License Agreements |
9 Months Ended |
---|---|
Sep. 30, 2023 | |
License Agreements [Abstract] | |
License Agreements | Note 8. License agreements
Novartis Pharma AG
In December 2022, the Company entered into an exclusive license agreement (as amended, the Novartis Agreement) with Novartis Pharma AG (Novartis) under which the Company was granted an exclusive, worldwide, royalty-bearing license to certain patent and other intellectual property rights owned or controlled by Novartis to develop, manufacture, use, and commercialize naporafenib in all fields of use. The Company has the right to sublicense (through multiple tiers) its rights under the Novartis Agreement, subject to certain limitations and conditions, and is required to use commercially reasonable efforts to commercialize licensed products in certain geographical markets.
The license granted under the Novartis Agreement is subject to Novartis’ reserved right to: (i) develop, manufacture, use, and commercialize compounds unrelated to naporafenib under the licensed patent rights and know-how, (ii) use the licensed patent rights and know-how for non-clinical research purposes, and (iii) use the licensed patent rights and know-how to the extent necessary to perform ongoing clinical trials and perform its obligations under existing contracts and under the Novartis Agreement.
Under the Novartis Agreement, the Company made an upfront cash payment to Novartis of $20.0 million and issued to Novartis 12,307,692 shares of common stock of the Company having an aggregate value of approximately $80.0 million. The Company is obligated to make future regulatory milestone payments of up to $80.0 million and sales milestone payments of up to $200.0 million. The Company is also obligated to pay royalties on net sales of all licensed products, in the low-single digit percentages, subject to certain reductions. The Company recorded $100.0 million in IPR&D expense during the year ended December 31, 2022 in connection with the Novartis Agreement. As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the Company had recorded $0 and $20.0 million in accounts payable on the condensed consolidated balance sheets related to the upfront cash payment, respectively. As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, no milestones are accrued as the underlying contingencies are not probable or estimable.
The Novartis Agreement will expire upon the last to expire royalty term, which is determined on a licensed product-by-licensed product and country-by-country basis, and is the later of: (i) ten years from the date of first commercial sale for the licensed product in such country, (ii) the last to expire valid claim within the licensed patent rights covering such licensed product, or (iii) the expiration of all regulatory exclusivity for the licensed product in such country. Upon expiration of the Novartis Agreement, on a licensed product-by-licensed product and country-by-country basis, the Company will have a fully paid-up, perpetual, and irrevocable license to develop, manufacture, use, and commercialize the licensed products.
The Novartis Agreement may be terminated in its entirety by either party in the event of an uncured material breach by the other party. Novartis may terminate the Novartis Agreement upon written notice in the event the Company becomes subject to specified bankruptcy, insolvency, or similar circumstances. The Company may terminate the Novartis Agreement in its entirety at any time upon the provision of prior written notice to Novartis. Upon termination of the Novartis Agreement for any reason, all rights and licenses granted to the Company will terminate. In addition, upon termination of the Novartis Agreement for any reason other than its natural expiration, Novartis has an option to negotiate a license under any patent rights, know-how, or other intellectual property rights relating to the licensed products that are owned or controlled by the Company for the purpose of developing, manufacturing and commercializing the licensed products on terms to be negotiated between the parties. NiKang Therapeutics, Inc.
In February 2020, the Company entered into a license agreement (the NiKang Agreement) with NiKang Therapeutics, Inc. (NiKang) under which the Company was granted an exclusive, worldwide license to certain intellectual property rights owned or controlled by NiKang related to certain SHP2 inhibitors to develop and commercialize ERAS-601 and certain other related compounds for all applications.
Under the NiKang Agreement, in 2020, the Company made an upfront payment of $5.0 million to NiKang and reimbursed NiKang $0.4 million for certain initial manufacturing costs. In addition, the Company paid $7.0 million in 2020 related to the publication of a US patent application that covered the composition of matter of ERAS-601. The Company is also obligated to pay (i) development and regulatory milestone payments in an aggregate amount of up to $16.0 million for the first licensed product, of which $4.0 million was paid in January 2021, and $12.0 million for a second licensed product, and (ii) commercial milestone payments in an aggregate amount of up to $157.0 million for the first licensed product and $151.0 million for a second licensed product. The Company is also obligated to: (i) pay tiered royalties on net sales of all licensed products in the mid-single digit percentages, subject to certain reductions; and (ii) equally split all net sublicensing revenues earned under sublicense agreements that the Company enters into with any third party before commencement of the first Phase I clinical trial for a licensed product. No IPR&D expense was recorded during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, no milestones are accrued as the underlying contingencies are not probable or estimable. Katmai Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
In March 2020, the Company entered into a license agreement (the Katmai Agreement) with Katmai Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Katmai) under which the Company was granted an exclusive, worldwide, royalty-bearing license to certain patent rights and know-how controlled by Katmai related to the development of small molecule therapeutic and diagnostic products that modulate EGFR and enable the identification, diagnosis, selection, treatment, and/or monitoring of patients for neuro-oncological applications to develop, manufacture, use, and commercialize ERAS-801 and certain other related compounds in all fields of use.
Under the Katmai Agreement, the Company made an upfront payment of $5.7 million and Katmai agreed to purchase shares of the Company’s Series B-1 convertible preferred stock and Series B-2 convertible preferred stock having an aggregate value of $2.7 million. In April 2020, Katmai purchased 356,000 shares of the Company’s Series B-1 convertible preferred stock for $1.8 million, and in January 2021, Katmai purchased 118,666 shares of the Company’s Series B-2 convertible preferred stock for $0.9 million. In connection with the Company's IPO, these shares of Series B-1 convertible preferred stock and Series B-2 convertible preferred stock were converted into 395,555 shares of the Company's common stock, in the aggregate. The Company is obligated to make future development and regulatory milestone payments of up to $26.0 million, of which $2.0 million was paid in March 2022, and commercial milestone payments of up to $101.0 million. The Company is also obligated to pay tiered royalties on net sales of each licensed product, at rates ranging from the mid- to high-single digit percentages, subject to a minimum annual royalty payment in the low six figures and certain permitted deductions. No IPR&D expense was recorded during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023. The Company recorded IPR&D expense of $0 and $2.0 million in connection with a development milestone payment made during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022, respectively. As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, no milestones are accrued as the underlying contingencies are not probable or estimable. LifeArc
In April 2020, the Company entered into a license agreement with LifeArc (the LifeArc Agreement) under which the Company was granted an exclusive, worldwide license to certain materials, know-how, and intellectual property rights owned or controlled by LifeArc to develop, manufacture, use, and commercialize certain ULK inhibitors for all applications.
Under the LifeArc Agreement, the Company was granted the license at no upfront cost and a period of three months after the effective date to conduct experiments on LifeArc’s compounds. Upon completion of this initial testing period, the Company had the option to continue the license and make a one-time license payment of $75,000 to LifeArc, which payment was subsequently made in 2020. The Company is obligated to make future development milestone payments for a licensed product of up to $11.0 million and sales milestone payments of up to $50.0 million. The Company is also obligated to pay royalties on net sales of all licensed products, in the low-single digit percentages, subject to certain reductions. No IPR&D expense was recorded during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, no milestones are accrued as the underlying contingencies are not probable or estimable. University of California, San Francisco
In December 2018, the Company entered into a license agreement, as amended (the UCSF Agreement), with The Regents of the University of California, San Francisco (the Regents), under which the Company was granted an exclusive, worldwide, royalty-bearing license under certain patent rights claiming novel covalent inhibitors of GTP- and GDP-bound RAS for the development and commercialization of products covered by such patent rights for the prevention, treatment and amelioration of human cancers and other diseases and conditions. The UCSF Agreement was amended in May 2021.
Under the UCSF Agreement, the Company made upfront payments of $50,000 to the Regents and paid the Regents an annual license maintenance fee during the term of the license, but such fee would not have been due on any anniversary if, on that date, the Company was then making royalty payments to the Regents. The Company was obligated to make future development and regulatory milestone payments of up to $6.4 million and a sales milestone payment of $2.0 million for either of the first two licensed products. The Company was also obligated to pay royalties on net sales of all licensed products in the low-single digit percentages, subject to a minimum annual royalty payment in the low six figures, commencing on the year of the first sale of a licensed product and continuing, on a licensed product-by-licensed product and country-by-country basis, until there were no valid claims of the licensed patent rights covering the licensed product in such country.
Additionally, the Company was obligated to pay tiered sublicensing fees, with the first two tiers in the low-to-mid teen percentages and the third tier at 30%, on certain fees the Company received from any sublicense that the Company granted, depending on the stage of development of a licensed product when such sublicense was granted. Prior to the execution of the amendment, the Company was obligated to make a cash payment to the Regents in the event of the Company’s initial public offering, a change of control transaction or a reverse merger (the Corporate Milestone). In the amendment, the amount of the cash payment payable upon the Company’s achievement of a Corporate Milestone was reduced and the Company agreed to issue the Regents 944,945 shares of the Company’s common stock, which issuance was not contingent upon the achievement of a Corporate Milestone and occurred in May 2021. In August 2021, following the achievement of the Corporate Milestone, the Company made a cash payment to the Regents in the amount of $1.7 million. No IPR&D expense was recorded during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, no milestones are accrued as the underlying contingencies are not probable or estimable.
On August 7, 2023, the Company sent a notice of termination to the Regents with respect to the UCSF Agreement. The termination of the UCSF Agreement, including termination of the exclusive license granted to the Company under the UCSF Agreement, was effective as of October 6, 2023. |