation ("The Wyoming Reserve") today announced that it is commencing an offering of common stock and is seeking to raise up to $43 million from accredited investors interested in potential tax advantages from qualified opportunity zone and qualified small business stock. 

"In times of uncertainty, many investors historically turn to precious metals to help protect their wealth," said Josh Phair, CEO of The Wyoming Reserve and a precious metals industry veteran. "The Wyoming Reserve Opportunity Zone Fund Corporation provides investors with an avenue beyond physical ownership of gold and silver or precious metals exchange-traded funds to access the asset class while also being structured to capitalize on two distinct tax advantages."

The core business of The Wyoming Reserve is the third-party vaulting, transporting, buying and selling of precious metals held as inventory in a high-security, precious metals-focused vault facility. Additionally, The Wyoming Reserve aims to provide fulfillment and metal availability services to commercial and industrial customers, as well as the vaulting of other high-value physical and digital assets.

The company's common stock will be offered to accredited investors at $10 per share pursuant to Regulation D, Rule 506(c) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"). As general solicitation is permitted under Rule 506(c) offerings, purchasers must meet verification requirements for validation of their accredited investor status.

Strategic partnership with Scottsdale Mint
The company has a strategic partnership with Scottsdale Mint, L.L.L.P., which Phair co-founded more than 15 years ago, to provide customers with manufacturing and distribution of precious metals. Scottsdale Mint annually manufactures legal tender coins for central banks, monetary authorities and governments that represent more than 20 countries and gold and silver rounds and bars for financial institutions and publicly traded companies.

Scottsdale Mint is co-located with The Wyoming Reserve in Scottsdale Mint's owned and operated Casper facility, which provides synergistic efficiencies such as the virtual elimination of transportation costs for those wishing to purchase precious metal from Scottsdale Mint and vault with The Wyoming Reserve.

A secure vault facility in the country's top "sound money" state
The Wyoming Reserve is located in a 70,000-square-foot facility currently under renovation in a designated opportunity zone in Casper. In 2023, Wyoming was ranked first for both business tax climate and as a "sound money" state by The Tax Foundation and the Sound Money Defense League & Money Metals Exchange, respectively. U.S. News & World Report also named it as one of the top 10 safest states in the country. Wyoming also does not impose a tax on silver or gold, has no corporate state income tax, no personal state income tax, inventory tax, franchise tax or occupation tax.

Structured to provide investors with two distinct tax advantages
The vault's location in a qualified opportunity zone, or QOZ, generally allows investors who have realized capital gains from the sale of an asset within the past 180 days to invest their capital gains into a qualified opportunity fund ("QOF") and receive temporary deferral on the tax liabilities from their capital gains through the 2026 tax year.

Investments in QOFs benefit from federal initiatives designed to incentivize long-term private investment in economically distressed communities by allowing the taxes on capital gains realized from the sale of certain assets, such as stocks, bonds, businesses, real estate and K-1 partnerships, to be deferred by investing the gains in designated QOZs. The most significant benefit of the program is the potential permanent elimination of taxes on capital gains realized from the sale or exchange of an investment in a QOF that has been held for a minimum of 10 years.

Additionally, The Wyoming Reserve intends to increase the possible tax advantage by qualifying its common stock as qualified small business stock. Enacted in 1993, Section 1202 of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") generally allows non-corporate investors to potentially exclude up to 100% of the gain from the sale of QSBS that has been held for five years to incentivize individuals to invest in small businesses.

"QOF investors have historically needed to wait 10 years to claim exemption on investment gains but the addition of QSBS in The Wyoming Reserve seeks to cut that time in half," Phair continued. "We believe that the combination of tax advantages, the asset class and our team's breadth of experience presents a compelling opportunity."

For additional information and to request offering materials, interested parties are encouraged to email [email protected].

This press release is neither an offer to sell nor the solicitation of an offer to buy the company's common stock or any other securities, and no offer, solicitation or sale will be made in any jurisdiction in which, or to any persons to whom, such an offer, solicitation or sale is unlawful. Any offers of the Shares will be made only by means of a private placement memorandum or other agreement between the company and the investors. Any shares sold through the Offering will be restricted shares and will not be freely tradable until expiry of the statutory period under Rule 144 under the Securities Act, or if such shares are registered. The Offering has not been filed with, or reviewed by, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") or any securities regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction, nor has the SEC or any such authority passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of the Offering. Investing in securities of the company is speculative, and the Offering involves substantial risks and should be considered only by those persons who can afford the risk of loss of their entire investment.  

About The Wyoming Reserve
The Wyoming Reserve is a high-security, precious metals-focused vault facility. Consisting of a team of individuals whose breadth of experience is only matched by their commitment and purpose to deliver and protect valued assets, The Wyoming Reserve leverages the combined powers of experience, innovation, and determination to meet its goal-based financial objectives. To learn more, visit www.thewyomingreserve.com/ 

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This communication includes forward-looking statements as defined under U.S. federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical statements of fact, including related to the Offering described herein, and statements regarding, but not limited to, our expectations, hopes, beliefs, intention, or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts, or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "might," "plan," "possible," "potential," "predict," "will," "would," and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and we assume no obligation and do not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

SOURCE The Wyoming Reserve