[S-8] ZK International Group Co., Ltd Ordinary Share Employee Benefit Plan Registration

Rhea-AI Filing Summary

ZK International Group Co., Ltd. filed a Form S-8 to register ordinary shares under its 2025 Equity Incentive Plan. The filing states plan documents will be delivered to participants and that certain documents are incorporated by reference, including the company annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended September 30, 2024 and Forms 6-K filed Jan 31, Feb 24 and Aug 21, 2025. Exhibits include the amended articles, counsel opinions, auditor consents and the filing fee table. The form is signed by the CEO, CFO and directors.

Positive

• Registration of the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan allows the company to grant stock-based compensation to employees and directors, supporting retention
• Required exhibits and legal opinions (articles, counsel opinion, auditor consents) are included or incorporated by reference, indicating compliance with S-8 filing requirements

Negative

• None.

Insights

Financial Analyst

TL;DR: Routine equity registration for an employee incentive plan; no financial results or dilution details provided here.

The S-8 registers shares to implement the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan, enabling grants to employees and directors. The filing relies on incorporated reports for financial context rather than supplying financial data within this submission. This is a standard corporate governance action to support compensation and retention programs; it does not in itself provide material performance information.

Corporate Governance Expert

TL;DR: Standard disclosure and exhibit inclusions for an employee share-plan registration; governance approvals evidenced by signatures.

The document includes required legal opinions, auditor consents and the memorandum and articles of association by reference. Signatures from executive officers and independent directors are present, indicating board-level authorization for the registration. The filing complies with Form S-8 mechanics but does not disclose plan terms or share quantities within the excerpt provided.

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 22, 2025

Registration No. 333-          

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)

British Virgin Islands		N/A
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

c/o Zhejiang Zhengkang Industrial Co., Ltd. No. 678 Dingxiang Road, Binhai Industrial Park Economic & Technology Development Zone Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province People’s Republic of China		325025
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)		(Zip Code)

ZK International Group Co., Ltd. 2025 Equity Incentive Plan

(Full Title of the Plan)

Cogency Global Inc.

122 East 42^nd Street, 18^th Floor

New York, New York 10168

(Name and Address of Agent for Service)

800-221-0102

(Telephone Number, Including Area Code, of Agent for Service)

Copy To:

William S. Rosenstadt, Esq.

Mengyi “Jason” Ye, Esq.
Yuning “Grace” Bai, Esq.

Ortoli Rosenstadt LLP
366 Madison Avenue, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10017
Tel: +1-212-588-0022

Fax: +1-212-826-9307

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer	¨	Accelerated filer	¨
Non-accelerated filer	x	Smaller reporting company	¨
		Emerging growth company	¨

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ¨

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This registration statement (this “Registration Statement”) is filed by ZK International Group Co., Ltd., an exempted company incorporated under the laws of the British Virgin Islands (the “Registrant”) to register securities issuable pursuant to the ZK International Group Co., Ltd. 2025 Equity Incentive Plan (as amended and restated, “the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan”). The securities registered hereby consist of 650,000 Ordinary Shares of a single class, with no par value per share of the Registrant, which represent the number of Ordinary Shares of a single class that were authorized under the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan. Pursuant to Rule 416(a) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), this Registration Statement also covers an indeterminate number of additional shares which may be offered and issued to prevent dilution from share splits, share dividends or similar transactions as provided in the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan. Any Ordinary Shares covered by an award granted under the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan (or portion of an award) that terminates, expires, lapses or repurchased for any reason will be deemed not to have been issued for purposes of determining the maximum aggregate number of Ordinary Shares that may be issued under the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan.

PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE 10(A) PROSPECTUS

Item 1. Plan Information*

Item 2. Registrant Information and Employee Plan Annual Information*

* The documents containing the information specified in “Item 1. Plan Information” and “Item 2. Registrant Information and Employee Plan Annual Information” of Form S-8 will be delivered to participants of the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan, as specified by Rule 428(b)(1) under the Securities Act. Such documents are not required to be, and are not, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) either as part of this Registration Statement or as a prospectus or prospectus supplement pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act. These documents and the documents incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement pursuant to Item 3 of Part II of Form S-8, taken together, constitute a prospectus that meets the requirements of Section 10(a) of the Securities Act.

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PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

The following documents, and all documents we subsequently file pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement which indicates that all securities offered have been sold or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement and shall be deemed to be a part hereof from the date of the filing of such documents:

(1) our annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024 filed with the Commission on January 27, 2025;

(2) our Reports on Form 6-K, filed with the Commission on January 31, 2025, February 24, 2025 and August 21, 2025; and

(3) The description of our ordinary shares incorporated by reference in our registration statement on Form 8-A, as amended (File No. 001-38146) filed with the Commission on July 7, 2017, including any amendment and report subsequently filed for the purpose of updating that description.

All documents subsequently filed by the Registrant pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act, prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities offered have been sold, or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference herein and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents.

Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed modified or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement.

Item 4. Description of Securities.

Not applicable.

Item 5. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

Not applicable.

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Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

Under British Virgin Islands law, each of our directors and officers, in performing his or her functions, is required to act honestly and in good faith with a view to our best interests and exercise the care, diligence and skill that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in comparable circumstances. British Virgin Islands law does not limit the extent to which a company’s memorandum and articles of association may provide for indemnification of officers and directors, except to the extent any indemnification provision may be held by the British Virgin Islands courts to be contrary to public policy (for example, such as to provide indemnification against civil fraud or the consequences of committing a crime).

Under our memorandum and articles of association, we may indemnify our directors against all expenses, including legal fees, and against all judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement and reasonably incurred in connection with civil, criminal, administrative or investigative proceedings to which they are party or are threatened to be made a party by reason of their acting as our directors. To be entitled to indemnification, these persons must have acted honestly and in good faith with a view to the best interests of the company and, in the case of criminal proceedings, they must have had no reasonable cause to believe their conduct was unlawful. The decision of our board of directors as to whether such a person acted honestly and in good faith with a view to the best interests of the company and as to whether the person had no reasonable to cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful is, in the absence of fraud, sufficient for the purposes of the indemnification, unless a question of law is involved. The termination of any proceedings by any judgment, order, settlement, conviction or the entry of no plea does not, by itself, create a presumption that a director did not act honestly and in good faith and with a view to our best interests or that the director had reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful. Such limitation of liability does not affect the availability of equitable remedies such as injunctive relief or rescission. These provisions will not limit the liability of directors under United States federal securities laws.

We may indemnify anyone serving at our request as a director of another entity against all expenses, including legal fees, and against all judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement and reasonably incurred in connection with legal, administrative or investigative proceedings. To be entitled to indemnification, such a person must have acted honestly and in good faith with the view to our best interests and, in the case of criminal proceedings, must have had no reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful. The decision of our board of directors as to whether the person acted honestly and in good faith with a view to our best interests and as to whether the person had no reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful, is in the absence of fraud sufficient for the purposes of indemnification, unless a question of law is involved. The termination of any proceedings by any judgment, order, settlement, conviction or the entry of no plea does not, by itself, create a presumption that the person did not act honestly and in good faith and with a view to our best interests or that the person had reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful.

We may purchase and maintain insurance in relation to any of our directors or officers against any liability asserted against the directors or officers and incurred by the directors or officers in that capacity, whether or not we have or would have had the power to indemnify the directors or officers against the liability as provided in our memorandum and articles of association.

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted for our directors, officers or persons controlling our company under the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that in the opinion of the Commission, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.

Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.

Not applicable.

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Item 8. Exhibits.

Reference is hereby made to the Exhibit Index, which is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9. Undertakings.

A. The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:

(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement:

(a) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;

(b) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of this Registration Statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in this Registration Statement; and

(c) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in this Registration Statement or any material change to such information in this Registration Statement;

provided, however, that paragraphs (1)(a) and (1)(b) above do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement.

(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

B. The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

C. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that, in the opinion of the Commission, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

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EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit No.		Description
4.1		Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association of ZK International Group Co., Ltd. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 1.1 to the Form 6-K filed with the Commission furnished on June 28, 2022)
5.1		Opinion of Mourant Ozannes, BVI counsel of ZK International Group Co., Ltd. (filed herewith)
10.1		2025 Equity Incentive Plan of ZK International Group Co., Ltd. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 to the Form 6-K filed with the Commission on August 21, 2025)
23.1		Consent of Mourant Ozannes (included in Exhibit 5.1)
23.2		Consent of Fortune CPA, Inc. (filed herewith)
23.3		Consent of ZH CPA, LLC (filed herewith)
107		Filing Fee Table (filed herewith)

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in China, on August 22, 2025.

	ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD
Date: August 22, 2025	By:	/s/ Jiancong Huang
		Jiancong Huang
		Chief Executive Officer, Director and Chairman of the Board (Principal Executive Officer)

Signature			Capacity		Date
/s/ Jiancong Huang			Chief Executive Officer, Director and Chairman of the Board		August 22, 2025
Jiancong Huang			(Principal Executive Officer)
/s/ Xiaofen Jin			Chief Financial Officer		August 22, 2025
Xiaofen Jin			(Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer)
/s/ Guolin Wang			Director		August 22, 2025
Guolin Wang
/s/ Lie Cao			Independent Director		August 22, 2025
Lie Cao
/s/ Hedong Xu			Independent Director		August 22, 2025
Hedong Xu
/s/ Linge Zhou			Independent Director		August 22, 2025
Linge Zhou

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SIGNATURE OF AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE IN THE UNITED STATES

Pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, the undersigned, the duly authorized representative in the United States of ZK International Group Co., Ltd., has signed this registration statement or amendment thereto in New York, NY on August 22, 2025.

	Authorized U.S. Representative Cogency Global Inc.
	By:	/s/ Colleen A. De Vries
		Name:	Colleen A. De Vries
		Title:	Senior Vice President

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FAQ

What does ZKINS-8 filing register?

The filing registers ordinary shares under the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan for issuance to employees and directors.

Are the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan documents included in the S-8?

Plan documents will be delivered to participants and are incorporated by reference; they are not filed as part of the registration statement here.

Which company reports are incorporated by reference in this S-8?

The filing incorporates the Form 20-F for the year ended Sept 30, 2024 and Forms 6-K filed on Jan 31, 2025; Feb 24, 2025; and Aug 21, 2025.

Does this S-8 disclose share quantities or dilution impact for ZKIN?

No. The provided excerpt does not state specific share quantities or expected dilution.

Who signed the S-8 for ZK International?

The form is signed by Jiancong Huang (CEO), Xiaofen Jin (CFO) and several directors, including independent directors.