Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements as of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, and for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, have been presented in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”).

Principles of consolidation

Principles of Consolidation

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Exicure, Inc. and its 100% owned subsidiary, Exicure Operating Company. All intercompany transactions and accounts are eliminated in consolidation.

Use of estimates

Use of Estimates

The preparation of the financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Management bases its estimates on certain assumptions which it believes are reasonable in the circumstance and while actual results could differ from those estimates, management does not believe that any change in those assumptions in the near term would have a significant effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows. Actual results in future periods could differ from those estimates.

Recent accounting pronouncements

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

Equity-based compensation

In June 2018, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2018-07, Compensation-Stock Compensation: Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting (“ASU 2018-07”), which aligns the measurement and classification guidance for share-based payment to non-employees with the guidance for share-based payments to employees. Under the new guidance, the measurement period for equity-classified non-employee awards will be fixed at the grant date. Prior to the adoption of ASU 2018-07, the Company remeasured fair value of stock option awards to nonemployees at each financial statement reporting date. The Company adopted the guidance of ASU 2018-07 in the first quarter of 2019 on a modified retrospective basis. The adoption of ASU 2018-07 did not have a material impact on our financial statements.

Leases

In February 2016, FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842) (or “ASC 842), which replaces the guidance in ASC 840, Leases (“ASC 840”) and requires lessees to recognize right-of-use assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet. The Company adopted ASC 842 on the required effective date of January 1, 2019 utilizing the modified retrospective transition method with no restatement of prior periods or cumulative adjustment to accumulated deficit. The Company has elected the package of practical expedients, which allows the Company not to reassess (1) whether any expired or existing contracts as of the adoption date are or contain a lease, (2) lease classification for any expired or existing leases as of the adoption date and (3) initial direct costs for any existing leases as of the adoption date. The Company elected to combine lease and non-lease components, elected not to record leases with an initial term of twelve months or less on the balance sheet and will recognize the associated lease payments in the consolidated statements of operations on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The Company did not elect to apply the hindsight practical expedient when determining lease term and assessing impairment of right-of-use assets.

The adoption of ASC 842 on January 1, 2019 resulted in the recognition of an operating lease asset of approximately $613 and operating lease liabilities of approximately $623, with no impact to operating expense, net loss, or basic and diluted loss per common share for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019. The impact to the consolidated balance sheet upon adoption of ASC 842 is as follows:



	As Previously Reported December 31, 2018		ASC 842 Adoption Adjustment			As Reported Under ASC 842 January 1, 2019
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	$	1,382	$	(28	)	$	1,354
Other noncurrent assets	32		613			645
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	1,543		243			1,786
Other noncurrent liabilities	39		342			381

See Note 11, Leases, for more information on leases.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

None.

Loss per common share

Basic loss per common share is calculated by dividing net loss by the weighted-average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. Diluted loss per common share is calculated using the treasury share method by giving effect to all potentially dilutive securities that were outstanding. Potentially dilutive options and warrants to purchase common stock that were outstanding during the periods presented were excluded from the diluted loss per share calculation because such shares had an anti-dilutive effect due to the net loss reported in those periods.