0001193125-21-004197.txt : 20210107 0001193125-21-004197.hdr.sgml : 20210107 20210107162052 ACCESSION NUMBER: 0001193125-21-004197 CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE: 8-K PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT: 6 CONFORMED PERIOD OF REPORT: 20210106 ITEM INFORMATION: Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement ITEM INFORMATION: Other Events ITEM INFORMATION: Financial Statements and Exhibits FILED AS OF DATE: 20210107 DATE AS OF CHANGE: 20210107 FILER: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc. CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0001708493 STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION: BIOLOGICAL PRODUCTS (NO DIAGNOSTIC SUBSTANCES) [2836] IRS NUMBER: 473458693 STATE OF INCORPORATION: DE FISCAL YEAR END: 1231 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: 8-K SEC ACT: 1934 Act SEC FILE NUMBER: 001-38800 FILM NUMBER: 21514431 BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: 131 OYSTER POINT BOULEVARD STREET 2: SUITE 300 CITY: SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO STATE: CA ZIP: 94080 BUSINESS PHONE: 650-443-7400 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: 131 OYSTER POINT BOULEVARD STREET 2: SUITE 300 CITY: SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO STATE: CA ZIP: 94080 8-K 1 d82298d8k.htm 8-K 8-K

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 8-K

 

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): January 6, 2021

 

 

Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc.

(Exact name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

 

 

 

Delaware   001-38800   47-3458693

(State or Other Jurisdiction

of Incorporation)

 

(Commission

File Number)

 

(IRS Employer

Identification No.)

131 Oyster Point Blvd, Suite 300

South San Francisco, California

    94080
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)     (Zip Code)

(650) 443-7400

(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

Not Applicable

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

 

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instructions A.2. below):

 

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Title of each class

 

Trading

Symbol(s)

 

Name of each exchange

on which registered

Common stock, par value $0.0001 per share   HARP   Nasdaq Global Select Market

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§ 230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b–2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§ 240.12b–2 of this chapter).

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 13(a) of the Exchange Act.   ☐

 

 

 


Item 1.01

Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

On January 6, 2021, Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with SVB Leerink LLC and Piper Sandler & Co. (the “Representatives”), as representatives of the several underwriters (collectively, the “Underwriters”), relating to the issuance and sale of 5,882,352 shares of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), at a price to the public of $17.00 per share (the “Offering”). In addition, the Company has granted to the Underwriters an option to purchase up to an additional 882,352 shares of Common Stock. The net proceeds to the Company from the Offering are expected to be approximately $93.6 million (or approximately $107.7 million if the Underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional shares in full), after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company.

The Offering is being made pursuant to the Company’s shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-237175), declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on April 23, 2020, a base prospectus dated April 23, 2020 and the related prospectus supplement dated January 6, 2021. The Offering is expected to close on or about January 11, 2021, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

The Underwriting Agreement contains customary representations, warranties, covenants and agreements by the Company, indemnification obligations of the Company and the Underwriters, including for liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, other obligations of the parties and termination provisions. The representations, warranties, covenants and agreements contained in the Underwriting Agreement were made only for purposes of such agreement and as of specific dates, were solely for the benefit of the parties to such agreement, and may be subject to limitations agreed upon by the contracting parties. The Company’s directors, executive officers and certain of its stockholders have agreed, subject to certain exceptions, not to sell or transfer any shares of Common Stock for 90 days, and the Company has agreed, subject to certain exceptions, not to sell or transfer any shares of the Company’s Common Stock for 90 days, in each case, after January 6, 2021, without first obtaining the written consent of the Representatives.

The foregoing description of the terms of each of the Underwriting Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Underwriting Agreement, which is filed as Exhibit 1.1 hereto and incorporated by reference herein.

A copy of the opinion of Cooley LLP relating to the legality of the issuance and sale of the Common Stock in the Offering is filed as Exhibit 5.1 hereto.

 

Item 8.01

Other Events.

Press Release

On January 6, 2021, the Company issued a press release announcing the pricing of the Offering. A copy of the Company’s press release announcing the pricing is filed as Exhibit 99.1 hereto and is incorporated by reference herein.

Risk Factors Update

In connection with the Offering, the Company has also updated its risk factor disclosure from the disclosure contained in the Company’s prior filings with the SEC, including the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 11, 2020. The updated risk factors are filed as Exhibit 99.2 hereto and are incorporated by reference herein.

 

Item 9.01.

Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

 

Exhibit No.

  

Description

1.1    Underwriting Agreement, dated January 6, 2021, by and among the Company, SVB Leerink LLC and Piper Sandler & Co., as the Representatives of the several underwriters named therein.
5.1    Opinion of Cooley LLP.
23.1    Consent of Cooley LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).
99.1    Press release dated January 6, 2021.
99.2    Risk Factors.


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

HARPOON THERAPEUTICS, INC.
By:  

/s/ Gerald McMahon, Ph.D.

 

Gerald McMahon, Ph.D.

President and Chief Executive Officer

Dated: January 7, 2021

EX-1.1 2 d82298dex11.htm EX-1.1 EX-1.1

EXHIBIT 1.1

Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc.

5,882,352 Shares

Common Stock

($0.0001 par value per share)

Underwriting Agreement

New York, New York

January 6, 2021

SVB Leerink LLC

Piper Sandler & Co.

As Representatives of the several Underwriters

c/o SVB Leerink LLC

One Federal Street, 37th Floor

Boston, Massachusetts 02110

c/o Piper Sandler & Co.

800 Nicollet Mall, Suite 800

Minneapolis, MN 55402

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc., a corporation organized under the laws of Delaware (the “Company”), proposes to sell to the several underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “Underwriters”), for whom you (the “Representatives”) are acting as representatives, 5,882,352 shares of common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (“Common Stock”), of the Company (said shares to be issued and sold by the Company being hereinafter called the “Underwritten Securities”). The Company also proposes to grant to the Underwriters an option to purchase up to 882,352 additional shares of Common Stock (the “Option Securities”; the Option Securities, together with the Underwritten Securities, being hereinafter called the “Securities”). To the extent there are no additional Underwriters listed on Schedule I hereto other than you, the term Representatives as used herein shall mean you, as Underwriters, and the terms Representatives and Underwriters shall mean either the singular or plural as the context requires.

As used in this underwriting agreement (this “Agreement”), the “Registration Statement” means the registration statement referred to in paragraph 1(a) hereof, including the exhibits, schedules, if any, and financial statements and any prospectus supplement relating to the Securities that is filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder (the “Securities Act”) and deemed part of such registration statement pursuant to Rule 430B under the Securities Act, as amended on each Effective Date, and, in the event any post-effective amendment thereto or any registration statement and any amendments thereto filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act (a “Rule 462(b) Registration


Statement”) becomes effective prior to the Closing Date (as defined in Section 3 hereof), shall also mean such registration statement as so amended or such Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, as the case may be; the “Effective Date” means each date and time that the Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment or amendments thereto or any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement became or becomes effective; the “Base Prospectus” means the base prospectus referred to in paragraph 1(a) hereof contained in the Registration Statement at the date and time that this Agreement is executed and delivered by the parties hereto (the “Execution Time”); the “Preliminary Prospectus” means any preliminary prospectus supplement to the Base Prospectus referred to in paragraph 1(a) hereof which is used prior to the filing of the Final Prospectus, together with the Base Prospectus; and the “Final Prospectus” means the prospectus supplement relating to the Securities that is first filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act (“Rule 424(b)”) after the Execution Time, together with the Base Prospectus.

Any reference herein to the Registration Statement, the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12 of Form S-3 which were filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder (the “Exchange Act”) on or before the Effective Date of the Registration Statement or the issue date of the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus, as the case may be; and any reference herein to the terms “amend,” “amendment” or “supplement” with respect to the Registration Statement, the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the filing of any document under the Exchange Act after the Effective Date of the Registration Statement or the issue date of the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus, as the case may be, deemed to be incorporated therein by reference.

As used in this Agreement, the “Disclosure Package” shall mean (i) the Base Prospectus, (ii) the Preliminary Prospectus used most recently prior to the Execution Time, (iii) any issuer free writing prospectus, as defined in Rule 433 under the Securities Act (an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus”), identified in Schedule II hereto and (iv) any other free writing prospectus, as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act (a “Free Writing Prospectus”), that the parties hereto shall hereafter expressly agree in writing to treat as part of the Disclosure Package.

1. Representations and Warranties. The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each Underwriter as set forth below in this Section 1.

(a) The Company meets the requirements for use of Form S-3 under the Securities Act and has prepared and filed with the SEC a registration statement (file number 333-237175) on Form S-3, including a related Base Prospectus, for the registration of the offering and sale of the Securities under the Securities Act. Such Registration Statement, including any amendments thereto filed prior to the Execution Time, has become effective. The Company has filed with the SEC, as part of an amendment to the Registration Statement or pursuant to Rule 424(b), a preliminary prospectus supplement relating to the Securities, which has previously been furnished to you. The Company will file with the SEC a final prospectus supplement relating to the Securities in accordance with Rule 424(b) after the Execution Time. As filed, such final

 

2


prospectus supplement shall contain all information required by the Securities Act and the rules thereunder and, except to the extent the Representatives shall agree in writing to a modification, shall be in all substantive respects in the form furnished to you prior to the Execution Time or, to the extent not completed at the Execution Time, shall contain only such specific additional information and other changes (beyond that contained in the Base Prospectus and any Preliminary Prospectus) as the Company has advised you, prior to the Execution Time, will be included or made therein. The Registration Statement, at the Execution Time, meets the requirements set forth in Rule 415(a)(1)(x) under the Securities Act. The initial Effective Date of the Registration Statement was not earlier than the date three years before the Execution Time.

(b) On each Effective Date, the Registration Statement did, and when the Final Prospectus is first filed in accordance with Rule 424(b) and on the Closing Date (as defined herein) and on any date on which Option Securities are purchased, if such date is not the Closing Date (a “Settlement Date”), the Final Prospectus (and any supplement thereto) will, comply in all material respects with the applicable requirements of the Securities Act and Exchange Act and the respective rules thereunder; on each Effective Date, at the Execution Time and on the Closing Date, the Registration Statement did not and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading; and on the date of any filing pursuant to Rule 424(b) and on the Closing Date and any Settlement Date, the Final Prospectus (together with any supplement thereto) will not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes no representations or warranties as to the information contained in or omitted from the Registration Statement or the Final Prospectus (or any supplement thereto) in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Representatives specifically for inclusion in the Registration Statement or the Final Prospectus (or any supplement thereto), it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by or on behalf of any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 8 hereof.

(c) (i) The Disclosure Package and the price to the public, the number of Underwritten Securities and the number of Option Securities to be included on the cover page of the Final Prospectus, when taken together as a whole, (ii) each electronic road show, when taken together as a whole with the Disclosure Package and the price to the public, the number of Underwritten Securities and the number of Option Securities to be included on the cover page of the Final Prospectus, and (iii) any individual Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, when taken together as a whole with the Disclosure Package and the price to the public, the number of Underwritten Securities and the number of Option Securities to be included on the cover page of the Final Prospectus, does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. The preceding sentence does not apply to statements in or omissions from the Disclosure Package based upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Representatives specifically for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by or on behalf of any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 8 hereof.

 

3


(d) (i) At the earliest time after the filing of the Registration Statement that the Company or another offering participant made a bona fide offer (within the meaning of Rule 164(h)(2)) under the Securities Act and (ii) as of the Execution Time (with such date being used as the determination date for purposes of this clause (ii)), the Company was not and is not an Ineligible Issuer (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act (“Rule 405”)), without taking account of any determination by the SEC pursuant to Rule 405 that it is not necessary that the Company be considered an Ineligible Issuer.

(e) From the time of the initial filing of the Registration Statement with the SEC (or, if earlier, the first date on which the Company engaged directly or through any person authorized to act on its behalf in any Testing-the-Waters Communication) through the Execution Time, the Company has been and is an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act (an “Emerging Growth Company”). “Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any oral or written communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Section 5(d) of, or Rule 163B under, the Securities Act.

(f) The Company (i) has not alone engaged in any Testing-the-Waters Communication other than Testing-the-Waters Communications with the consent of the Representatives with entities that are qualified institutional buyers within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act or institutions that are accredited investors within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act and (ii) has not authorized anyone other than the Representatives to engage in Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company reconfirms that the Representatives have been authorized to act on its behalf in undertaking Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company has not distributed any Written Testing-the-Waters Communications other than those listed on Schedule III hereto. “Written Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405.

(g) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus does not include any information that conflicts with the information contained in the Registration Statement, including any document incorporated by reference therein and any prospectus supplement deemed to be a part thereof that has not been superseded or modified. The foregoing sentence does not apply to statements in or omissions from any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus based upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Representatives specifically for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by or on behalf of any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 8 hereof.

 

4


(h) The Company’s authorized equity capitalization is as set forth in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus; the capital stock of the Company conforms in all respects to the description thereof contained in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus; the outstanding shares of Common Stock have been duly and validly authorized and issued and are fully paid and nonassessable; the Securities have been duly and validly authorized and, when issued and delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement, will be fully paid and nonassessable; the Securities in book-entry form are in valid and sufficient form; the holders of outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are not entitled to preemptive or other rights to subscribe for the Securities, except for any such rights as have been effectively waived; and, except as set forth in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, no options, warrants or other rights to purchase, agreements or other obligations to issue, or rights to convert any obligations into or exchange any securities for, shares of capital stock of or ownership interests in the Company are outstanding.

(i) The Company has been duly incorporated or organized and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction in which it is incorporated or organized with full power and authority to own or lease, as the case may be, and to operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, and is duly qualified to do business as a foreign corporation and is in good standing under the laws of each jurisdiction which requires such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify or be in good standing would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on the condition (financial or otherwise), prospects, earnings, business or properties of the Company, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business (a “Material Adverse Effect”).

(j) The Company has no subsidiaries.

(k) There is no franchise, contract or other document of a character required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Final Prospectus, or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement, which is not described or filed as required (and the Preliminary Prospectus contains in all material respects the same description of the foregoing matters contained in the Final Prospectus).

(l) The statements in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package, the Preliminary Prospectus and the Final Prospectus under the headings “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences to Non-U.S. Holders,” “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Intellectual Property and Information Technology,” “Risk Factors—Risks Related to the Development and Clinical Testing of Our Product Candidates,” “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Regulatory Environment,” “Business—Collaboration and License Agreements,” “Business—Intellectual Property,” “Business—Government Regulation,” and “Description of Capital Stock” insofar as such statements purport to summarize legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings discussed therein, are accurate and fair summaries of such legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings in all material respects.

(m) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.

 

5


(n) The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Securities and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, will not be an “investment company,” as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

(o) No consent, approval, authorization, filing with or order of any court or governmental agency or body is required in connection with the transactions contemplated herein, except such as have been obtained under the Securities Act and such as may be required under the listing rules of The Nasdaq Stock Market (“Nasdaq”), applicable rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) and the blue sky laws of any jurisdiction in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Securities by the Underwriters in the manner contemplated herein and in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus.

(p) Neither the issue and sale of the Securities nor the consummation of any other of the transactions herein contemplated nor the fulfillment of the terms hereof will conflict with, result in a breach or violation of, or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company pursuant to (i) the charter, bylaws or similar organizational documents of the Company, (ii) the terms of any indenture, contract, lease, mortgage, deed of trust, note agreement, loan agreement or other agreement, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which the Company is a party or bound or to which any of its property is subject or (iii) any statute, law, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree applicable to the Company of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its properties, except in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) for any such breach, violation or imposition as would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(q) No holders of securities of the Company have rights to the registration of such securities under the Registration Statement, except for any such rights as have been effectively waived.

(r) The historical financial statements and schedules of the Company included and incorporated by reference into the Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus and the Registration Statement present fairly in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the Company as of the dates and for the periods indicated, comply as to form in all material respects with the applicable accounting requirements of the Securities Act and have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved (except as otherwise noted therein). The selected financial data set forth under the caption “Selected Financial Data” incorporated by reference into the in the Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus and the Registration Statement from the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K fairly present in all material respects, on the basis stated in the Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus and the Registration Statement, the information included therein.

 

6


(s) No action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its property is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened that would reasonably be expected to (i) have a material adverse effect on the performance of this Agreement or the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated hereby or (ii) have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

(t) The Company owns or leases all such properties as are necessary to the conduct of its operations as presently conducted, except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(u) The Company is not in violation or default of (i) any provision of its charter, bylaws or similar organizational documents, (ii) the terms of any indenture, contract, lease, mortgage, deed of trust, note agreement, loan agreement or other agreement, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which it is a party or bound or to which its property is subject or (iii) any statute, law, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over it or any of its properties, as applicable, except in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) for any such violation or default as would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(v) Ernst & Young LLP, who has certified certain financial statements of the Company and delivered its report with respect to the audited financial statements and schedules included, if any, incorporated by reference in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, is an independent registered public accounting firm with respect to the Company within the meaning of the Securities Act and the applicable published rules and regulations thereunder.

(w) There are no transfer taxes or other similar fees or charges under U.S. Federal law or the laws of any state, or any political subdivision thereof, required to be paid in connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the issuance or sale by the Company of the Securities.

(x) The Company has filed all tax returns that are required to be filed by it or has requested extensions thereof (except in any case in which the failure so to file would not have a Material Adverse Effect, and except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto)) and has paid all taxes required to be paid by it and any other assessment, fine or penalty levied against it, to the extent that any of the foregoing is due and payable, except for any such assessment, fine or penalty that is currently being contested in good faith or as would not have a Material Adverse Effect, and except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

 

7


(y) The Company is insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as the Company reasonably believes are prudent and customary in the businesses in which they are engaged; all policies of insurance and fidelity or surety bonds insuring the Company or its business, assets, employees, officers and directors are in full force and effect; the Company is in compliance with the terms of such policies and instruments in all material respects; there are no material claims by the Company under any such policy or instrument as to which any insurance company is denying liability or defending under a reservation of rights clause; the Company has not been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for; and the Company does not have any reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

(z) [Reserved.]

(aa) The Company possesses all licenses, certificates, permits and other authorizations issued by all applicable authorities necessary to conduct its businesses, except for any such failure to possess as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and the Company has not received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any such certificate, authorization or permit that, individually or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, except in each case as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

(bb) The Company maintains a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations, (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States and to maintain asset accountability, (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization, (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences; and (v) the interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus and the Final Prospectus is in compliance with the SEC’s published rules, regulations and guidelines applicable thereto. The Company’s internal controls over financial reporting are effective, and the Company is not aware of any material weakness in its internal controls over financial reporting.

(cc) The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the SEC’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.

 

8


(dd) The Company maintains “disclosure controls and procedures” (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act; and such disclosure controls and procedures are effective at the reasonable assurance level; the Company has carried out evaluations of the effectiveness of its disclosure controls and procedures as required by Rule 13a-15 of the Exchange Act.

(ee) The Company has not taken, directly or indirectly (without giving effect to the activities of the Underwriters), any action designed to or that would constitute or that would reasonably be expected to cause or result in, under the Exchange Act or otherwise, stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities.

(ff) The Company (i) is in compliance with any and all applicable foreign, U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of human health and safety, the environment or hazardous or toxic substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants (“Environmental Laws”), (ii) has received and is in compliance with all permits, licenses or other approvals required of it under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct its businesses and (iii) has not received notice of any actual or potential liability under any Environmental Law, except for such non-compliance, failure to receive required permits, licenses or other approvals or liability as would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto). Except as set forth in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, the Company has not been named as a “potentially responsible party” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended.

(gg) On the basis of the Company’s periodic reviews of the effect of Environmental Laws on the business, operations and properties of the Company, the Company has reasonably concluded that the costs and liabilities associated therewith would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

(hh) Nothing has come to the attention of the Company that has caused the Company to believe that the statistical and market-related data included in or incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus is not based on or derived from sources that are reliable and accurate in all material respects, and, to the extent required by such sources, the Company has obtained the written consent to the use of such data from such sources.

(ii) None of the following events has occurred or exists: (i) a failure to fulfill the obligations, if any, under the minimum funding standards of Section 302 of the United States Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder with respect to a Plan (as defined below), determined without regard to any waiver of such obligations or extension of any amortization period, that would reasonably be expected to have a

 

9


Material Adverse Effect; (ii) an audit or investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Department of Labor, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation or any other U.S. federal or state governmental agency or any foreign regulatory agency with respect to the employment or compensation of employees by the Company that would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (iii) any breach of any contractual obligation, or any violation of law or applicable qualification standards, with respect to the employment or compensation of employees by the Company that would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. None of the following events has occurred or is reasonably likely to occur: (i) a material increase in the aggregate amount of contributions required to be made to all Plans in the current fiscal year of the Company compared to the amount of such contributions made in the most recently completed fiscal year of the Company , other than increases in the ordinary course resulting from an increase in the number of eligible participants in such Plans or increases resulting from increased participation by eligible participants, in such Plans; (ii) a material increase in the “accumulated post-retirement benefit obligations” (within the meaning of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards 106) of the Company compared to the amount of such obligations in the most recently completed fiscal year of the Company ; (iii) any event or condition giving rise to a liability under Title IV of ERISA that could have a Material Adverse Effect; or (iv) the filing of a claim by one or more employees or former employees of the Company related to their employment that would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. For purposes of this paragraph, the term “Plan” means a plan (within the meaning of Section 3(3) of ERISA) subject to Title IV of ERISA with respect to which the Company may have any liability. No labor problem or dispute with the employees of the Company exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is threatened, and the Company is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbance by the employees of any of its principal suppliers, contractors or customers, in each case that would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

(jj) There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company and any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply with any provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection thereunder (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”), that are in effect and with which the Company is required to comply as of the Effective Date, including Section 402 relating to loans and Sections 302 and 906 relating to certifications.

(kk) Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company is aware of or has taken any action, directly or indirectly, that would result in a violation or a sanction for violation by such persons of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 or the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, each as may be amended, or similar law of any other relevant jurisdiction, or the rules or regulations thereunder to which the Company and its controlled affiliates are subject; and the Company has instituted and maintains policies and procedures to ensure compliance therewith. No part of the proceeds of the offering will be used by the Company, directly or indirectly, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 or the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, each as may be amended, or similar law of any other relevant jurisdiction, or the rules or regulations thereunder to which the Company and its controlled affiliates are subject.

 

10


(ll) The operations of the Company are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements and the money laundering statutes and the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened.

(mm) Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company (i) is, or is controlled or 50% or more owned in the aggregate by or is acting on behalf of, one or more individuals or entities that are currently the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States (including any administered or enforced by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of State or the Bureau of Industry and Security of the U.S. Department of Commerce), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, a member state of the European Union (including sanctions administered or enforced by Her Majesty’s Treasury of the United Kingdom) or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions” and such persons, “Sanctioned Persons” and each such person, a “Sanctioned Person”), (ii) is located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is, or whose government is, the subject of Sanctions that broadly prohibit dealings with that country or territory (collectively, “Sanctioned Countries” and each, a “Sanctioned Country”) or (iii) will, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of this offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other individual or entity, in any manner that would result in a violation of any Sanctions by, or could result in the imposition of Sanctions against, any individual or entity (including any individual or entity participating in the offering, whether as an underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).

(nn) The Company has not engaged in any dealings or transactions with or for the benefit of a Sanctioned Person, or with or in a Sanctioned Country, in the preceding three years, nor does the Company have any plans to engage in dealings or transactions with or for the benefit of a Sanctioned Person, or with or in a Sanctioned Country.

(oo) Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, the Company owns, or has obtained valid and enforceable licenses for, the inventions, patent applications, patents, trademarks, trade names, service names, copyrights, trade secrets and other intellectual property described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus as being owned or licensed by it or which are necessary for the conduct of its business as currently conducted or as currently proposed to be conducted in the Registration Statement, the

 

11


Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (collectively, “Intellectual Property”). To the Company’s knowledge, except as described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus: (i) there are no third parties who have rights to any Intellectual Property, and the Company has taken all reasonable steps necessary to secure its interests in the Intellectual Property from its employees and contractors; (ii) there is no infringement by third parties of any Intellectual Property; (iii) the Company is not infringing the intellectual property rights of third parties; and (iv) the Company is the sole owner of the Intellectual Property owned by it and has the valid right to use such Intellectual Property. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, there is no pending, or to the Company’s knowledge, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others: (A) challenging the Company’s rights in or to any Intellectual Property; (B) challenging the validity, enforceability or scope of any Intellectual Property; or (C) asserting that the Company infringes or otherwise violates, or would, upon the commercialization of any product or service described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus as under development, infringe, misappropriate or violate, any patent, trademark, trade name, service name, copyright, trade secret or other proprietary rights of others. To the Company’s knowledge, except as disclosed in in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, the Company has complied with the material terms of each agreement pursuant to which Intellectual Property has been licensed to the Company, and all such agreements are in full force and effect. The product candidates described in the Registration Statement, Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus as under development by the Company fall within the scope of the claims of one or more patents or patent applications owned by, or exclusively licensed to, the Company.

(pp) To the knowledge of the Company, all patents and patent applications owned by or exclusively licensed to the Company or under which the Company has rights have been properly filed and each issued patent is being diligently maintained; to the knowledge of the Company, the parties prosecuting such applications have complied with their duty of disclosure to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (the “USPTO”) in connection with such applications.

(qq) Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus the Company : (i) has operated and currently operates its business in compliance in all material respects with applicable provisions of the Health Care Laws (as defined below) of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and any comparable foreign or other regulatory authority to which they are subject (collectively, the “Applicable Regulatory Authorities”) applicable to the ownership, testing, development, manufacture, packaging, processing, use, distribution, storage, import, export or disposal of any of the Company’s product candidates; (ii) has not received any FDA Form 483, written notice of adverse finding, warning letter, untitled letter or other correspondence or written notice from any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority alleging or asserting non-compliance with (A) any Health Care Laws or (B) or any licenses, certificates, approvals, clearances, exemptions, authorizations, permits and supplements or

 

12


amendments thereto required by any such Health Care Laws (“Regulatory Authorizations”); (iii) possesses all Regulatory Authorizations required to conduct its business as currently conducted and such Regulatory Authorizations are valid and in full force and effect and the Company is not in violation, in any material respects, of any term of any such Regulatory Authorizations; (iv) has not received notice of any claim, action, suit, proceeding, hearing, enforcement, investigation, arbitration or other action from the Applicable Regulatory Authorities or any other third party alleging that any product operation or activity is in material violation of any Health Care Laws or Regulatory Authorizations and has no knowledge that the Applicable Regulatory Authorities or any other third party is considering any such claim, litigation, arbitration, action, suit, investigation or proceeding; (v) has not received notice that any of the Applicable Regulatory Authorities has taken, is taking or intends to take action to limit, suspend, modify or revoke any material Regulatory Authorizations and has no knowledge that any of the Applicable Regulatory Authorities is considering such action; (vi) has filed, obtained, maintained or submitted all material reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments as required by any Health Care Laws or Regulatory Authorizations and that all such reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments were materially complete and correct on the date filed (or were materially corrected or supplemented by a subsequent submission); (vii) is not a party to or have any ongoing reporting obligations pursuant to any corporate integrity agreements, deferred prosecution agreements, monitoring agreements, consent decrees, settlement orders, plans of correction or similar agreements with or imposed by any Applicable Regulatory Authority; and (viii) along with its employees, officers and directors, has not been excluded, suspended or debarred from participation in any government health care program or human clinical research or, to the knowledge of the Company, is subject to a governmental inquiry, investigation, proceeding, or other similar action that could reasonably be expected to result in debarment, suspension, or exclusion. The term “Health Care Laws” means Title XVIII of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1395-1395hhh (the Medicare statute); Title XIX of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1396-1396v (the Medicaid statute); the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute, 42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7b(b); the civil False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729 et seq.; the criminal False Claims Act 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b(a); any criminal laws relating to health care fraud and abuse, including but not limited to 18 U.S.C. Sections 286 and 287 and the health care fraud criminal provisions under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1320d et seq., (“HIPAA”); the Civil Monetary Penalties Law, 42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7a; the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7h; the exclusion laws, 42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7; HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 17921 et seq.; the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. §§ 301 et seq.; the Public Health Service Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 201 et seq.; the regulations promulgated pursuant to such laws; and any similar federal, state and local laws and regulations applicable to the Company.

(rr) To the Company’s knowledge, the manufacturing facilities and operations of its suppliers are operated in compliance with all applicable statutes, rules, regulations and policies of the Applicable Regulatory Authorities, except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

 

13


(ss) None of the Company’s product candidates have received marketing approval from any Applicable Regulatory Authority. All clinical and pre-clinical studies and trials conducted by or on behalf of or sponsored by the Company , or in which the Company has participated, with respect to the Company’s product candidates, including any such studies and trials that are described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, or the results of which are referred to in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, as applicable (collectively, “Company Trials”): (i) were, and if still pending are, being conducted in all material respects in accordance with all applicable Health Care Laws of the Applicable Regulatory Authorities and current Good Clinical Practices and Good Laboratory Practices, standard medical and scientific research procedures and any applicable rules, regulations and policies of the jurisdiction in which such trials and studies are being conducted; (ii) the descriptions in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus of the results of any Company Trials are accurate and complete descriptions in all material respects and fairly present the data derived therefrom; (iii) the Company has no knowledge of any other studies or trials not described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, the results of which are inconsistent with or call into question the results described or referred to in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus; and (iv) the Company has not received, and the Company does not have knowledge after due inquiry that any of its collaboration partners have received, any written notices, correspondence or other communications from the Applicable Regulatory Authorities or any other governmental entity requiring or threatening the termination, modification or suspension of Company Trials, other than ordinary course communications with respect to modifications in connection with the design and implementation of such studies or trials, and, to the Company’s knowledge, there are no reasonable grounds for the same. No investigational new drug application or comparable submission filed by or on behalf of the Company with the FDA has been terminated or suspended by the FDA or any other Applicable Regulatory Authority. The Company has obtained (or caused to be obtained) informed consent by or on behalf of each human subject who participated in a Company Trial. In using or disclosing patient information received by the Company in connection with a Company Trial, the Company has complied with all applicable laws and regulatory rules or requirements, including, without limitation, HIPAA and the rules and regulations thereunder, except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. To the Company’s knowledge, none of the Company Trials involved any investigator who has been disqualified as a clinical investigator or has been found by the FDA to have engaged in scientific misconduct.

(tt) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, the Company (i) does not have any material lending or other relationship with any bank or lending affiliate of any Underwriter and (ii) does not intend to use any of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities hereunder to repay any outstanding debt owed to any affiliate of any Underwriter.

 

14


(uu) Neither the Company nor any of its properties or assets has any immunity from the jurisdiction of any court or from any legal process (whether through service or notice, attachment prior to judgment, attachment in aid of execution or otherwise) under the laws of the People’s Republic of China.

(vv) (i) Except as may be included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, (A) to the Company’s knowledge, there has been no material security breach or other material compromise of or relating to any of the Company’s information technology and computer systems, networks, hardware, software, data (including the data of its customers, employees, suppliers, vendors and any third party data maintained by or on behalf of the Company), equipment or technology (collectively, “IT Systems and Data”) and (B) the Company has not been notified of, and has no knowledge of any event or condition that would reasonably be expected to result in, any material security breach or other material compromise to its IT Systems and Data; (ii) the Company is presently in compliance with all applicable laws or statutes and all judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, internal policies and contractual obligations relating to the privacy and security of IT Systems and Data and to the protection of such IT Systems and Data from unauthorized use, access, misappropriation or modification, except in the case of clause (ii) as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and (iii) the Company has implemented such backup and disaster recovery technology as the Company reasonably believes is consistent with industry standards and practices.

Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company and delivered to the Representatives or counsel for the Underwriters in connection with the offering of the Securities shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company, as to matters covered thereby, to each Underwriter.

 

  2.

Purchase and Sale.

(a) Subject to the terms and conditions and in reliance upon the representations and warranties herein set forth, the Company agrees to sell to each Underwriter, and each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at a purchase price of $15.98 per share, the amount of the Underwritten Securities set forth opposite such Underwriter’s name in Schedule I hereto.

(b) Subject to the terms and conditions and in reliance upon the representations and warranties herein set forth, the Company hereby grants an option to the several Underwriters to purchase, severally and not jointly, up to 882,352 Option Securities at the same purchase price per share as the Underwriters shall pay for the Underwritten Securities, less an amount per share equal to any dividends or distributions declared by the Company and payable on the Underwritten Securities but not payable on the Option Securities. Said option may be exercised only to cover over-allotments in the sale of the Underwritten Securities by the Underwriters. Said option may be exercised in whole or in part at any time on or before the 30th day after the date of the Final

 

15


Prospectus upon written or telegraphic notice by the Representatives to the Company setting forth the number of Option Securities as to which the several Underwriters are exercising the option and the Settlement Date. The number of Option Securities to be purchased by each Underwriter shall be the same percentage of the total number of Option Securities to be purchased by the several Underwriters as such Underwriter is purchasing of the Underwritten Securities, subject to such adjustments as you in your absolute discretion shall make to eliminate any fractional shares.

3. Delivery and Payment. Delivery of and payment for the Underwritten Securities and the Option Securities (if the option provided for in Section 2(b) hereof shall have been exercised on or before the first Business Day immediately preceding the Closing Date) shall be made at 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on January 11, 2020, or at such time on such later date not more than three Business Days after the foregoing date as the Representatives shall designate, which date and time may be postponed by agreement between the Representatives and the Company or as provided in Section 9 hereof (such date and time of delivery and payment for the Securities being herein called the “Closing Date”). As used herein, “Business Day” shall mean any day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, a legal holiday or a day on which banking institutions or trust companies are authorized or obligated by law to close in New York City. Delivery of the Securities shall be made to the Representatives for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters against payment by the several Underwriters through the Representatives of the purchase price thereof to or upon the order of the Company by wire transfer payable in same-day funds to an account specified by the Company. Delivery of the Underwritten Securities and the Option Securities shall be made through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company unless the Representatives shall otherwise instruct.

If the option provided for in Section 2(b) hereof is exercised after the first Business Day immediately preceding the Closing Date, the Company will deliver the Option Securities (at the expense of the Company) to the Representatives, at 388 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10013, on the date specified by the Representatives (which shall be within three Business Days after exercise of said option) for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters, against payment by the several Underwriters through the Representatives of the purchase price thereof to or upon the order of the Company by wire transfer payable in same-day funds to an account specified by the Company. If settlement for the Option Securities occurs after the Closing Date, the Company will deliver to the Representatives on the Settlement Date for the Option Securities, and the obligation of the Underwriters to purchase the Option Securities shall be conditioned upon receipt of, supplemental opinions, certificates and letters confirming as of such Settlement Date the opinions, certificates and letters delivered on the Closing Date pursuant to Section 6 hereof.

4. Offering by Underwriters. It is understood that the several Underwriters propose to offer the Securities for sale to the public as set forth in the Final Prospectus.

5. Agreements. The Company agrees with the several Underwriters that:

(a) Prior to the termination of the offering of the Securities, the Company will not file any amendment to the Registration Statement or supplement (including the Final Prospectus or any Preliminary Prospectus) to the Base Prospectus or any

 

16


Rule 462(b) Registration Statement unless the Company has furnished you a copy for your review prior to filing and will not file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which you reasonably object. The Company will cause the Final Prospectus, properly completed, and any supplement thereto to be filed in a form approved by the Representatives with the SEC pursuant to the applicable paragraph of Rule 424(b) within the time period prescribed and will provide evidence satisfactory to the Representatives of such timely filing. The Company will promptly advise the Representatives (i) when the Final Prospectus, and any supplement thereto, shall have been filed (if required) with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) or when any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement shall have been filed with the SEC, (ii) when, prior to termination of the offering of the Securities, any amendment to the Registration Statement shall have been filed or become effective, (iii) of any request by the SEC or its staff for any amendment to the Registration Statement, or any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, or for any supplement to the Final Prospectus or for any additional information, (iv) of the issuance by the SEC of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or of any notice objecting to its use or the institution or threatening of any proceeding for that purpose and (v) of the receipt by the Company of any notification with respect to the suspension of the qualification of the Securities for sale in any jurisdiction or the institution or threatening of any proceeding for such purpose. The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to prevent the issuance of any such stop order or the occurrence of any such suspension or objection to the use of the Registration Statement and, upon such issuance, occurrence or notice of objection, to obtain as soon as possible the withdrawal of such stop order or relief from such occurrence or objection, including, if necessary, by filing an amendment to the Registration Statement or a new registration statement and using its reasonable best efforts to have such amendment or new registration statement declared effective as soon as practicable.

(b) If, at any time prior to the filing of the Final Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b), any event occurs as a result of which the Disclosure Package would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, at such time not misleading, the Company will: (i) notify promptly the Representatives so that any use of the Disclosure Package may cease until it is amended or supplemented; (ii) amend or supplement the Disclosure Package to correct such statement or omission; and (iii) supply any amendment or supplement to you in such quantities as you may reasonably request.

(c) If, at any time when a prospectus relating to the Securities is required to be delivered under the Securities Act (including in circumstances where such requirement may be satisfied pursuant to Rule 172 under the Securities Act (“Rule 172”)), any event occurs as a result of which the Final Prospectus as then supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, at such time not misleading, or if it shall be necessary to amend the Registration Statement or supplement the Final Prospectus to comply with the Securities Act Exchange Act or the respective the rules thereunder, the Company promptly will: (i)

 

17


notify the Representatives of any such event; (ii) prepare and file with the SEC, subject to the second sentence of paragraph (a) of this Section 5, an amendment or supplement which will correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance; and (iii) supply any amendment or supplement to you in such quantities as you may reasonably request.

(d) As soon as practicable, the Company will make generally available to its security holders and to the Representatives an earnings statement or statements of the Company that will satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and Rule 158 under the Securities Act.

(e) Upon request, the Company will furnish to the Representatives and counsel for the Underwriters, without charge, signed copies of the Registration Statement with conformed signatures (including exhibits thereto) and to each other Underwriter a copy of the Registration Statement (without exhibits thereto) and, so long as delivery of a prospectus by an Underwriter or dealer may be required by the Securities Act (including in circumstances where such requirement may be satisfied pursuant to Rule 172), as many copies of each Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and any supplement thereto as the Representatives may reasonably request. The Company will pay the expenses of printing or other production of all documents relating to the offering of the Securities.

(f) The Company will cooperate with the Representatives and counsel for the Underwriters to arrange, if necessary, for the qualification of the Securities for sale under the laws of such jurisdictions as the Representatives may reasonably designate and will maintain such qualifications in effect so long as required for the distribution of the Securities; provided that in no event shall the Company be obligated to qualify to do business in any jurisdiction where it is not now so qualified or to take any action that would subject it to service of process in suits, other than those arising out of the offering or sale of the Securities, in any jurisdiction where it is not now so subject.

(g) The Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representatives, offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge, or otherwise dispose of (or enter into any transaction that is designed, or would reasonably be expected, to result in the disposition (whether by actual disposition or effective economic disposition due to cash settlement or otherwise) by the Company, any affiliate of the Company or any person in privity with the Company or any affiliate of the Company), directly or indirectly, including the filing or submission (or participation in the filing or submission) of a registration statement with the SEC in respect of, or establish or increase a put equivalent position or liquidate or decrease a call equivalent position within the meaning of Section 16 of the Exchange Act, any other shares of Common Stock, or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock; or publicly announce an intention to effect any such transaction, for a period of 90 days after the date of this Agreement, provided, however, that the Company may: (i) effect the transactions contemplated hereby; (ii) issue and sell shares of Common Stock, or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock, pursuant to any stock option plan, incentive plan, employee stock purchase plan, stock bonus plan, stock ownership plan, dividend reinvestment plan or other plan or arrangement of the

 

18


Company described in the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (collectively, the “Company Plans”), (iii) issue shares of Common Stock issuable upon the conversion of securities or the exercise of warrants or options or the settlement of restricted stock units outstanding at the Execution Time or issued thereafter pursuant to a Company Plan, (iv) file one or more registration statements on Form S-8 relating to any Company Plan; and (v) issue shares of Common Stock, or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock, or enter into an agreement to issue shares of Common Stock, or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock, in connection with any merger, joint venture, strategic alliance, commercial or other collaborative transaction, or the acquisition or license of the business, property, technology or other assets of another individual or entity, or the assumption of an employee benefit plan in connection with such a merger or acquisition, provided, however, that the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock, or securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock, that the Company may issue or agree to issue pursuant to this clause (v) shall not exceed 5.0% of the total outstanding shares of Common Stock immediately following the issuance of the Underwritten Securities, and provided, further, that the recipients of such securities provide to the Representatives a signed lock-up letter in the form described in Section 6(h) hereof.

(h) The Company will not take, directly or indirectly (without giving effect to activities by the Underwriters), any action designed to or that would constitute or that would reasonably be expected to cause or result in, under the Exchange Act or otherwise, stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities.

(i) The Company agrees to pay the costs and expenses relating to the following matters: (i) the preparation, printing or reproduction and filing with the SEC of the Registration Statement (including financial statements and exhibits thereto), each Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and each amendment or supplement to any of them; (ii) the printing (or reproduction) and delivery (including postage, air freight charges and charges for counting and packaging) of such copies of the Registration Statement, each Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and all amendments or supplements to any of them, as may, in each case, be reasonably requested for use in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities; (iii) the preparation, printing, authentication, issuance and delivery of certificates for the Securities, including any stamp or transfer taxes in connection with the original issuance and sale of the Securities; (iv) the printing (or reproduction) and delivery of this Agreement, any blue sky memorandum and all other agreements or documents printed (or reproduced) and delivered in connection with the offering of the Securities; (v) the registration of the Securities under the Exchange Act and the listing of the Securities on Nasdaq; (vi) any registration or qualification of the Securities for offer and sale under the securities or blue sky laws of the several states (including filing fees and the reasonable fees and expenses of counsel for the Underwriters relating to such registration and qualification); (vii) any filings required to be made with FINRA (including filing fees and the reasonable fees and expenses of

 

19


counsel for the Underwriters relating to such filings); (viii) the transportation and other expenses incurred by or on behalf of Company representatives in connection with presentations to prospective purchasers of the Securities; (ix) the fees and expenses of the Company’s accountants and the fees and expenses of counsel (including local and special counsel) for the Company; and (x) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder; provided, however, that the reasonable fees and expenses of counsel for the Underwriters incurred pursuant to clauses (vi) and (vii) of this Section 5(i) shall not exceed $40,000 in the aggregate.

(j) Reserved.

(k) The Company agrees that, unless it has or shall have obtained the prior written consent of the Representatives, and each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, agrees with the Company that, unless it has or shall have obtained, as the case may be, the prior written consent of the Company, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or that would otherwise constitute a Free Writing Prospectus required to be filed by the Company with the SEC or retained by the Company under Rule 433 under the Securities Act (“Rule 433”); provided that the prior written consent of the parties hereto shall be deemed to have been given in respect of the Free Writing Prospectuses included in Schedule II hereto and any electronic road show. Any such free writing prospectus consented to by the Representatives or the Company is hereinafter referred to as a “Permitted Free Writing Prospectus.” The Company agrees that (x) it has treated and will treat, as the case may be, each Permitted Free Writing Prospectus as an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and (y) it has complied and will comply, as the case may be, with the requirements of Rule 164 under the Securities Act (“Rule 164”) and Rule 433 applicable to any Permitted Free Writing Prospectus, including in respect of timely filing with the SEC, legending and record keeping.

(l) The Company will promptly notify the Representatives if the Company ceases to be an Emerging Growth Company at any time prior to the later of (i) completion of the distribution of the Securities within the meaning of the Securities Act and (ii) completion of the 90-day restricted period referred to in Section 5(g) hereof.

(m) If at any time following the distribution of any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, any event occurs as a result of which such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, at such time not misleading, the Company will: (i) notify promptly the Representatives so that use of the Written Testing-the-Waters Communication may cease until it is amended or supplemented; (ii) amend or supplement the Written Testing-the-Waters Communication to correct such statement or omission; and (iii) supply any amendment or supplement to the Representatives in such quantities as may be reasonably requested.

 

20


6. Conditions to the Obligations of the Underwriters. The obligations of the Underwriters to purchase the Underwritten Securities and the Option Securities, as the case may be, shall be subject to the accuracy of the representations and warranties on the part of the Company contained herein as of the Execution Time, the Closing Date and any Settlement Date pursuant to Section 3 hereof, to the accuracy of the statements of the Company made in any certificates pursuant to the provisions hereof, to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:

(a) The Final Prospectus, and any supplement thereto, shall have been filed in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 424(b); any material required to be filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 433(d) shall have been filed with the SEC within the applicable time periods prescribed for such filings by Rule 433; and no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any notice objecting to its use shall have been issued and no proceedings for that purpose shall have been instituted or threatened.

(b) The Company shall have requested and caused Cooley LLP, counsel for the Company, to have furnished to the Representatives its opinion and negative assurance letter, dated the Closing Date and addressed to the Representatives, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.

(c) The Company shall have requested and caused Wilson Sonsini Goodrich and Rosati, P.C., intellectual property counsel for the Company, to have furnished to the Representatives its opinion, dated the Closing Date and addressed to the Representatives, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.

(d) The Representatives shall have received from Latham & Watkins LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, such opinion or opinions, dated the Closing Date and addressed to the Representatives, with respect to the issuance and sale of the Securities, the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package, the Final Prospectus (together with any supplement thereto) and other related matters as the Representatives may reasonably require, and the Company shall have furnished to such counsel such documents as they reasonably request for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon such matters.

(e) The Company shall have furnished to the Representatives a certificate of the Company, signed by the Chairman of the Board or the President and the principal financial or accounting officer of the Company, dated the Closing Date, to the effect that the signers of such certificate have carefully examined this Agreement, the Registration Statement, the Disclosure Package, the Final Prospectus, and any amendment or supplement thereto, as well as each electronic road show used in connection with the offering of the Securities, and that:

(i) the representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct on and as of the Closing Date with the same effect as if made on the Closing Date and the Company has complied with all the agreements and satisfied all the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to the Closing Date;

 

21


(ii) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any notice objecting to its use has been issued and no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened; and

(iii) since the date of the most recent financial statements included or incorporated by reference into the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto), there has been no material adverse change in the condition (financial or otherwise), prospects, earnings, business or properties of the Company , taken as a whole, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth or contemplated in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

(f) The Company shall have requested and caused Ernst & Young LLP to have furnished to the Representatives, at the Execution Time and on the Closing Date, letters, dated respectively as of the Execution Time and as of the Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives, confirming that they are independent accountants within the meaning of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations adopted by the SEC thereunder and that they have performed a review of the unaudited interim financial information of the Company for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2018 and as of September 30, 2018 in accordance with Statement on Auditing Standards No. 100.

(g) The Securities shall have been listed and admitted and authorized for trading on Nasdaq, and satisfactory evidence of such actions shall have been provided to the Representatives.

(h) At or prior to the Execution Time, the Company shall have furnished to the Representatives a letter in the form of Exhibit A hereto from each officer and director of the Company and certain holders of the Company’s equity securities addressed to the Representatives.

(i) At the Execution Time and on the Closing Date, the Company shall have furnished to the Representatives a certificate, dated the respective dates of delivery thereof and addressed to the Underwriters, of its principal financial officer with respect to certain financial data contained in the Disclosure Package and the Final Prospectus, providing “management comfort” with respect to such information, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives.

If any of the conditions specified in this Section 6 shall not have been fulfilled when and as provided in this Agreement, or if any of the opinions and certificates mentioned above or elsewhere in this Agreement shall not be reasonably satisfactory in form and substance to the Representatives and counsel for the Underwriters, this Agreement and all obligations of the Underwriters hereunder may be canceled at, or at any time prior to, the Closing Date by the Representatives. Notice of such cancellation shall be given to the Company in writing or by telephone, facsimile or electronic mail confirmed in writing.

 

22


The documents required to be delivered by this Section 6 shall be delivered at the office of Latham & Watkins LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, at 140 Scott Drive, Menlo Park, California 94025, on the Closing Date.

7. Reimbursement of Underwriters Expenses. If the sale of the Securities provided for herein is not consummated because any condition to the obligations of the Underwriters set forth in Section 6 hereof is not satisfied, because of any termination pursuant to Section 10 hereof or because of any refusal, inability or failure on the part of the Company to perform any agreement herein or to comply with any provision hereof other than by reason of a default by any of the Underwriters, the Company will reimburse the Underwriters severally through Citigroup Global Markets Inc. on demand for all documented out-of-pocket expenses (including reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters) that shall have been incurred by them in connection with the proposed purchase and sale of the Securities.

8. Indemnification and Contribution.

(a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, the directors, officers, employees, affiliates and agents of each Underwriter and each person who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of either the Securities Act or the Exchange Act against any and all losses, claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or other U.S. Federal or state statutory law or regulation, at common law or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the registration statement for the registration of the Securities as originally filed or in any amendment thereof, or in the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus, or the Final Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication or in any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and agrees to reimburse each such indemnified party, as incurred, for any documented legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by them in connection with investigating or defending any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage or liability arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made therein in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Representatives specifically for inclusion therein. This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have.

(b) Each Underwriter severally and not jointly agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, each of its directors, each of its officers who signs the Registration Statement, and each person who controls the Company within the meaning of either the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, to the same extent as the foregoing indemnity from the Company to each Underwriter, but only with reference to written information relating to such Underwriter furnished to the Company by or on behalf of

 

23


such Underwriter through the Representatives specifically for inclusion in the documents referred to in the foregoing indemnity. This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability which any Underwriter may otherwise have. The Company acknowledges that the statements set forth (i) in the first paragraph under the heading “Underwriting–Discounts and Commissions,” (ii) in the second, third and fourth paragraphs under the heading “Underwriting–Price Stabilization, Short Positions and Penalty Bids” and (iii) under the heading “Underwriting–Electronic Distribution” in the Preliminary Prospectus and the Final Prospectus constitute the only information furnished in writing by or on behalf of the several Underwriters for inclusion in the Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus.

(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under this Section 8 of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party will, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under this Section 8, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the commencement thereof; but the failure so to notify the indemnifying party (i) will not relieve it from liability under paragraph (a) or (b) above unless and to the extent it did not otherwise learn of such action and such failure results in the forfeiture by the indemnifying party of substantial rights and defenses and (ii) will not, in any event, relieve the indemnifying party from any obligations to any indemnified party other than the indemnification obligation provided in paragraph (a) or (b) above. The indemnifying party shall be entitled to appoint counsel of the indemnifying party’s choice at the indemnifying party’s expense to represent the indemnified party in any action for which indemnification is sought (in which case the indemnifying party shall not thereafter be responsible for the fees and expenses of any separate counsel retained by the indemnified party or parties except as set forth below); provided, however, that such counsel shall be satisfactory to the indemnified party. Notwithstanding the indemnifying party’s election to appoint counsel to represent the indemnified party in an action, the indemnified party shall have the right to employ separate counsel (including local counsel), and the indemnifying party shall bear the reasonable fees, costs and expenses of such separate counsel (it being understood, however, that the indemnifying party shall not be liable for the fees and expenses of more than one separate counsel, together with local counsel) if (i) the use of counsel chosen by the indemnifying party to represent the indemnified party would present such counsel with a conflict of interest, (ii) the actual or potential defendants in, or targets of, any such action include both the indemnified party and the indemnifying party and the indemnified party shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to it and/or other indemnified parties which are different from or additional to those available to the indemnifying party, (iii) the indemnifying party shall not have employed counsel satisfactory to the indemnified party to represent the indemnified party within a reasonable time after notice of the institution of such action or (iv) the indemnifying party shall authorize the indemnified party to employ separate counsel at the expense of the indemnifying party. An indemnifying party will not, without the prior written consent of the indemnified parties, settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to any pending or threatened claim, action, suit or proceeding in respect of which indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified parties are actual or potential parties to such claim or action) unless such settlement, compromise or consent (i) includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all liability arising out of such claim, action, suit or proceeding and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of any indemnified party.

 

24


(d) In the event that the indemnity provided in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this Section 8 is unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party for any reason, the Company and the Underwriters severally agree to contribute to the aggregate losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with investigating or defending the same) (collectively, “Losses”) to which the Company and one or more of the Underwriters may be subject in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and by the Underwriters on the other hand from the offering of the Securities. If the allocation provided by the immediately preceding sentence is unavailable for any reason, the Company and the Underwriters severally shall contribute in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only such relative benefits but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and of the Underwriters on the other hand in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such Losses as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. Benefits received by the Company shall be deemed to be equal to the total net proceeds from the offering of the Securities (before deducting expenses) received by it, and benefits received by the Underwriters shall be deemed to be equal to the total underwriting discounts and commissions, in each case as set forth on the cover page of the Final Prospectus. Relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether any untrue or any alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information provided by the Company on the one hand or the Underwriters on the other hand, the intent of the parties and their relative knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such untrue statement or omission. The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution were determined by pro rata allocation or any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above. Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph (d), in no event shall an Underwriter be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by such Underwriter with respect to the offering of the Securities exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph (d), no person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. For purposes of this Section 8, each person who controls an Underwriter within the meaning of either the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, and each director, officer, employee, affiliate and agent of an Underwriter, shall have the same rights to contribution as such Underwriter, and each person who controls the Company within the meaning of either the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, and each officer of the Company who shall have signed the Registration Statement and each director of the Company, shall have the same rights to contribution as the Company, subject in each case to the applicable terms and conditions of this paragraph (d).

 

25


9. Default by an Underwriter. If any one or more Underwriters shall fail to purchase and pay for any of the Securities agreed to be purchased by such Underwriter or Underwriters hereunder and such failure to purchase shall constitute a default in the performance of its or their obligations under this Agreement, the remaining Underwriters shall be obligated severally to take up and pay for (in the respective proportions which the amount of Securities set forth opposite their names in Schedule I hereto bears to the aggregate amount of Securities set forth opposite the names of all the remaining Underwriters) the Securities which the defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase; provided, however, that in the event that the aggregate amount of Securities which the defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase shall exceed 10% of the aggregate amount of Securities set forth in Schedule I hereto, the remaining Underwriters shall have the right to purchase all, but shall not be under any obligation to purchase any, of the Securities, and if such non-defaulting Underwriters do not purchase all the Securities, this Agreement will terminate without liability to any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company. In the event of a default by any Underwriter as set forth in this Section 9, the Closing Date shall be postponed for such period, not exceeding five Business Days, as the Representatives shall determine in order that the required changes in the Registration Statement, the Final Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements may be effected. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall relieve any defaulting Underwriter of its liability, if any, to the Company and any non-defaulting Underwriter for damages occasioned by its default hereunder.

10. Termination. This Agreement shall be subject to termination in the absolute discretion of the Representatives, by notice given to the Company prior to delivery of and payment for the Securities, if at any time prior to such delivery and payment (i) trading in the Common Stock shall have been suspended by the SEC or Nasdaq or trading in securities generally on the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq shall have been suspended or limited or minimum prices shall have been established on either of such exchanges, (ii) a banking moratorium shall have been declared either by U.S. Federal or New York State authorities, (iii) there shall have occurred a material disruption in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services or (iv) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities, declaration by the United States of a national emergency or war, or other calamity or crisis the effect of which on financial markets is such as to make it, in the sole judgment of the Representatives, impractical or inadvisable to proceed with the offering or delivery of the Securities as contemplated by the Preliminary Prospectus or the Final Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto).

11. Representations and Indemnities to Survive. The respective agreements, representations, warranties, indemnities and other statements of the Company or its officers and of the Underwriters set forth in or made pursuant to this Agreement will remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or the Company or any of the officers, directors, employees, agents, affiliates or controlling persons referred to in Section 8 hereof, and will survive delivery of and payment for the Securities. The provisions of Sections 7 and 8 hereof shall survive the termination or cancellation of this Agreement.

 

26


12. Notices. All communications hereunder will be in writing and effective only on receipt, and, if sent to the Representatives, will be mailed, delivered or telefaxed to SVB Leerink LLC at One Federal Street, 37th Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, Attention: General Counsel and Piper Sandler & Co. at 800 Nicollet Mall, Suite 800, Minneapolis, MN 55402, Attention: General Counsel; or, if sent to Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc., will be mailed, delivered or telefaxed to Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc., 131 Oyster Point Blvd., Suite 131, South San Francisco, California 94080, +1 (650) 443-7400, Attention: President and Chief Executive Officer.

13. Successors. This Agreement will inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective successors and the officers, directors, employees, agents and controlling persons referred to in Section 8 hereof, and no other person will have any right or obligation hereunder.

14. Jurisdiction. The Company agrees that any suit, action or proceeding against the Company brought by any Underwriter, the directors, officers, employees, affiliates and agents of any Underwriter, or by any person who controls any Underwriter, arising out of or based upon this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby may be instituted in any State or U.S. federal court in The City of New York and County of New York, and waives any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any such proceeding, and irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of such courts in any suit, action or proceeding. The Company hereby appoints The Corporation Trust Company, 1209 Orange Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801, as its authorized agent (the “Authorized Agent”) upon whom process may be served in any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Agreement or the transactions contemplated herein that may be instituted in any State or U.S. federal court in The City of New York and County of New York, by any Underwriter, the directors, officers, employees, affiliates and agents of any Underwriter, or by any person who controls any Underwriter, and expressly accepts the non-exclusive jurisdiction of any such court in respect of any such suit, action or proceeding. The Company hereby represents and warrants that the Authorized Agent has accepted such appointment and has agreed to act as said agent for service of process, and the Company agrees to take any and all action, including the filing of any and all documents that may be necessary to continue such appointment in full force and effect as aforesaid. Service of process upon the Authorized Agent shall be deemed, in every respect, effective service of process upon the Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any action arising out of or based upon this Agreement may be instituted by any Underwriter, the directors, officers, employees, affiliates and agents of any Underwriter, or by any person who controls any Underwriter, in any court of competent jurisdiction in Delaware.

15. Recognition of the U.S. Special Resolution Regimes.

(a) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.

 

27


(b) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.

As used in this Section 15, “BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning assigned to the term “affiliate” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. § 1841(k); “Covered Entity” means any of the following: (i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b), (ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b) or (iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b); “Default Right” has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable; and “U.S. Special Resolution Regime” means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.

16. No Fiduciary Duty. The Company hereby acknowledges that (a) the purchase and sale of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement is an arm’s-length commercial transaction between the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters and any affiliate through which it may be acting, on the other hand, (b) the Underwriters are acting as principal and not as an agent or fiduciary of the Company and (c) the Company’s engagement of the Underwriters in connection with the offering of the Securities and the process leading up to such offering is as independent contractors and not in any other capacity. Furthermore, the Company agrees that it is solely responsible for making its own judgments in connection with the offering of the Securities (irrespective of whether any of the Underwriters has advised or is currently advising the Company on related or other matters). The Company agrees that it will not claim that the Underwriters have rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owe an agency, fiduciary or similar duty to the Company, in connection with such transaction or the process leading thereto.

17. Integration. This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements and understandings (whether written or oral) between the Company and the Underwriters, or any of them, with respect to the subject matter hereof.

18. Applicable Law. This Agreement will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York applicable to contracts made and to be performed within the State of New York.

19. Waiver of Jury Trial. The Company and the Underwriters hereby irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.

 

28


20. Counterparts. This Agreement may be signed in one or more counterparts, each of which shall constitute an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same agreement. Counterparts may be delivered via facsimile, electronic mail (including any electronic signature covered by the U.S. federal ESIGN Act of 2000, Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, the Electronic Signatures and Records Act or other applicable law, e.g., www.docusign.com) or other transmission method and any counterpart so delivered shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes.

21. Headings. The section headings used herein are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction hereof.

[Signature page follows]

 

29


If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to us the enclosed duplicate hereof, whereupon this letter and your acceptance shall represent a binding agreement among the Company and the several Underwriters.

 

Very truly yours,
HARPOON THERAPEUTICS, INC.
By:  

/s/ Gerald McMahon

  Name: Gerald McMahon
  Title: President and Chief Executive
  Officer

[Signature Page to Underwriting Agreement]


The foregoing Agreement is hereby confirmed and accepted as of the date first above written.
SVB Leerink LLC
Piper Sandler & Co.
By: SVB Leerink LLC
By:  

/s/ Irena Melnikova

  Name: Irena Melnikova
  Title: Managing Director
By: Piper Sandler & Co.
By:  

/s/ Chad E. Huber

  Name: Chad E. Huber
  Title: Managing Director
For themselves and the other several Underwriters named in Schedule I to the foregoing Agreement.

 

[Signature Page to Underwriting Agreement]


SCHEDULE I

 

Underwriters

   Number of Underwritten
Securities to be Purchased
 

SVB Leerink LLC

     2,264,706  

Piper Sandler & Co.

     1,970,588  

Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated

     735,294  

Truist Securities, Inc.

     735,294  

Roth Capital Partners, LLC

     176,470  
  

 

 

 

Total

     5,882,352  
  

 

 

 

 

I-1


SCHEDULE II

Schedule of Free Writing Prospectuses included in the Disclosure Package

None.

 

II-1


SCHEDULE III

Schedule of Written Testing-the-Waters Communications

None.

 

III-1


Form of Lock-Up Agreement    EXHIBIT A

HARPOON THERAPEUTICS, INC.

Public Offering of Common Stock

__________________, ____

SVB Leerink LLC

Piper Sandler & Co.

As Representatives of the several Underwriters

c/o SVB Leerink LLC

One Federal Street, 37th Floor

Boston, Massachusetts 02110

c/o Piper Sandler & Co.

800 Nicollet Mall, Suite 800

Minneapolis, MN 55402

Ladies and Gentlemen:

This letter agreement is being delivered to you in connection with the proposed underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”), between Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and each of you as representatives (the “Representatives”) of a group of Underwriters named therein, relating to an underwritten public offering of Common Stock, $0.0001 par value (the “Common Stock”), of the Company (the “Offering”).

In order to induce you and the other Underwriters to enter into the Underwriting Agreement, the undersigned will not, without the prior written consent of SVB Leerink LLC (“SVB Leerink”) and Piper Sandler & Co. (“Piper”), offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge or otherwise dispose of (or enter into any transaction which is designed to, or might reasonably be expected to, result in the disposition (whether by actual disposition or effective economic disposition due to cash settlement or otherwise) by the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned or any person in privity with the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned), directly or indirectly, including the filing (or participation in the filing) of a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission in respect of, or establish or increase a put equivalent position or liquidate or decrease a call equivalent position within the meaning of Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission promulgated thereunder with respect to, any shares of capital stock of the Company or any securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for such capital stock, or publicly announce an intention to effect any such transaction, for a period beginning on the date hereof and ending on, but including, the 90th day after the date of the Underwriting Agreement (the “Lock-Up Period”).


The foregoing restrictions shall not apply to:

(a) the transfer of shares of Common Stock acquired in the Offering or on the open market after the completion of the Offering, provided that no filing by any party under the Exchange Act or other public announcement shall be required or shall be made voluntarily in connection with such transfer (other than filings Schedule 13G or Schedule 13F and, if made after the expiration of the Lock-Up Period, filings on Form 5);

(b) the transfer of shares of Common Stock or other securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock owned by the undersigned (i) as a bona fide gift, (ii) upon death or by will, testamentary document or intestate succession to the legal representative, heir, beneficiary or a member of the immediate family (as defined below) of the undersigned, (iii) to an immediate family member of the undersigned or to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family (as defined below) of the undersigned, (iv) if the undersigned is a trust, to a trustor, trustee or beneficiary of the trust or to the estate of a trustor, trustee or beneficiary of such trust, (v) as a distribution by a partnership to its partners or by a limited liability company to its members or by a corporation to its stockholders or to any wholly-owned subsidiary of such corporation or by any other entity to its equityholders, or (vi) to any affiliate, as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, of the undersigned, including investment funds or other entities under common control or management that are affiliates of the undersigned; provided that in the case of any transfer, disposition or distribution pursuant to clauses (i)-(vi) above, (A) each transferee, donee or distributee shall execute and deliver a lock-up agreement in the form of this letter agreement to the Representatives and (B) no filing by any party (donor, donee, transferor or transferee) under the Exchange Act or public announcement shall be required or shall be voluntarily made in connection with such transfer, disposition or distribution during the Lock-Up Period (other than filings Schedule 13G or Schedule 13F and, if made after the expiration of the Lock-Up Period, filings on Form 5);

(c) the transfer of the undersigned’s Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock to the Company in connection with the termination of the undersigned’s employment with the Company or pursuant to contractual arrangements under which the Company has the option to repurchase such shares, provided that any filing by any party under the Exchange Act or other public announcement during the Lock-Up Period shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that such transfer relates to the circumstances described in this clause (c) and no public announcement shall be made voluntarily in connection with such transfer, disposition or distribution (other than a filing on a Form 5 made after the expiration of the Lock-Up Period);


(d) the exercise, vesting or settlement, as applicable, by the undersigned of any option to purchase any shares of Common Stock or other equity awards pursuant to any stock incentive plan or stock purchase plan of the Company (such a plan, a “Stock Plan”), provided that the underlying shares of Common Stock shall continue to be subject to the restrictions on transfer set forth in this letter agreement;

(e) the transfer or surrender to the Company of shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock (i) to cover tax withholdings upon a vesting event of any option or other equity award granted under any Stock Plan or (ii) in connection with the “cashless” exercise or settlement, as applicable, by the undersigned of an option to purchase shares of Common Stock or other equity award granted under any Stock Plan (the term “cashless” exercise meaning the surrender of a portion of the equity award shares to the Company to cover payment of the exercise price), provided that any filing by any party under the Exchange Act or other public announcement during the Lock-Up Period shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that such transfer relates to the circumstances described in this clause (e) and no public announcement shall be made voluntarily in connection with such transfer or surrender (other than a filing on a Form 5 made after the expiration of the Lock-Up Period);

(f) the establishment of a trading plan pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of Common Stock, provided that such plan does not provide for any transfers of Common Stock during the Lock-Up Period, and provided, further, that no filing by any party under the Exchange Act or other public announcement shall be required or shall be made voluntarily in connection therewith during the Lock-Up Period;

(g) in connection with sales of Common Stock made pursuant to a trading plan that complies with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act that has been entered into by the undersigned prior to the date of this Letter Agreement;

(h) the transfer of shares of Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock by operation of law pursuant to a qualified domestic order or in connection with a divorce settlement or other court order, provided that any filing by any party under the Exchange Act or other public announcement during the Lock-Up Period shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that such transfer relates to the circumstances described in this clause (h) and no public announcement shall be made voluntarily in connection with such transfer or surrender (other than a filing on a Form 5 made after the expiration of the Lock-Up Period), and provided further that such shares of Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock shall continue to be subject to the restrictions on transfer set forth in this letter agreement; and

(i) the transfer of shares of Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock pursuant to a bona fide third-party tender offer for securities of the Company, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction that is approved by the Board of Directors of the Company, made to all


holders of Common Stock involving a Change of Control (as defined below), provided that all of the undersigned’s securities subject to this letter agreement that are not so transferred, sold, tendered or otherwise disposed of remain subject to this letter agreement, and provided further that it shall be a condition of the transfer that if the tender offer, merger, consolidation or other such transaction is not completed, the undersigned’s securities subject to this letter agreement shall remain subject to the restrictions herein.

For purposes of this letter agreement, “Change of Control” means any bona fide third party tender offer, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction, in one transaction or a series of related transactions, the result of which is that any “person” (as defined in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act), or group of persons, other than the Company, becomes the beneficial owner (as defined in Rules 13d-3 and 13d-5 of the Exchange Act) of 50% or more of the total voting power of the voting stock of the Company (or the surviving entity).

For purposes of this letter agreement, “immediate family” shall mean any relationship by blood, marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin.

The undersigned now has, and, except as contemplated by clauses (a)-(i) above, for the duration of this letter agreement will have, good and marketable title to the undersigned’s shares of capital stock of the Company or any securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for such capital stock, free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, and claims whatsoever, other than any charitable pledge of such securities that by its terms could not result in any transfer, disposition or distribution of such securities during the Lock-Up Period.

The undersigned also agrees and consents to the entry of stop transfer instructions with the Company’s transfer agent and registrar against the transfer of the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock, except in compliance with the foregoing restrictions.

The undersigned agrees that, without the prior written consent of SVB Leerink and Piper, it will not, during the Lock-Up Period, make any demand for or exercise any right with respect to, the registration of any shares of capital stock of the Company or any securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for such capital stock and hereby waives any and all notice requirements and other rights (including, if applicable, those rights set forth in that certain Amended and Restated Investors’ Rights Agreement, dated as of May 24, 2017, by and among the Company, the undersigned and the other parties thereto, as may be amended from time to time, with respect to any such registration, including with respect to the Offering. The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriters have not provided any recommendation or investment advice nor have the Underwriters solicited any action from the undersigned with respect to the Offering of the Securities and the undersigned has consulted their own legal, accounting, financial, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent deemed appropriate. The undersigned further acknowledges and agrees that, although the Representative may be required or choose to provide certain Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS disclosures to you in connection with the Offering, the Representative and the other Underwriters are not making a recommendation to you to enter into this Letter Agreement or participate in the Offering, and nothing set forth in such disclosures is intended to suggest that the Representative or any Underwriter is making such a recommendation.


This letter agreement shall automatically terminate and be of no further effect upon the earliest to occur, if any, of the following: (i) prior to the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, upon such date the Company, on the one hand, or SVB Leerink and Piper, on the other hand, notifies the other in writing that it does not intend to proceed with the Offering, (ii) the date that the Company withdraws the registration statement related to the Offering, (iii) upon the termination (other than the provisions thereof that survive termination) of the Underwriting Agreement in accordance with the terms thereof prior to payment for and delivery of the shares of Common Stock to be sold thereunder, or (iv) January 31, 2021, if the Underwriting Agreement is not executed by such date (provided that the Company may by written notice to the undersigned prior January 31, 2021 extend such date for a period of up to an additional 90 days).

The undersigned hereby consents to receipt of this letter agreement in electronic form and understands and agrees that this letter agreement may be signed electronically. In the event that any signature is delivered by electronic mail, or otherwise by electronic transmission evidencing an intent to sign this letter agreement, such electronic mail or other electronic transmission shall create a valid and binding obligation of the undersigned with the same force and effect as if such signature were an original. Execution and delivery of this letter agreement by electronic mail or other electronic transmission is legal, valid and binding for all purposes.

[Signature page follows]


Yours very truly,

 

IF AN INDIVIDUAL:                    IF AN ENTITY:
By:  

 

     

 

        (duly authorized signature)       (please print complete name of entity)
Name:  

 

      By:  

 

        (please print full name)               (duly authorized signature)
        Name:  

 

                (please print full name)
        Title:  

 

                (please print full title)
Address:       Address:

 

     

 

 

     

 

E-mail:  

 

      E-mail:  

 

EX-5.1 3 d82298dex51.htm EX-5.1 EX-5.1

EXHIBIT 5.1

 

LOGO

Laura A. Berezin

T: +1 650 843 5128

lberezin@cooley.com

January 7, 2021

Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc.

131 Oyster Point Blvd, Suite 131

South San Francisco, CA 94080

Ladies and Gentlemen:

You have requested our opinion with respect to certain matters in connection with the offering by Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), of up to 6,764,704 shares of its common stock, par value $0.0001 (the “Shares”), including up to 882,352 Shares that may be sold pursuant to the exercise of an option to purchase additional Shares, pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-3 (Registration Statement No. 333-237175) (the “Registration Statement”), filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), the prospectus included therein (the “Base Prospectus”), and the prospectus supplement, dated January 6, 2021, filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Act (together with the Base Prospectus, the “Prospectus”).

In connection with this opinion, we have examined and relied upon the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws, each as currently in effect, and originals or copies certified to our satisfaction of such records, documents, certificates, memoranda and other instruments as in our judgment are necessary or appropriate to enable us to render the opinion expressed below. We have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity to originals of all documents submitted to us as copies, the accuracy, completeness and authenticity of certificates of public officials, and the due authorization, execution and delivery of all documents by all persons other than the Company where authorization, execution and delivery are prerequisites to the effectiveness thereof. As to certain factual matters, we have relied upon a certificate of an officer of the Company and have not independently verified such matters.

Our opinion herein is expressed solely with respect to the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware. We express no opinion to the extent that any other laws are applicable to the subject matter hereof and express no opinion and provide no assurance as to compliance with any federal or state securities law, rule or regulation.

On the basis of the foregoing, and in reliance thereon, we are of the opinion that the Shares, when sold and issued in accordance with the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.

We consent to the reference to our firm under the caption “Legal Matters” in the Prospectus and to the filing of this opinion as an exhibit to a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed with the Commission for incorporation by reference into the Registration Statement.

Sincerely,

Cooley LLP

 

By:  

/s/ Laura A. Berezin

  Laura A. Berezin

COOLEY LLP 3175 HANOVER STREET PALO ALTO, CA 94304-1130

T: (650) 843-5000 F: (650) 849-7400 COOLEY.COM

EX-99.1 4 d82298dex991.htm EX-99.1 EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

Harpoon Therapeutics Announces Pricing of Public Offering of Common Stock

South San Francisco, Calif., January 6, 2021 – Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: HARP), announced today the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 5,882,352 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $17.00 per share. Harpoon Therapeutics expects that the gross proceeds from the sale of the shares will be approximately $100.0 million, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses payable by Harpoon Therapeutics. In addition, Harpoon Therapeutics has granted the underwriters in the offering a 30-day option to purchase up to 882,352 additional shares of common stock at the public offering price. The offering is expected to close on January 11, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions.

Harpoon Therapeutics plans to use the net proceeds of the offering, together with other available funds, to fund the continued clinical development of HPN424 in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, HPN536 in ovarian cancer and other solid tumors, HPN217 in multiple myeloma, and HPN328 for the treatment of small cell lung cancer and other neuroendocrine tumors expressing Delta-like canonical Notch ligand 3; to advance the development of other pipeline candidates, including HPN601; and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

SVB Leerink and Piper Sandler are acting as joint bookrunning managers for the offering. Baird and Truist Securities are acting as co-lead managers for the offering. Roth Capital Partners is acting as co-manager for the offering.

The shares of common stock are being offered pursuant to a “shelf” registration statement previously filed with and declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Harpoon Therapeutics has filed a preliminary prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus related to the offering with the SEC, which are available on the SEC’s website, located at www.sec.gov. Copies of the final prospectus supplement relating to this offering, when available, and the accompanying prospectus may be obtained from: SVB Leerink LLC, Attention: Syndicate Department, One Federal Street, 37th Floor, Boston, MA 02110, by telephone at (800) 808-7525, ext. 6132 or by email at syndicate@svbleerink.com or Piper Sandler & Co., Attention: Prospectus Department, 800 Nicollet Mall, J12S03, Minneapolis, MN 55402, by telephone at (800) 747-3924 or by email at prospectus@psc.com.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. Any offer, if at all, will be made only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus, which are a part of the effective registration statement.


Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend” and similar expressions (as well as other words or expressions referencing future events, conditions or circumstances) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release include statements relating to Harpoon Therapeutics’ expectations regarding the completion of the public offering, the gross proceeds of the offering and Harpoon Therapeutics’ planned use of the proceeds from the public offering. These forward-looking statements are based on Harpoon Therapeutics’ expectations and assumptions as of the date of this press release. Actual results may differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Each of these forward-looking statements involves risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks and uncertainties related to market conditions and satisfaction of customary closing conditions related to the proposed public offering. There can be no assurance that Harpoon Therapeutics will be able to complete the offering on the anticipated terms, or at all. Other factors that may cause actual results to differ from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements in this press release are discussed in Harpoon Therapeutics’ filings with the SEC, including under the heading “Risk Factors” contained therein, as well as the risks identified in the registration statement and the preliminary prospectus supplement relating to the offering. Except as required by law, Harpoon Therapeutics assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in expectations, even as new information becomes available.

Contacts:

Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc.

Georgia Erbez

Chief Financial Officer

650-443-7400

media@harpoontx.com

Westwicke ICR

Robert H. Uhl

Managing Director

858-356-5932

robert.uhl@westwicke.com

EX-99.2 5 d82298dex992.htm EX-99.2 EX-99.2

Exhibit 99.2

Risk Factor Summary

An investment in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. Below is a summary of material factors that make an investment in our common stock speculative or risky. Importantly, this summary does not address all of the risks that we face. Please refer to “Risk Factors” below for additional discussion of the risks summarized in this risk factor summary, as well as other risks that we face.

 

   

All of our product candidates are in preclinical or early-stage clinical development. Clinical drug development is a lengthy and expensive process with uncertain timelines and uncertain outcomes. If clinical trials of our product candidates are prolonged or delayed, we or any collaborators may be unable to obtain required regulatory approvals, and therefore be unable to commercialize our product candidates on a timely basis or at all.

 

   

Interim, topline or preliminary data from our clinical trials that we announce or publish from time to time may change as more patient data become available and are subject to audit and verification procedures that could result in material changes in the final data.

 

   

Our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms are unproven, novel classes of T cell engagers and may not result in approvable or marketable products, which exposes us to unforeseen risks and makes it difficult for us to predict the time and cost of product development and potential for regulatory approval.

 

   

Results of earlier preclinical studies of our product candidates may not be predictive of future trial results.

 

   

We depend on enrollment of patients in our clinical trials for our product candidates. If we experience delays or difficulties enrolling in our clinical trials, our research and development efforts and business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

 

   

Our product candidates may have serious adverse, undesirable or unacceptable side effects or other properties which may delay or prevent marketing approval. If such side effects are identified during the development of our product candidates or following approval, if any, we may need to abandon our development of such product candidates, the commercial profile of any approved label may be limited, or we may be subject to other significant negative consequences following marketing approval, if any.

 

   

Monitoring safety of patients receiving our product candidates is challenging, which could adversely affect our ability to obtain regulatory approval and commercialize.

 

   

We may not be successful in our efforts to use and expand our technology platforms, including TriTAC and ProTriTAC, to build a pipeline of product candidates.

 

   

We are an early clinical-stage company and have incurred significant losses since our inception. We expect to incur losses for the foreseeable future and may never achieve or maintain profitability.

 

   

We will require additional funding in order to complete development of our product candidates and commercialize our products, if approved. If we are unable to raise capital when needed, we could be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate our product development programs or commercialization efforts.

 

   

We depend heavily on the success of our current product candidates, and we cannot guarantee that any of these product candidates will receive regulatory approval, which is necessary before they can be commercialized. If we, or any strategic partners we may enter into collaboration agreements with for the development and commercialization of our product candidates, are unable to commercialize our product candidates, or experience significant delays in doing so, our business, financial condition and results of operations will be materially adversely affected.

 

   

Our limited operating history may make it difficult for you to evaluate the success of our business to date and to assess our future viability.

 

   

Raising additional capital may cause dilution to our stockholders, restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or product candidates.


   

Our business operations and current and future relationships with healthcare professionals, principal investigators, consultants, vendors, customers and third-party payors in the United States and elsewhere are subject to applicable anti-kickback, fraud and abuse, false claims, physician payment transparency, health information privacy and security and other healthcare laws and regulations, which could expose us to substantial penalties.

 

   

The development and commercialization of biopharmaceutical products is subject to extensive regulation, and the regulatory approval processes of the FDA and comparable foreign authorities are lengthy, time consuming and inherently unpredictable. If we are ultimately unable to obtain regulatory approval for our product candidates on a timely basis if at all, our business will be substantially harmed.

 

   

Intellectual property rights of third parties could adversely affect our ability to develop or commercialize our product candidates, such that we could be required to litigate or obtain licenses from third parties in order to develop or market our product candidates. Such licenses and litigation, including our ongoing litigation with Millennium, could be costly, and such licenses may not be available on commercially reasonable terms.

RISK FACTORS

An investment in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully review the risks and uncertainties described below before making an investment decision. The risks described below are not the only ones facing us. The occurrence of any of the following risks, or of additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently believe to be immaterial, could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. In such case, the trading price of our common stock could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Risks Related to the Development and Clinical Testing of Our Product Candidates

All of our product candidates are in preclinical or early-stage clinical development. Clinical drug development is a lengthy and expensive process with uncertain timelines and uncertain outcomes. If clinical trials of our product candidates are prolonged or delayed, we or any collaborators may be unable to obtain required regulatory approvals, and therefore be unable to commercialize our product candidates on a timely basis or at all.

To obtain the requisite regulatory approvals to market and sell any of our product candidates, we or any collaborator for such candidates must demonstrate through extensive preclinical studies and clinical trials that our product candidates are safe and effective in humans. Clinical testing is expensive and can take many years to complete, and its outcome is inherently uncertain. Failure can occur at any time during the clinical trial process. The results of preclinical studies and early-stage clinical trials of our product candidates may not be predictive of the results of later-stage clinical trials. Product candidates in later stages of clinical trials may fail to show the desired safety and efficacy traits despite having progressed through preclinical studies and initial clinical trials. A number of companies in the biopharmaceutical industry have suffered significant setbacks in advanced clinical trials due to lack of efficacy or adverse safety profiles, notwithstanding promising results in earlier trials. Our future clinical trial results may not be successful.

To date, we have not completed any clinical trials required for the approval of any of our product candidates. Although we are conducting early stage clinical trials and are conducting preclinical studies for other product candidates, we may experience delays in our ongoing clinical trials, and we do not know whether planned clinical trials will begin on time, need to be redesigned, enroll patients on time or be completed on schedule, if at all. Clinical trials can be delayed, suspended, or terminated for a variety of reasons, including the following:

 

   

delays in or failure to reach agreement on acceptable terms with prospective contract research organizations, or CROs, and clinical trial sites, the terms of which can be subject to extensive negotiation and may vary significantly among different CROs and trial sites;

 

   

difficulty in recruiting clinical trial investigators of appropriate competencies and experience;

 

   

delays in establishing the appropriate dosage levels in clinical trials;

 

   

delays in or failure to recruit and enroll suitable patients to participate in a trial;


   

the difficulty in certain countries in identifying the sub-populations that we are trying to treat in a particular trial, which may delay enrollment and reduce the power of a clinical trial to detect statistically significant results;

 

   

lower than anticipated retention rates of patients in clinical trials;

 

   

failure to have patients complete a trial or return for post-treatment follow-up;

 

   

clinical sites deviating from trial protocol or dropping out of a trial;

 

   

adding new clinical trial sites;

 

   

safety or tolerability concerns could cause us or our collaborators or governmental authorities, as applicable, to suspend or terminate a trial if it is found that the participants are being exposed to unacceptable health risks;

 

   

delays in or failure to obtain regulatory approval to commence a trial;

 

   

delays in or failure to obtain institutional review board, or IRB, approval at each site;

 

   

our third-party research contractors failing to comply with regulatory requirements or meet their contractual obligations to us in a timely manner, or at all;

 

   

changes in regulatory requirements, policies and guidelines;

 

   

manufacturing sufficient quantities of a product candidate for use in clinical trials;

 

   

the quality or stability of a product candidate falling below acceptable standards;

 

   

changes in the treatment landscape for our target indications that may make our product candidates no longer relevant;

 

   

third-party actions claiming infringement by our product candidates in clinical trials outside the United States and obtaining injunctions interfering with our progress;

 

   

the impact of public health epidemics, such as the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19 pandemic, currently impacting multiple jurisdictions worldwide, including the United States; and

 

   

business interruptions resulting from geo-political actions, including war and terrorism, or natural disasters including earthquakes, typhoons, floods and fires.

We could encounter delays if a clinical trial is suspended or terminated by us, by the IRBs or Ethics Committees of the institutions in which such trials are being conducted, by the Data Review Committee or Data Safety Monitoring Board for such trial or by the FDA, or other regulatory authorities. Such authorities may impose such a suspension or termination due to a number of factors, including failure to conduct the clinical trial in accordance with regulatory requirements or our clinical protocols, inspection of the clinical trial operations or trial site by the FDA or other regulatory authorities resulting in the imposition of a clinical hold, unforeseen safety issues or adverse side effects, failure to demonstrate a benefit from using a drug, changes in governmental regulations or administrative actions or lack of adequate funding to continue the clinical trial.

If we experience delays in the completion of, or termination of, any clinical trial of our product candidates, the commercial prospects of our product candidates will be harmed, and our ability to generate product revenues from any of these product candidates will be delayed. In addition, any delays in completing our clinical trials will increase our costs, slow down our product candidate development and approval process and jeopardize our ability to commence product sales and generate revenues. Significant clinical trial delays could also allow our competitors to bring products to market before we do or shorten any periods during which we have the exclusive right to commercialize our product candidates and impair our ability to commercialize our product candidates and may harm our business and results of operations.

Any of these occurrences may harm our business, financial condition and prospects significantly. In addition, many of the factors that cause, or lead to, a delay in the commencement or completion of clinical trials may also ultimately lead to the denial of regulatory approval of our product candidates.

Clinical trials must be conducted in accordance with the FDA and other applicable regulatory authorities’ legal requirements, regulations or guidelines, and are subject to oversight by these governmental agencies and Ethics Committees or IRBs at the medical institutions where the clinical trials are conducted. In addition, clinical trials must be conducted with supplies of our product candidates produced under cGMP requirements and other regulations. Furthermore, we rely on CROs and clinical trial sites to ensure the proper and timely conduct of our clinical trials and while we have agreements governing their committed activities, we have limited influence over their actual performance. We depend on our collaborators and on medical institutions and CROs to conduct our


clinical trials in compliance with good clinical practice, or GCP, requirements. To the extent our collaborators or the CROs fail to enroll participants for our clinical trials, fail to conduct the study to GCP standards or are delayed for a significant time in the execution of trials, including achieving full enrollment, we may be affected by increased costs, program delays or both, which may harm our business. In addition, clinical trials that are conducted in countries outside the United States may subject us to further delays and expenses as a result of increased shipment costs, additional regulatory requirements and the engagement of non-U.S. CROs, as well as expose us to risks associated with clinical investigators who are unknown to the FDA, and different standards of diagnosis, screening and medical care.

Interim, topline or preliminary data from our clinical trials that we announce or publish from time to time may change as more patient data become available and are subject to audit and verification procedures that could result in material changes in the final data.

From time to time, we may publicly disclose preliminary or topline or data from our preclinical studies and clinical trials, which is based on a preliminary analysis of then-available data, and the results and related findings and conclusions are subject to change following a more comprehensive review of the data related to the particular study or trial. We also make assumptions, estimations, calculations and conclusions as part of our analyses of data, and we may not have received or had the opportunity to fully and carefully evaluate all data. As a result, the topline results that we report may differ from future results of the same studies, or different conclusions or considerations may qualify such results, once additional data have been received and fully evaluated. Topline data also remain subject to audit and verification procedures that may result in the final data being materially different from the preliminary data we previously published. As a result, topline data should be viewed with caution until the final data are available. From time to time, we may also disclose interim data from our clinical trials. Interim data from clinical trials that we may complete are subject to the risk that one or more of the clinical outcomes may materially change as patient enrollment continues and more patient data become available. As a result, any interim/or preliminary data should be viewed with caution until final data is available. Material adverse changes in the final data could result in significant harm to our business prospects. Adverse differences between preliminary or interim data and final data could significantly harm our business prospects. Further, disclosure of interim data by us or by our competitors could result in volatility in the price of our common stock.

Further, others, including regulatory agencies, may not accept or agree with our assumptions, estimates, calculations, conclusions or analyses or may interpret or weigh the importance of data differently, which could impact the value of the particular program, the approvability or commercialization of the particular product candidate or product and our company in general.

If the interim, topline, or preliminary data that we report differ from actual results, or if others, including regulatory authorities, disagree with the conclusions reached, our ability to obtain approval for, and commercialize, our product candidates may be harmed, which could harm our business, operating results, prospects or financial condition.

Our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms are unproven, novel classes of T cell engagers and may not result in approvable or marketable products, which exposes us to unforeseen risks and makes it difficult for us to predict the time and cost of product development and potential for regulatory approval.

We have not received regulatory approval for a TriTAC or ProTriTAC product candidates. We cannot be certain that our approach will lead to the development of approvable or marketable products, alone or in combination with other therapies. In addition, our TriTACs and ProTriTACs may have different effectiveness rates in various indications. Our approach involves using biologics to improve efficacy against solid tumors, which is unproven and may not be successful. Further, our TriTAC and ProTriTAC technology could have less efficacy in tumor types with fewer T cells, such as pancreatic cancer. While we believe TriTAC and ProTriTAC T cell engagers will demonstrate potent single-agent activity and therapeutic effect, immunotherapy companies and standard of care continue to evolve toward the use of combination therapies and we may be unsuccessful in developing any of our product candidates as monotherapies. With our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms, we have designed T cell engagers that incorporate the strengths of BiTEs and improve upon their critical shortcomings. However, only one BiTE (Amgen’s Blincyto) has been approved for the treatment of cancer, and leveraging BiTE technology may not result in approved therapies or be as successful as other forms of therapies. Finally, the FDA or other regulatory agencies may lack experience in evaluating the safety and efficacy of our TriTACs or ProTriTACs, which could result in a longer than expected regulatory review process, increase our expected development costs and delay or prevent commercialization of our product candidates.


Results of earlier preclinical studies of our product candidates may not be predictive of future trial results.

Success in preclinical studies does not ensure that later clinical trials will be successful. A number of companies in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries have suffered significant setbacks in clinical trials, even after positive results in earlier preclinical studies. These setbacks have been caused by, among other things, preclinical findings made while clinical trials were underway and safety or efficacy observations made in clinical trials, including previously unreported adverse events. Notwithstanding any potential promising results in earlier studies, we cannot be certain that we will not face similar setbacks. In addition, the results of our preclinical animal studies, including our non-human primate studies, may not be predictive of the results of outcomes in human clinical trials. For example, while we did not observe unacceptable safety events in our preclinical testing of HPN536, given the expression of MSLN on both normal and cancerous cells, we may observe unacceptable levels of toxicity in our clinical trial of HPN536. Product candidates in later stages of clinical trials may fail to show the desired pharmacological properties or safety and efficacy traits despite having progressed through preclinical studies.

We depend on enrollment of patients in our clinical trials for our product candidates. If we experience delays or difficulties enrolling in our clinical trials, our research and development efforts and business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Successful and timely completion of clinical trials will require that we enroll a sufficient number of patient candidates. These trials and other trials we conduct may be subject to delays as a result of patient enrollment taking longer than anticipated, patient withdrawal or adverse events. For example, we have multiple ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trials, which could generate adverse events that may cause us to delay these trials or halt further development. While adverse events to date related to our clinical trials have not had a material impact on patient enrollment, our experience to date may differ from future outcomes.

Our clinical trials will likely compete with other clinical trials that are in the same therapeutic areas as our product candidates, and this competition may reduce the number and types of patients available to us, because some patients who might have opted to enroll in our trials may instead opt to enroll in a trial being conducted by one of our competitors. Because the number of qualified clinical investigators and clinical trial sites is limited, we may conduct some of our clinical trials at the same clinical trial sites that some of our competitors use, which could reduce the number of patients who are available for our clinical trials at such clinical trial sites.

Patient enrollment depends on many factors, including the size and nature of the patient population, the severity of the disease under investigation, eligibility criteria for the trial, the proximity of patients to clinical sites, the design of the clinical protocol, the ability to obtain and maintain patient consents, the ability to recruit clinical trial investigators with the appropriate competencies and experience, the risk that patients enrolled in clinical trials will drop out of the trials before the administration of our product candidates or trial completion, the availability of competing clinical trials, the availability of new drugs approved for the indication the clinical trial is investigating, and clinicians’ and patients’ perceptions as to the potential advantages of the drug being studied in relation to other available therapies. These factors may make it difficult for us to enroll enough patients to complete our clinical trials in a timely and cost-effective manner. Delays in the completion of any clinical trial of our product candidates will increase our costs, slow down our product candidate development and approval process and delay or potentially jeopardize our ability to commence product sales and generate revenue. In addition, some of the factors that cause, or lead to, a delay in the commencement or completion of clinical trials may also ultimately lead to the denial of regulatory approval of our product candidates.


Our product candidates may have serious adverse, undesirable or unacceptable side effects or other properties which may delay or prevent marketing approval. If such side effects are identified during the development of our product candidates or following approval, if any, we may need to abandon our development of such product candidates, the commercial profile of any approved label may be limited, or we may be subject to other significant negative consequences following marketing approval, if any.

Undesirable side effects that may be caused by our product candidates could cause us or regulatory authorities to interrupt, delay or halt clinical trials and could result in a more restrictive label or the delay or denial of regulatory approval by the FDA or other comparable foreign authorities. Our product candidates target protein expression on tumor cells, which expression may also be present on healthy cells. Accordingly, our product candidates may result in high or unacceptable levels of toxicity when tested in humans. Results of our trials could reveal a high and unacceptable severity and prevalence of these or other side effects. In such an event, our trials could be suspended or terminated and the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities could order us to cease further development of or deny approval of our product candidates for any or all targeted indications. The drug-related side effects could affect patient recruitment or the ability of enrolled patients to complete the trial or result in potential product liability claims. Any of these occurrences may harm our business, financial condition and prospects significantly. Additionally, if any of our product candidates receives marketing approval and we or others later identify undesirable or unacceptable side effects caused by such products, a number of potentially significant negative consequences could result, including:

 

   

regulatory authorities may withdraw or limit approvals of such products and require us to take our approved product off the market;

 

   

regulatory authorities may require the addition of labeling statements, specific warnings, a contraindication or field alerts to physicians and pharmacies, or issue other communications containing warnings or other safety information about the product;

 

   

regulatory authorities may require a medication guide outlining the risks of such side effects for distribution to patients, or that we implement a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy, plan to ensure that the benefits of the product outweigh its risks;

 

   

we may be required to change the dose or the way the product is administered, conduct additional clinical trials or change the labeling of the product;

 

   

we may be subject to limitations on how we may promote or manufacture the product;

 

   

sales of the product may decrease significantly;

 

   

we may be subject to litigation or product liability claims; and

 

   

our reputation may suffer.

Any of these events could prevent us, our collaborators or our potential future partners from achieving or maintaining market acceptance of the affected product or could substantially increase commercialization costs and expenses, which in turn could delay or prevent us from generating significant revenue from the sale of any products.

Monitoring safety of patients receiving our product candidates is challenging, which could adversely affect our ability to obtain regulatory approval and commercialize.

For our ongoing clinical trial and planned clinical trials, we have and expect to contract with academic medical centers and hospitals experienced in the assessment and management of toxicities arising during clinical trials. Nonetheless, these centers and hospitals may have difficulty observing patients and treating toxicities, which may be more challenging due to personnel changes, inexperience, shift changes, house staff coverage or related issues. This could lead to more severe or prolonged toxicities or even patient deaths, which could result in us or the FDA delaying, suspending or terminating one or more of our clinical trials, and which could jeopardize regulatory approval. We also expect the centers using our product candidates, if approved, on a commercial basis could similarly have difficulty in managing adverse events. Medicines used at centers to help manage adverse side effects of our product candidates may not adequately control the side effects and/or may have a detrimental impact on the efficacy of the treatment. Use of these medicines may increase with new physicians and centers administering our product candidates.

We may not be successful in our efforts to use and expand our technology platforms, including TriTAC and ProTriTAC, to build a pipeline of product candidates.

A key element of our strategy is to use and expand our technology platforms, including TriTAC and ProTriTAC, to build a pipeline of product candidates and progress these product candidates through clinical development for the treatment of a variety of different types of diseases. Although our research and development efforts to date have resulted in a pipeline of product candidates directed at various cancers, we may not be able to develop product candidates that are safe and effective. Even if we are successful in continuing to build our pipeline, the potential product candidates that we identify may not be suitable for clinical development, including as a result of being shown to have harmful side effects or other characteristics that indicate that they are unlikely to be products that will receive marketing approval and achieve market acceptance. If we do not continue to successfully develop and begin to commercialize product candidates, we will face difficulty in obtaining product revenues in future periods, which could result in significant harm to our financial position and adversely affect our share price.


Risks Related to Our Financial Condition and Need for Additional Capital

We are an early clinical-stage company and have incurred significant losses since our inception. We expect to incur losses for the foreseeable future and may never achieve or maintain profitability.

In addition, disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may increase the likelihood that we encounter such difficulties or delays in initiating, enrolling, conducting or completing our planned and ongoing clinical trials. We are an early clinical-stage immunotherapy company with a limited operating history. We have incurred net losses of $38.6 million and $41.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, respectively. As of September 30, 2020, we had accumulated losses of $156.7 million. Our losses have resulted principally from expenses incurred in research and development of our product candidates and from management and administrative costs and other expenses that we have incurred while building our business infrastructure. We expect to continue to incur significant operating losses for the foreseeable future as we continue our research and development efforts and seek to obtain regulatory approval and commercialization of our product candidates. We anticipate that our expenses will increase substantially as we:

 

   

conduct our ongoing Phase 1/2a trial of HPN424 for the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, or mCRPC;

 

   

conduct our ongoing Phase 1/2a trial of HPN536 for the treatment of ovarian cancer and other MSLN-expressing tumors;

 

   

conduct our ongoing Phase 1/2 trial of HPN217 for the treatment of multiple myeloma;

 

   

conduct our ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trial of HPN328 for the treatment of small cell lung cancer and other neuroendocrine tumors expressing DLL3;

 

   

continue the research and development of our other product candidates;

 

   

continue the development of our product candidates beyond Phase 1 trials;

 

   

seek to enhance our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms and discover and develop additional product candidates;

 

   

apply for regulatory approvals for any product candidates that successfully complete clinical trials;

 

   

potentially establish a manufacturing, sales, marketing and distribution infrastructure to produce and commercialize any products for which we may obtain regulatory approvals;

 

   

maintain, expand and protect our intellectual property portfolio;

 

   

add clinical, scientific, operational, financial and management information systems and personnel, including personnel to support our product development, potential future commercialization efforts and operations as a public company; and

 

   

experience any delays or encounter any issues with any of the above, including but not limited to failed studies, complex results, manufacturing challenges, safety issues or other regulatory challenges.

We have financed our operations to date primarily through private financings, payments received under collaboration and licensing agreements, and the proceeds from our IPO, which was completed in February 2019. We have devoted a significant portion of our financial resources and efforts to developing our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms, identifying potential product candidates, conducting preclinical studies of a variety of product candidates, and preparing for and conducting clinical trials of product candidates. We are in the early stages of development of our product candidates, and we have not completed development and commercialization of any TriTAC or ProTriTAC product candidate.

To become and remain profitable, we must succeed in developing and eventually commercializing products that generate significant revenue. This will require us to be successful in a range of challenging activities, including completing preclinical testing and clinical trials of our product candidates, discovering and developing additional product candidates, obtaining regulatory approval for any product candidates that successfully complete clinical trials, accessing manufacturing capacity, establishing marketing capabilities and ultimately selling any products for which we may obtain regulatory approval. We are only in the preliminary stages of most of these activities. We may never succeed in these activities and, even if we do, may never generate revenue that is significant enough to achieve profitability.


Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with pharmaceutical products and biological development, we are unable to accurately predict the timing or amount of increased expenses or when, or if, we will be able to achieve profitability. If we are required by the FDA or other regulatory authorities to perform studies in addition to those we currently anticipate, or if there are any delays in completing our clinical trials or the development of any of our product candidates, our expenses could increase and commercial revenue could be further delayed and more uncertain.

Even if we do generate product sales or royalties, we may never achieve or sustain profitability on a quarterly or annual basis. Our failure to sustain profitability would depress the market price of our common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital, expand our business, diversify our product offerings and continue our operations.

We will require additional funding in order to complete development of our product candidates and commercialize our products, if approved. If we are unable to raise capital when needed, we could be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate our product development programs or commercialization efforts.

We expect our expenses to increase in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly as we conduct our ongoing clinical trials of HPN424, HPN536, HPN217, and HPN328, and as we continue to research and develop other potential technologies and product candidates.

In addition, if we obtain regulatory approval for any of our product candidates, we expect to incur significant commercialization expenses related to product manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution. Furthermore, we will incur additional costs associated with operating as a public company. Accordingly, we will need to obtain substantial additional funding in connection with our continuing operations. If we are unable to raise capital when needed or on attractive terms, we could be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate our research and development programs or any future commercialization efforts.

Based on our current business plans, we believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities, will be sufficient to fund our planned operations for at least the next 12 months from the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K. We have based this estimate on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we could use our capital resources sooner than we currently expect, requiring us to seek additional funds sooner than planned, through public or private equity or debt financings or other sources, such as strategic collaborations. Such financing, including pursuant to our Controlled Equity OfferingSM Sales Agreement, or the sales agreement, with Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., or Cantor Fitzgerald, may result in dilution to our stockholders, the imposition of burdensome debt covenants and repayment obligations or other restrictions that may affect our business. If we raise additional funds through licensing or collaboration arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our product candidates, or grant licenses on terms that are not favorable to us. In addition, we may seek additional capital due to favorable market conditions or strategic considerations even if we believe we have sufficient funds for our current or future operating plans. Attempting to secure additional financing may divert our management from our day-to-day activities, which may adversely affect our ability to develop our product candidates. Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:

 

   

the scope, progress, results and costs of developing our product candidates, and conducting preclinical studies and clinical trials, including our Phase 1/2a trial of HPN424, Phase 1/2a trial of HPN536, Phase 1/2 trial of HPN217, and Phase 1/2 clinical trial of HPN328;

 

   

the costs, timing and outcome of regulatory review of any of our product candidates;

 

   

the cost of manufacturing clinical supplies of our product candidates;

 

   

the scope, progress, results and costs of preclinical development, laboratory testing and clinical trials for our product candidates;

 

   

the costs and timing of future commercialization activities, including manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution, for any of our product candidates for which we receive marketing approval;

 

   

the timing and amount of any milestone, royalty or other payments we are required to make pursuant to any current or future collaboration or license agreements;

 

   

the progress of our collaborations with AbbVie to develop product candidates;


   

the costs and timing of preparing, filing and prosecuting patent applications, maintaining and enforcing our intellectual property rights and defending any intellectual property-related claims, including any claims by third parties that we are infringing upon their intellectual property rights;

 

   

a potential significant monetary judgment against us in the ongoing litigation with Millennium regarding Millennium’s investment in Maverick, as well as any additional costs related to future appeals;

 

   

our ability to maintain existing, and establish new, strategic collaborations, licensing or other arrangements and the financial terms of any such agreements, including the timing and amount of any future milestone, royalty or other payments due under any such agreement;

 

   

the cost of building a sales force in anticipation of product commercialization;

 

   

the revenue, if any, received from commercial sales of our product candidates for which we receive marketing approval;

 

   

the effect of competing technological and market developments; and

 

   

the extent to which we acquire or invest in business, products and technologies, including our collaboration with AbbVie and any other licensing or collaboration arrangements for any of our product candidates.

Additional funds may not be available when we need them, on terms that are acceptable to us or at all. If adequate funds are not available to us on a timely basis, we could be required to:

 

   

delay, limit, reduce or terminate preclinical studies, clinical trials or other research and development activities or eliminate one or more of our development programs altogether; or

 

   

delay, limit, reduce or terminate our efforts to access manufacturing capacity, establish sales and marketing capabilities or other activities that may be necessary to commercialize our product candidates, or reduce our flexibility in developing or maintaining our sales and marketing strategy.

For related information, see “—Raising additional capital may cause dilution to our stockholders, restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or product candidates” below.

We depend heavily on the success of our current product candidates, and we cannot guarantee that any of these product candidates will receive regulatory approval, which is necessary before they can be commercialized. If we, or any strategic partners we may enter into collaboration agreements with for the development and commercialization of our product candidates, are unable to commercialize our product candidates, or experience significant delays in doing so, our business, financial condition and results of operations will be materially adversely affected.

We have invested a significant portion of our efforts and financial resources in the development of our current product candidates. Our ability to generate product and royalty revenues, which we do not expect will occur for at least the next several years, if ever, will depend heavily on the successful development and eventual commercialization of these product candidates, which may never occur. We currently generate no revenues from sales of any products, and we may never be able to develop or commercialize a marketable product. Each of our product candidates will require significant clinical development, management of clinical, preclinical and manufacturing activities, regulatory approval in multiple jurisdictions, obtaining manufacturing supply, including commercial manufacturing supply, as well as requiring us to build a commercial organization, and make substantial investment and significant marketing efforts before we generate any revenues from product sales. We are not permitted to market or promote any of our product candidates before we receive regulatory approval from the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities, and we may never receive such regulatory approval for any of our product candidates. The success of our product candidates will depend on several factors, including the following:

 

   

for product candidates which we may license to others, the successful efforts of those parties in completing clinical trials of, receipt of regulatory approval for and commercialization of such product candidates;

 

   

for product candidates to which we retain rights, completion of preclinical studies and clinical trials of, receipt of marketing approvals for, establishment of commercial manufacturing supplies of and successful commercialization of such product candidates; and

 

   

for all of our product candidates, if and when approved, acceptance of such product candidates by patients, the medical community and third-party payors, effectively competing with other therapies, a continued acceptable safety profile following approval and qualifying for, maintaining, enforcing and defending our intellectual property rights and claims.


If we do not achieve one or more of these factors in a timely manner or at all, we could experience significant delays or an inability to successfully commercialize our product candidates, which would materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We have not previously submitted a Biologics License Application, or BLA, to the FDA or similar regulatory approval filings to comparable foreign authorities, for any product candidate, and we cannot be certain that any of our product candidates will be successful in clinical trials or receive regulatory approval. Further, our product candidates may not receive regulatory approval even if they are successful in clinical trials. If we do not receive regulatory approvals for our product candidates, we may not be able to continue our operations. Even if we successfully obtain regulatory approvals to market one or more of our product candidates, our revenues will be dependent, in part, upon the size of the markets in the territories for which we gain regulatory approval and have commercial rights. If the markets for patient subsets that we are targeting are not as significant as we estimate, we may not generate significant revenues from sales of such products, if approved.

We plan to seek regulatory approval to commercialize our product candidates in the United States and, potentially, in other countries. While the scope of regulatory approval is similar in other countries, to obtain separate regulatory approval in many other countries we must comply with the numerous and varying regulatory requirements of such countries regarding safety and efficacy and governing, among other things, clinical trials and commercial sales, pricing and distribution of our product candidates, and we cannot predict success in these jurisdictions.

Our limited operating history may make it difficult for you to evaluate the success of our business to date and to assess our future viability.

Since commencing operations in 2015, we have devoted a significant portion of our resources to developing our product candidates, our other research and development efforts, building our intellectual property portfolio, raising capital and providing general and administrative support for these operations. While we have ongoing early stage clinical trials, we have not completed any clinical trials for any product candidate. We have not yet demonstrated our ability to successfully complete any clinical trials (including any Phase 3 or other pivotal clinical trials), obtain regulatory approvals, manufacture a commercial scale product or arrange for a third party to do so on our behalf or conduct sales and marketing activities necessary for successful product commercialization. Additionally, we expect our financial condition and operating results to continue to fluctuate significantly from period to period due to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control. Consequently, any predictions you make about our future success or viability may not be as accurate as they could be if we had a longer operating history.

Raising additional capital may cause dilution to our stockholders, restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or product candidates.

Until such time, if ever, as we can generate substantial product revenues, we expect to finance our cash needs through equity or debt financings and upfront and milestone payments, if any, received under our collaborations with AbbVie and any other future licenses or collaborations, together with our existing cash and cash equivalents. In order to accomplish our business objectives and further develop our product pipeline, we will, however, need to seek additional funds. If we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, your ownership interest will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect your rights as a holder of our common stock. In addition, the possibility of such issuance may cause the market price of our common stock to decline. Debt financing, if available, may result in increased fixed payment obligations and involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures, declaring dividends or acquiring, selling or licensing intellectual property rights, which could adversely impact our ability to conduct our business.

If we raise additional funds through collaborations, strategic alliances or marketing, distribution or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our intellectual property, technologies, future revenue streams or product candidates or grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. We could also be required to seek funds through arrangements with collaborators or others at an earlier stage than otherwise would be desirable. Any of these occurrences may have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and prospects.


Any additional fundraising efforts may divert our management from their day-to-day activities, which may adversely affect our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates. In addition, we cannot guarantee that future financing will be available in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all. If we are unable to obtain funding on a timely basis, we may be required to significantly curtail, delay or discontinue one or more of our research or development programs or the commercialization of any of our product candidates, or be unable to expand our operations or otherwise capitalize on our business opportunities, as desired, which could materially affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Regulatory Environment

Our business operations and current and future relationships with healthcare professionals, principal investigators, consultants, vendors, customers and third-party payors in the United States and elsewhere are subject to applicable anti-kickback, fraud and abuse, false claims, physician payment transparency, health information privacy and security and other healthcare laws and regulations, which could expose us to substantial penalties.

Healthcare providers, healthcare facilities and institutions, physicians and third-party payors in the United States and elsewhere will play a primary role in the recommendation and prescription of any product candidates for which we obtain marketing approval. Our current and future arrangements with healthcare professionals, healthcare facilities and institutions, principal investigators, consultants, customers and third-party payors may expose us to broadly applicable fraud and abuse and other healthcare laws, including, without limitation, the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and the federal False Claims Act, that may constrain the business or financial arrangements and relationships through which we sell, market and distribute any product candidates for which we obtain marketing approval. In addition, we may be subject to physician payment transparency laws and patient privacy and security regulation by the federal government and by the states and foreign jurisdictions in which we conduct our business. The applicable federal, state and foreign healthcare laws that affect our ability to operate include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

   

the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, which prohibits, among other things, persons or entities from knowingly and willfully soliciting, offering, receiving or providing any remuneration (including any kickback, bribe, or certain rebate), directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, to induce or reward, or in return for, either the referral of an individual for, or the purchase, lease, order or recommendation of, any good, facility, item or service, for which payment may be made, in whole or in part, under any U.S. federal healthcare program, such as Medicare and Medicaid. The term “remuneration” has been broadly interpreted to include anything of value, including stock options. The federal Anti-Kickback Statute has also been interpreted to apply to arrangements between pharmaceutical manufacturers on the one hand and prescribers, purchasers and formulary managers on the other the other hand. Any arrangements with prescribers must be for bona fide services and compensated at fair market value. A person or entity does not need to have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation;

 

   

the U.S. federal civil and criminal false claims, including the False Claims Act, which prohibit, among other things, including through civil whistleblower or qui tam actions, and civil monetary penalties laws, including the civil False Claims Act, which prohibit, among other things, individuals or entities from knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, to the U.S. federal government, claims for payment or approval that are false or fraudulent, knowingly making, using or causing to be made or used, a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent claim, or from knowingly making a false statement to avoid, decrease or conceal an obligation to pay money to the U.S. federal government. Pharmaceutical manufacturers can cause false claims to be presented to the U.S. federal government by, among other things, engaging in impermissible marketing practices, such as the off-label promotion of a product for an indication for which it has not received FDA approval. In addition, the government may assert that a claim including items and services resulting from a violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the civil False Claims Act;

 

   

the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, which imposes criminal and civil liability for, among other things, knowingly and willfully executing, or attempting to execute, a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program, or knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up a material fact or making any materially false statement, in connection with the delivery of, or payment for, healthcare benefits, items or services. Similar to the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, a person or entity does not need to have actual knowledge of the healthcare fraud statute implemented under HIPAA or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation;


   

HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009, or HITECH, and their respective implementing regulations, which also imposes certain obligations, including mandatory contractual terms, with respect to safeguarding the privacy and security of individually identifiable health information of covered entities subject to the rule, such as health plans, healthcare clearinghouses and certain healthcare providers as well as their business associates, independent contractors of a covered entity that perform certain services involving the use or disclosure of individually identifiable health information on its behalf;

 

   

the U.S. Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which prohibits, among other things, the adulteration or misbranding of drugs, biologics and medical devices;

 

   

the U.S. Public Health Service Act, which prohibits, among other things, the introduction into interstate commerce of a biological product unless a biologics license is in effect for that product;

 

   

the U.S. Physician Payments Sunshine Act and its implementing regulations, which requires, among other things, certain manufacturers of drugs, devices, biologics and medical supplies that are reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, with specific exceptions, to report annually to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, information related to certain payments and other transfers of value to physicians, as defined by such law, and teaching hospitals, as well as ownership and investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family members. Beginning in 2022, applicable manufacturers also will be required to report payments and other transfers of value provided to physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified registered nurse anesthetists and certified nurse midwives during the previous year

 

   

analogous U.S. state laws and regulations, including: state anti-kickback and false claims laws, which may apply to our business practices, including but not limited to, research, distribution, sales and marketing arrangements and claims involving healthcare items or services reimbursed by any third-party payor, including private insurers; state laws that require pharmaceutical companies to comply with the pharmaceutical industry’s voluntary compliance guidelines and the relevant compliance guidance promulgated by the U.S. federal government, or otherwise restrict payments that may be made to healthcare providers and other potential referral sources; state laws and regulations that require drug manufacturers to file reports relating to pricing and marketing information, which requires tracking gifts and other remuneration and items of value provided to healthcare professionals and entities; state and local laws requiring the registration of pharmaceutical sales representatives; and state laws governing the privacy and security of health information in certain circumstances, many of which differ from each other in significant ways and often are not preempted by HIPAA, thus complicating compliance efforts; and

 

   

similar healthcare laws and regulations in foreign jurisdictions, including reporting requirements detailing interactions with and payments to healthcare providers.

We may also be subject to federal consumer protection and unfair competition laws, which broadly regulate marketplace activities and activities that could potentially harm consumers.

Ensuring that our internal operations and future business arrangements with third parties comply with applicable healthcare laws and regulations will involve substantial costs. It is not always possible to identify and deter employee misconduct or business noncompliance, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent inappropriate conduct may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to be in compliance with such laws or regulations. Efforts to ensure that our business arrangements will comply with applicable healthcare laws may involve substantial costs. We have entered into consulting and scientific advisory board arrangements with physicians and other healthcare providers, including some who could influence the use of our product candidates, if approved. Compensation under some of these arrangements includes the provision of stock or stock options in addition to cash consideration. Because of the complex and far-reaching nature of these laws, it is possible that governmental authorities could conclude that our payments to physicians may not be fair market value for bona fide services or that our business practices do not comply with current or future statutes, regulations, agency guidance or case law involving applicable fraud and abuse or other healthcare laws and regulations. If our operations are found to be in violation of any of the laws described above or any other governmental laws and regulations that may apply to us, we may be subject to significant penalties, including civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, fines, exclusion from government-funded healthcare programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid or similar programs


in other countries or jurisdictions, integrity oversight and reporting obligations to resolve allegations of non-compliance, disgorgement, imprisonment, contractual damages, reputational harm, diminished profits and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations. If any of the physicians or other providers or entities with whom we expect to do business are found to not be in compliance with applicable laws, they may be subject to criminal, civil or administrative sanctions, including exclusions from government funded healthcare programs and imprisonment, which could affect our ability to operate our business. Further, defending against any such actions can be costly, time-consuming and may require significant personnel resources. Therefore, even if we are successful in defending against any such actions that may be brought against us, our business may be impaired.

The development and commercialization of biopharmaceutical products is subject to extensive regulation, and the regulatory approval processes of the FDA and comparable foreign authorities are lengthy, time consuming and inherently unpredictable. If we are ultimately unable to obtain regulatory approval for our product candidates on a timely basis if at all, our business will be substantially harmed.

The clinical development, manufacturing, labeling, packaging, storage, recordkeeping, advertising, promotion, export, import, marketing, distribution, adverse event reporting, including the submission of safety and other post-marketing information and reports, and other possible activities relating to our product candidates are subject to extensive regulation. In the United States, marketing approval of biologics requires the submission of a BLA to the FDA, and we are not permitted to market any product candidate in the United States until we obtain approval from the FDA of the BLA for that product. A BLA must be supported by extensive clinical and preclinical data, as well as extensive information regarding pharmacology, chemistry, manufacturing and controls. Outside the United States, many comparable foreign regulatory authorities employ similar approval processes.

FDA approval is not guaranteed, and the time required to obtain approval by the FDA and comparable foreign authorities is unpredictable but typically takes many years following the commencement of clinical trials and depends upon numerous factors, including the substantial discretion of the regulatory authorities. In addition, approval policies, regulations, or the type and amount of clinical data necessary to gain approval may change during the course of a product candidate’s clinical development and may vary among jurisdictions. We have not obtained regulatory approval for any product candidate and it is possible that none of our existing product candidates or any product candidates we may seek to develop in the future will ever obtain regulatory approval.

Our product candidates could fail to receive regulatory approval for many reasons, including the following:

 

   

the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may disagree with the design or implementation of our clinical trials;

 

   

we may be unable to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities that a product candidate is safe and effective for its proposed indication;

 

   

the results of clinical trials may not meet the level of statistical significance required by the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities for approval;

 

   

we may be unable to demonstrate that a product candidate’s clinical and other benefits outweigh its safety risks;

 

   

the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may disagree with our interpretation of data from preclinical studies or clinical trials;

 

   

the data collected from clinical trials of our product candidates may not be sufficient to support the submission of a BLA or other submission or to obtain regulatory approval in the United States or elsewhere, or regulatory authorities may not accept a submission due to, among other reasons, the content or formatting of the submission;

 

   

the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may fail to approve the manufacturing processes or facilities of third-party manufacturers with which we contract for clinical and commercial supplies;

 

   

the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may fail to approve the companion diagnostics we contemplate developing with collaborators; and

 

   

the approval policies or regulations of the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may significantly change in a manner rendering our clinical data insufficient for approval.


This lengthy approval process, as well as the unpredictability of future clinical trial results, may result in our failing to obtain regulatory approval to market any of our product candidates, which would significantly harm our business, results of operations and prospects. The FDA and other regulatory authorities have substantial discretion in the approval process, and determining when or whether regulatory approval will be obtained for any of our product candidates. For example, regulatory authorities in various jurisdictions have in the past had, and may in the future have, differing requirements for, interpretations of and opinions on our preclinical and clinical data. As a result, we may be required to conduct additional preclinical studies, alter our proposed clinical trial designs or conduct additional clinical trials to satisfy the regulatory authorities in each of the jurisdictions in which we hope to conduct clinical trials and develop and market our products, if approved. Further, even if we believe the data collected from clinical trials of our product candidates are promising, such data may not be sufficient to support approval by the FDA or any other regulatory authority.

In addition, even if we were to obtain approval, regulatory authorities may approve any of our product candidates for fewer or more limited indications than we request, may not approve the price we intend to charge for our products, may grant approval contingent on the performance of costly post-marketing clinical trials, or may approve a product candidate with a label that does not include the labeling claims necessary or desirable for the successful commercialization of that product candidate. Any of the foregoing scenarios could materially harm the commercial prospects for our product candidates.

Even if our product candidates obtain regulatory approval, we will be subject to ongoing obligations and continued regulatory review, which may result in significant additional expense. Additionally, our product candidates, if approved, could be subject to labeling and other restrictions and market withdrawal and we may be subject to penalties if we fail to comply with regulatory requirements or experience unanticipated problems with our products.

If the FDA or a comparable foreign regulatory authority approves any of our product candidates, the manufacturing processes, labeling, packaging, distribution, import, export, adverse event reporting, storage, advertising, promotion and recordkeeping for the product will be subject to extensive and ongoing regulatory requirements. These requirements include submissions of safety and other post-marketing information and reports, registration, as well as continued compliance with cGMPs and GCPs for any clinical trials that we conduct post-approval, all of which may result in significant expense and limit our ability to commercialize such products. In addition, any regulatory approvals that we receive for our product candidates may also be subject to limitations on the approved indicated uses for which the product may be marketed or to the conditions of approval, or contain requirements for potentially costly post-marketing testing, including Phase 4 clinical trials, and surveillance to monitor the safety and efficacy of the product candidate.

Manufacturers and manufacturers’ facilities are required to comply with extensive FDA and comparable foreign regulatory authority requirements, including ensuring that quality control and manufacturing procedures conform to cGMP regulations. As such, we and our contract manufacturers will be subject to continual review and inspections to assess compliance with cGMP and adherence to commitments made in any approved marketing application. Accordingly, we and others with whom we work must continue to expend time, money, and effort in all areas of regulatory compliance, including manufacturing, production, and quality control.

If there are changes in the application of legislation or regulatory policies, or if problems are discovered with a product or our manufacture of a product, or if we or one of our distributors, licensees or co-marketers fails to comply with regulatory requirements, the regulators could take various actions. These include imposing fines on us, imposing restrictions on the product or its manufacture and requiring us to recall or remove the product from the market. The regulators could also suspend or withdraw our marketing authorizations, requiring us to conduct additional clinical trials, change our product labeling or submit additional applications for marketing authorization. If any of these events occurs, our ability to sell such product may be impaired, and we may incur substantial additional expense to comply with regulatory requirements, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, if we have any product candidate approved, our product labeling, advertising and promotion will be subject to regulatory requirements and continuing regulatory review. The FDA strictly regulates the promotional claims that may be made about pharmaceutical products. In particular, a product may not be promoted for uses that are not approved by the FDA as reflected in the product’s approved labeling. If we receive marketing approval for a product candidate, physicians may nevertheless prescribe it to their patients in a manner that is inconsistent with the


approved label. If we are found to have promoted such off-label uses, we may become subject to significant liability. The FDA and other agencies actively enforce the laws and regulations prohibiting the promotion of off-label uses, and a company that is found to have improperly promoted off-label uses may be subject to significant sanctions. The federal government has levied large civil and criminal fines against companies for alleged improper promotion and has enjoined several companies from engaging in off-label promotion. The FDA has also requested that companies enter into consent decrees or permanent injunctions under which specified promotional conduct is changed or curtailed.

If a regulatory agency discovers previously unknown problems with a product, such as adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, or problems with the facility where the product is manufactured, or disagrees with the promotion, marketing or labeling of a product, such regulatory agency may impose restrictions on that product or us, including requiring withdrawal of the product from the market. If we fail to comply with applicable regulatory requirements, a regulatory agency or enforcement authority may, among other things:

 

   

issue warning letters;

 

   

impose civil or criminal penalties;

 

   

suspend or withdraw regulatory approval;

 

   

suspend any of our preclinical studies and clinical trials;

 

   

refuse to approve pending applications or supplements to approved applications submitted by us;

 

   

impose restrictions on our operations, including closing our contract manufacturers’ facilities; or

 

   

seize or detain products, or require a product recall.

Any government investigation of alleged violations of law could require us to expend significant time and resources in response, and could generate negative publicity. Any failure to comply with ongoing regulatory requirements may significantly and adversely affect our ability to commercialize and generate revenue from our products, if approved. If regulatory sanctions are applied or if regulatory approval is withdrawn, the value of our company and our operating results will be adversely affected.

Moreover, the policies of the FDA and of other regulatory authorities may change and additional government regulations may be enacted that could prevent, limit or delay regulatory approval of our product candidates. We cannot predict the likelihood, nature or extent of government regulation that may arise from future legislation or administrative or executive action, either in the United States or abroad. For example, the results of the 2020 Presidential election may impact our business and industry. Namely, the Trump administration has taken several executive actions, including the issuance of a number of Executive Orders, that could impose significant burdens on, or otherwise materially delay, the FDA’s ability to engage in routine oversight activities such as implementing statutes through rulemaking, issuance of guidance, and review and approval of marketing applications. It is difficult to predict whether or how these orders will be implemented, or whether they will be rescinded or replaced under a Biden Administration. The policies and priorities of an incoming administration are unknown and could materially impact the regulation of our product candidates. In addition, if we are slow or unable to adapt to changes in existing requirements or the adoption of new requirements or policies, or if we are not able to maintain regulatory compliance, we may lose any marketing approval that we may have obtained and we may not achieve or sustain profitability.

Disruptions at the FDA and other government agencies caused by funding shortages or global health concerns could hinder their ability to hire, retain or deploy key leadership and other personnel, or otherwise prevent new or modified products from being developed, or approved or commercialized in a timely manner or at all, which could negatively impact our business.

The ability of the FDA to review and approve new products can be affected by a variety of factors, including government budget and funding levels, statutory, regulatory, and policy changes, the FDA’s ability to hire and retain key personnel and accept the payment of user fees, and other events that may otherwise affect the FDA’s ability to perform routine functions. Average review times at the agency have fluctuated in recent years as a result. In addition, government funding of other government agencies that fund research and development activities is subject to the political process, which is inherently fluid and unpredictable. Disruptions at the FDA and other agencies may also slow the time necessary for new biologics to be reviewed and/or approved by necessary government agencies, which would adversely affect our business. For example, over the last several years, including for 35 days beginning on December 22, 2018, the U.S. government has shut down several times and certain regulatory agencies, such as the FDA, have had to furlough critical FDA employees and stop critical activities.


Separately, in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, on March 10, 2020 the FDA announced its intention to postpone most foreign inspections of manufacturing facilities and products, and on March 18, 2020, the FDA announced its intention to temporarily postpone routine surveillance inspections of domestic manufacturing facilities. Subsequently, on July 10, 2020 the FDA announced its intention to resume certain on-site inspections of domestic manufacturing facilities subject to a risk-based prioritization system. The FDA intends to use this risk-based assessment system to identify the categories of regulatory activity that can occur within a given geographic area, ranging from mission critical inspections to resumption of all regulatory activities. Regulatory authorities outside the United States may adopt similar restrictions or other policy measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. If a prolonged government shutdown occurs, or if global health concerns continue to prevent the FDA or other regulatory authorities from conducting their regular inspections, reviews, or other regulatory activities, it could significantly impact the ability of the FDA or other regulatory authorities to timely review and process our regulatory submissions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We may pursue the development of our product candidates in combination with other approved therapeutics. If the FDA revokes approval of any such therapeutic, or if safety, efficacy, manufacturing or supply issues arise with any therapeutic that we use in combination with one of our product candidates in the future, we may be unable to further develop and/or market our product candidate or we may experience significant regulatory delays or supply shortages, and our business could be materially harmed.

We may pursue the development of our product candidates in combination with other approved therapeutics, and we may commence clinical trials of our product candidates in combination with other approved therapeutics, in the future. In such a case, we will not have developed or obtained regulatory approval for, nor will we manufacture or sell, any of these approved therapeutics. In addition, the combinations will likely not have been previously tested and may, among other things, fail to demonstrate synergistic activity, may fail to achieve superior outcomes relative to the use of single agents or other combination therapies, may exacerbate adverse events associated with one of our product candidates when used as monotherapy or may fail to demonstrate sufficient safety or efficacy traits in clinical trials to enable us to complete those clinical trials or obtain marketing approval for the combination therapy.

If the FDA revokes its approval of any combination therapeutic, we would not be able to continue clinical development of or market any product candidate in combination with such revoked therapeutic. If safety or efficacy issues were to arise with therapeutics that we seek to combine with, we could experience significant regulatory delays, and the FDA could require us to redesign or terminate the applicable clinical trials. In addition, we may need, for supply, data referencing or other purposes, to collaborate or otherwise engage with the companies who market these approved therapeutics. If we are unable to do so on a timely basis, on acceptable terms or at all, we may have to curtail the development of a product candidate or indication, reduce or delay its development program, delay its potential commercialization or reduce the scope of any sales or marketing activities.

Because we are subject to environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, we may become exposed to liability and substantial expenses in connection with environmental compliance or remediation activities which may adversely affect our business and financial condition.

Our operations, including our research, development, testing and manufacturing activities, are subject to numerous environmental, health and safety laws and regulations. These laws and regulations govern, among other things, the controlled use, handling, release and disposal of, and the maintenance of a registry for, hazardous materials and biological materials, such as chemical solvents, human cells, carcinogenic compounds, mutagenic compounds and compounds that have a toxic effect on reproduction, laboratory procedures and exposure to blood-borne pathogens. If we fail to comply with such laws and regulations, we could be subject to fines or other sanctions. Although we believe our procedures for using, handling, storing and disposing of these materials comply with legally prescribed standards, we cannot completely eliminate the risk of contamination or injury resulting from hazardous and biological materials. As a result of any such contamination or injury, we may incur liability or local, city, state or federal authorities may curtail the use of these materials and interrupt our business operations. In the event of an accident, we could be held liable for damages or penalized with fines, and the liability could exceed our resources.


As with other companies engaged in activities similar to ours, we face a risk of environmental liability inherent in our current and historical activities, including liability relating to releases of or exposure to hazardous or biological materials. Environmental, health and safety laws and regulations are becoming more stringent. We may be required to incur substantial expenses in connection with future environmental compliance or remediation activities, in which case, our production and development efforts may be interrupted or delayed and our financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

Our employees, independent contractors, principal investigators, consultants, commercial partners and vendors may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including non-compliance with regulatory standards and requirements.

We are exposed to the risk of employee fraud or other misconduct. Misconduct by employees could include intentional failures to comply with FDA regulations, provide accurate information to the FDA, comply with manufacturing standards we may establish, comply with federal and state healthcare fraud and abuse laws and regulations, report financial information or data accurately or disclose unauthorized activities to us. In particular, sales, marketing and business arrangements in the healthcare industry are subject to extensive laws and regulations intended to prevent fraud, kickbacks, self-dealing and other abusive practices. These laws and regulations may restrict or prohibit a wide range of pricing, discounting, marketing and promotion, sales commission, customer incentive programs and other business arrangements. Employee misconduct could also involve the improper use of information obtained in the course of clinical trials, which could result in regulatory sanctions and serious harm to our reputation. It is not always possible to identify and deter employee misconduct, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to be in compliance with such laws or regulations. If any such actions are instituted against us, and we are not successful in defending ourselves or asserting our rights, those actions could have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects, including the imposition of significant civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, monetary fines, individual imprisonment, disgorgement of profits, possible exclusion from participation in Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs, contractual damages, reputational harm, diminished profits and future earnings, additional reporting or oversight obligations if we become subject to a corporate integrity agreement or other agreement to resolve allegations of non-compliance with the law and curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and pursue our strategy.

Current and future legislation may increase the difficulty and cost for us and any future collaborators to obtain marketing approval of and commercialize our product candidates and affect the prices we, or they, may obtain.

In the United States and other jurisdictions, there have been, and we expect there will continue to be, a number of legislative and regulatory changes and proposed changes to the healthcare system that could affect our future results of operations. In particular, there have been and continue to be a number of initiatives at the U.S. federal and state levels that seek to reduce healthcare costs and improve the quality of healthcare. For example, in March 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, or collectively the ACA, was enacted, which substantially changed the way healthcare is financed by both governmental and private payors. Among the provisions of the ACA of importance to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are the following:

 

   

an annual, nondeductible fee on any entity that manufactures or imports certain specified branded prescription drugs and biologic agents apportioned among these entities according to their market share in some government healthcare programs;

 

   

an increase in the statutory minimum rebates a manufacturer must pay under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, to 23.1% and 13% of the average manufacturer price for most branded and generic drugs, respectively and capped the total rebate amount for innovator drugs at 100% of the Average Manufacturer Price,

 

   

a new methodology by which rebates owed by manufacturers under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program are calculated for certain drugs and biologics, including our product candidates, that are inhaled, infused, instilled, implanted or injected;


   

extension of manufacturers’ Medicaid rebate liability to covered drugs dispensed to individuals who are enrolled in Medicaid managed care organizations;

 

   

expansion of eligibility criteria for Medicaid programs by, among other things, allowing states to offer Medicaid coverage to additional individuals and by adding new mandatory eligibility categories for individuals with income at or below 133% of the federal poverty level, thereby potentially increasing manufacturers’ Medicaid rebate liability;

 

   

expansion of the entities eligible for discounts under the Public Health program;

 

   

a new Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to oversee, identify priorities in, and conduct comparative clinical effectiveness research, along with funding for such research;

 

   

establishment of a Center for Medicare Innovation at CMS to test innovative payment and service delivery models to lower Medicare and Medicaid spending, potentially including prescription drug spending; and

 

   

a licensure framework for follow on biologic products.

There remain judicial and Congressional challenges to certain aspects of the ACA, as well as efforts by the Trump administration to repeal or replace certain aspects of the. For example, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, or the Tax Act, was enacted, which includes a provision repealing, effective January 1, 2019, the tax-based shared responsibility payment imposed by the ACA on certain individuals who fail to maintain qualifying health coverage for all or part of a year that is commonly referred to as the “individual mandate.” Since the enactment of the Tax Act, there have been additional amendments to certain provisions of the ACA. On December 14, 2018, a Texas U.S. District Court Judge ruled that the ACA is unconstitutional in its entirety because the “individual mandate” was repealed by Congress as part of the Tax Act. Additionally, on December 18, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit upheld the District Court ruling that the individual mandate was unconstitutional and remanded the case back to the District Court to determine whether the remaining provisions of the ACA are invalid as well. On November 10, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments and is in the process of reviewing this case. A decision is expected in 2021. It is unclear how this decision or other efforts to challenge, repeal or replace the ACA will impact the ACA or our business.

In addition, other legislative changes have been proposed and adopted in the United States since the ACA was enacted. In August 2011, the Budget Control Act of 2011, among other things, led to aggregate reductions of Medicare payments to providers of 2% per fiscal year. These reductions went into effect in April 2013 and, due to subsequent legislative amendments to the statute, will remain in effect through 2030, with the exception of a temporary suspension from May 1, 2020 through March 31, 2021, unless additional action is taken by Congress. In January 2013, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 was signed into law, which, among other things, further reduced Medicare payments to several types of providers, including hospitals, imaging centers and cancer treatment centers, and increased the statute of limitations period for the government to recover overpayments to providers from three to five years. These new laws or any other similar laws introduced in the future may result in additional reductions in Medicare and other healthcare funding, which could negatively affect our customers and accordingly, our financial operations.

Moreover, payment methodologies may be subject to changes in healthcare legislation and regulatory initiatives. For example, CMS may develop new payment and delivery models, such as bundled payment models. In addition, recently there has been heightened governmental scrutiny over the manner in which manufacturers set prices for their marketed products, which has resulted in several U.S. Congressional inquiries and proposed and enacted federal and state legislation designed to, among other things, bring more transparency to drug pricing, reduce the cost of prescription drugs under government payor programs, and review the relationship between pricing and manufacturer patient programs. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has solicited feedback on certain of these measures and has implemented others under its existing authority. For example, in May 2019, CMS issued a final rule to allow Medicare Advantage plans the option to use step therapy for Part B drugs beginning January 1, 2020. This final rule codified CMS’s policy change that was effective January 1, 2019. Although a number of these and other measures may require authorization to become effective, the probability of success of the recently announced executive orders and other policies under the Trump administration is uncertain, particularly in light of the new incoming Presidential administration. We expect that additional U.S. federal healthcare reform measures will be adopted in the future, any of which could limit the amounts that the U.S. federal government will pay for healthcare products and services, which could result in reduced demand for our product candidates or additional pricing pressures.


Individual states in the United States have also increasingly passed legislation and implemented regulations designed to control pharmaceutical and biological product pricing, including price or patient reimbursement constraints, discounts, restrictions on certain product access and marketing cost disclosure and transparency measures, and, in some cases, designed to encourage importation from other countries and bulk purchasing. Legally mandated price controls on payment amounts by third-party payors or other restrictions could harm our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects. In addition, regional healthcare authorities and individual hospitals are increasingly using bidding procedures to determine what pharmaceutical products and which suppliers will be included in their prescription drug and other healthcare programs. This could reduce the ultimate demand for our product candidates or put pressure on our product pricing.

In the European Union, similar political, economic and regulatory developments may affect our ability to profitably commercialize our product candidates, if approved. In addition to continuing pressure on prices and cost containment measures, legislative developments at the European Union or member state level may result in significant additional requirements or obstacles that may increase our operating costs. The delivery of healthcare in the European Union, including the establishment and operation of health services and the pricing and reimbursement of medicines, is almost exclusively a matter for national, rather than E.U., law and policy. National governments and health service providers have different priorities and approaches to the delivery of healthcare and the pricing and reimbursement of products in that context. In general, however, the healthcare budgetary constraints in most E.U. member states have resulted in restrictions on the pricing and reimbursement of medicines by relevant health service providers. Coupled with ever-increasing European Union and national regulatory burdens on those wishing to develop and market products, this could prevent or delay marketing approval of our product candidates, restrict or regulate post-approval activities and affect our ability to commercialize our product candidates, if approved. In markets outside of the United States and European Union, reimbursement and healthcare payment systems vary significantly by country, and many countries have instituted price ceilings on specific products and therapies.

We cannot predict the likelihood, nature or extent of government regulation that may arise from future legislation or administrative action in the United States or any other jurisdiction. If we or any third parties we may engage are slow or unable to adapt to changes in existing requirements or the adoption of new requirements or policies, or if we or such third parties are not able to maintain regulatory compliance, our product candidates may lose any regulatory approval that may have been obtained and we may not achieve or sustain profitability.

Even if we are able to commercialize any product candidate, coverage and adequate reimbursement may not be available or such product candidate may become subject to unfavorable pricing regulations or third-party coverage and reimbursement policies, which would harm our business.

The regulations that govern regulatory approvals, pricing and reimbursement for drugs products vary widely from country to country. Some countries require approval of the sale price of a drug product before it can be marketed. In many countries, the pricing review period begins after marketing approval is granted. In some foreign markets, prescription drug product pricing remains subject to continuing governmental control even after initial approval is granted. As a result, we might obtain regulatory approval for a product in a particular country, but then be subject to price regulations that delay our commercial launch of the product, possibly for lengthy time periods and negatively impact the revenues we are able to generate from the sale of the product in that country. Adverse pricing limitations may hinder our ability to recoup our investment in one or more product candidates, even if our product candidates obtain regulatory approval.

Our ability to commercialize any products successfully also will depend in part on the extent to which coverage and adequate reimbursement for these products and related treatments will be available from third party payors, such as government authorities, private health insurers and other organizations. Even if we succeed in bringing one or more products to the market, these products may not be considered cost-effective, and the amount reimbursed for any products may be insufficient to allow us to sell our products on a competitive basis. Because our programs are in the early stages of development, we are unable at this time to determine their cost effectiveness or the likely level or method of coverage and reimbursement. Increasingly, the third-party payors who reimburse patients or healthcare providers are requiring that drug companies provide them with predetermined discounts from list prices, and are seeking to reduce the prices charged or the amounts reimbursed for drug products. If the price we are able to charge for any products we develop, or the coverage and reimbursement provided for such products, is inadequate in light of our development and other costs, our return on investment could be affected adversely.


There may be significant delays in obtaining reimbursement for newly-approved drug products, and coverage may be more limited than the purposes for which the drug product is approved by the FDA or similar foreign regulatory authorities. Moreover, eligibility for reimbursement does not imply that any drugs product will be reimbursed in all cases or at a rate that covers our costs, including research, development, manufacture, sale and distribution.

Interim reimbursement levels for new drug products, if applicable, may also be insufficient to cover our costs and may not be made permanent. Reimbursement rates may be based on payments allowed for lower cost drug products that are already reimbursed, may be incorporated into existing payments for other services and may reflect budgetary constraints or imperfections in Medicare data. Net prices for drug products may be reduced by mandatory discounts or rebates required by third party payors and by any future relaxation of laws that presently restrict imports of drug products from countries where they may be sold at lower prices than in the United States. Obtaining coverage and adequate reimbursement for our product candidates may be particularly difficult because of the higher prices often associated with drugs administered under the supervision of a physician. Similarly, because our product candidates are physician-administered injectables, separate reimbursement for the product itself may or may not be available. Instead, the administering physician may or may not be reimbursed for providing the treatment or procedure in which our product is used.

Further, no uniform policy for coverage and reimbursement exists in the United States, and coverage and reimbursement can differ significantly from payor to payor. Third-party payors often rely upon Medicare coverage policy and payment limitations in setting their own reimbursement rates, but also have their own methods and approval process apart from Medicare determinations. As a result, the coverage determination process is often a time-consuming and costly process that will require us to provide scientific and clinical support for the use of our product candidates to each payor separately, with no assurance that coverage and adequate reimbursement will be applied consistently or obtained in the first instance. Decisions regarding the extent of coverage and amount of reimbursement to be provided for any product candidates that we develop will be made on a payor-by-payor basis. One payor’s determination to provide coverage for a drug does not assure that other payors will also provide coverage and adequate reimbursement for the drug. Additionally, a third-party payor’s decision to provide coverage for a therapy does not imply that an adequate reimbursement rate will be approved.

Additionally, we may develop companion diagnostic tests for use with our product candidates. We, or our collaborators, will be required to obtain coverage and reimbursement for these tests separate and apart from the coverage and reimbursement we seek for our product candidates, once approved. While we have not yet developed any companion diagnostic test for our product candidates, if we do, there is significant uncertainty regarding our ability to obtain coverage and adequate reimbursement for the same reasons applicable to our product candidates.

Our inability to promptly obtain coverage and adequate reimbursement from both third-party payors for the product candidates and companion diagnostic tests that we develop and for which we obtain regulatory approval could have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Failure to comply with existing or future laws and regulations related to privacy or data security could lead to government enforcement actions (which could include civil or criminal fines or penalties), private litigation, other liabilities, and/or adverse publicity. Compliance or the failure to comply with such laws could increase the costs of our products, could limit their use or adoption, and could otherwise negatively affect our operating results and business.

We, our service providers and any collaborators may be subject to or affected by federal, state and foreign data protection laws and regulations, such as laws and regulations that address privacy and data security. In the United States, numerous federal and state laws and regulations, including federal and state health information privacy laws, state data breach notification laws, and federal and state consumer protection laws, including Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, that govern the collection, use, disclosure and protection of health information and other personal information could apply to our operations or the operations of our collaborators. Most healthcare providers, including research institutions from which we or our collaborators obtain patient health information, are subject to privacy and security regulations promulgated under HIPAA, as amended by HITECH. Any person may be prosecuted under HIPAA’s provisions either directly or under aiding-and-abetting or conspiracy principles. Consequently, depending on the facts and circumstances, we could face substantial civil and criminal penalties if we knowingly receive individually identifiable health information from a HIPAA-covered healthcare provider or


research institution that has not satisfied HIPAA’s requirements for disclosure of individually identifiable health information. In addition, we may maintain sensitive personally identifiable information, including health information, that we receive throughout the clinical trial process, in the course of our research collaborations, and directly from individuals (or their healthcare providers) who enroll in our patient assistance programs. As such, we may be subject to state laws requiring notification of affected individuals and state regulators in the event of a breach of personal information, which is a broader class of information than the individually identifiable health information protected by HIPAA.

In addition, certain state and foreign laws govern the privacy and security of health information in certain circumstances, some of which are more stringent than U.S. federal law and many of which differ from each other in significant ways and may not have the same effect, thus complicating compliance efforts. For instance, the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, or CCPA, which became effective on January 1, 2020, gives California residents expanded rights including to access and require deletion of their personal information, opt out of sale of certain personal information sharing, and receive detailed information about how their personal information is used. The CCPA authorizes private lawsuits to recover statutory damages for certain data breaches. Although the CCPA exempts some data regulated by HIPAA and certain data regarding clinical trials, the CCPA, to the extent applicable to our business and operations, may increase our compliance costs and potential liability with respect to other personal information we maintain about California residents. Other privacy legislation has been proposed at the federal and state levels, which, if enacted, could adversely affect our business. The CCPA exemplifies the vulnerability of our business to the evolving regulatory environment related to personal information.

Our operations may also be subject to increased scrutiny or attention from foreign data protection authorities. Our clinical trial programs and research collaborations outside the United States may implicate foreign data protection laws, including in Europe. Many countries have established, or are in the process of establishing, privacy and data security legal frameworks with which we, our collaborators, service providers, including our CROs, and contractors must comply. For example, European data protection laws, including, without limitation, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, which went into effect in May 2018 and introduces strict requirements for processing the personal information of individuals in the EU, Switzerland and United Kingdom, including clinical trial data. It also has significant penalties for non-compliance. The processing of sensitive personal data, such as health information, may impose heightened compliance burdens under the GDPR and is a topic of active interest among foreign regulators. The GDPR increases our obligations with respect to clinical trials conducted in the EU by expanding the definition of personal data to include coded data and requiring changes to informed consent practices and more detailed notices for clinical trial participants and investigators. If our privacy or data security measures fail to comply with the GDPR requirements, we may be subject to litigation, regulatory investigations, enforcement actions that require us to change the way we use personal data, prohibitions on use of personal data and/or fines of up to 20.0 million Euros or up to 4% of the total worldwide annual turnover of the preceding financial year, whichever is higher. In addition to statutory enforcement, a personal data breach can lead to negative publicity and a potential loss of business.

European data protection laws, including the GDPR, generally restrict the transfer of personal information from Europe, including the European Economic Area, United Kingdom and Switzerland, to the United States and most other countries unless the parties to the transfer have implemented specific safeguards to protect the transferred personal information. We are subject to evolving E.U. laws on data exports, as we may transfer personal information from the European Union, United Kingdom, and Switzerland to other jurisdictions. One of the primary safeguards allowing U.S. companies to import personal information from Europe has been certification to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield and Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield frameworks administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce. However, the Court of Justice of the European Union recently invalidated the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield. The same decision also raised questions about whether one of the primary alternatives to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, namely, the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses, can lawfully be used for personal information transfers from the EU to the United States or most other countries. At present, there are few, if any, viable alternatives to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield and the Standard Contractual Clauses. Following the Court of Justice of the European Union’s decision, the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) announced that the Swiss-US Privacy Shield is inadequate for the purposes of personal data transfers from Switzerland to the U.S. While the FDPIC does not have authority to invalidate the Swiss-US Privacy Shield regime, the FDPIC’s announcement casts serious doubt on the viability of the Swiss-US Privacy Shield as a compliance mechanism for Swiss-US data transfers. Authorities in the United Kingdom, whose data protection laws are similar to those of the European Union, may similarly


invalidate use of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, as a mechanisms for lawful personal information transfers from those countries to the United States. We could be impacted by changes in law as a result of the current and past challenges to these mechanisms, which may lead to governmental enforcement actions, litigation, fines and penalties or adverse publicity that could have an adverse effect on our business. As such, if we are unable to implement a valid compliance solution for personal information transfers from Europe, we will face increased exposure to substantial fines under European data protection laws as well as injunctions against processing personal information from Europe. Inability to import personal information from the European Economic Area, United Kingdom or Switzerland may also restrict our clinical trials activities in Europe; limit our ability to collaborate with CROs, service providers, contractors and other companies subject to European data protection laws; and require us to increase our data processing capabilities in Europe at significant expense. Further, the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the EU, often referred to as Brexit, has created uncertainty with regard to data protection regulation in the United Kingdom. In particular, while the Data Protection Act of 2018, which “implements” and complements the GDPR achieved Royal Assent on May 23, 2018 and is now effective in the United Kingdom, it is still unclear whether the transfer of data from the EU to the United Kingdom will in future remain lawful under GDPR. During the period of “transition” (i.e., until December 31, 2020), EU law will continue to apply in the United Kingdom, including the GDPR, and transfers of data from the EU to the United Kingdom are permitted without the need for any “adequacy mechanism. Unless the EU Commission makes an “adequacy finding” in respect of the United Kingdom before January 1, 2021, from that date the United Kingdom will be a “third country” under the GDPR and transfers of data from the EU to the United Kingdom will require an “adequacy mechanism”, such as the Standard Contractual Clauses. Additionally, other countries outside of Europe have enacted or are considering enacting similar cross-border data transfer restrictions and laws requiring local data residency, which could increase the cost and complexity of delivering our services and operating our business.

We are likely to be required to expend significant capital and other resources to ensure ongoing compliance with applicable privacy and data security laws both inside and outside the United States. Compliance with U.S. and foreign data protection laws and regulations could require us to take on more onerous obligations in our contracts, increase our costs of legal compliance, restrict our ability to collect, use and disclose personal data, or in some cases, impact our or our service providers’ or collaborators’ ability to operate in certain jurisdictions. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations could result in government investigations and/or enforcement actions (which could include civil, criminal and administrative penalties), private litigation and/or adverse publicity and could negatively affect our operating results and business. Moreover, clinical trial subjects, employees and other individuals about whom we or our potential collaborators obtain personal information, as well as the providers who share this information with us, may limit our ability to collect, use and disclose the information. Claims that we have violated individuals’ privacy rights or breached our contractual obligations, even if we are not found liable, could be expensive and time-consuming to defend and could result in adverse publicity that could harm our business.

If we, our service providers or any collaborators fail to comply with applicable foreign, federal, state, or local regulatory requirements, we could be subject to a range of regulatory actions that could affect our or any collaborators’ ability to seek to commercialize our clinical candidates. Any threatened or actual government enforcement action could also generate adverse publicity and require that we devote substantial resources that could otherwise be used in other aspects of our business.

We may publish privacy policies and other documentation regarding our collection, processing, use and disclosure of personal information and/or other confidential information. Although we endeavor to comply with our published policies and other documentation, we may at times fail to do so or may be perceived to have failed to do so. Moreover, despite our efforts, we may not be successful in achieving compliance if our employees or vendors fail to comply with our published policies and documentation. Such failures can subject us to potential foreign, local, state and federal action if they are found to be deceptive, unfair, or misrepresentative of our actual practices. Moreover, subjects about whom we or our partners obtain information, as well as the providers who share this information with us, may contractually limit our ability to use and disclose the information. Claims that we have violated individuals’ privacy rights or failed to comply with data protection laws or applicable privacy notices even if we are not found liable, could be expensive and time-consuming to defend and could result in adverse publicity that could harm our business.


Risks Related to Our Business Operations

Manufacturing our TriTAC and ProTriTAC product candidates is complex. We and our third-party manufacturers may encounter difficulties in production. If we encounter any such difficulties, our ability to supply our product candidates for clinical trials or, if approved, for commercial sale could be delayed or halted entirely.

The manufacture of biopharmaceutical products is complex and requires significant expertise and capital investment, including the development of advanced manufacturing techniques and process controls. The process of manufacturing our product candidates is extremely susceptible to product loss due to contamination, equipment failure or improper installation or operation of equipment, vendor or operator error, inconsistency in yields, variability in product characteristics and difficulties in scaling the production process. Even minor deviations from normal manufacturing processes could result in reduced production yields, product defects and other supply disruptions. If microbial, viral or other contaminations are discovered in our product candidates or in the manufacturing facilities in which our product candidates are made, such manufacturing facilities may need to be closed for an extended period of time to investigate and remedy the contamination. All of our TriTACs and ProTriTACs are manufactured from a vial of a master cell bank of that antibody’s production cell line. We have or intend to have one master cell bank for each TriTAC and ProTriTAC that was or will be produced and tested in accordance with current good manufacturing practice, or cGMP, and applicable regulations. Each master cell bank is or will be stored in two independent locations, and we intend to produce working cell banks for each product candidate later in product development. It is possible that we could lose multiple cell banks from multiple locations and have our manufacturing severely impacted by the need to replace the cell banks. However, we believe we have adequate backup should any particular cell bank be lost in a catastrophic event. Any adverse developments affecting manufacturing operations for our product candidates, if any are approved, may result in shipment delays, inventory shortages, lot failures, product withdrawals or recalls, or other interruptions in the supply of our products. We may also have to take inventory write-offs and incur other charges and expenses for products that fail to meet specifications as a result of defects or storage over an extended period of time, undertake costly remediation efforts or seek more costly manufacturing alternatives.

Our business could be adversely affected by the effects of health epidemics, including the recent outbreak of the novel coronavirus. A COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing in many parts of the world and may result in significant disruptions which could materially affect our operations, including at our headquarters in the San Francisco Bay Area and at our clinical trial sites.

In December 2019, COVID-19 was reported to have surfaced in Wuhan, China, resulting in significant disruptions to Chinese manufacturing and travel. COVID-19 has now spread to numerous other countries, including the United States, resulting in the World Health Organization characterizing COVID-19 as a pandemic. As a result of measures imposed by the governments in affected regions, many commercial activities, businesses and schools have been suspended as part of quarantines and other measures intended to contain this pandemic. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread around the globe, we may experience disruptions that could adversely impact our business and clinical trials, including:

 

   

delays or difficulties in enrolling patients in our clinical trials;

 

   

delays or difficulties in clinical site initiation, including difficulties in recruiting clinical site investigators and clinical site staff;

 

   

diversion of healthcare resources away from the conduct of clinical trials, including the diversion of hospitals serving as our clinical trial sites and hospital staff supporting the conduct of clinical trials;

 

   

interruption of key clinical trial activities, such as clinical trial site monitoring, due to limitations on travel imposed or recommended by federal or state governments, employers and others;

 

   

limitations in resources that would otherwise be focused on the conduct of our business or our clinical trials, including because of sickness or the desire to avoid contact with large groups of people or as a result of government-imposed “shelter in place” or similar working restrictions;

 

   

delays in receiving approval from regulatory authorities to initiate our planned clinical trials;

 

   

delays in clinical sites receiving the supplies and materials needed to conduct our clinical trials;

 

   

interruption in shipping that may affect the transport of clinical trial materials, such as investigational drug product used in our clinical trials;


   

changes in regulations as part of a response to the COVID-19 pandemic which may require us to change the ways in which our clinical trials are conducted, or to discontinue the clinical trials altogether, or which may result in unexpected costs;

 

   

delays in necessary interactions with regulators, ethics committees and other important agencies and contractors due to limitations in employee resources or forced furlough of government or contractor personnel; and

 

   

refusal of the FDA to accept data from clinical trials in affected geographies outside the United States.

We are still assessing the impact that COVID-19 may have on our ability to effectively conduct our business operations as planned and there can be no assurance that we will be able to avoid a material adverse impact on our business from the spread of COVID-19 or its consequences, including disruption to our business and downturns in business sentiment generally or in our industry. For example, on March 16, 2020, San Mateo County issued a “shelter-in-place” order, effective March 17, 2020, and on March 19, 2020, the Executive Department of the State of California issued Executive Order N-33-20, ordering all individuals in the State of California to stay home or at their place of residence except as needed to maintain continuity of operations of the federal critical infrastructure sectors. Our primary operations are located in South San Francisco, located in San Mateo County. As a result of such county and California state orders, we have closed our executive offices, substantially all of our employees are currently telecommuting, and we have limited the number of staff in our laboratory, which may impact certain of our operations over the near term and long term. As of September 30, 2020, we have not experienced any material delays or significant financial impacts directly related to the pandemic but have experienced some minor disruptions to clinical operations, including patient enrollment in some of our clinical trials.

Additionally, certain third parties with whom we engage, including our collaborators, contract organizations, third party manufacturers, suppliers, clinical trial sites, regulators and other third parties with whom we conduct business are similarly adjusting their operations and assessing their capacity in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. If these third parties experience shutdowns or continued business disruptions, our ability to conduct our business in the manner and on the timelines presently planned could be materially and negatively impacted. For example, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, there could be delays in the manufacturing supply chain or procurement of materials for our product candidates, which could delay or otherwise impact our preclinical and clinical programs and anticipated development timelines. Additionally, certain preclinical studies for our discovery research programs and clinical trials are conducted by CROs, which could be discontinued or delayed as a result of the pandemic. It is also likely that the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on hospitals and clinical sites will have an impact on recruitment and retention for our clinical trials. In addition, certain of our clinical trial sites have experienced, and others may experience in the future, delays in collecting, receiving and analyzing data from patients enrolled in our clinical trials due to limited staff at such sites, limitation or suspension of on-site visits by patients, or patients’ reluctance to visit the clinical trial sites during the pandemic. We and our CROs may also need to make certain adjustments to the operation of such trials in an effort to ensure the safety and monitoring of patients and minimize risks to trial integrity during the pandemic in accordance with the guidance issued by the FDA on March 18, 2020 and EMA on April 28, 2020. Any such adjustments would be new and untested, may not be effective, and may have unforeseen effects on the enrollment, progress and completion of these trials and the findings from these trials. While we are currently continuing our clinical trials and seeking to add new clinical trial sites, we may not be successful in adding trial sites, may experience delays in patient enrollment or in the progression of our clinical trials, may need to suspend our clinical trials, and may encounter other negative impacts to our trials, due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The global outbreak of COVID-19 continues to rapidly evolve. While the extent of the impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic on our business and financial results is uncertain, a continued and prolonged public health crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic could have a material negative impact on our business, financial condition and operating results.


Our business may become subject to economic, political, regulatory and other risks associated with international operations.

Our business is subject to risks associated with conducting business internationally. Accordingly, our future results could be harmed by a variety of factors, including:

 

   

economic weakness, including inflation, or political instability, particularly in foreign economies and markets;

 

   

differing regulatory requirements for drug approvals in foreign countries;

 

   

differing jurisdictions could present different issues for securing, maintaining and/or obtaining freedom to operate in such jurisdictions;

 

   

potentially reduced protection for intellectual property rights;

 

   

difficulties in compliance with foreign laws and regulations;

 

   

changes in foreign regulations and customs, tariffs and trade barriers;

 

   

changes in foreign currency exchange rates and currency controls;

 

   

changes in a specific country’s or region’s political or economic environment;

 

   

trade protection measures, import or export licensing requirements or other actions by the U.S. or foreign governments;

 

   

differing reimbursement regimes and price controls in certain foreign markets;

 

   

negative consequences from changes in tax laws;

 

   

compliance with tax, employment, immigration and labor laws for employees living or traveling abroad;

 

   

workforce uncertainty in countries where labor unrest is more common than in the United States;

 

   

difficulties associated with staffing and managing international operations, including differing labor relations;

 

   

production shortages resulting from any events affecting raw material supply or manufacturing capabilities abroad;

 

   

the impact of public health epidemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic currently impacting multiple jurisdictions worldwide, including the United States; and

 

   

business interruptions resulting from geo-political actions, including war and terrorism, or natural disasters, including earthquakes, typhoons, floods and fires.

We may become exposed to costly and damaging liability claims, either when testing our product candidates in the clinic or at the commercial stage, and our product liability insurance may not cover all damages from such claims.

We are exposed to potential product liability and professional indemnity risks that are inherent in the research, development, manufacturing, marketing and use of pharmaceutical products. While we currently have no products that have been approved for commercial sale, the current and future use of product candidates by us and our partners in clinical trials, and the sale of any approved products in the future, may expose us to liability claims. These claims might be made by patients that use the product, healthcare providers, pharmaceutical companies, our partners or others selling such products. Any claims against us, regardless of their merit, could be difficult and costly to defend and could materially adversely affect the market for our product candidates or any prospects for commercialization of our product candidates.

Although the clinical trial process is designed to identify and assess potential side effects, it is always possible that a drug, even after regulatory approval, may exhibit unforeseen side effects. If any of our product candidates were to cause adverse side effects during clinical trials or after approval of the product candidate, we may be exposed to substantial liabilities. Physicians and patients may not comply with any warnings that identify known potential adverse effects and patients who should not use our product candidates.

Even successful defense against product liability claims would require significant financial and management resources. Regardless of the merits or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in: decreased demand for our product candidates; injury to our reputation; withdrawal of clinical trial participants; initiation of investigations by regulators; costs to defend the related litigation; a diversion of management’s time and our resources; substantial monetary awards to trial participants or patients; product recalls, withdrawals or labeling, marketing or promotional restrictions; loss of revenue; exhaustion of any available insurance and our capital resources; the inability to commercialize any product candidate; and a decline in our share price.

Although we maintain adequate product liability insurance for our product candidates, it is possible that our liabilities could exceed our insurance coverage. We intend to expand our insurance coverage to include the sale of commercial products if we obtain marketing approval for any of our product candidates. However, we may not be


able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost or obtain insurance coverage that will be adequate to satisfy any liability that may arise. If a successful product liability claim or series of claims is brought against us for uninsured liabilities or in excess of insured liabilities, our assets may not be sufficient to cover such claims and our business operations could be impaired.

Our future growth and ability to compete depends on retaining our key personnel and recruiting additional qualified personnel.

Our success depends upon the continued contributions of our key management, scientific and technical personnel, many of whom have been instrumental for us and have substantial experience with our therapies and related technologies. The loss of key managers and senior scientists could delay our research and development activities. In addition, the competition for qualified personnel in the biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical field is intense, and our future success depends upon our ability to attract, retain and motivate highly-skilled scientific, technical and managerial employees. We face competition for personnel from other companies, universities, public and private research institutions and other organizations. If our recruitment and retention efforts are unsuccessful in the future, it may be difficult for us to implement business strategy, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We conduct substantially all of our operations at our facilities in South San Francisco, California. This region is headquarters to many other biopharmaceutical companies and many academic and research institutions. Competition for skilled personnel in this region is intense and may limit our ability to hire and retain highly qualified personnel on acceptable terms or at all.

We expect to expand our development, regulatory and sales and marketing capabilities, and as a result, we may encounter difficulties in managing our growth, which could disrupt our operations.

As of October 31, 2020, we had 77 full-time employees. We expect to experience significant growth in the number of our employees and the scope of our operations, particularly in the areas of drug development, regulatory affairs and sales and marketing. To manage our anticipated future growth, we must continue to implement and improve our managerial, operational and financial systems, expand our facilities and continue to recruit and train additional qualified personnel. Due to our limited financial resources and the limited experience of our management team in managing a company with such anticipated growth, we may not be able to effectively manage the expansion of our operations or recruit and train additional qualified personnel. The expansion of our operations may lead to significant costs and may divert our management and business development resources. Any inability to manage growth could delay the execution of our business plans or disrupt our operations.

In addition, future growth imposes significant added responsibilities on members of management, including: identifying, recruiting, integrating, maintaining and motivating additional employees; managing our internal development efforts effectively, including the clinical and FDA review process for our product candidates, while complying with our contractual obligations to contractors and other third parties; and improving our operational, financial and management controls, reporting systems and procedures. Our future financial performance and our ability to commercialize our product candidates will depend, in part, on our ability to effectively manage our growth, and our management may also have to divert a disproportionate amount of its attention away from day-to-day activities in order to devote a substantial amount of time to managing these growth activities.

We rely or expect to rely in substantial part on certain independent organizations, advisors and consultants to provide certain services, including strategic, financial, business development services, as well as substantial aspects of regulatory approval, clinical management, manufacturing and preparation for potential commercial launch. There can be no assurance that the services of independent organizations, advisors and consultants will continue to be available to us on a timely basis when needed, or that we can find qualified replacements. In addition, if we are unable to effectively manage our outsourced activities or if the quality or accuracy of the services provided by consultants or contract manufacturing organizations is compromised for any reason, our clinical trials may be extended, delayed or terminated, and we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval of our product candidates or otherwise advance our business. There can be no assurance that we will be able to manage our existing consultants or find other competent outside contractors and consultants on economically reasonable terms, or at all.


If we are not able to effectively expand our organization by hiring new employees and expanding our groups of consultants and contractors, we may not be able to successfully implement the tasks necessary to further develop and commercialize our product candidates and, accordingly, may not achieve our research, development and commercialization goals.

Acquisitions or joint ventures could disrupt our business, cause dilution to our stockholders and otherwise harm our business.

We actively evaluate various strategic transactions on an ongoing basis. We may acquire other businesses, products or technologies as well as pursue strategic alliances, joint ventures or investments in complementary businesses. Any of these transactions could be material to our financial condition and operating results and expose us to many risks, including:

 

   

disruption in our relationships with existing strategic partners or suppliers as a result of such a transaction;

 

   

unanticipated liabilities related to acquired companies or joint ventures;

 

   

difficulties integrating acquired personnel, technologies and operations into our existing business;

 

   

retention of key employees;

 

   

diversion of management time and focus from operating our business to management of strategic alliances or joint ventures or acquisition integration challenges;

 

   

increases in our expenses and reductions in our cash available for operations and other uses; and

 

   

possible write-offs or impairment charges relating to acquired businesses.

In addition, we face significant competition in seeking appropriate strategic partners and the negotiation process is time-consuming and complex. Moreover, we may not be successful in our efforts to establish a strategic alliance or other alternative arrangements for our product candidates because they may be deemed to be at too early of a stage of development for collaborative effort and third parties may not view our product candidates as having the requisite potential to demonstrate safety and efficacy. Any delays in entering into new strategic transactions related to our product candidates could delay the development and commercialization of our product candidates in certain geographies for certain indications, which would harm our business prospects, financial condition and results of operations.

Foreign acquisitions involve unique risks in addition to those mentioned above, including those related to integration of operations across different cultures and languages, currency risks, potentially adverse tax consequences of overseas operations and the particular economic, political and regulatory risks associated with specific countries.

The anticipated benefit of any strategic alliance, joint venture or acquisition may not materialize or such strategic alliance, joint venture or acquisition may be prohibited. Additionally, future acquisitions or dispositions could result in potentially dilutive issuances of our equity securities, the incurrence of debt, contingent liabilities or amortization expenses or write-offs of goodwill, any of which could harm our financial condition. We cannot predict the number, timing or size of future joint ventures or acquisitions, or the effect that any such transactions might have on our operating results.

Our research and development activities could be affected or delayed as a result of possible restrictions on animal testing.

Certain laws and regulations require us to test our product candidates on animals before initiating clinical trials involving humans. Animal testing activities have been the subject of controversy and adverse publicity. Animal rights groups and other organizations and individuals have attempted to stop animal testing activities by pressing for legislation and regulation in these areas and by disrupting these activities through protests and other means. To the extent the activities of these groups are successful, our research and development activities may be interrupted, delayed or become more expensive.


Risks Related to Commercialization of Our Product Candidates

We operate in highly competitive and rapidly changing industries, which may result in others discovering, developing or commercializing competing products before or more successfully than we do.

The biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical industries are highly competitive and subject to significant and rapid technological change. Our success is highly dependent on our ability to discover, develop and obtain marketing approval for new and innovative products on a cost-effective basis and to market them successfully. In doing so, we face and will continue to face intense competition from a variety of businesses, including large pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academic institutions, government agencies and other public and private research organizations. These organizations may have significantly greater resources than we do and conduct similar research, seek patent protection and establish collaborative arrangements for research, development, manufacturing and marketing of products that compete with our product candidates. Mergers and acquisitions in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries may result in even more resources being concentrated in our competitors. Competition may increase further as a result of advances in the commercial applicability of technologies and greater availability of capital for investment in these industries.

With the proliferation of new oncology drugs and therapies, we expect to face increasingly intense competition as new technologies become available. If we fail to stay at the forefront of technological change, we may be unable to compete effectively. Any product candidates that we successfully develop and commercialize will compete with existing therapies and new therapies that may become available in the future. The highly competitive nature of and rapid technological changes in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries could render our product candidates or our technology obsolete, less competitive or uneconomical. Our competitors may, among other things:

 

   

have significantly greater financial, manufacturing, marketing, drug development, technical and human resources than we do;

 

   

develop and commercialize products that are safer, more effective, less expensive, more convenient or easier to administer, or have fewer or less severe side effects;

 

   

obtain quicker regulatory approval;

 

   

establish superior proprietary positions covering our products and technologies;

 

   

implement more effective approaches to sales and marketing; or

 

   

form more advantageous strategic alliances.

Should any of these factors occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

In addition, any collaborators may decide to market and sell products that compete with the product candidates that we have agreed to license to them, and any competition by our collaborators could also have a material adverse effect on our future business, financial condition and results of operations.

Smaller and other early stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies. These third parties compete with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific and management personnel, establishing clinical trial sites and patient registration for clinical trials, as well as in acquiring technologies complementary to, or necessary for, our programs.

If the market opportunity for any product candidate that we or our strategic partners develop is smaller than we believe, our revenue may be adversely affected and our business may suffer.

We intend to initially focus our product candidate development on treatments for various oncology indications. Our projections of addressable patient populations that may benefit from treatment with our product candidates are based on our estimates. These estimates, which have been derived from a variety of sources, including scientific literature, surveys of clinics, patient foundations and market research, may prove to be incorrect. Further, new studies may change the estimated incidence or prevalence of these cancers. Additionally, the potentially addressable patient population for our product candidates may not ultimately be amenable to treatment with our product candidates. Our market opportunity may also be limited by future competitor treatments that enter the market. If any of our estimates prove to be inaccurate, the market opportunity for any product candidate that we or our strategic partners develop could be significantly diminished and have an adverse material impact on our business.


The market opportunities for our product candidates may be limited to those patients who are ineligible for or have failed prior treatments and may be small.

Cancer therapies are sometimes characterized by line of therapy (first, second, third, fourth, etc.), and the FDA often initially approves new therapies only for use in a particular line or lines of therapy. When cancer is detected early enough, first line therapy is sometimes adequate to provide a cure or prolong life without a cure. Whenever first line therapy (typically chemotherapy, hormone therapy, surgery or a combination of these) proves unsuccessful, second line therapy (typically more chemotherapy, radiation, antibody drugs, tumor targeted small molecules or a combination of these) may be administered. Third or fourth line therapies can include antibody and small molecule targeted therapies, more invasive forms of surgery and new technologies. We may initially seek approval of our product candidates as a third line therapy for patients who have failed other approved treatments. Subsequently, for product candidates that prove to be sufficiently beneficial, if any, we would expect to seek approval as a second and first line therapy. However, there is no guarantee that our product candidates, even if initially approved, would be subsequently approved as a second or first line therapy. In addition, we may have to conduct additional clinical trials prior to gaining approval as a second or first line therapy. Because the potentially addressable patient target population for our product candidates may be limited to patients who are ineligible for or have failed prior treatments, even if we obtain significant market share for our product candidates, we may never achieve profitability.

We may expend our limited resources to pursue a particular product candidate or indication and fail to capitalize on product candidates or indications that may be more profitable or for which there is a greater likelihood of success.

Because we have limited financial and managerial resources, we focus on research programs, therapeutic platforms and product candidates that we identify for specific indications. As a result, we may forego or delay pursuit of opportunities with other therapeutic platforms or product candidates or for other indications that later prove to have greater commercial potential. Our resource allocation decisions may cause us to fail to capitalize on viable commercial products or profitable market opportunities. Our spending on current and future research and development programs, therapeutic platforms and product candidates for specific indications may not yield any commercially viable products. If we do not accurately evaluate the commercial potential or target market for a particular product candidate, we may relinquish valuable rights to that product candidate through collaboration, licensing or other royalty arrangements in cases in which it would have been more advantageous for us to retain sole development and commercialization rights.

Even if approved, our products may not gain market acceptance, in which case we may not be able to generate product revenues, which will materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Even if the FDA or any other regulatory authority approves the marketing of any product candidates that we develop on our own or with a collaborator, physicians, healthcare providers, patients or the medical community may not accept or use them. If these products do not achieve an adequate level of acceptance, we may not generate significant product revenues or any profits from operations. The degree of market acceptance of any of our product candidates will depend on a variety of factors, including:

 

   

the timing of market introduction;

 

   

the number and clinical profile of competing products;

 

   

our ability to provide acceptable evidence of safety and efficacy;

 

   

the prevalence and severity of any side effects;

 

   

relative convenience and ease of administration;

 

   

cost-effectiveness;

 

   

patient diagnostics and screening infrastructure in each market;

 

   

marketing and distribution support;

 

   

availability of coverage, adequate reimbursement and sufficient payment from health maintenance organizations and other insurers, both public and private, for our product candidates, or the procedures utilizing our product candidates, if approved; and

 

   

other potential advantages over alternative treatment methods.


If our product candidates fail to gain market acceptance, this will have a material adverse impact on our ability to generate revenues to provide a satisfactory, or any, return on our investments. Even if some products achieve market acceptance, the market may prove not to be large enough to allow us to generate significant revenues.

We currently have no marketing, sales or distribution infrastructure. If we are unable to develop sales, marketing and distribution capabilities on our own or through collaborations, or if we fail to achieve adequate pricing and/or reimbursement we will not be successful in commercializing our product candidates.

We currently have no marketing, sales and distribution capabilities because all of our product candidates are still in clinical or preclinical development. If any of our product candidates are approved, we intend either to establish a sales and marketing organization with technical expertise and supporting distribution capabilities to commercialize our product candidates, or to outsource this function to a third party. Either of these options would be expensive and time consuming. These costs may be incurred in advance of any approval of our product candidates. In addition, we may not be able to hire a sales force that is sufficient in size or has adequate expertise in the medical markets that we intend to target. Any failure or delay in the development of our internal sales, marketing and distribution capabilities would adversely impact the commercialization of our products, if approved.

To the extent that we enter into collaboration agreements with respect to marketing, sales or distribution, our product revenue may be lower than if we directly marketed or sold any approved products. In addition, any revenue we receive will depend in whole or in part upon the efforts of these third-party collaborators, which may not be successful and are generally not within our control. If we are unable to enter into these arrangements on acceptable terms or at all, we may not be able to successfully commercialize any approved products. If we are not successful in commercializing any approved products, either on our own or through collaborations with one or more third parties, our future product revenue will suffer and we may incur significant additional losses.

We have never commercialized a product candidate before and may lack the necessary expertise, personnel and resources to successfully commercialize any products on our own or together with suitable collaborators.

We have never commercialized a product candidate, and we currently have no sales force, marketing or distribution capabilities. To achieve commercial success for the product candidates, which we may license to others, we will rely on the assistance and guidance of those collaborators. For product candidates for which we retain commercialization rights, we will have to develop our own sales, marketing and supply organization or outsource these activities to a third party.

Factors that may affect our ability to commercialize our product candidates on our own include recruiting and retaining adequate numbers of effective sales and marketing personnel, obtaining access to or persuading adequate numbers of physicians to prescribe our product candidates and other unforeseen costs associated with creating an independent sales and marketing organization. Developing a sales and marketing organization will be expensive and time-consuming and could delay the launch of our product candidates. We may not be able to build an effective sales and marketing organization. If we are unable to build our own distribution and marketing capabilities or to find suitable partners for the commercialization of our product candidates, we may not generate revenues from them or be able to reach or sustain profitability.

Our product candidates for which we intend to seek approval as biologic products may face competition sooner than anticipated.

The ACA includes a subtitle called the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009, or BPCIA, which created an abbreviated approval pathway for biological products that are biosimilar to or interchangeable with an FDA-licensed reference biological product. Under the BPCIA, an application for a biosimilar product may not be submitted to the FDA until four years following the date that the reference product was first approved by the FDA. In addition, the approval of a biosimilar product may not be made effective by the FDA until 12 years from the date on which the reference product was first approved. During this 12-year period of exclusivity, another company may still market a competing version of the reference product if the FDA approves a full BLA for the competing product containing the sponsor’s own preclinical data and data from adequate and well-controlled clinical trials to demonstrate the safety, purity and potency of their product. The law is complex and is still being interpreted and implemented by the FDA. As a result, its ultimate impact, implementation, and meaning are subject to uncertainty.


We believe that any of our product candidates approved as a biological product under a BLA should qualify for the 12-year period of exclusivity. However, there is a risk that this exclusivity could be shortened due to congressional action or otherwise, or that the FDA will not consider our product candidates to be reference products for competing products, potentially creating the opportunity for competition sooner than anticipated. Other aspects of the BPCIA, some of which may impact the BPCIA exclusivity provisions, have also been the subject of recent litigation. Moreover, the extent to which a biosimilar, once approved, will be substituted for any one of our reference products in a way that is similar to traditional generic substitution for non-biological products is not yet clear, and will depend on a number of marketplace and regulatory factors that are still developing.

Jurisdictions in addition to the United States have established abbreviated pathways for regulatory approval of biological products that are biosimilar to earlier approved reference products. For example, the European Union has had an established regulatory pathway for biosimilars since 2005.

The increased likelihood of biosimilar competition has increased the risk of loss of innovators’ market exclusivity. Due to this risk, and uncertainties regarding patent protection, if our clinical candidates are approved for marketing, it is not possible to predict the length of market exclusivity for any particular product with certainty based solely on the expiration of the relevant patent(s) or the current forms of regulatory exclusivity. It is also not possible to predict changes in United States regulatory law that might reduce biological product regulatory exclusivity. The loss of market exclusivity for a product would likely materially and negatively affect revenues and we may not generate adequate or sufficient revenues from them or be able to reach or sustain profitability.

Risks Related to Our Dependence on Third Parties

We rely, and expect to continue to rely, on third parties, including independent clinical investigators and CROs, to conduct our preclinical studies and clinical trials. If these third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties, comply with applicable regulatory requirements or meet expected deadlines, we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval for or commercialize our product candidates and our business could be substantially harmed.

We have relied upon and plan to continue to rely upon third parties, including independent clinical investigators and third-party CROs, to conduct our preclinical studies and clinical trials and to monitor and manage data for our ongoing preclinical and clinical programs. We rely on these parties for execution of our preclinical studies and clinical trials, and control only certain aspects of their activities. Nevertheless, we are responsible for ensuring that each of our studies and trials is conducted in accordance with the applicable protocol, legal, regulatory and scientific standards, and our reliance on these third parties does not relieve us of our regulatory responsibilities. We and our third-party contractors and CROs are required to comply with GCP requirements, which are regulations and guidelines enforced by the FDA and comparable foreign regulatory authorities for all of our products candidates in clinical development. Regulatory authorities enforce these GCPs through periodic inspections of trial sponsors, principal investigators and trial sites. If we or any of our CROs fail to comply with applicable GCPs, the clinical data generated in our clinical trials may be deemed unreliable and the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may require us to perform additional clinical trials before approving our marketing applications. We cannot assure you that upon inspection by a given regulatory authority, such regulatory authority will determine that any of our clinical trials comply with GCP regulations. In addition, our clinical trials must be conducted with product produced under cGMP regulations. Our failure to comply with these regulations may require us to repeat clinical trials, which would delay the regulatory approval process.

Further, these investigators and CROs are not our employees and we will not be able to control, other than by contract, the amount of resources, including time, which they devote to our product candidates and clinical trials. If independent investigators or CROs fail to devote sufficient resources to the development of our product candidates, or if their performance is substandard, it may delay or compromise the prospects for approval and commercialization of any product candidates that we develop. In addition, the use of third-party service providers may require us to disclose our proprietary information to these parties, which could increase the risk that this information will be misappropriated.

Our CROs have the right to terminate their agreements with us in the event of an uncured material breach. In addition, some of our CROs have an ability to terminate their respective agreements with us if it can be reasonably demonstrated that the safety of the subjects participating in our clinical trials warrants such termination, if we make a general assignment for the benefit of our creditors or if we are liquidated.


If any of our relationships with these third-party CROs terminate, we may not be able to enter into arrangements with alternative CROs or to do so on commercially reasonable terms. If CROs do not successfully carry out their contractual duties or obligations or meet expected deadlines, if they need to be replaced or if the quality or accuracy of the clinical data they obtain is compromised due to the failure to adhere to our clinical protocols, regulatory requirements or for other reasons, our clinical trials may be extended, delayed or terminated and we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval for or successfully commercialize our product candidates. As a result, our results of operations and the commercial prospects for our product candidates would be harmed, our costs could increase and our ability to generate revenues could be delayed.

Switching or adding additional CROs involves additional cost and requires management time and focus. In addition, there is a natural transition period when a new CRO commences work. As a result, delays occur, which can materially impact our ability to meet our desired clinical development timelines. Additionally, CROs may lack the capacity to absorb higher workloads or take on additional capacity to support our needs. Though we carefully manage our relationships with our CROs, there can be no assurance that we will not encounter similar challenges or delays in the future or that these delays or challenges will not have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and prospects.

We may not realize the benefits of any collaborative or licensing arrangement we enter into, and if we fail to enter into new strategic relationships our business, financial condition, commercialization prospects and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

Our product development programs and the potential commercialization of our product candidates will require substantial additional cash to fund expenses. Therefore, for some of our product candidates, we may decide to enter into new collaborations with pharmaceutical or biopharmaceutical companies for the development and potential commercialization of those product candidates. For instance, we have a discovery collaboration and license agreement with AbbVie, pursuant to which we have licensed the development and commercialization of certain of our product candidates, as well as Development and Option Agreement with AbbVie, pursuant to which we granted to AbbVie an option to a worldwide, exclusive license with respect to HPN217.

We face significant competition in seeking appropriate collaborators. Collaborations are complex and time-consuming to negotiate and document. We may also be restricted under existing and future collaboration agreements from entering into agreements on certain terms with other potential collaborators. We may not be able to negotiate collaborations on acceptable terms, or at all. If our strategic collaborations do not result in the successful development and commercialization of product candidates, or if one of our collaborators terminates its agreement with us, we may not receive any future research funding or milestone or royalty payments under the collaboration. Moreover, our estimates of the potential revenue we are eligible to receive under our strategic collaborations may include potential payments related to therapeutic programs for which our collaborators have discontinued development or may discontinue development in the future. If that were to occur, we may have to curtail the development of a particular product candidate, reduce or delay its development program or one or more of our other development programs, delay its potential commercialization or reduce the scope of our sales or marketing activities, or increase our expenditures and undertake development or commercialization activities at our own expense. If we elect to increase our expenditures to fund development or commercialization activities on our own, we may need to obtain additional capital, which may not be available to us on acceptable terms or at all. If we do not have sufficient funds, we will not be able to bring our product candidates to market and generate product revenue. If we do enter into a new collaboration agreement, we could be subject to the following risks, each of which may materially harm our business, commercialization prospects and financial condition:

 

   

we may not be able to control the amount and timing of resources that the collaboration partner devotes to the product development program;

 

   

the collaboration partner may experience financial difficulties;

 

   

we may be required to relinquish important rights such as marketing, distribution and intellectual property rights;


   

a collaborator could move forward with a competing product developed either independently or in collaboration with third parties, including our competitors; or

 

   

business combinations or significant changes in a collaborator’s business strategy may adversely affect our willingness to complete our obligations under any arrangement.

If we license products or businesses, we may not be able to realize the benefit of such transactions if we are unable to successfully integrate them with our existing operations and company culture. We cannot be certain that, following a strategic transaction or license, we will achieve the results, revenue or specific net income that justifies such transaction.

We rely on third-party manufacturers to produce our product candidates. Any failure by a third-party manufacturer to produce acceptable product candidates for us may delay or impair our ability to initiate or complete our clinical trials or commercialize approved products.

We do not currently own or operate any manufacturing facilities nor do we have any in-house manufacturing experience or personnel. We work with third-party contract manufacturers to produce sufficient quantities of our product candidates for preclinical testing and clinical trials, in compliance with applicable regulatory and quality standards, and intend to do so for the commercial manufacture of our products, if approved. If we are unable to arrange for such third-party manufacturing sources, or fail to do so on commercially reasonable terms, we may not be able to successfully produce sufficient supply of product candidate or we may be delayed in doing so. For example, public health epidemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic currently impacting multiple jurisdictions worldwide, including the United States, may impact the ability of our existing or future manufacturers to perform their obligations under our manufacturing agreements with such parties. Such failure or substantial delay could materially harm our business.

Our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms rely on third parties for the biological materials used in testing and qualifying our products. Some biological materials have not always met our expectations or requirements, and any disruption in the supply of these biological materials could materially adversely affect our business. Although we have control processes and screening procedures, biological materials are susceptible to damage and contamination and may contain active pathogens. Improper storage of these materials, by us or any third-party suppliers, may require us to destroy some of our biological raw materials or product candidates.

Reliance on third-party manufacturers entails risks to which we would not be subject if we manufactured product candidates ourselves, including reliance on the third party for regulatory compliance and quality control and quality assurance, volume and timing of production, the possibility of breach of the manufacturing agreement by the third party because of factors beyond our control (including a failure to synthesize and manufacture our product candidates in accordance with our product specifications) and the possibility of termination or nonrenewal of the agreement by the third party at a time that is costly or damaging to us. In addition, the FDA and other regulatory authorities require that our product candidates be manufactured according to cGMPs. Pharmaceutical manufacturers and their subcontractors are required to register their facilities or products manufactured at the time of submission of the marketing application and then annually thereafter with the FDA and certain state and foreign agencies. They are also subject to periodic unannounced inspections by the FDA, state and other foreign authorities. Any subsequent discovery of problems with a product, or a manufacturing or laboratory facility used by us or our third-party suppliers, may result in restrictions on the product or on the manufacturing or laboratory facility, including marketed product recall, suspension of manufacturing, product seizure, or a voluntary withdrawal of the drug from the market. We may have little to no control regarding the occurrence of third-party manufacturer incidents. Any failure by our third-party manufacturers to comply with cGMP or failure to scale up manufacturing processes, including any failure to deliver sufficient quantities of product candidates in a timely manner, could lead to an irreparable delay in our development or commercialization timeline.

To date, we have relied on one single-source supplier for bulk drug substance. The loss of this supplier or its failure to supply us with BDS on a timely basis could cause a delay in our ability to develop our product candidates and adversely affect our business.

We depend on one single-source supplier for bulk drug substance, or BDS. Although we believe that we have a substantial reserve of BDS to support our current clinical trial programs, there can be no assurance that our supply of BDS will not be limited, interrupted, or of satisfactory quality or continue to be available at acceptable prices.


Additionally, we do not have any control over the process or timing of the acquisition or manufacture of materials by our supplier, and cannot ensure that it will deliver to us the BDS we order on time, or at all. The loss of BDS provided by this supplier could require us to change the design of our product candidate development process based on the functions, limitations, features and specifications of the replacement.

In addition, the lead time needed to establish a relationship with a new supplier can be lengthy, and we may experience delays in meeting demand in the event we must switch to a new supplier. The time and effort to qualify a new supplier could result in additional costs, diversion of resources or reduced manufacturing yields, any of which would negatively impact our operating results. Our reliance on this single-source supplier exposes us to certain risks, including the following:

 

   

our supplier may cease or reduce production or deliveries, raise prices or renegotiate terms;

 

   

we may be unable to locate a suitable replacement on acceptable terms or on a timely basis, if at all;

 

   

if there is a disruption to our single-source supplier’s operations, and if we are unable to enter into arrangements with alternative suppliers, we may need to halt our clinical trial programs;

 

   

delays caused by supply issues may harm our reputation, frustrate our clinical trial sites and cause them to turn to our competitors for future projects; and

 

   

our ability to develop our product candidates could be materially and adversely impacted if the single-source supplier upon which we rely were to experience a significant business challenge, disruption or failure due to issues such as financial difficulties or bankruptcy, issues relating to other customers such as regulatory or quality compliance issues, or other financial, legal, regulatory or reputational issues.

Moreover, to meet anticipated demand, our single-source supplier may need to increase manufacturing capacity, which could involve significant challenges. This may require us and our supplier to invest substantial additional funds and hire and retain the technical personnel who have the necessary experience. Neither we nor our supplier may successfully complete any required increase to existing manufacturing capacity in a timely manner, or at all.

We currently rely on third-party suppliers and other third parties for production of our product candidates, and our dependence on these third parties may impair the advancement of our research and development programs and the development of our product candidates. Moreover, we intend to rely on third parties to produce commercial supplies of any approved product candidate and our commercialization of any of our product candidates could be stopped, delayed or made less profitable if those third parties fail to obtain approval of the FDA or comparable regulatory authorities, fail to provide us with sufficient quantities of product or fail to do so at acceptable quality levels or prices or fail to otherwise complete their duties in compliance with their obligations to us or other parties.

We do not currently own or operate any manufacturing facilities, nor do we have any in-house manufacturing experience or personnel. We rely on and expect to continue to rely on third-party contract manufacturing organizations, or CMOs, for the supply of current good manufacturing practice-grade, or cGMP-grade, clinical trial materials and commercial quantities of our product candidates and products, if approved. Reliance on third-party providers may expose us to more risk than if we were to manufacture product candidates ourselves. The facilities used by our contract manufacturers to manufacture our commercial products must be approved by the FDA or other global regulatory authorities pursuant to inspections that will be conducted after we submit our marketing authorization application or BLA to the relevant agency. We have limited control over the manufacturing process of, and beyond contractual terms, we are completely dependent on our contract manufacturing partners for compliance with cGMP for the manufacture of our product candidates. If our contract manufacturers cannot successfully manufacture material that conforms to our specifications and the strict regulatory requirements of global regulatory authorities they will not be able to secure and/or maintain regulatory approval for their manufacturing facilities. In addition, we have limited control over the ability of our contract manufacturers to maintain adequate quality control, quality assurance and qualified personnel. If the FDA or a comparable foreign regulatory authority does not approve these facilities for the manufacture of our product candidates or if it withdraws any such approval in the future, we may need to find alternative manufacturing facilities, which would significantly impact our ability to develop, obtain regulatory approval for or market our product candidates, if approved. In addition, any failure to achieve and maintain compliance with these laws, regulations and standards could subject us to the risk that we may have to delay the manufacturing of our product candidates or approved products, which would adversely affect our business and reputation. Furthermore, third-party providers may breach existing agreements they have with us because of


factors beyond our control. They may also terminate or refuse to renew their agreement because of their own financial difficulties or business priorities, at a time that is costly or otherwise inconvenient for us. If we were unable to find an adequate replacement or another acceptable service provider in time, our clinical trials could be delayed or our commercial activities could be harmed. In addition, the fact that we are dependent on our collaborators, our suppliers and other third parties for the manufacture, filling, storage and distribution of our product candidates means that we are subject to the risk that the products may have manufacturing defects that would prevent the sale of these products to global markets. The inability to sell our products containing such defects could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Growth in the costs and expenses of components or raw materials may also adversely influence our business, financial condition and results of operations. Supply sources could be interrupted from time to time and, if interrupted, there is no guarantee that supplies could be resumed (whether in part or in whole) within a reasonable timeframe and at an acceptable cost or at all.

We rely on our manufacturers and other subcontractors to comply with and respect the proprietary rights of others in conducting their contractual obligations for us. If our manufacturers or other subcontractors fail to acquire the proper licenses or otherwise infringe third-party proprietary rights in the course of completing their contractual obligations to us, we may have to find alternative manufacturers or defend against claims of infringement, either of which would significantly impact our ability to develop, obtain regulatory approval for or market our product candidates, if approved. In addition, although we require manufacturers and service providers to assign or license to us their interest in and to intellectual property rights to improvements made by them in the development and manufacturing process for our products, in future contracts that we may enter into with these third parties, we may not own, or may have to share, these intellectual property rights to improvements.

We depend on third-party suppliers for key raw materials used in our manufacturing processes, and the loss of these third-party suppliers or their inability to supply us with adequate raw materials could harm our business.

We rely on our manufacturers to purchase the raw materials necessary to produce our product candidates for our clinical trials. There are a limited number of suppliers for raw materials that we use to manufacture our drugs and our manufacturers may qualify second-source suppliers of critical raw materials to prevent a possible disruption of the supply of the materials necessary to produce our product candidates for our clinical trials, and if approved, ultimately for commercial sale. We do not have any control over the process or timing of the acquisition of these raw materials by our manufacturers. We cannot be sure that the third-party raw material suppliers will remain in business, or that they will not be purchased by a company that is not interested in continuing to produce these materials. In addition, the lead time needed to qualify a new raw material supplier can be lengthy, and we may experience delays in meeting demand for our product in the event a new supplier must be used. The time and effort to qualify a new raw material supplier could result in additional costs, diversion of resources or inability to produce a comparable product candidate, any of which would negatively impact our operating results. Any significant delay in the supply of a product candidate for an ongoing clinical trial due to the need to replace a third-party raw material manufacturer could considerably delay completion of our clinical trials, product testing and potential regulatory approval of our product candidates. If our manufacturers or we are unable to purchase these raw materials after regulatory approval has been obtained for our product candidates, the commercial launch of our product candidates would be delayed or there would be a shortage in supply, which would impair our ability to generate revenues from the sale of our product candidates.

Risks Related to Intellectual Property and Information Technology

We rely on patents and other intellectual property rights to protect our technology, including product candidates and our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms, the enforcement, defense and maintenance of which may be challenging and costly. Failure to enforce or protect these rights adequately could harm our ability to compete and impair our business.

Our commercial success depends in part on obtaining and maintaining patents and other forms of intellectual property rights for technology related to our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms, including, but not limited to, our product candidates, methods used to manufacture those product candidates, formulations thereof and the methods for treating patients using those product candidates. Given that the development of our technology and product


candidates is at an early stage, our intellectual property portfolio with respect to certain aspects of our technology and product candidates is also at an early stage. Failure to protect or to obtain, maintain or extend adequate patent and other intellectual property rights could materially adversely affect our ability to develop and market our product candidates.

We seek to protect our proprietary position by filing patent applications in the United States and abroad related to our novel platform technologies and product candidates that are important to our business. The patent prosecution process is expensive and time-consuming, and we may not be able to prepare, file and prosecute all necessary or desirable patent applications at a reasonable cost or in a timely manner. It is also possible that we will fail to identify patentable aspects of inventions made in the course of development and commercialization activities before it is too late to obtain patent protection on them. Further, the issuance, scope, validity, enforceability and commercial value of our current or future patent rights are highly uncertain. Our pending and future patent applications may not result in patents being issued which protect our technology or product candidates, in whole or in part, or which effectively prevent others from commercializing competitive technologies and product candidates. The patent examination process may require us to narrow the scope of the claims of our pending and future patent applications, which may limit the scope of patent protection that may be obtained. We cannot assure you that all of the potentially relevant prior art relating to our patents and patent applications has been found. If such prior art exists, it can invalidate a patent or prevent a patent from issuing from a pending patent application. Even if patents do successfully issue and even if such patents cover our product candidates, third parties may initiate opposition, interference, re-examination, post-grant review, inter partes review, nullification or derivation action in court or before patent offices, or similar proceedings challenging the validity, enforceability or scope of such patents, which may result in the patent claims being narrowed or invalidated. Our patent applications cannot be enforced against third parties practicing the technology claimed in such applications unless and until a patent issues from such applications, and then only to the extent the issued claims cover the technology.

Because patent applications in the United States and other jurisdictions are confidential for a period of time after filing, and some remain so until issued, we cannot be certain that we were the first to file any patent application related to our technology, including a particular product candidate. As a result, the issuance, scope, validity, enforceability and commercial value of our patent rights are highly uncertain.

Furthermore, if third parties have filed such patent applications on or before March 15, 2013, an interference proceeding can be initiated by such third parties to determine who was the first to invent any of the subject matter covered by the patent claims of our applications. If third parties have filed such applications after March 15, 2013, a derivation proceeding can be initiated by such third parties to determine whether our invention was derived from theirs. Even where we have a valid and enforceable patent, we may not be able to exclude others from practicing our invention where the other party can show that they used the invention in commerce before our filing date or the other party benefits from a compulsory license.

We may become involved in lawsuits to protect or enforce our issued patents relating to one or more of our product candidates or our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms, which could ultimately render our patents invalid or unenforceable and adversely affect our competitive position.

Competitors may infringe our patents or other intellectual property that relate to our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms and product candidates, their respective methods of use, manufacture and formulations thereof. To protect our competitive position and counter infringement or unauthorized use, we may from time to time need to resort to litigation to enforce or defend any patents or other intellectual property rights owned by us by filing infringement claims. As enforcement of intellectual property rights is difficult, unpredictable and expensive, we may fail in enforcing our rights—in which case our competitors may be permitted to use our technology without being required to pay us any license fees. In addition, litigation involving our patents carries the risk that one or more of our patents will be held invalid (in whole or in part, on a claim-by-claim basis) or held unenforceable. Such an adverse court ruling could allow third parties to commercialize our product candidates or methods, or our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms, and then compete directly with us, without payment to us.

If we were to initiate legal proceedings against a third party to enforce a patent covering one of our product candidates or methods, the defendant could counterclaim that our patent is invalid and/or unenforceable. In patent litigation in the United States or in certain jurisdictions in Europe, defendant counterclaims alleging invalidity


and/or unenforceability are commonplace. Grounds for a validity challenge could be an alleged failure to meet any of several statutory requirements, for example, lack of novelty, obviousness or non-enablement. Grounds for an unenforceability assertion could be an allegation that someone connected with prosecution of the patent withheld relevant information from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or made a misleading statement, during prosecution. Third parties may also raise similar invalidity and/or unenforceability claims before administrative bodies in the United States or abroad, even outside the context of litigation. Such mechanisms include inter partes review, ex parte re-examination and post grant review in the United States, and equivalent proceedings in foreign jurisdictions (e.g., opposition proceedings). The outcome following legal assertions of invalidity and unenforceability during patent litigation is unpredictable. With respect to the validity question, for example, we cannot be certain that there is no invalidating prior art, of which we and the patent examiner were unaware during prosecution. If a defendant were to prevail on a legal assertion of invalidity and/or unenforceability, we would lose at least part, and perhaps all, of the patent protection on one or more of our technologies, product candidates, methods or certain aspects of our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms. Such a loss of patent protection could have a material adverse impact on our business.

There is also a risk that, even if the validity of our patents is upheld, the court will construe our patent’s claims narrowly or decide that we do not have the right to stop the other party from using the invention at issue on the grounds that our patent claims do not cover the invention. Even if we establish infringement, the court may decide not to grant an injunction against further infringing activity and instead award only monetary damages, which may or may not be an adequate remedy. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure during litigation. Patents and other intellectual property rights also will not protect our technology if competitors design around our protected technology without infringing our patents or other intellectual property rights.

Because of the expense and uncertainty of litigation, we may not be in a position to enforce our intellectual property rights against third parties. Instead, we may conclude that even if a third party is infringing our issued patents relating to our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms and/or product candidates, any patents that may be issued as a result of our pending or future patent applications or other intellectual property rights, the risk-adjusted cost of bringing and enforcing such a claim or action may be too high or not in the best interest of us or our stockholders. In such cases, we may decide that the more prudent course of action is to simply monitor the situation or initiate or seek some other non-litigious action or solution.

We may fail to identify relevant third-party patents or may incorrectly interpret the relevance, scope or expiration of a third-party patent which might adversely affect our ability to develop our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms and product candidates.

We cannot guarantee that our operations and activities do not, or will not in the future, infringe existing or future patents. We also cannot guarantee that any of our patent searches or analyses, including the identification of relevant patents, the scope of patent claims or the expiration of relevant patents, are complete or thorough, nor can we be certain that we have identified each and every third-party patent and pending application in the United States and abroad that is relevant to our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms or necessary for the commercialization of our product candidates in any jurisdiction.

Numerous U.S. and foreign patents and pending patent applications exist in our market that are owned by third parties. Our competitors in both the United States and abroad, many of which have substantially greater resources and have made substantial investments in patent portfolios and competing technologies, may have applied for or obtained or may in the future apply for and obtain, patents that will prevent, limit or otherwise interfere with our ability to make, use and sell our product candidates. We do not always conduct independent reviews of pending patent applications of and patents issued to third parties. Patent applications in the United States and elsewhere are typically published approximately 18 months after the earliest filing for which priority is claimed, with such earliest filing date being commonly referred to as the priority date. Certain U.S. applications that will not be filed outside the United States can remain confidential until patents are issued. In addition, patent applications in the United States and elsewhere can be pending for many years before issuance, and unintentionally abandoned patents or applications can be revived. Furthermore, pending patent applications that have been published can, subject to certain limitations, be later amended in a manner that could cover our technologies, our product candidates or the use thereof. As such,


there may be applications of third parties now pending or recently revived patents of which we are unaware. These applications may later result in issued patents, or the revival of previously abandoned patents, that will prevent, limit or otherwise interfere with our ability to make, use or sell our product candidates.

The scope of a patent claim is determined by an interpretation of law, the written disclosure in a patent and the patent’s prosecution history. Our interpretation of the relevance or the scope of a patent or a pending application may be incorrect, which may negatively impact our ability to market our product candidates. We may incorrectly determine that our product candidates are not covered by a third-party patent or may incorrectly predict whether a third party’s pending application will issue with claims of relevant scope. Our determination of the expiration date of any patent in the United States or abroad that we consider relevant may be incorrect, which may negatively impact our ability to develop and market our product candidates. Our failure to identify and correctly interpret relevant patents may negatively impact our ability to develop and market our product candidates.

We cannot provide any assurances that third-party patents do not exist which might be enforced against our current technology, including our platform technologies, product candidates and their respective methods of use, manufacture and formulations thereof, and could result in either an injunction prohibiting our manufacture or future sales, or, with respect to our future sales, an obligation on our part to pay royalties and/or other forms of compensation to third parties, which could be significant.

Intellectual property rights of third parties could adversely affect our ability to develop or commercialize our product candidates, such that we could be required to litigate or obtain licenses from third parties in order to develop or market our product candidates. Such licenses and litigation, including our ongoing litigation with Millennium, could be costly, and such licenses may not be available on commercially reasonable terms.

Our commercial success depends, in part, on our ability to develop, manufacture, market and sell our product candidates without infringing the intellectual property and other proprietary rights of third parties. Our competitive position may suffer if patents issued to third parties or other third-party intellectual property rights cover our methods or product candidates or elements thereof, our manufacture or uses relevant to our development plans, our product candidates, or other attributes of our product candidates or our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms. In such cases, we may not be in a position to develop or commercialize product candidates unless we successfully pursue litigation to nullify or invalidate the third-party intellectual property right concerned, which can be expensive and time consuming, or enter into a license agreement with the intellectual property right holder, if available on commercially reasonable terms.

There is a substantial amount of intellectual property litigation in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, and we may become party to, or threatened with, litigation or other adversarial proceedings regarding intellectual property rights with respect to our product candidates. For example, on November 25, 2018, we received a letter from counsel for Maverick alleging that our ProTriTAC program is subject to the non-compete provision of our Asset Transfer Agreement with Maverick. On January 3, 2019, Maverick filed a complaint against us in the Delaware Court of Chancery and a motion for a temporary restraining order seeking to prohibit us from further developing our ProTriTAC platform. The complaint alleges claims for breach of contract and misappropriation of trade secrets, and seeks as relief, among other things, a declaration that our ProTriTAC technology impermissibly competes in the Maverick Field (as defined in the Asset Transfer Agreement), a preliminary and permanent injunction and unspecified damages. We believe that the mechanism of action employed by our ProTriTAC platform falls outside the Maverick Field. On May 8, 2019, Millennium, a wholly owned subsidiary of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited, was granted permission by the court to intervene in the litigation. Millennium and Maverick are parties to a collaboration and warrant agreement, and Millennium’s complaint in intervention alleged, in part, that we fraudulently induced Millennium to enter into the agreements with Maverick. Millennium asserted various tort claims against us. A trial on Maverick and Millennium’s claims was held on September 9-13 and 17, 2019.

On April 3, 2020, the Delaware Chancery Court issued a memorandum opinion which related only to our ProTriTAC platform. The Court ruled in our favor of the Company on Maverick’s claims for breach of contract and misappropriation of trade secrets and dismissed those claims. As part of that ruling, the Court determined that our ProTriTAC technology is not in a field that is subject to a four year non-compete. The Court found in favor of Millennium on its claim against us for fraud in inducing Millennium’s investment in Maverick. The Court found that


Millennium had not proved its claims for tortious interference with contract and business relations or unfair competition, and those claims were dismissed. The litigation is currently in the damages phase, at the conclusion of which damages related to the fraud ruling, if any, will be determined. The Court held a one-day trial on Millennium’s damages claim on September 22, 2020, and closing arguments were held December 8, 2020. While we expect that the Court will find us liable for damages, we cannot predict the amount of damages for which we will ultimately be liable. In this regard, through evidence and argument presented at trial and in related briefing, Millennium advanced a theory of alleged damages as high as approximately $147 million plus certain fees and interest. Accordingly, we could be required to pay significant monetary damages in connection with the Court’s determination of damages related to the fraud ruling, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

The various markets in which we plan to operate are subject to frequent and extensive litigation regarding patents and other intellectual property rights. In addition, many companies in intellectual property-dependent industries, including those producing therapeutics to treat and potentially cure cancer, have employed intellectual property litigation as a means to gain an advantage over competitors. As a result, we may be required to defend against claims of intellectual property infringement that may be asserted by our competitors against us and, if the outcome of any such litigation is adverse to us, it may affect our ability to compete effectively.

Third-party intellectual property right holders, including our competitors, may assert and actively bring infringement claims against us based on existing or future intellectual property rights. The pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have produced a significant number of patents, and it may not always be clear to industry participants, including us, which patents cover various types of product candidates or methods of use. The coverage of patents is subject to interpretation by the courts, and the interpretation is not always uniform.

If we are sued for patent infringement, we would need to demonstrate that our product candidates or platform technologies either do not infringe the patent claims of a relevant patent or that the patent claims are invalid or unenforceable, and we may not be able to do this. Proving invalidity may be difficult. For example, in the United States, proving invalidity in court requires a showing of clear and convincing evidence to overcome the presumption of validity enjoyed by issued patents. Even if we are successful in these proceedings, we may incur substantial costs and the time and attention of our management and scientific personnel could be diverted in pursuing these proceedings, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and operations. In addition, we may not have sufficient resources to bring these actions to a successful conclusion. In addition, we may not be able to successfully settle or otherwise resolve such infringement claims. If we are unable to successfully settle future claims on terms acceptable to us, we may be required to engage or continue costly, unpredictable and time-consuming litigation and may be prevented from or experience substantial delays in marketing our product candidates.

Our involvement in litigation, and in any interferences, opposition proceedings or other intellectual property proceedings inside and outside of the United States may divert management from focusing on business operations, could cause us to spend significant amounts of money and may have no guarantee of success. Any current and potential intellectual property litigation also could force us to do one or more of the following:

 

   

stop selling, incorporating, manufacturing or using our product candidates or any products, if approved, in the United States and/or other jurisdictions that use the subject intellectual property;

 

   

obtain from a third party asserting its intellectual property rights, a license to sell or use the relevant technology, including the obligation to pay royalties, which license may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all, or may be non-exclusive thereby giving our competitors access to the same technologies licensed to us;

 

   

redesign those products or processes that use any allegedly infringing or misappropriated technology, which may result in significant cost or delay to us, or which redesign could be technically infeasible; or

 

   

pay damages, including the possibility of treble damages and attorneys’ fees in a patent case if a court finds us to have willfully infringed certain intellectual property rights.


Intellectual property litigation or other legal proceedings could cause us to spend substantial resources and distract our personnel from their normal responsibilities.

Litigation or other legal proceedings relating to intellectual property claims, with or without merit, is unpredictable and generally expensive and time consuming. Even if resolved in our favor, such litigation and other legal proceedings may cause us to incur significant expenses and is likely to divert significant resources from our core business, including distracting our technical and management personnel from their normal responsibilities, and may impact our reputation. In addition, there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments and if securities analysts or investors perceive these results to be negative, we could have a substantial adverse effect on the price of our common shares. Such litigation or proceedings could substantially increase our operating losses and reduce our resources available for development activities. We may not have sufficient financial or other resources to adequately conduct such litigation or proceedings. Some of our competitors may be able to sustain the costs of such litigation or proceedings more effectively than we can because of their substantially greater financial resources. Uncertainties resulting from the initiation and continuation of patent litigation or other proceedings could have a material adverse effect on our ability to compete in the marketplace.

We may need to obtain additional licenses of third-party technology that may not be available to us or are available only on commercially unreasonable terms, and which may cause us to operate our business in a more costly or otherwise adverse manner that was not anticipated.

We currently have rights to the intellectual property, including patent applications, relating to our TriTAC and ProTriTAC platforms and our product candidates. From time to time, we may be required to license technologies relating to our therapeutic research programs from additional third parties to further develop or commercialize our platform technologies and product candidates. Similarly, the targets of our product candidates have also been the subject of research by many companies that have filed patent applications or have patents related to such targets and therapeutic methods relating to those targets. There can be no assurance any such patents will not be asserted against us or that we will not need to seek licenses from such third parties. We may not be able to secure such licenses on acceptable terms, if at all, and any such litigation would be costly and time-consuming.

Should we be required to obtain licenses to any third-party technology, including any such patents required to manufacture, use or sell our product candidates, the growth of our business will likely depend in part on our ability to acquire, in-license, maintain or use these proprietary rights. The inability to obtain any third-party license required to develop or commercialize any of our product candidates could cause us to abandon any related efforts, which could seriously harm our business and operations.

In addition, our product candidates may require specific formulations to work effectively and efficiently and the rights to these formulations may be held by others. We may be unable to acquire or in-license any compositions, methods of use, processes, or other third-party intellectual property rights from third parties that we identify as necessary for our product candidates. The licensing and acquisition of third-party intellectual property rights is a competitive area, and a number of more established companies are also pursuing strategies to license or acquire third-party intellectual property rights that we may consider attractive. These established companies may have a competitive advantage over us due to their size, cash resources, and greater clinical development and commercialization capabilities.

Our involvement in litigation, and in any interferences, opposition proceedings or other intellectual property proceedings inside and outside of the United States may divert management from focusing on business operations, could cause us to spend significant amounts of money and may have no guarantee of success. Any current and potential intellectual property litigation also could force us to do one or more of the following:

 

   

stop selling, incorporating, manufacturing or using our product candidates or any products, if approved, in the United States and/or other jurisdictions that use the subject intellectual property;

 

   

obtain from a third party asserting its intellectual property rights, a license to sell or use the relevant technology, including the obligation to pay royalties, which license may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all.

In addition, companies that perceive us to be a competitor may be unwilling to assign or license rights to us. We also may be unable to license or acquire third-party intellectual property rights on terms that would allow us to make an appropriate return on our investment. Even if we are able to obtain a license, it may be non-exclusive, thereby giving


our competitors access to the same technologies licensed to us. If we are unable to successfully obtain a license to third-party intellectual property rights necessary for the development of a product candidate or program, we may have to abandon development of that product candidate or program and our business and financial condition could suffer.

If our trademarks and trade names are not adequately protected, then we may not be able to build name recognition in our markets of interest and our business may be adversely affected.

Our registered or unregistered trademarks or trade names may be challenged, infringed, circumvented or declared generic or determined to be infringing on other marks. We may not be able to protect our rights to these trademarks and trade names, which we need to build name recognition by potential collaborators, partners or customers in our markets of interest. Over the long term, if we are unable to establish name recognition based on our trademarks and trade names, then we may not be able to compete effectively and our business may be adversely affected. If other entities use trademarks similar to ours in different jurisdictions, or have senior rights to ours, it could interfere with our use of our current trademarks throughout the world.

During trademark registration proceedings, we may receive rejections. Although we would be given an opportunity to respond to those rejections, we may be unable to overcome such rejections. In addition, in both the USPTO and comparable agencies in many foreign jurisdictions, third parties are given an opportunity to oppose pending trademark applications and to seek to cancel registered trademarks. Opposition or cancellation proceedings may be filed against our trademarks, which may not survive such proceedings. If we are unable to establish name recognition based on our trademarks and trade names, we may not be able to compete effectively and our business may be adversely affected.

We may license our trademarks and trade names to third parties, such as distributors. Though these license agreements may provide guidelines for how our trademarks and trade names may be used, a breach of these agreements or misuse of our trademarks and tradenames by our licensees may jeopardize our rights in or diminish the goodwill associated with our trademarks and trade names.

Patent terms may be inadequate to protect our competitive position on our product candidates for an adequate amount of time.

Patents have a limited lifespan. In the United States, if all maintenance fees are timely paid, the natural expiration of a patent is generally 20 years from its earliest U.S. non-provisional filing date. Various extensions may be available, but the life of a patent, and the protection it affords, is limited. Even if patents covering our product candidates are obtained, once the patent life has expired for a product, we may be open to competition from competitive medications, including biosimilar or generic medications. In addition, although upon issuance in the United States a patent’s life can be increased based on certain delays caused by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or the USPTO, this increase can be reduced or eliminated based on certain delays caused by the patent applicant during patent prosecution. If we do not have sufficient patent life to protect our product candidates and any products, if approved, our business and results of operations will be adversely affected. Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates, patents protecting such candidates might expire before or shortly after such candidates are commercialized. As a result, our patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours.

If we do not obtain protection under the Hatch-Waxman Amendments and similar non-U.S. legislation for extending the term of patents covering each of our product candidates, our business may be materially harmed

Depending upon the timing, duration and conditions of FDA marketing approval of our product candidates, one or more of our U.S. patents may be eligible for limited patent term extension under the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984, referred to as the Hatch-Waxman Amendments, and similar legislation in the European Union. The Hatch-Waxman Amendments permit a patent term extension of up to five years for a patent covering an approved product as compensation for effective patent term lost during product development and the FDA regulatory review process. However, we may not receive an extension if we fail to apply within applicable deadlines, fail to apply prior to expiration of relevant patents or otherwise fail to satisfy applicable requirements. Moreover, the length of the extension could be less than we request. If we are unable to obtain patent term extension


or the term of any such extension is less than we request, the period during which we can enforce our patent rights for that product will be shortened and our competitors may obtain approval to market competing products sooner. As a result, our revenue from applicable products could be reduced, possibly materially.

We enjoy only limited geographical protection with respect to certain patents and may not be able to protect our intellectual property rights throughout the world.

Patents are of national or regional effect. While we will endeavor to try to protect our technologies, products and product candidates with intellectual property rights such as patents, as appropriate, the process of obtaining patents is time-consuming, expensive and sometimes unpredictable in other countries. As such, we may not be able to prevent third parties from practicing our inventions in all countries outside the United States, or from selling or importing products made using our inventions in and into the United States or other jurisdictions.

International applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, or PCT, are usually filed within 12 months after the priority filing. Based on the PCT filing, national and regional patent applications may be filed in additional jurisdictions where we believe our product candidates may be marketed. We have so far not filed for patent protection in all national and regional jurisdictions where such protection may be available. Filing, prosecuting and defending patents on all of our research programs and product candidates in all countries throughout the world would be prohibitively expensive, and our intellectual property rights in some countries outside the United States can be less extensive than those in the United States. In addition, we may decide to abandon national and regional patent applications before grant. Finally, the grant proceeding of each national/regional patent is an independent proceeding which may lead to situations in which applications might in some jurisdictions be refused by the relevant patent offices, while granted by others. Further, the standards applied by the USPTO and foreign patent offices in granting patents are not always applied uniformly or predictably. It is common that depending on the country, the scope of patent protection may vary for the same product candidate and/or technology. As such, we do not know the degree of future protection that we will have on our technologies and product candidates.

Competitors may use our or our collaboration partners’ technologies in jurisdictions where we have not obtained patent protection to develop their own products and, further, may export otherwise infringing products to territories where we or our collaboration partners have patent protection, but enforcement is not as strong as that in the United States. These products may compete with our product candidates, and our or our collaboration partners’ patents or other intellectual property rights may not be effective or sufficient to prevent them from competing.

The laws of some jurisdictions, particularly certain developing countries, do not protect intellectual property rights, particularly those relating to pharmaceuticals or biologics, to the same extent as laws in the United States, and many companies have encountered significant difficulties in protecting and defending such rights in such jurisdictions. Consequently, we may not be able to prevent third parties from practicing our inventions in all countries outside the United States, or from selling or importing products made using our inventions in and into the United States or other jurisdictions. If we encounter difficulties in protecting, or are otherwise precluded from effectively protecting, the intellectual property rights important for our business in such jurisdictions, the value of these rights may be diminished and we may face additional competition from others in those jurisdictions.

Proceedings to enforce our patent rights in foreign jurisdictions could result in substantial costs and divert our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business, could put our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly and our patent applications at risk of not issuing, and could provoke third parties to assert claims against us. We may not prevail in any lawsuits that we initiate and the damages or other remedies awarded, if any, may not be commercially meaningful. Accordingly, our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights around the world may be inadequate to obtain significant commercial advantage from the intellectual property that we develop or license.

Some countries, including China and India, have compulsory licensing laws under which a patent owner may be compelled to grant licenses to third parties. In addition, some countries limit the enforceability of patents against government agencies or government contractors. In these countries, the patent owner may have limited remedies, which could materially diminish the value of such patent. If we are forced to grant a license to third parties with respect to any patents relevant to our business, our competitive position may be impaired and our business and results of operations may be adversely affected.


We may become subject to claims challenging the inventorship or ownership of our patents and other intellectual property.

We may be subject to claims that former employees, consultants, independent contractors, collaborators or other third parties have an interest in our patents or other intellectual property as an owner, co-owner, inventor or co-inventor. The failure to name the proper inventors on a patent application can result in the patents issuing thereon being unenforceable. Inventorship disputes may arise from conflicting views regarding the contributions of different individuals named as inventors, the effects of foreign laws where foreign nationals are involved in the development of the subject matter of the patent, conflicting obligations of third parties involved in developing our product candidates or as a result of questions regarding co-ownership of potential joint inventions. Litigation may be necessary to resolve these and other claims challenging inventorship and/or ownership. Alternatively, or additionally, we may enter into agreements to clarify the scope of our rights in such intellectual property. If we fail in defending any such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, we may lose valuable intellectual property rights, such as exclusive ownership of, or right to use, valuable intellectual property. Such an outcome could have a material adverse effect on our business. Even if we are successful in defending against such claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management and other employees.

Intellectual property rights do not necessarily address all potential threats to our competitive advantage.

The degree of future protection afforded by our intellectual property rights is uncertain because intellectual property rights have limitations, and may not adequately protect our business, or permit us to maintain our competitive advantage. The following examples are illustrative:

 

   

others may be able to make product candidates similar to our product candidates but that are not covered by the claims of the patents that we own or have exclusively licensed;

 

   

the patents of third parties may have an adverse effect on our business;

 

   

we or any future strategic partners might not have been the first to conceive or reduce to practice the inventions covered by the issued patent or pending patent application that we own or have exclusively licensed;

 

   

we or any future strategic partners might not have been the first to file patent applications covering certain of our inventions;

 

   

others may independently develop similar or alternative technologies or duplicate any of our technologies without infringing our intellectual property rights;

 

   

it is possible that our pending patent applications will not lead to issued patents;

 

   

issued patents that we own or have exclusively licensed may not provide us with any competitive advantage, or may be held invalid or unenforceable, as a result of legal challenges by our competitors;

 

   

we cannot predict the degree and range of protection any issued patents will afford us against competitors, whether or not others will obtain patents claiming aspects similar to those covered by our patents and patent applications, or whether we will need to initiate litigation or administrative proceedings which may be costly whether we win or lose;

 

   

our competitors might conduct research and development activities in countries where we do not have patent rights and then use the information learned from such activities to develop competitive products for sale in our major commercial markets;

 

   

third parties performing manufacturing or testing for us using our product candidates or technologies could use the intellectual property of others without obtaining a proper license; and

 

   

we may not develop additional technologies that are patentable.

Should any of these events occur, they could significantly harm our business, results of operations and prospects.

Composition of matter patents for biological and pharmaceutical products such as our product candidates are generally considered to be the strongest form of intellectual property protection for those types of products, as such patents provide protection without regard to any method of use. We cannot be certain that the claims in our pending patent applications covering composition of matter of our product candidates will be considered patentable by the USPTO or by patent offices in foreign countries, or that the claims in any of our issued patents will be considered valid and enforceable by courts in the United States or foreign countries. Method of use patents protect the use of a product for the specified method. This type of patent does not prevent a competitor from making and marketing a


product that is identical to our product for an indication that is outside the scope of the patented method. Moreover, even if competitors do not actively promote their product for our targeted indications, physicians may prescribe these products “off-label.” Although off-label prescriptions may infringe or contribute to the infringement of method of use patents, the practice is common and such infringement is difficult to prevent or prosecute.

Changes in patent laws or patent jurisprudence could diminish the value of patents in general, thereby impairing our ability to protect our product candidates.

As is the case with other biopharmaceutical companies, our success is heavily dependent on intellectual property, particularly patents. Obtaining and enforcing patents in the biopharmaceutical industry involve both technological complexity and legal complexity. Recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings have narrowed the scope of patent protection available in certain circumstances and weakened the rights of patent owners in certain situations. Therefore, obtaining and enforcing biopharmaceutical patents is costly, time-consuming and inherently uncertain.

In September 2011, the America Invents Act, or the AIA, was enacted in the United States, resulting in significant changes to the U.S. patent system. An important change introduced by the AIA was a transition to a “first-to-file” system for deciding which party should be granted a patent when two or more patent applications are filed by different parties claiming the same invention, which went into effect on March 16, 2013. Therefore, a third party that now files a patent application in the USPTO before we do could be awarded a patent covering an invention of ours even if we created the invention before it was created by the third party. While we are cognizant of the time from invention to filing of a patent application, circumstances could prevent us from promptly filing patent applications for our inventions.

Among some of the other changes introduced by the AIA were changes that limit where a patentee may file a patent infringement suit and providing opportunities for third parties to challenge any issued patent in the USPTO. This applies to all of our U.S. patents, even those issued before March 16, 2013. Because of a lower evidentiary standard in USPTO proceedings compared to the evidentiary standard in U.S. federal courts necessary to invalidate a patent claim, a third party could potentially provide evidence in a USPTO proceeding sufficient for the USPTO to hold a claim invalid even though the same evidence would be insufficient to invalidate the claim if first presented in a district court action. Accordingly, a third party may attempt to use the USPTO procedures to invalidate our patent claims that would not have been invalidated if first challenged by the third party as a defendant in a district court action. The AIA and its continued implementation could increase the uncertainties and costs surrounding the prosecution of our patent applications, and the patent applications of our collaborators, and the enforcement or defense of our issued patents.

Depending on decisions by the U.S. Congress, the federal courts, and the USPTO, the laws and regulations governing patents could change in unpredictable ways that could weaken our ability to obtain new patents or to enforce our existing patents and patents that we might obtain in the future. For example, in the recent case, Assoc. for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court held that certain claims to DNA molecules are not patentable. While we do not believe that any of the patents owned or licensed by us will be found invalid based on this decision, we cannot predict how future decisions by the courts, the U.S. Congress or the USPTO may impact the value of our patents. Similarly, there is complexity and uncertainty related to European patent laws. For example, the European Patent Convention was amended in April 2010 to limit the time permitted for filing divisional applications. In addition, the European Patent Convention patent system is relatively stringent in the type of amendments that are allowed during prosecution. These limitations and requirements could adversely affect our ability to obtain new patents in the future that may be important for our business.

We may rely on trade secret and proprietary know-how, which can be difficult to trace and enforce and, if we are unable to protect the confidentiality of our trade secrets, our business and competitive position would be harmed.

In addition to seeking patents for some of our technology and product candidates, we may rely on trade secrets and/or confidential know-how to protect our technology, especially where patent protection is believed to be of limited value, to maintain our competitive position with respect to our research programs and product candidates. Elements of our product candidates, including processes for their preparation and manufacture, may involve proprietary know-how, information, or technology that is not covered by patents, and thus for these aspects we may consider trade secrets and know-how to be our primary intellectual property. Any disclosure, either intentional or unintentional, by our employees or by other third parties of our trade secrets or proprietary information could enable competitors to duplicate or surpass our technological achievements, thus adversely eroding our competitive position in our market.


Trade secrets and/or confidential know-how can be difficult to protect or maintain as confidential. To protect this type of information against disclosure or appropriation by competitors, our policy is to require our employees, consultants, contractors, collaborators, advisors and other third parties to enter into confidentiality agreements with us. Despite these efforts, any of these parties may unintentionally or willfully breach the agreements and disclose our confidential information, and confidentiality agreements may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized disclosure of confidential information. Monitoring unauthorized uses and disclosures is difficult, and we do not know whether the steps we have taken to protect our proprietary technologies will be effective. Enforcing a claim that a third party obtained illegally and is using trade secrets and/or confidential know-how is also expensive, time consuming and unpredictable. The enforceability of confidentiality agreements may vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The laws of some foreign countries do not protect proprietary rights to the same extent or in the same manner as the laws of the United States. As a result, we may encounter significant problems in protecting and defending our intellectual property both in the United States and abroad. Furthermore, if a competitor lawfully obtained or independently developed any of our trade secrets, we would have no right to prevent such competitor from using that technology or information to compete with us, which could harm our competitive position. Additionally, if the steps taken to maintain our trade secrets are deemed inadequate, we may have insufficient recourse against third parties for misappropriating the trade secret. In addition, some courts inside and outside the United States are less willing or unwilling to protect trade secrets or other proprietary information.

Trade secrets can over time be disseminated within the industry through independent development, the publication of journal articles and the movement of personnel skilled in the art from company to company or academic to industry scientific positions. Though our agreements with third parties typically restrict the ability of our employees, consultants, contractors, collaborators, advisors and other third parties to publish data potentially relating to our trade secrets, our agreements may contain certain limited publication rights. Because from time to time we expect to rely on third parties in the development, manufacture and distribution of our product candidates and provision of our services, we must, at times, share trade secrets with them. Despite employing the contractual and other security precautions described above, the need to share trade secrets increases the risk that such trade secrets become known by our competitors, are inadvertently incorporated into the technology of others, or are disclosed or used in violation of these agreements. If any of our trade secrets were to be lawfully obtained or independently developed by a competitor or other third party, we would have no right to prevent them from using that technology or information to compete with us. If any of our trade secrets were to be disclosed to or independently developed by a competitor or other third party, our competitive position would be harmed.

In addition, our competitors may independently develop substantially equivalent trade secrets, proprietary information or know-how and may even apply for patent protection in respect of the same. If successful in obtaining such patent protection, our competitors could limit our use of our trade secrets and/or confidential know-how. Under certain circumstances and to guarantee our freedom to operate, we may also decide to publish some know-how to prevent others from obtaining patent rights covering such know-how.

We may be subject to third-party claims asserting that our employees, consultants, contractors, collaborators or advisors have misappropriated or wrongfully used or disseminated their intellectual property, or claiming ownership of what we regard as our own intellectual property.

Many of our employees, including our senior management, were previously employed at universities or at other biopharmaceutical companies, including our competitors or potential competitors. Some of these employees executed proprietary rights, non-disclosure and non-competition agreements in connection with such previous employment. Similarly, we work with consultants, contractors, collaborators, advisors or other third parties who have worked with, and do currently work with, other companies, including our competitors or potential competitors, and have executed proprietary rights, non-disclosure and non-competition agreements in connection with such other companies. Although we try to ensure that our employees, consultants, contractors, collaborators, advisors or other third parties do not use or disclose the proprietary information or know-how of others in their work for us, we may be subject to claims that we or these employees or individuals that we work with have used or disclosed confidential information or intellectual property of others, including trade secrets or other proprietary information, or that we caused an individual to breach the terms of his or her non-competition or non-solicitation agreement with a current or former employer or competitor.


Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims and, even if we are successful, could result in substantial costs and could be a distraction to management, our employees and our routine business. If we fail in prosecuting or defending any such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, we may lose valuable intellectual property rights or personnel or sustain damages. Such intellectual property rights could be awarded to a third party, and we could be required to obtain a license from such third party to develop or commercialize our technology or product candidates. Such a license may not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Moreover, any such litigation or the threat thereof may adversely affect our reputation and our ability to form strategic alliances or sublicense our rights to collaborators, engage with scientific advisors or hire employees or consultants, each of which would have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Obtaining and maintaining our patent protection depends on compliance with various procedural, document submission, fee payment and other requirements imposed by governmental patent agencies, and our patent protection could be reduced or eliminated for non-compliance with these requirements.

Periodic maintenance and annuity fees on any issued patent are due to be paid to the USPTO and foreign patent agencies in several stages over the lifetime of the patent. The USPTO and various foreign governmental patent agencies require compliance with a number of procedural, documentary, fee payment and other similar provisions during the patent application process. While an inadvertent lapse can in many cases be cured by payment of a late fee or by other means in accordance with the applicable rules, there are situations in which noncompliance can result in abandonment or lapse of the patent or patent application, resulting in partial or complete loss of patent rights in the relevant jurisdiction. Non-compliance events that could result in abandonment or lapse of a patent or patent application include failure to respond to official actions within prescribed time limits, non-payment of fees and failure to properly legalize and submit formal documents. If we fail to maintain the patents and patent applications covering our product candidates, our competitors might be able to enter the market, which would have an adverse effect on our business.

We may be subject to claims challenging the inventorship of our patents and other intellectual property.

We may in the future be subject to claims that former employees, collaborators, or other third parties have an interest in our patents or other intellectual property as an inventor or co-inventor. For example, we may have inventorship disputes arise from conflicting obligations of consultants or others who are involved in developing our product candidates. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these and other claims challenging inventorship. If we fail in defending any such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, we may lose valuable intellectual property rights, such as exclusive ownership of, or right to use, valuable intellectual property. Such an outcome could have a material adverse effect on our business. Even if we are successful in defending against such claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management and other employees.

Risks Related to Ownership of Our Common Stock

Our stock price may be volatile or may decline regardless of our operating performance, resulting in substantial losses for investors.

The market price of our common stock may be highly volatile and may fluctuate substantially as a result of a variety of factors, some of which are related in complex ways. Since shares of our common stock were sold in our IPO in February 2019 at a price of $14.00 per share, the reported low and high sales prices of our common stock through December 31, 2020 have been from $9.07 to $25.02, respectively.

The market price of our common stock may fluctuate significantly in response to numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control, including the factors listed below and other factors describe in this “Risk Factors” section:

 

   

the anticipated results of our Phase 1/2a trial of HPN424, Phase 1/2a trial of HPN536, Phase 1/2 trial of HPN217 and our Phase 1/2 clinical trial of HPN328, any other future preclinical studies and clinical trials and trials we may conduct, or changes in the development status of our product candidates;


   

any delay in our regulatory filings for our product candidates and any adverse development or perceived adverse development with respect to the applicable regulatory authority’s review of such filings, including without limitation the issuance by the FDA of a “refusal to file” letter or a request for additional information;

 

   

adverse results or delays in clinical trials;

 

   

our decision to initiate a preclinical study or clinical trial, not to initiate a preclinical study or clinical trial or to terminate an existing clinical study or trial;

 

   

adverse actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to our preclinical studies or clinical trials, manufacturing supply chain or sales and marketing activities, including failure to receive regulatory approval of our product candidates;

 

   

changes in laws or regulations, including but not limited to preclinical study or clinical trial requirements for approvals;

 

   

any adverse changes to our relationship with manufacturers or suppliers;

 

   

manufacturing, supply or distribution shortages;

 

   

litigation involving us, our industry or both, or investigations by regulators into our operations or those of our competitors;

 

   

our failure to commercialize our product candidates;

 

   

additions or departures of key scientific or management personnel;

 

   

unanticipated serious safety concerns related to the use of our product candidates;

 

   

disputes or other developments relating to proprietary rights, including patents, litigation matters and our ability to obtain patent protection for our technologies;

 

   

variations in our results of operations;

 

   

our cash position;

 

   

our failure to meet the estimates and projections of the investment community or that we may otherwise provide to the public;

 

   

publication of research reports about us or our industry, or immuno-oncology in particular, or positive or negative recommendations or withdrawal of research coverage by securities analysts;

 

   

announcements made by us or our competitors of new product and service offerings, acquisitions, strategic relationships, joint ventures or capital commitments;

 

   

our inability to establish collaborations, if needed;

 

   

our ability to effectively manage our growth;

 

   

the size of our initial cancer target markets;

 

   

our ability to successfully treat additional types of cancers or at different stages;

 

   

changes in the market valuations of similar companies;

 

   

press reports, whether or not true, about our business;

 

   

sales or perceived potential sales of our common stock by us or our stockholders in the future;

 

   

overall fluctuations in the equity markets;

 

   

ineffectiveness of our internal controls;

 

   

changes in accounting practices or principles;

 

   

changes or developments in the global regulatory environment;

 

   

general political and economic conditions; and

 

   

other events or factors, many of which are beyond our control, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition, the stock markets have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have affected and continue to affect the market prices of equity securities of many biopharmaceutical companies. Stock prices of many biopharmaceutical companies have fluctuated in a manner unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of those companies. If we were to become involved in securities litigation, it could subject us to substantial costs, divert resources and the attention of management from our business and adversely affect, our business, operating results, financial condition and cash flows.


Our principal stockholders and management own a significant percentage of our stock and will be able to exert significant control over matters subject to stockholder approval.

As of December 31, 2020, our executive officers, directors, holders of 5% or more of our capital stock and their respective affiliates owned approximately 57.4% of our outstanding voting stock. Therefore, these stockholders will have the ability to influence us through this ownership position. These stockholders may be able to determine all matters requiring stockholder approval. For example, these stockholders may be able to control elections of directors, amendments of our organizational documents, or approval of any merger, sale of assets, or other major corporate transaction. This may prevent or discourage unsolicited acquisition proposals or offers for our common stock that you may feel are in your best interest as one of our stockholders.

Sales of substantial amounts of our outstanding common stock in the public market could cause our common stock price to fall.

Our common stock price could decline as a result of sales of a large number of shares of common stock or the perception that these sales could occur. These sales, or the possibility that these sales may occur, might also make it more difficult for us to sell equity securities in the future at a time and price that we deem appropriate.

Certain of our stockholders have rights, subject to some conditions, that to require us to file registration statements covering the sale of their shares or to include their shares in registration statements that we may file for ourselves or our other stockholders. We have also registered the offer and sale of all shares of common stock that we issued under our equity compensation plans. These shares may accordingly be sold in the public market upon issuance, subject to vesting conditions and, in the case of our directors, officers and other affiliates, restrictions that may apply under Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act.

In addition, in the future, we may issue shares of common stock, or other equity or debt securities convertible into common stock, in connection with a financing, acquisition, employee arrangement or otherwise. Any such issuance, including pursuant to the sales agreement with Cantor Fitzgerald, could result in substantial dilution to our existing stockholders and could cause the price of our common stock to decline.

We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company, and any decision on our part to comply only with applicable reduced reporting and disclosure requirements could make our common stock less attractive to investors.

We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act and, for as long as we continue to be an emerging growth company, we may choose to take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies but not to emerging growth companies, including:

 

   

not being required to have our independent registered public accounting firm audit our internal control over financial reporting under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act;

 

   

reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and annual report on Form 10-K; and

 

   

exemptions from the requirements of holding non-binding advisory votes on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.

We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years following the completion of our IPO. Our status as an emerging growth company will end as soon as any of the following takes place:

 

   

the last day of the fiscal year in which we have more than $1.07 billion in gross annual revenue;

 

   

the date we qualify as a “large accelerated filer,” with at least $700 million of equity securities held by non-affiliates;

 

   

the date on which we have issued, in any three-year period, more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities; or

 

   

the last day of the fiscal year ending after the fifth anniversary of the completion of our IPO.

We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive if we choose to rely on any of the exemptions afforded to emerging growth companies. If some investors find our common stock less attractive because we rely on any of these exemptions, there may be a less active trading market for our common stock and the market price of our common stock may be more volatile.


Under the JOBS Act, emerging growth companies can also delay adopting new or revised accounting standards until such time as those standards apply to private companies. We elected to use this extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards that have different effective dates for public and private companies until the earlier of the date that we (i) are no longer an emerging growth company or (ii) affirmatively and irrevocably opt out of the extended transition period provided in the JOBS Act. As a result, these financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with the new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates.

We are also a “smaller reporting company” as defined in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. We may continue to be a smaller reporting company even after we are no longer an emerging growth company. We may take advantage of certain of the scaled disclosures available to smaller reporting companies and will be able to take advantage of these scaled disclosures for so long as our voting and non-voting common stock held by non-affiliates is less than $250.0 million measured on the last business day of our second fiscal quarter, or our annual revenue is less than $100.0 million during the most recently completed fiscal year and our voting and non-voting common stock held by non-affiliates is less than $700.0 million measured on the last business day of our second fiscal quarter.

We do not currently intend to pay dividends on our common stock and, consequently, our stockholders’ ability to achieve a return on their investment will depend on appreciation of the value of our common stock.

We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our common stock. We currently intend to retain all available funds and any future earnings to support operations and to finance the growth and development of our business. We do not intend to declare or pay any cash dividends on our capital stock in the foreseeable future. As a result, any investment return on our common stock will depend upon increases in the value for our common stock, which is not certain.

Delaware law and provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws could make a merger, tender offer or proxy contest difficult, thereby depressing the trading price of our common stock.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws contain provisions that could depress the trading price of our common stock by acting to discourage, delay or prevent a change of control of our company or changes in our management that our stockholders may deem advantageous. These provisions include the following:

 

   

establish a classified board of directors so that not all members of our board of directors are elected at one time;

 

   

permit our board of directors to establish the number of directors and fill any vacancies and newly created directorships;

 

   

provide that members of our board of directors may only be removed for cause;

 

   

require super-majority voting to amend certain provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws;

 

   

authorize the issuance of “blank check” preferred stock that our board of directors could use to implement a stockholder rights plan;

 

   

eliminate the ability of our stockholders to call special stockholder meetings;

 

   

prohibit stockholder action by written consent, which requires all stockholder actions to be taken at stockholder meetings;

 

   

provide that our board of directors is expressly authorized to make, alter or repeal our amended and restated bylaws;

 

   

restrict the forum for certain litigation against us to Delaware; and

 

   

establish advance notice requirements for nominations for election to our board of directors or for proposing matters that can be acted upon by stockholders at annual stockholder meetings.

Any provision of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our amended and restated bylaws or Delaware law that has the effect of delaying or deterring a change in our control could limit the opportunity for our stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our common stock, and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our common stock.


Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the exclusive forum for certain disputes between us and our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware (or, if and only if the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware lacks subject matter jurisdiction, any state court located within the State of Delaware or, if and only if all such state courts lack subject matter jurisdiction, the federal district court for the District of Delaware), to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, is the exclusive forum for:

 

   

any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf;

 

   

any action asserting a breach of fiduciary duty;

 

   

any action asserting a claim against us arising under the Delaware General Corporation Law, or the DGCL, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or our amended and restated bylaws; and

 

   

any action asserting a claim against us that is governed by the internal-affairs doctrine.

However, this exclusive forum provision would not apply to suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Exchange Act. Furthermore, this provision applies to Securities Act claims and Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Accordingly, there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce such provision, and our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. While the Delaware courts have determined that such choice of forum provisions are facially valid, a stockholder may nevertheless seek to bring a claim in a venue other than those designated in the exclusive forum provision. In such instance, we would expect to vigorously assert the validity and enforceability of the exclusive forum provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. This may require significant additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions and there can be no assurance that the provision will be enforced by a court in those other jurisdictions.

This exclusive-forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other employees, which may discourage lawsuits against us and our directors, officers and other employees. If a court were to find the exclusive forum provision in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur further significant additional costs associated with resolving the dispute in other jurisdictions, all of which could seriously harm our business.

Our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and other tax attributes may be limited.

Our U.S. net operating loss, or NOL, carryforwards and tax credit carryforwards are potentially subject to annual utilization limits under Sections 382 and 383 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code. Our U.S. NOL carryforwards arising prior to 2018 and tax credit carryforwards could expire unused and be unavailable to offset future taxable income or income tax liabilities because of their limited duration or because of restrictions under U.S. tax law. Our U.S. NOL carryforwards arising after 2017 carry forward indefinitely but are subject to limitations in taxable years beginning after 2020. Under Sections 382 and 383 of the Code, if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change,” generally defined as a greater than 50 percentage point change (by value) in its equity ownership by certain stockholders during a rolling three-year period, the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change tax attributes, such as NOLs and R&D tax credits, to offset its post-change income or taxes may be limited. We have not performed an analysis under Section 382 of the Code and cannot predict or otherwise determine whether our federal tax attribute carryforwards may be limited in the future. As a result, if we earn taxable income in the future, our ability to use existing U.S. NOL and R&D tax credit carryforwards to reduce U.S. taxable income or tax liability may be subject to limitations. This could adversely impact our future operating results by increasing our future tax liabilities. Similar rules may also limit our ability to use accumulated state tax attributes to reduce our state tax liabilities. Also, there may be periods when the use of NOLs is suspended or otherwise limited at the state level, which could accelerate or permanently increase state taxes owed.


We may have ownership changes in the future, due to further changes in our stock ownership. Some of these ownership changes could be outside of our control. If an ownership change occurs and our ability to use our historical NOL and tax credit carryforwards is limited, it could adversely impact our future operating results by increasing our tax obligations.

General Risk Factors

Risks from improper conduct by our employees, agents, contractors or collaborators could adversely affect our reputation, business, prospects, operating results and financial condition.

We cannot ensure that our compliance controls, policies and procedures will in every instance protect us from acts committed by our employees, agents, contractors or collaborators that would violate the laws or regulations of the jurisdictions in which we operate, including, without limitation, employment, foreign corrupt practices, trade restrictions and sanctions, environmental, competition and patient privacy and other privacy laws and regulations. Such improper actions could subject us to civil or criminal investigations and monetary and injunctive penalties, and could adversely impact our ability to conduct business, operating results and reputation.

We are subject to a number of anti-corruption laws, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, and the U.K. Bribery Act. Our failure to comply with anti-corruption laws applicable to us could result in penalties, which could harm our reputation and harm our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or prospects. The FCPA generally prohibits companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or keeping business and/or other benefits. The FCPA also requires public companies to maintain accurate books and records and devise a system of sufficient internal accounting controls. We regularly review and update our policies and procedures and internal controls designed to provide reasonable assurance that we, our employees, distributors and other intermediaries comply with the anti-corruption laws to which we are subject. However, there are inherent limitations to the effectiveness of any policies, procedures and internal controls, including the possibility of human error and the circumvention or overriding of the policies, procedures and internal controls. There can be no assurance that such policies or procedures or internal controls will work effectively at all times or protect us against liability under these or other laws for actions taken by our employees, distributors and other intermediaries with respect to our business.

The SEC, and the Department of Justice continue to view FCPA enforcement activities as a high priority. There is no certainty that all of our employees, agents, contractors or collaborators, or those of our affiliates, will comply with all applicable laws and regulations, particularly given the high level of complexity of these laws. Violations of these laws and regulations could result in fines, criminal sanctions against us, our officers or our employees, requirements to obtain export licenses, cessation of business activities in sanctioned countries, implementation of compliance programs and prohibitions on the conduct of our business. Any such violations could materially damage our reputation, our brand, our international operations, our ability to attract and retain employees, and our business, prospects, operating results, and financial condition.

Use of social media could give rise to liability, breaches of data security, or reputational harm.

We and our employees use social media to communicate externally. There is risk that the use of social media by us or our employees to communicate about our product candidates or business may give rise to liability, lead to the loss of trade secrets or other intellectual property, or result in public exposure of personal information of our employees, clinical trial patients, customers, and others. Furthermore, negative posts or comments about us or our product candidates in social media could seriously damage our reputation, brand image, and goodwill. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, operating results, and financial condition and could adversely affect the price of our common stock.

Our computer systems, or those used by our CROs or other contractors or consultants, may fail or suffer security breaches, which could adversely affect our business.


Despite the implementation of security measures, our computer systems and data and those of our current or future CROs or other contractors and consultants are vulnerable to failure, interruption, compromise or damage from computer hacking, malicious software, fraudulent activity, employee misconduct, human error, telecommunication and electrical failures, natural disasters, public health epidemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, currently impacting multiple jurisdictions worldwide, including the United States, or other cybersecurity attacks or accidents. Future acquisitions could expose us to additional cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities from any newly acquired information technology infrastructure. Cybersecurity attacks are constantly increasing in sophistication and are made by groups and individuals with a wide range of motives (including industrial espionage) and expertise, including by organized criminal groups, “hacktivists,” nation states and others. As a company with an increasingly global presence, our systems are subject to frequent attacks. Due to the nature of some of these attacks, there is a risk that an attack may remain undetected for a period of time. While we continue to make investments to improve the protection of data and information technology, there can be no assurance that our efforts will prevent service interruptions or security breaches. The costs to respond to a security breach and/or to mitigate any security vulnerabilities that may be identified could be significant, our efforts to address these problems may not be successful, and these problems could result in unexpected interruptions, delays, cessation of service, negative publicity, and other harm to our business and our competitive position. In addition, the costs of maintaining or upgrading our cyber-security systems at the level necessary to keep up with our expanding operations and prevent against potential attacks are increasing, and despite our best efforts, our network security and data recovery measures and those of our vendors may still not be adequate to protect against such security breaches and disruptions, which could cause harm to our business, financial condition and results of operations

We have contractual and legal obligations to notify relevant stakeholders of security breaches. Most jurisdictions have enacted laws requiring companies to notify individuals, regulatory authorities, and others of security breaches involving certain types of data. In addition, our agreements with collaborators may require us to notify them in the event of a security breach. Such mandatory disclosures are costly, could lead to negative publicity, may cause our collaborators to lose confidence in the effectiveness of our security measures and require us to expend significant capital and other resources to respond to and/or alleviate problems caused by the actual or perceived security breach.

Any cybersecurity incident could adversely affect our business, by leading to, for example, the loss of trade secrets or other intellectual property, demands for ransom or other forms of blackmail or the unauthorized disclosure of personal or other sensitive information of our employees, clinical trial patients, customers and others. Although to our knowledge we have not experienced any material cybersecurity incident to date, if such an event were to occur, it could seriously harm our development programs and our business operations. We could be subject to regulatory actions taken by governmental authorities, litigation under laws that protect the privacy of personal information, or other forms of legal proceedings, which could result in significant liabilities or penalties. Further, a cybersecurity incident may disrupt our business or damage our reputation, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, operating results, share price and stockholder value, and financial condition. We could also incur substantial remediation costs, including the costs of investigating the incident, repairing or replacing damaged systems, restoring normal business operations, implementing increased cybersecurity protections, and paying increased insurance premiums.

We may not have adequate insurance coverage for security incidents or breaches or information system failures. The successful assertion of one or more large claims against us that exceeds our available insurance coverage, or results in changes to our insurance policies (including premium increases or the imposition of large deductible or co-insurance requirements), could have an adverse effect on our business. In addition, we cannot be sure that our existing insurance coverage and coverage for errors and omissions will continue to be available on acceptable terms or that our insurers will not deny coverage as to any future claim.

An active trading market for our common stock may not be sustained.

Our common stock is currently listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, or Nasdaq, under the symbol “HARP”. The price for our common stock may vary and an active or liquid market in our common stock may not be sustainable. The lack of an active market may impair the value of your shares, your ability to sell your shares at the time you wish to sell them and the prices that you may obtain for your shares. An inactive market may also impair our ability to raise capital by selling our common stock and our ability to acquire other companies, products or technologies by using our common stock as consideration.


If securities or industry analysts either do not publish research about us or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about us, our business or our market, or if they change their recommendations regarding our common stock adversely, the trading price or trading volume of our common stock could decline.

The trading market for our common stock is influenced in part by the research and reports that securities or industry analysts may publish about us, our business, our market or our competitors. If one or more of these analysts initiate research with an unfavorable rating or downgrade our common stock, provide a more favorable recommendation about our competitors or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our common stock price would likely decline. If any analyst who may cover us were to cease coverage of us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause the trading price or trading volume of our common stock to decline.

If we are unable to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, it could result in material misstatements in our financial statements and cause investors to lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, either of which could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

Ensuring that we have adequate internal financial and accounting controls and procedures in place so that we can produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis is a costly and time-consuming effort that needs to be re-evaluated frequently. Our internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP. We are required to document, review and improve our internal controls and procedures for compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires annual management assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. If we are unable to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, the accuracy and timing of our financial reporting, and our stock price, may be adversely affected and we may be unable to maintain compliance with the applicable stock exchange listing requirements.

Implementing any appropriate changes to our internal controls may distract our officers and employees, entail substantial costs to modify our existing processes and take significant time to complete. These changes may not, however, be effective in maintaining the adequacy of our internal controls, and any failure to maintain that adequacy, or consequent inability to produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis, could increase our operating costs and harm our business. In addition, investors’ perceptions that our internal controls are inadequate or that we are unable to produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis may harm our stock price.

The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources, result in litigation and divert management’s attention.

As a public company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, or the Dodd-Frank Act, the listing requirements of Nasdaq, and other applicable securities rules and regulations. Complying with these rules and regulations has increased and will increase our legal and financial compliance costs, make some activities more difficult, time consuming or costly and increase demand on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and operating results. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting. We are required to disclose changes made in our internal control and procedures on a quarterly basis. In order to maintain and, if required, improve our disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting to meet this standard, significant resources and management oversight may be required. As a result, management’s attention may be diverted from other business concerns, which could adversely affect our business and operating results. We may also need to hire additional employees or engage outside consultants to comply with these requirements, which will increase our costs and expenses.

In addition, changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure are creating uncertainty for public companies, increasing legal and financial compliance costs and making some activities more time consuming. These laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations, in many cases due to their lack of specificity and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new


guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. We intend to invest resources to comply with evolving laws, regulations and standards, and this investment may result in increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management’s time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance activities. If our efforts to comply with new laws, regulations and standards differ from the activities intended by regulatory or governing bodies due to ambiguities related to their application and practice, regulatory authorities may initiate legal proceedings against us and our business may be adversely affected.

These new rules and regulations may make it more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance and, in the future, we may be required to accept reduced coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain coverage. These factors could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors, particularly to serve on our audit committee and compensation committee, and qualified executive officers.

By disclosing information in filings required of a public company, our business and financial condition are more visible, which we believe may result in threatened or actual litigation, including by competitors and other third parties. If those claims are successful, our business could be seriously harmed. Even if the claims do not result in litigation or are resolved in our favor, the time and resources needed to resolve them could divert our management’s resources and seriously harm our business.

New or future changes to tax laws could materially adversely affect our company.

The Tax Act, which was enacted on December 22, 2017, significantly amended the Code. Future guidance from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and other tax authorities with respect to the Tax Act may affect us, and certain aspects of the Tax Act could be repealed or modified in future legislation. For example, the CARES Act, enacted in March 2020, modified a number of provisions of the Tax Act. Changes in corporate tax rates, the realization of net deferred tax assets relating to our U.S. operations, the taxation of foreign earnings, and the deductibility of expenses under the Tax Act, as amended by the CARES Act, or future tax reform legislation could have a material impact on the value of our deferred tax assets, could result in significant one-time charges in the current or future taxable years, and could increase our future U.S. tax expense. The foregoing items, as well as any other future changes in tax laws, could have a material adverse effect on our business, cash flow, financial condition, or results of operations. In addition, it is uncertain if and to what extent various states will conform to the Tax Act, or the CARES Act, or any newly enacted federal tax legislation.

On June 29, 2020, California’s Governor Newsom signed A.B. 85 suspending California NOL utilization and imposing a cap on the amount of business incentives tax credits (R&D credit) for tax years 2020-2022. Given a projected GAAP and tax loss for 2020, the suspension is not expected to have a significant impact on our tax position.

GRAPHIC 6 g82298dsp045.jpg GRAPHIC begin 644 g82298dsp045.jpg M_]C_X 02D9)1@ ! $ 8 !@ #__@ ?3$5!1"!496-H;F]L;V=I97,@26YC M+B!6,2XP,0#_VP"$ @&!@<&!0@'!P<*"0@*#18.#0P,#1L3%! 6(!PB(1\< M'QXC*#,K(R8P)AX?+#TM,#4V.3HY(BL_0SXX0S,X.3H.$A8:' MB(F*DI.4E9:7F)F:HJ.DI::GJ*FJLK.TM;:WN+FZPL/$Q<;'R,G*TM/4U=;7 MV-G:X>+CY.7FY^CIZO'R\_3U]O?X^?H1 (! @0$ P0'!00$ $"=P ! @,1 M! 4A,08205$'87$3(C*!"!1"D:&QP0DC,U+P%6)RT0H6)#3A)?$7&!D:)BH*#A(6& MAXB)BI*3E)66EYB9FJ*CI*6FIZBIJK*SM+6VM[BYNL+#Q,7&Q\C)RM+3U-76 MU]C9VN+CY.7FY^CIZO+S]/7V]_CY^O_ !$( #L H0,!$0 "$0$#$0'_V@ , M P$ A$#$0 _ /?J!;C23TYICLT1^:GF7-8[E@JGLO:]#JLG J^IQ6U%&:+DZADBBX:H4'B@: M$Z=Z8-V#\:0K@..] Q>:!:D$UPEK"\LSA8TY9CQ0W8N,7-VB>2^(/B#J.JW; M6>C(8XL[0RC+O_A7-*JWHCZG#97"C'VE9E6'PAXOOD\]YGC+V+]T&NM'QLMQ<_A3>@K6$!XI*P M7#/%4*_84'-(/4* N&>U :H,TPYCSKXI:M);V$.G1L1]HY:?YER/N#/&**=/J+-\;*4_91V/0 .<5OL>#;09+ M!%-&8Y4#H1@J>AI6!-QV(II;?3[1G7ZM\2=1OK MIK?0[;"= Q7^.U8.H[Z'TM#*J=)*5>7]?>5!XQ\7Z4Z2WL6Z+J1)'@$?4 M4G.78Z)8#!5O=IR7XGHOAGQ79^([=FA!CF0?/&QR16T)\Q\]C,'/#2M+8LZ] MX@LO#]@US=L<9 5!U8^E.4N4QPV'G7GRQ1YG+XZ\4:Q<$Z9;B.+LJ)N(_$US MN3>J/I(Y=A<.K59)O[OU)+#XAZWI%V(M:MO,A_BRNUOJ/6FJC6Z)JY90KJ]& M6O\ 7F>HZ7J=OJ]@EW:N&B<<&NB,KJY\U6HRHSY)'C^H\?%(_P#7V*Y4_P!X M?6I7RR_DOS/6]8U>#1=*DO+G[B#IG&3V%=4WRJY\K0HRKU5!'FO_ F'BS7Y MW.CVFR%3P$7/YDUS\\I;(^AC@<+AM*\E1A\.E7]C5T*7 M@3Q;+X@AGAO!&MU$GZ?/=R'"1*6-6Y6 M1YM*FZDU%'#>#_%6M>(]>F1EA2QB!8D(<\G@9S40J:&1CBJL/8X+XIZA);:'#;(2HN),-CN!SBL*VD M+GMY+34L0F_/\B3X<:-:V_A^.],:M<3\LV,X&> *=**:N3FV(J.KR7T.PN[* MVOK5X)X4>-A@J16MCRH59TI7BSQOPT6T7XB"SB8^7YQA()ZKVKC3<)V/K\9; M%X+VC6NOX(L_$BYEO/%4-@6Q'&%"CW;O55I:I&62P4:$I-'J.C:3:Z7ID-O! M$JJJC/')KI44E8^:Q&(G6GS-F9XUT>TU#PY=O)&%EAC,B. ,J0,U%2*L;X'% MRH5DDKG5%)1J]S$U _P#%TSC_ )^Q6+TJ M'=ME?R7YFQ\5[V3_ $"R!_=,"[+ZD8Q_.M:\K)''D=%3J2;[?JBCI'CB^TG3 MXK6UT1=B#[VUN3ZU-.HTMCIQ664L16;G4?WHK>(?%E[XATXVD^C!#D$.%8E3 M4SG)E83 TL//W9O[T=9\-Q-/X:N+*\1]BN5"N"/E(Z5M3O:S/'S7EA6YH,X_ M]]X(\=#&1;LW0]XR?Z&H?N2/8]W'X.W5?HCHOB5XB5]-M+"T?/VGYWP?X>P_ M$_RJJLM$C@RK!^]*<_L_\$Z#P!H8TCP^C.N+BX_>.3^@JZ<;(\[,Z[K5;+H= M7CV%7<\^YB>)] C\0:1):MQ+]Z-O[II22:U.G!8EX6IS(\ETC6-5\$:K+!/" M2I/[R-A@-[BN.#<&?68FE0S&%XO4]%M?B1H [C@?A4^UOL;4LFFDY5=#2\6Z3-K_@^*5!ONXU$@ M&.IQSQ533G"QG@JZPF*MTU.7\%>,X]$@.F:F&2)&^1_[OL:SA+DT9Z.8Y=]9 M?M*+NSJ=5^(VCVEF[V<@N)=1R:O.5JBLCD? .DW.K^)3K5 MPI\J(ER2/O,?_P!=8TUS2NSU,UKPH4O94V7_ (G:#,)XM7MXRR@;9".WH:NO M'JC')L9!1=*;M MVEUILNG:6WF&<;&DQQ@T3J)JR-\!EYP%!&" M%%725DB.1U#_DJ9_Z^Q6-O?/5WRRWDOS.I^)NB2WMA!J%NNYK; M[P _A-;58W2:/,RC$1IU'&3M?3\A/"?CS33IL5IJ;K;2Q#:&;H:49QMJ7C\L MK.JYTE=%S7?B/IEA&JZ=LO9"P!VGY0*3J16QST,IK3NZGNG5:1?#4],AO!;O M#YBYVMVK6.NIYM>G[.HZ=[V.2^)>A"^TA=0B7,]MUQW4]?Z5E6BVKH]3)\3[ M&IRO9GG_ (2TR;Q#XAM8KAF>* !G/HHZ#\ZPIJ4GZ'T&95H8>A+DWE^A[RB! M$5%& !Q[5W+0^%EG%>E&V_WEC1_AYHNE3K-L M>YE7H9L''X=*E4DF9U\VKUU;;[SJT0+@ 8 Z5O:R/*U;NSG9?!6ERZW_ &JR MR?:-^_ASC/TK'EU.]8^:I>RZ'1/&DD91E#*1@@C(-:M'%S.+NCCM4^&VC:A< M-,GF6A8Y;R2,'\"#64J29ZE'-ZU"-KW];CM*^'.BZ=<+.5DN77H92,#\!BB- M)(5;-JU>-MO2YV**J(%10JCH ,8K2QY5VW=G#?$S6O[/T5;&,_OKIL''91U_ MI656?0]K)L+[6LY2V7_ '?#70_[.T-KR50)KL@Y/7:,X_K3I*R%F^)YZWLUM M'_@'<"M3Q=1:!W&CIQ18+WW%'2@-M@Q3'<*3)$/%)!IU%IC]!#]*>P?,6IU M,4;">HG?-.X6?<44 '>C88=.M -I![47!O0,8%,2\@Q0._<:W X!/TH!)/0\ MDU31]8\3>-E>ZL+B.R5PFYD(78.?UKFY>:1]/0Q5##85J+U_X!ZS;Q);P)#& MNU$4*!Z"NC8^:D^9\S)*!7%H ,"@3U# H#87% "8% K(" : :OH&!0/8,"@5 M@P!0%K"XH&)@4 +@4"M8,4#$(!H$TF&!0%A<4#V#% 6$*@]10&PA12,$4DD@ ,% Z4P%Q0 4 ?__9 end