UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form 10-K
(Mark One)
X
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019
OR
☐☐
TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from to
Commission File Number 0-21419
_____________
BIOCARDIA, INC.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
_____________
Delaware
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)
23-2753988
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)
125 Shoreway Road, Suite B
San Carlos, California 94070
(Address of Principal Executive Offices, Including Zip Code)
(650) 226-0120
(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class
Trading Symbol(s)
Common Stock, par value $0.001
Warrant to Purchase Common Stock
BCDA
BCDAW
Name of each exchange on which
registered
The Nasdaq Capital Market
The Nasdaq Capital Market
Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No X
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No X
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding
12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past
90 days. Yes X No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the
preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes X No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company.
See the definitions of "large accelerated filer,” "accelerated filer,” "smaller reporting company” and "emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer
Non-accelerated filer
☐
X
Accelerated filer
Smaller reporting company
Emerging growth company
☐
X
☐
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. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No X
The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant, computed by reference to the average bid and asked price of such
common equity, on June 30, 2019 was approximately $23,226,531. Shares of the registrant’s common stock held by each executive officer, director and holder of 10% or more of the
outstanding common stock have been excluded in that such persons may be deemed to be affiliates. This calculation does not reflect a determination that certain persons are
affiliates of the registrant for any other purpose.
The number of shares of the registrant’s Common Stock outstanding as of March 20, 2020 was 6,848,355.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
The discussion of historical items and year-to-year comparisons between 2018 and 2017 in "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations” in the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018, filed with the SEC on April 2, 2019, is incorporated by reference into Part
II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I
Item 1.
Business
Item 1A.
Risk Factors
Item 1B.
Unresolved Staff Comments
Item 2.
Item 3.
Item 4.
Item 5.
Item 6.
Item 7.
Properties
Legal Proceedings
Mine Safety Disclosures
PART II
Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Selected Financial Data
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Item 7A.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
Item 8.
Item 9.
Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
Item 9A.
Controls and Procedures
Item 9B.
Other Information
Item 10.
Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
Item 11.
Executive Compensation
PART III
Item 12.
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
Item 13.
Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
Item 14.
Principal Accounting Fees and Services
PART IV
Item 15.
Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules
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SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Any and all statements contained in this Annual Report that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking
statements. Terms such as "may,” "might,” "would,” "should,” "could,” "project,” "estimate,” "pro-forma,” "predict,” "potential,” "strategy,” "anticipate,” "attempt,” "develop,”
"plan,” "help,” "believe,” "continue,” "intend,” "expect,” "future” and terms of similar import (including the negative of any of the foregoing) may be intended to identify forward-
looking statements. However, not all forward-looking statements may contain one or more of these identifying terms. Those statements appear in this Annual Report, and include
statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the company and management that are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions and
other factors that could cause actual results and the timing of certain events to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to those discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors” in Item 1A of this Annual Report.
Forward-looking statements in this prospectus may include, without limitation, statements regarding:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
(vii)
(viii)
(ix)
(x)
(xi)
(xii)
(xiii)
(xiv)
(xv)
(xvi)
(xvii)
the plans and objectives of management for future operations, including plans or objectives relating to the development of our cell therapy systems,
the timing and conduct of the clinical trials for our products, including statements regarding the timing, progress and results of current and future
preclinical studies and clinical trials as well as our research and development programs;
the timing or likelihood of regulatory filing, approvals and required licenses for our cell therapy systems;
our ability to adequately protect our intellectual property rights and enforce such rights to avoid violation of the intellectual property rights of others;
the timing, costs and other aspects of the commercial launch of our products;
our estimates regarding the market opportunity, clinical utility, potential advantages and market acceptance of our products;
the impact of government laws and regulations;
our ability to recruit and retain qualified clinical, regulatory and research and development personnel;
the availability of reimbursement or other forms of funding for our products from government and commercial payors;
difficulties in maintaining commercial scale manufacturing capacity and capability and our ability to generate growth;
uncertainty in industry demand;
general economic conditions and market conditions in our industry;
the effects that the COVID-19 outbreak, or similar pandemics, could have on our business, preclinical studies and clinical trials;
the depth of the trading market in our securities;
a projection of income (including income/loss), earnings (including earnings/loss) per share, capital expenditures, dividends, capital structure or other
financial items;
our future financial performance, including any such statement contained in a discussion and analysis of financial condition by management or in the
results of operations included pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC; and
the assumptions underlying or relating to any statement described in points (i), (ii) or (iii) above. These statements are not guarantees of future
performance and are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict.
Because forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified, you should not rely upon forward-looking
statements as predictions of future events. The events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements may not be achieved or occur and actual results could differ
materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Except as required by applicable law, including the securities laws of the United States and the rules and
regulations of the SEC, we do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statement. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statement contained herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Overview
PART I
We are a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company developing novel therapeutics for cardiovascular diseases with large unmet medical needs. We are committed to applying
our expertise in the fields of autologous and allogeneic cell-based therapies to improve the lives of patients with cardiovascular conditions. Our therapeutic portfolio consists of
the CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapies, which utilize our enabling therapeutic delivery products and product candidates.
Our lead therapeutic candidate is the investigational CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, which provides an autologous bone marrow derived cell therapy (using a patient’s own cells)
for the treatment of two clinical indications: heart failure that develops after a heart attack and chronic myocardial ischemia. The CardiAMP Cell Therapy System is being developed
to provide a comprehensive biotherapeutic solution, incorporating a proprietary molecular diagnostic to characterize the potency of a patient’s own bone marrow cells and
determine if they are an optimal candidate for therapy, a proprietary point of care processing platform to prepare cells at the patient’s bedside, an optimized therapeutic formulation
that builds on the total experience in the cardiac stem cell field to-date, and a proprietary interventional delivery system that easily navigates a patient’s vasculature to securely
deliver cells in a routine cardiac catheterization procedure. As an autologous therapy, CardiAMP should not result in an immune response to the transplanted cells or reduce
patient therapeutic options.
Our second therapeutic candidate is the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, an investigational culture expanded bone marrow derived allogenic "off the shelf” cell therapy.
CardiALLO has potential to be advanced for many clinical indications including heart failure.
These cell therapy approaches are not aimed at repopulating cardiomyocytes, but rather at providing potent paracrine effects. Our investigators believe that these therapies
facilitate the natural repair responses of bone marrow derived cells homing to injury in chronic settings where homing signals have either dissipated or were inadequate. These
adult cell therapies are among the only cell therapies with significant and promising clinical experience aimed at addressing the large unmet needs in cardiovascular disease.
Market Overview
Adult bone marrow contains a large reservoir of stem and progenitor cells capable of differentiating into blood cells, blood vessel cells, and connective tissue cells. In addition,
numerous pre-clinical cardiac studies have shown that cell-to-cell communication in which bone marrow-derived stem cells promotes microcirculatory adaptation, immune
modulation and cell protection, facilitating cardiac recovery, in part via recruitment of other reparative cell types.
Bone marrow cell homing to the heart is believed to be part of the body’s natural repair process. After a heart attack or an acute injury to the heart, cells from bone marrow are
known to home to the heart. For example, a population of bone marrow cells that express the surface marker CD34+ has certain receptors, including CXC-4 and CXC-7 receptors,
that home to the SDF-1 ligand in injured heart tissue. In heart failure, the heart may have fewer of these homing signals and a decreased ability to stimulate or recreate this signaling
process, leading to a lower likelihood of heart tissue repair. A number of other bone marrow derived cells with unique cell surface markers have also been shown to have beneficial
effects in animal models of heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia disease when delivered directly to the heart.
Bone marrow derived cell-based therapy has been shown to have the potential to provide therapeutic benefit for patients with heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia. In the
past decade, intramyocardial delivery of bone marrow derived cell-based therapies in preclinical and clinical studies of heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia has
predominantly resulted in benefits, such as improvement in ventricular function, reduction in the area of dead heart tissue and increase in heart muscle blood flow, reduction in
pain symptoms, reduced major adverse event rates, and reduced mortality.
Heart Failure
Heart failure is a clinical condition in which the output of blood from the heart is insufficient to meet the metabolic demands of the body. In 2019, the American Heart Association,
or AHA, report on heart disease statistics estimated that 6.5 million American adults have heart failure and that heart failure cost the nation an estimated $30.7 billion in 2012,
including the cost of health care services, medicines for treatment and missed days of work. In 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that heart failure was
a contributing cause of 1 in 8 deaths in 2017. Heart failure is increasingly prevalent due to the aging population and the increase in major cardiovascular risk factors, including
obesity and diabetes. The AHA also estimates that one in five adults will develop heart failure after the age of 40.
1
During heart failure progression, the heart steadily loses its ability to respond to increased metabolic demand, and mild exercise soon exceeds the heart’s ability to maintain
adequate output. Towards the end stage of the disease, the heart cannot pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs at rest. At this stage, fluids accumulate in the extremities or
in the lungs making the patient bedridden and unable to perform the activities of daily living. The long-term prognosis associated with heart failure is approximately 50% mortality
at five years following the initial diagnosis.
Heart failure is classified in relation to the severity of the symptoms experienced by the patient. The most commonly used classification system, established by the New York Heart
Association, or NYHA, is as follows:
•
•
•
•
Class I (mild): patients experience no or very mild symptoms with ordinary physical activity;
Class II (mild): patients experience fatigue and shortness of breath during moderate physical activity;
Class III (moderate): patients experience shortness of breath during even light physical activity; and
Class IV (severe): patients are exhausted even at rest.
Despite guideline-directed therapies employing a wide range of pharmacologic, device, and surgical options, many patients deteriorate over time and develop advanced heart
failure symptoms that cannot be effectively managed by existing medical therapies. At the end stage of heart failure, current treatment options include heart transplant surgery or
implantation of a left ventricular assist device, or LVAD, a battery operated mechanical circulatory device used to partially or completely replace the function of the left ventricle of
the heart. LVADs are used for patients awaiting a heart transplant or as a destination therapy for patients with NYHA Class IV heart failure who may never receive a heart
transplant. Both of these end-stage treatment options require invasive open-chest surgery and can cost in excess of $150,000 per procedure, as reported by the Journal of Heart
and Lung Transplantation.
There are approximately 2.9 million NYHA Class II and Class III heart failure patients, of which we estimate approximately 60% are patients with ischemic systolic heart failure. Of
this subset of 1.7 million patients, we estimate that approximately 70%, or over 1.2 million patients, will have a cell potency score sufficient to qualify for treatment with the
CardiAMP Cell Therapy System.
Chronic Myocardial Ischemia
Refractory angina is a condition characterized by severe pain in the chest, often also spreading to the shoulders, arms, and neck, caused by an inadequate blood supply to the
heart. In the U.S. alone, it is estimated that between 600,000 and 1.8 million patients suffer this condition, with approximately 75,000 new cases diagnosed each year. There is a
growing population of patients with chronic angina that suffer with severely limiting symptoms and are not amenable to current therapies. These patients have significant
impairments in quality of life, suffer from poor perceived health status and represent a significant burden to the health care system due to high use of health care resources. We
believe the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System has the potential to provide a treatment for these patients not met by current therapeutic alternatives.
Our Product Candidates
CardiAMP Cell Therapy System
The CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, or CardiAMP, is our lead therapeutic program being advanced for two clinical indications. This investigational cell therapy system is
comprised of (i) a cell potency screening test, (ii) a point of care cell processing platform, and (iii) a biotherapeutic delivery system. In the screening process, the physician extracts
a small sample of the patient's bone marrow in an outpatient procedure performed under local anesthesia. The clinic sends the sample to a centralized diagnostic lab, which tests for
identified biomarkers from which we generate a potency assay score for the patient. During the treatment for patients who are assessed as meeting the indication specific
CardiAMP cell potency assay score, a doctor harvests and then prepares the patient's own bone marrow mononuclear cells, or autologous cells, using our point of care cell
processing platform, which a cardiologist then delivers into the heart using our proprietary biotherapeutic delivery system. We designed the entire procedure to be performed in
approximately 60 to 90 minutes, which we believe is substantially faster than alternative cell-based therapies in development. The patient then leaves the hospital the same or next
day.
2
CardiAMP Cells Phase I Heart Failure Study: Transendocardial Autologous Marrow Cells in Myocardial Infarction
The CardiAMP Phase I Transendocardial Autologous Marrow Cells in Myocardial Infarction or TABMMI trial enrolled 20 patients with ischemic systolic heart failure in an open
label safety trial of bone marrow cells delivered with the Helix™ biotherapeutic delivery system at a dosage of 100 million cells. Results showed improvement in cardiac function as
measured by left ventricular ejection fraction, improved exercise tolerance, and superior survival as compared to historical controls. The complete results of the 20 patients at two-
year follow-up have been published in the journal Eurointervention in 2011.
CardiAMP Cells Phase II Heart Failure Trial: Transendocardial Autologous Cells in Heart Failure Trial (TAC-HFT)
The CardiAMP Phase II Transendocardial Autologous Cells in Heart Failure Trial (TAC-HFT), patients with ischemic systolic heart failure were randomized on a one to one basis
into two double-blind, placebo-controlled trials: TACHFT-BMC and TACHFT-MSC. TACHFT-BMC met its primary safety endpoint at both dosages (100 million and 200 million
cells) and treated patients had increased functional capacity, improved quality of life, symptoms and key markers of cardiac function predictive of survival, such as end systolic
volume, or ESV. The TACHFT-BMC trial included a single dose of CardiAMP cells with a follow up observation period of 12 months. The Phase II, randomized, placebo-controlled
study met its primary safety endpoint and demonstrated statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in secondary efficacy endpoints of functional capacity, as
measured by the six minute walk distance (6MW), and in quality of life, as measured by the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire score. Phase II results were
published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2014 and were presented at the World Congress of Regenerative Medicine in 2015.
CardiAMP Cell Phase III Heart Failure Trial
The CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial is a Phase III, multi-center, randomized, double-blinded, sham-controlled study of up to 260 patients at 40 centers nationwide, which includes a
10-patient roll-in cohort. The Phase III pivotal trial is designed to provide the primary support for the safety and efficacy of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System. The primary
endpoint is a clinical composite of six minute walk distance and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events. Based on the results achieved in the Phase II trial, our Phase III
pivotal trial is designed to have more than 95% probability of achieving a positive result with statistical significance. Statistical significance denotes the mathematical likelihood
that the results observed are real and not due to chance.
Particularly novel aspects of this trial include a cell potency assay to screen subjects who are most likely to respond favorably to treatment, a point of care treatment method, use
of a high target dose of 200 million cells and an efficient transcatheter delivery method that is associated with high cell retention. Success in the primary endpoint of the trial may
lead to a new treatment for those suffering from heart failure in the aftermath of a heart attack. The trial design was published in the peer reviewed American Heart Journal in 2018.
The Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, or CMS, has designated the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial as a qualifying trial for
Medicare national coverage determination that routine costs of care will be covered for Medicare beneficiaries. Private insurance plans covering 50 million insured Americans
follow this CMS reimbursement policy and are also anticipated to pay for these costs in the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial. Covered costs today for both the treatment and control
arms of the trial include patient screening, the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System and procedure, and clinical follow-up at one and two years after the procedure.
The Phase III CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial was initiated in the fourth quarter of 2016, and the first patient treated in Q1 2017. The Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) safety
review of the 10-patient roll-in cohort treated at three clinical sites was completed successfully in the third quarter of 2017. Efficacy data from the primary endpoint in the open label
roll-in cohort showing improvements in exercise capacity, quality of life and functional improvements as measured by the echocardiography core lab were presented at the
American Heart Association Scientific Sessions in 2018. The ongoing CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial is currently enrolling at 25 clinical sites and has enrolled 74 patients as of the
date of this filing.
The independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) completed a prespecified data review of the trial in September 2019, which included follow-up results on 50 patients
randomized in the trial as of August 31, 2019. The DSMB indicated there were no safety concerns with the study results and recommended that the trial continue as planned. On
March 31, 2020, the Company announced that the DSMB completed its second prespecified data review, and that based on the DSMB’s review of all available safety data for
patients randomized into the trial to date, there were no safety concerns and that the DSMB recommended continuing the trial as planned. We also anticipate another interim
DSMB readout in the fourth quarter of 2020, which will include a non-futility analysis with 60 patients having reached one-year follow-up. This fourth quarter of 2020 event is
anticipated to be the first randomized efficacy data set including the primary endpoint reviewed by the DSMB.
Enrollment remains our primary focus and challenge. We have recently identified two barriers for patients to participate in the trial. The first of these is that prospective patients are
interested in receiving therapy and are concerned about being in a non-treated control arm that does not have a path to receive therapy. Secondly, the requirement for patient out
of pocket copays in our Medicare reimbursed trial presents an additional impediment to patient follow-up. To address these barriers to patient participation, we submitted an
Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) supplement to the FDA with changes to enable patients in the control arm to "Cross Over” to therapy after certain follow-up visits in the
trial have been completed, which assures the trial control arm patients early access to therapy if the trial meets its primary endpoint and is deemed appropriate for the patients by
their physicians, and to enable BioCardia to cover the costs of all patient co-pays for insured patients. The FDA has recently approved this IDE supplement. These changes,
coupled with site specific plans intended to further accelerate enrollment, are being actively rolled out. We have been excited by an enormous uptick in the number of patient
informed consents received for participation in the CardiAMP Heart Failure trial in March 2020 and a number of centers finally coming online, however this solid progress has been
delayed by COVID-19.
We are currently assessing the impact of COVID-19 on the enrollment in the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial. A number of clinical centers have already advised the Company that
they will not be performing elective procedures for some period of time. Many centers may also delay patient follow-up visits during this period out of concern for patient
exposure to COVID-19. In alignment with recent FDA guidance on clinical trials, "FDA Guidance on Conduct of Clinical Trials of Medical Products during COVID-19 Pandemic
Guidance for Industry, Investigators, and Institutional Review Boards”, the Company is taking steps to address unavoidable protocol deviations due to COVID-19 illness and/or
COVID-19 control measures.
3
We believe the remaining clinical efficacy risk is modest based on the Phase I, II, and III data available, and broader literature which supports CardiAMP Cell Therapy System as a
therapeutic candidate for heart failure secondary to having had a heart attack. Because the CardiAMP cells do not become heart cells, we believe they have a low likelihood of
becoming ectopic foci that could cause life threatening arrhythmias. Because CardiAMP cells are autologous, patients will not require chronic immunosuppression to prevent their
immune system from attacking the donor cells. Unlike other investigational autologous cell therapies, the CardiAMP autologous cell therapies are expected to have low
manufacturing costs and utilize established distribution channels, significantly enhancing prospects for commercial success. The CardiAMP Cell Therapy System has the potential
to significantly benefit patients who have limited options and provide a cost-effective therapy to help reduce the substantial heart failure hospitalization and care costs.
CardiAMP Chronic Myocardial Ischemia Phase III Pivotal Trial
In January 2018, the FDA approved the investigational device exemption for the CardiAMP Cell Therapy system in a second related clinical indication, chronic myocardial
ischemia, based on the strength of our Phase I and II heart failure trial data and clinical data showing support for the efficacy of one component of our cell therapy (the CD34+
cells) in this indication. The trial is approved to enroll up to 343 patients at up to 40 clinical sites in the United States. An update to the statistical analysis plan to enable an
adaptive trial design is anticipated. Success in the primary endpoint of the trial, which is exercise tolerance, may lead to a new treatment for those suffering from chronic myocardial
ischemia and having sustained debilitating heart pain, referred to as refractory angina.
In 2018, CMS approved BioCardia’s request for the designation of the CardiAMP Chronic Myocardial Ischemia Trial as a qualifying trial for Medicare national coverage
determination similar to the designation received for the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial. It is anticipated that this second pivotal trial will build on and benefit from the experience
and infrastructure from the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial. We are working to initiate this trial with a 5-patient roll-in cohort. Timing is entirely dependent on the course of COVID-19
and the response in the United States.
CardiALLO Cell Therapy System
Our second therapeutic candidate is the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, an investigational culture expanded bone marrow derived "off the shelf” mesenchymal stem cell therapy.
CardiALLO cell therapy cells are expanded from Neurokinin-1 receptor positive bone marrow cells. These cells are being advanced to treat heart failure, but have potential for
numerous therapeutic applications as these are anticipated to be the cells that respond to the release of Substance P. Substance P ("SP”) is a neuropeptide released from sensory
nerves and is associated with the inflammatory processes and pain. Our CardiALLO Neurokinin-1 receptor positive derived cells are believed to be an important subset of the cells
that we have delivered in our previous preclinical and clinical mesenchymal stem cell studies. We believe this therapy presents the advantages of an "off the shelf" therapy that
does not require tissue harvesting or cell processing. We have completed manufacturing validation runs of these cells at BioCardia to support future clinical studies. We are
working to obtain FDA acceptance of an Investigational New Drug ("IND”) application for a Phase I/II trial for CardiALLO Cell Therapy System for the treatment of ischemic
systolic heart failure in the second quarter of 2020.
The subset of patients we are targeting initially for the CardiALLO Heart Failure Trial are those that have been excluded from the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial due to their lower
cell potency assay scores. CardiALLO trial activation would likely enhance enrollment in the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial. And if the CardiAMP trial is successful, as anticipated,
there is the potential for the CardiALLO therapy indication to be designated as an orphan indication.
CardiALLO related Phase I /II Studies: POSEIDON, TAC-HFT-MSC, and TRIDENT
We have co-sponsored three clinical trials for MSCs for the treatment of ischemic systolic heart failure. In substantially similar trial designs, the POSEIDON Phase I/II trial
compared autologous MSCs to allogeneic MSCs, the TACHFT-MSC Phase II trial compared autologous MSCs to placebo, and the TRIDENT Phase II compared allogenic MSCs at
different doses. The first two trials shared common arms of autologous MSCs, enabling a bridge to placebo, leading us to conclude that allogeneic MSC therapy has potential to be
superior to placebo. The IND for the TACHFT trial was filed with the FDA Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research in 2008 by the University of Miami, our co-sponsor for the
trial. The POSEIDON trial and the TRIDENT trials were submitted by amendment under the same IND filed for the TACHFT study, and was co-sponsored by the University of
Miami, the National Institutes of Health and us. The results from all three of these studies can be submitted to the FDA in support of an IND for the CardiALLO Cell Therapy
System.
Helix™ Biotherapeutic Delivery System
BioCardia’s Helix Biotherapeutic Delivery System or "Helix” delivers therapeutics into the heart muscle with a penetrating helical needle from within the heart. It enables local
delivery of cell and gene-based therapies, including CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapies, to treat cardiovascular indications. The Helix catheter is CE marked in Europe and is
under investigational use in the United States as part of our CardiAMP Cell Therapy System and CardiALLO Cell Therapy System development programs.
4
BioCardia selectively partners with firms developing other cell, gene, and protein therapeutic programs utilizing the Helix biotherapeutic delivery system. These partnered programs
provide additional data, intellectual property rights, and opportunities to participate in the development of combination products for the treatment of cardiac diseases.
Morph Deflectable Guide and Sheaths Products
BioCardia’s Morph catheter is designed to enable physicians to navigate through tortuous anatomy, customize the shape of the catheter to the patient's anatomy and their clinical
needs during the procedure, and to have stellar back up support once positioned. Morph catheters enable all Helix procedures and have been commercially available to treat more
than ten thousand patients. A number of Morph guides and sheaths are cleared for commercial sale in the United States.
Business Strategy
We are committed to applying our expertise in the fields of autologous and allogeneic cell-based therapies to improve the lives of patients with cardiovascular conditions. We are
pursuing the following business strategies:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Complete the ongoing 260 patient, 40 center Phase III pivotal IDE trial of CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for patients with ischemic systolic heart
failure.
Complete the FDA approved, 343 patient, 40 center Phase III pivotal IDE trial of CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for patients with chronic myocardial
ischemia.
Obtain FDA approval and commercialize CardiAMP Cell Therapy System using a highly-targeted cardiology sales force in the United States.
Advance our CardiALLO Cell Therapy System for the treatment of ischemic systolic heart failure, initially targeting patients for whom the CardiAMP
Cell Therapy System is not optimal due to the lower potency of their bone marrow cells.
Continue to develop and selectively partner our Helix™ biotherapeutic delivery system for use with other biotherapeutics.
Continue to develop and commercialize Morph catheter products.
Intellectual Property
We strive to protect and enhance the proprietary technologies that we believe are important to our business and seek to obtain and maintain patents for any patentable aspects of
our therapeutic candidates or products, including our anticipated companion diagnostic, their methods of use and any other inventions that are important to the development of
our business. Our success will depend significantly on our ability to obtain and maintain patent and other proprietary protection for commercially important technology, inventions
and know-how related to our business, defend and enforce our patents, maintain our licenses to use intellectual property owned by third parties, preserve the confidentiality of our
trade secrets and operate without infringing the valid and enforceable patents and other proprietary rights of third parties. We also rely on know-how, continuing technological
innovation and in-licensing opportunities to develop, strengthen, and maintain our proprietary position in the fields targeted by our therapeutic candidates.
5
We have a large patent portfolio of issued and pending claims covering the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, the Helix™ biotherapeutic
delivery system product and the Morph vascular access catheter products. As of December 31, 2019, we had developed or secured rights to over 65 issued or pending U.S. and
international patents or patent pending applications. We have sole ownership of the patents that we consider to be material, other than the patents that we license exclusively from
Biomet Biologics, LLC. Our issued U.S. patents expire between 2020 and 2034, without taking into consideration patent term extension. Among these are five issued material US
patents related to the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System and the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, which expire between 2027 and 2029 without taking into consideration patent term
extension. We maintain trade secrets covering a significant body of know-how and proprietary information related to our core therapeutic candidates, biotherapeutic delivery
systems and technologies. As a result, we believe our intellectual property position provides us with substantial competitive advantages for the commercial development of novel
therapeutics for cardiovascular diseases.
Our most recently issued United States Patents are listed below,
US Patent No.
Patent Title
10,520,505
10,071,226
10,035,982
9,945,854
9,752,123
9,517,199
9,504,642
9,301,975
8,496,926
Methods of measuring therapeutic potency and defining dosages for autologous cell therapy
Radial and trans-endocardial delivery catheter
Method of preparing autologous cells and methods of use for therapy
Methods of measuring therapeutic potency potential and defining dosages for autologous cell
therapy
Method of Preparing Autologous Cells and Methods of Use for Therapy
Treatment for chronic myocardial infarct
Treatment for chronic myocardial infarct
Method of preparing autologous cells and method of use for therapy
Treatment for chronic myocardial infarction
U.S. Regulatory Protection for CardiAMP and CardiALLO
Expiration
on or after
2034
2034
2029
2034
2029
2027
2027
2029
2027
In addition to patent and trade secret protection, we may receive a 12-year period of regulatory exclusivity from the FDA upon approval of CardiAMP Cell Therapy System and
CardiALLO Cell Therapy System pursuant to the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act. The exclusivity period, if granted, will run from the time of FDA approval. This
exclusivity period, if granted, will supplement the intellectual property protection discussed above, providing an additional barrier to entry for any competitor seeking approval for
a bio-similar version of the CardiAMP or CardiALLO cell therapy systems.
In addition, it is possible to extend the patent term of at least one patent covering CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems following FDA approval. This patent term
extension, or PTE, is intended to compensate a patent owner for the loss of patent term during the FDA approval process. If eligible, we may use a PTE to extend the term of one or
more of the patents discussed above beyond the expected expiration date. Because CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapy systems may involve multiple simultaneous approvals
under the IDE and IND applications, each pre-market approval, or PMA or biologics license application, or BLA, associated with the system approval is anticipated to have the
ability to have an extended patent term.
Trademarks
We have registered or applied for registration of our name, logo and the trademarks "BioCardia," "CardiAMP," "CardiALLO," and "Morph" in the United States. We have
registered or applied for registration of the trademarks "CardiAMP" and "CardiALLO" for use in connection with a biological product, namely, a cell-based therapy product
composed of bone marrow derived cells for medical use. We also have rights to use the "Helix” trademark in the United States. We have registered Morph for use in connection
with steerable vascular access technology. We intend to pursue additional registrations in markets outside the United States where we plan to sell our therapies and products.
6
Patent Term
The term of individual patents and patent applications will depend upon the legal term of the patents in the countries in which they are obtained. In most countries, the patent term
is 20 years from the date of filing of the patent application (or parent application, if applicable). For example, if an international Patent Cooperation Treaty, or PCT, application is
filed, any patent issuing from the PCT application in a specific country expires 20 years from the filing date of the PCT application. In the United States, however, if a patent was in
force on June 8, 1995, or issued on an application that was filed before June 8, 1995, that patent will have a term that is the greater of 20 years from the filing date, or 17 years from
the date of issue.
Under the Hatch-Waxman Act, the term of a patent that covers an FDA-approved drug, biological product may also be eligible for PTE. PTE permits restoration of a portion of the
patent term of a U.S. patent as compensation for the patent term lost during product development and the FDA regulatory review process if approval of the application for the
product is the first permitted commercial marketing of a drug or biological product containing the active ingredient. The patent term restoration period is generally one-half the time
between the effective date of an IND and the submission date of a BLA plus the time between the submission date of a BLA and the approval of that application. The Hatch-
Waxman Act permits a PTE for only one patent applicable to an approved drug, and the maximum period of restoration is five years beyond the expiration of the patent. A PTE
cannot extend the remaining term of a patent beyond a total of 14 years from the date of product approval, and a patent can only be extended once, and thus, even if a single patent
is applicable to multiple products, it can only be extended based on one product. Similar provisions may be available in Europe and certain other foreign jurisdictions to extend the
term of a patent that covers an approved drug. When possible, depending upon the length of clinical trials and other factors involved in the filing of a BLA, we expect to apply for
PTEs for patents covering our therapeutic candidates and products and their methods of use. For additional information on PTE, see "Government Regulation."
Proprietary Rights and Processes
We may rely, in some circumstances, on proprietary technology and processes (including trade secrets) to protect our technology. However, these can be difficult to protect. We
seek to protect our proprietary technology and processes, in part, by entering into confidentiality agreements with those who have access to our confidential information,
including our employees, consultants, scientific advisors and contractors. We also seek to preserve the integrity and confidentiality of our proprietary technology and processes
by maintaining physical security of our premises and physical and electronic security of our information technology systems. While we have confidence in these individuals,
organizations and systems, agreements or security measures may be breached, and we may not have adequate remedies for any breach. In addition, our proprietary technology and
processes may otherwise become known or be independently discovered by competitors. To the extent that our employees, consultants, scientific advisors, contractors, or any
future collaborators use intellectual property owned by others in their work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in related or resulting know-how and inventions. For this and
more comprehensive risks related to our proprietary technology and processes, please see "Risk Factors-Risks Related to our Intellectual Property."
Manufacturing
The CardiAMP cell processing platform is manufactured for us by our partner Biomet Biologics, LLC. We currently produce CardiALLO cells for preclinical development in our
preclinical development tissue culture facility and anticipate manufacturing for clinical development in a newly installed clinical cell manufacturing facility, both in San Carlos,
California. We currently manufacture our Helix™ biotherapeutic delivery system and Morph vascular access products in our San Carlos, California device manufacturing facility
using components we source from third party suppliers.
Sales and Marketing
Our sales and marketing strategy is to market the CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapy systems, if approved by the FDA, for heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia
indications using a dedicated direct sales model focused on selected cardiologists. These physicians are typically affiliated with leading hospitals and medical centers and we
believe that they tend to have well-established referral networks of interventional cardiologists and cardiac catheterization laboratories. We believe they represent a concentrated
customer base suitable to a specialist care sales model. We believe that the CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapy systems will be adopted first by leading cardiologists at high-
volume U.S. hospitals and medical centers, and progressively by a broader segment of the market. Cardiologists and interventional cardiologists have a history of early adoption of
innovative products and technologies, in part because the rate of innovation in this sector has been sustained, and in part because of the large unmet medical needs of heart failure
patients.
7
Competition
The biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries in which we operate are subject to rapid change and are characterized by intense competition to develop new technologies and
proprietary products. We face potential competition from many different sources, including larger and better-funded companies. While we believe that the CardiAMP Cell Therapy
System’s unique benefits provide us with competitive advantages, particularly given that CardiAMP is designed to be administered in a safe and short procedure, we have
identified several companies which are active in the advancement of cell-based and gene-based therapeutic products in the heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia
indications. Not only must we compete with other companies that are focused on cell-based therapy treatments, any products that we may commercialize will have to compete with
existing therapies and new therapies that may become available in the future.
However, competitors may require delivery platforms for their own therapeutic programs. Because the clinical need is so large and our biotherapeutic delivery products have
potential to enable multiple biotherapeutics, we view these companies also as potential collaborators and partners. None of these relationships are believed to be material to our
business at this time.
License Agreement with Biomet Biologics, LLC
In October 2012, we entered into a license and distribution agreement with Biomet Biologics, LLC under which we obtained an exclusive, nontransferable, worldwide distribution
right, patent license and trademark license to a point of care cell processing platform. Under the terms of the agreement, we are obligated to pay a royalty based on the price of the
disposables in the CardiAMP cell processing platform for the duration of the agreement. We expect the royalty payments to Biomet Biologics, LLC for the licensed product to
amount to a low or mid-single digit percentage of the expected price that we will charge for the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System. The agreement has a term of 10 years or the time
the last patent pursuant to the agreement expires, whichever is later. The agreement may be terminated by Biomet Biologics, LLC for a failure by us to meet any milestone
requirements, including minimum purchase requirements, as well as by either party upon 30 days prior written notice in the event of a breach of any material term by the other party.
We have the right to terminate the agreement upon 90 days prior written notice in the event the safety, efficacy or comparative effectiveness of the product is insufficient to meet
our commercial needs.
Technology Access Program for Biotherapeutic Delivery Systems
Our preclinical work with partners and collaborators generally takes place under arrangements where we secure access to data, reports, and a non-exclusive license to delivery
technology improvement inventions.
Clinical Research Agreements for Biotherapeutic Delivery Systems
Our clinical work with partners generally takes place under arrangements where we secure access to data, reports, and a non-exclusive license to technology improvement
inventions. Financial terms of each agreement are anticipated to cover our costs and provide milestone payments. We hope to generate sales if any of our partners are successful
with commercializing their products with our delivery platform.
Government Regulation
Biological products, including cell-based therapy products, and medical devices are subject to regulation under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, or FD&C Act, and the
Public Health Service Act, or PHS Act, and other federal, state, local and foreign statutes and regulations. Both the FD&C Act and the PHS Act and their corresponding
regulations govern, among other things, the testing, manufacturing, safety, identity, potency and purity, efficacy, labeling, packaging, storage, record keeping, distribution,
reporting, advertising and other promotional practices involving biological products. FDA acceptance must be obtained before clinical testing of an investigational biological and
medical device begins, and each clinical trial protocol for a cell-based therapy product is submitted to and reviewed by the FDA. FDA approval must be obtained before marketing
of a biological product. Unless an exception applies, FDA approval or clearance is required for medical devices. The process of obtaining regulatory approvals and the subsequent
compliance with applicable federal, state, local and foreign statutes and regulations require the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources and we may not be able to
obtain the required regulatory approvals on a timely basis, or at all. To date, the FDA has never approved for commercial sale a cell-based therapy product intended to treat the
heart.
Within the FDA, the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, or CBER, regulates cell-based therapy products. For products that use medical devices, including diagnostics,
to deliver cell therapies, CBER works closely with the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, or CDRH.
8
U.S. Biological Product Development and Regulatory Approval Process
Our CardiALLO therapeutic candidate will be regulated in the United States as a biological product. The process required by the FDA before a biological product may be tested
and marketed in the United States generally involves the following:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
completion of nonclinical laboratory tests and animal studies according to good laboratory practices, or GLP, regulations and applicable requirements for
the humane use of laboratory animals or other applicable regulations;
submission to the FDA of an IND application, which must become effective before human clinical trials may begin and must be updated annually or when
significant changes are made;
approval by an independent Institutional Review Board, or IRB, or ethics committee at each clinical site before the trial begins;
performance of adequate and well-controlled human clinical trials according to the FDA’s regulations, commonly referred to as good clinical practices, or
GCPs, and any additional requirements for the protection of human research subjects and their health information, to establish the safety, purity and
potency of the proposed biological product for its intended use;
preparation of and submission to the FDA of a BLA for marketing approval, after completion of all pivotal clinical trials;
satisfactory completion of an FDA Advisory Committee review, if applicable;
a determination by the FDA within 60 days of its receipt of a BLA to file the application for review;
satisfactory completion of an FDA inspection of the manufacturing facility or facilities where the biological product is produced to assess compliance with
GMP, to assure that the facilities, methods and controls are adequate to preserve the biological product’s identity, strength, quality and purity and, if
applicable, the FDA’s current good tissue practices, or GTPs, for the use of human cellular and tissue products;
potential FDA audit of the nonclinical study and clinical trial sites that generated the data in support of the BLA; and
FDA review and approval, or licensure, of the BLA for particular indications for use in the United States, which must be updated annually when significant
changes are made.
The testing and approval process require substantial time, effort and financial resources, and we cannot be certain that any approvals for our therapeutic candidates or product
candidates will be granted on a timely basis, if at all. Before testing any biological product candidate, including a cell-based therapy product, in humans, the product candidate
enters the preclinical testing stage. Preclinical tests, also referred to as nonclinical studies, include laboratory evaluations of product chemistry, toxicity and formulation, as well as
animal studies to assess the potential safety and activity of the product candidate. The conduct of the preclinical tests must comply with federal regulations and requirements
including GLPs.
The clinical trial sponsor must submit the results of the preclinical tests, together with manufacturing information, analytical data, any available clinical data or literature and a
proposed clinical protocol, to the FDA as part of the IND. Some preclinical testing may continue even after the IND is submitted. The IND automatically becomes effective 30 days
after receipt by the FDA, unless the FDA places the trial on a clinical hold within that 30-day time period. In such a case, the IND sponsor and the FDA must resolve any
outstanding concerns before the clinical trial can begin. The FDA may also impose clinical holds on a biological product candidate at any time before or during clinical trials due to
safety concerns or non-compliance. If the FDA imposes a clinical hold, trials may not recommence without FDA authorization and then only under terms authorized by the FDA.
Accordingly, we cannot be sure that submission of an IND will result in the FDA allowing clinical trials to begin, or that, once begun, issues will not arise that suspend or terminate
such trials.
9
Clinical trials involve the administration of the biological product candidate to healthy volunteers or patients under the supervision of qualified investigators, generally physicians
not employed by or under the trial sponsor’s control. Clinical trials are conducted under protocols detailing, among other things, the objectives of the clinical trial, dosing
procedures, subject selection and exclusion criteria, and the parameters to be used to monitor subject safety, including stopping rules that assure a clinical trial will be stopped if
certain adverse events should occur. Each protocol and any amendments to the protocol must be submitted to the FDA as part of the IND. Clinical trials must be conducted and
monitored in accordance with the FDA’s regulations comprising the GCP requirements, including the requirement that all research subjects provide informed consent. Further, each
clinical trial must be reviewed and approved by an independent institutional review board, or IRB, at or servicing each institution at which the clinical trial will be conducted. An
IRB is charged with protecting the welfare and rights of trial participants and considers such items as whether the risks to individuals participating in the clinical trials are minimized
and are reasonable in relation to anticipated benefits. The IRB also approves the form and content of the informed consent that must be signed by each clinical trial subject or his
or her legal representative and must monitor the clinical trial until completed. Clinical trials also must be reviewed by an institutional biosafety committee, or IBC, a local
institutional committee that reviews and oversees basic and clinical research conducted at that institution. The IBC assesses the safety of the research and identifies any potential
risk to public health or the environment.
For purposes of BLA approval, human clinical trials are typically conducted in three sequential phases that may overlap or be combined:
•
•
•
Phase I. The biological product is initially introduced into healthy human subjects and tested for safety. In the case of some products for severe or life-
threatening diseases, especially when the product may be too inherently toxic to ethically administer to healthy volunteers, the initial human testing is
often conducted in patients with the disease or condition. These studies are designed to test the safety, dosage tolerance, absorption, metabolism and
distribution of the investigational product in humans, the side effects associated with increasing doses and, if possible, to gain early evidence on
effectiveness.
Phase II. The biological product is evaluated in a limited patient population with a specified disease or condition to identify possible adverse effects and
safety risks, to preliminarily evaluate the efficacy of the product for specific targeted diseases and to determine dosage tolerance, optimal dosage and
dosing schedule. Multiple Phase II clinical trials may be conducted to obtain information prior to beginning larger and more expensive Phase III clinical
trials.
Phase III. Clinical trials are undertaken to further evaluate dosage, clinical efficacy, potency, and safety in an expanded patient population at
geographically dispersed clinical trial sites, to provide statistically significant evidence of clinical efficacy and to further test for safety. These clinical trials
are intended to establish the overall risk/benefit ratio of the product and provide an adequate basis for product approval and labeling.
Post-approval clinical trials, sometimes referred to as Phase IV clinical trials, may be required by the FDA or voluntarily conducted after initial marketing approval to gain more
information about the product, including long-term safety follow-up.
During all phases of clinical development, regulatory agencies require extensive monitoring and auditing of all clinical activities, clinical data, and clinical trial investigators. Annual
progress reports detailing the results of the clinical trials must be submitted to the FDA. Written IND safety reports must be promptly submitted to the FDA, the NIH and the
investigators for serious and unexpected adverse events, any findings from other studies, tests in laboratory animals or in vitro testing that suggest a significant risk for human
subjects, or any clinically important increase in the rate of a serious suspected adverse reaction over that listed in the protocol or investigator brochure. The sponsor must submit
an IND safety report within 15 calendar days after the sponsor determines that the information qualifies for reporting. The sponsor also must notify the FDA of any unexpected
fatal or life-threatening suspected adverse reaction within seven calendar days after the sponsor’s initial receipt of the information. Phase I, Phase II and Phase III clinical trials may
not be completed successfully within any specified period, if at all. The FDA or the sponsor or its data safety monitoring board may suspend a clinical trial at any time on various
grounds, including a finding that the research subjects or patients are being exposed to an unacceptable health risk, including risks inferred from other unrelated trials. Similarly, an
IRB can suspend or terminate approval of a clinical trial at its institution if the clinical trial is not being conducted in accordance with the IRB’s requirements or if the biological
product has been associated with unexpected serious harm to patients.
Human cell-based therapy products administered directly into heart tissue are a relatively new category of therapeutics. Because this is a relatively new and expanding area of
novel therapeutic interventions, there can be no assurance as to the length of the trial period, the number of patients the FDA will require to be enrolled in the trials in order to
establish the safety, efficacy, purity and potency of human cell-based therapy products, or that the data generated in these trials will be acceptable to the FDA to support
marketing approval.
Concurrently with clinical trials, companies usually complete additional animal studies and must also develop additional information about the physical characteristics of the
biological product as well as finalize a process for manufacturing the product in commercial quantities in accordance with GMP requirements. To help reduce the risk of the
introduction of adventitious agents with use of biological products, the PHS Act emphasizes the importance of manufacturing control for products whose attributes cannot be
precisely defined. The manufacturing process must be capable of consistently producing quality batches of the product candidate and, among other things, the sponsor must
develop methods for testing the identity, strength, quality, potency and purity of the final biological product. Additionally, appropriate packaging must be selected and tested and
stability studies must be conducted to demonstrate that the biological product candidate does not undergo unacceptable deterioration over its shelf life.
10
After the successful completion of clinical trials of a biological product, FDA approval of a BLA must be obtained before commercial marketing of the biological product. The BLA
must include results of product development, laboratory and animal studies, human trials, information on the manufacture and composition of the product, proposed labeling and
other relevant information. The FDA may grant deferrals for submission of data or full or partial waivers. The testing and approval processes require substantial time and effort and
there can be no assurance that the FDA will accept the BLA for filing and, even if filed, that any approval will be granted on a timely basis, if at all.
Under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or PDUFA, as amended, each BLA must be accompanied by a significant user fee. The FDA adjusts the PDUFA user fees on an annual
basis. PDUFA also imposes an annual product fee for biological products and an annual establishment fee on facilities used to manufacture prescription biological products. Fee
waivers or reductions are available in certain circumstances, including a waiver of the application fee for the first application filed by a small business. Additionally, no user fees are
assessed on BLAs for products designated as orphan drugs, unless the product also includes a non-orphan indication.
Within 60 days following submission of the application, the FDA reviews a BLA submitted to determine if it is substantially complete before the agency accepts it for filing. The
FDA may refuse to file any BLA that it deems incomplete or not properly reviewable at the time of submission and may request additional information. In this event, the BLA must
be resubmitted with the additional information. The resubmitted application also is subject to review before the FDA accepts it for filing. Once the submission is accepted for filing,
the FDA begins an in-depth substantive review of the BLA. The FDA reviews the BLA to determine, among other things, whether the proposed product is safe, pure and potent,
for its intended use, and whether the product is being manufactured in accordance with GMP to assure and preserve the product’s identity, safety, strength, quality, potency and
purity. The FDA may refer applications for novel biological products or biological products that present difficult questions of safety or efficacy to an advisory committee, typically
a panel that includes clinicians and other experts, for review, evaluation and a recommendation as to whether the application should be approved and under what conditions. The
FDA is not bound by the recommendations of an advisory committee, but it considers such recommendations carefully when making decisions. During the biological product
approval process, the FDA also will determine whether a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy, or REMS, is necessary to assure the safe use of the biological product. If the
FDA concludes a REMS is needed, the sponsor of the BLA must submit a proposed REMS. The FDA will not approve a BLA without a REMS, if required.
Before approving a BLA, the FDA will inspect the facilities at which the product is manufactured. The FDA will not approve the product unless it determines that the
manufacturing processes and facilities are in compliance with GMP requirements and adequate to assure consistent production of the product within required specifications.
Additionally, before approving a BLA, the FDA will typically inspect one or more clinical sites to assure that the clinical trials were conducted in compliance with IND trial
requirements and GCP requirements. To assure GMP and GCP compliance, an applicant must incur significant expenditure of time, money and effort in the areas of training, record
keeping, production, and quality control.
Notwithstanding the submission of relevant data and information, the FDA may ultimately decide that the BLA does not satisfy its regulatory criteria for approval and deny
approval. Data obtained from clinical trials are not always conclusive and the FDA may interpret data differently than we interpret the same data. If the agency decides not to
approve the BLA in its present form, the FDA will issue a complete response letter that describes all of the specific deficiencies in the BLA identified by the FDA. The deficiencies
identified may be minor, for example, requiring labeling changes, or major, for example, requiring additional clinical trials. Additionally, the complete response letter may include
recommended actions that the applicant might take to place the application in a condition for approval. If a complete response letter is issued, the applicant may either resubmit the
BLA, addressing all of the deficiencies identified in the letter, or withdraw the application.
If a product receives regulatory approval, the approval may be significantly limited to specific diseases and dosages or the indications for use may otherwise be limited, which
could restrict the commercial value of the product. Further, the FDA may require that certain contraindications, warnings or precautions be included in the product labeling. The
FDA may impose restrictions and conditions on product distribution, prescribing, or dispensing in the form of a risk management plan, or otherwise limit the scope of any approval.
In addition, the FDA may require post-marketing clinical trials, sometimes referred to as Phase IV clinical trials, designed to further assess a biological product’s safety and
effectiveness, and testing and surveillance programs to monitor the safety of approved therapies and products that have been commercialized.
The FDA has agreed to certain review goals under PDUFA and aims to complete its review of 90% of standard BLAs within ten months from filing and 90% of priority BLAs within
six months from filing. The FDA does not always meet its PDUFA goal dates for standard and priority BLAs and its review goals are subject to change from time to time. The
review process and the PDUFA goal date may be extended by three months if the FDA requests, or the BLA sponsor otherwise provides, additional information or clarification
regarding information already provided in the submission within the last three months before the PDUFA goal date.
11
Fast Track Designation, Accelerated Approval, Priority Review and Breakthrough Therapy Programs
The FDA has a Fast Track program that is intended to expedite or facilitate the process for reviewing new drugs and biological products that meet certain criteria. Specifically, new
drugs and biological products are eligible for Fast Track designation if they are intended to treat a serious or life-threatening condition and demonstrate the potential to address
unmet medical needs for the condition. Fast Track designation applies to the combination of the product and the specific indication for which it is being studied. The sponsor of a
new drug or biological product may request the FDA to designate the drug or biological product as a Fast Track product at any time during the clinical development of the product.
Unique to a Fast Track product, the FDA may consider for review sections of the marketing application on a rolling basis before the complete application is submitted, if the
sponsor provides a schedule for the submission of the sections of the application, the FDA agrees to accept sections of the application and determines that the schedule is
acceptable, and the sponsor pays any required user fees upon submission of the first section of the application.
Other types of FDA programs intended to expedite development and review, such as priority review, accelerated approval and Breakthrough Therapy designation, also exist. A
product is eligible for priority review if it has the potential to provide safe and effective therapy where no satisfactory alternative therapy exists or a significant improvement in the
treatment, diagnosis or prevention of a disease compared to marketed products. The FDA will attempt to direct additional resources to the evaluation of an application for a new
drug or biological product designated for priority review in an effort to facilitate the review. Additionally, a product may be eligible for accelerated approval. Drug or biological
products studied for their safety and effectiveness in treating serious or life-threatening illnesses and that provide meaningful therapeutic benefit over existing treatments may
receive accelerated approval, which means that they may be approved on the basis of adequate and well-controlled clinical trials establishing that the product has an effect on a
surrogate endpoint that is reasonably likely to predict a clinical benefit, or on the basis of an effect on a clinical endpoint other than survival or irreversible morbidity. As a
condition of approval, the FDA may require that a sponsor of a drug or biological product receiving accelerated approval perform adequate and well-controlled post-marketing
clinical trials. In addition, the FDA currently requires as a condition for accelerated approval pre-approval of promotional materials, which could adversely impact the timing of the
commercial launch of the product.
A product may also be eligible for receipt of a Breakthrough Therapy designation. The Breakthrough Therapy designation is intended to expedite the FDA’s review of a potential
new drug for serious or life-threatening diseases where "preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies on
one or more clinically significant endpoints, such as substantial treatment effects observed early in clinical development.” The designation of a drug as a Breakthrough Therapy
provides the same benefits as are available under the Fast Track program, as well as intensive FDA guidance on the product’s development program. Where appropriate, we intend
to utilize regulatory programs that can help expedite our product development and commercialization efforts. However, Fast Track designation, priority review, accelerated approval
and Breakthrough Therapy designation do not change the standards for approval, but may expedite the development or approval process.
Post-Approval Requirements
Maintaining substantial compliance with applicable federal, state and local statutes and regulations requires the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources. Rigorous
and extensive FDA regulation of biological products continues after approval, particularly with respect to GMP. We will rely, and expect to continue to rely, on third parties for the
production of clinical and commercial quantities of any products that we may commercialize. Manufacturers of our products are required to comply with applicable requirements in
the GMP regulations, including quality control and quality assurance and maintenance of records and documentation. Other post-approval requirements applicable to biological
products include reporting of GMP deviations that may affect the identity, potency, purity and overall safety of a distributed product, record-keeping requirements, reporting of
adverse effects, reporting updated safety and efficacy information, and complying with electronic record and signature requirements. After a BLA is approved, the product also
may be subject to official lot release. As part of the manufacturing process, the manufacturer is required to perform certain tests on each lot of the product before it is released for
distribution. If the product is subject to official release by the FDA, the manufacturer submits samples of each lot of product to the FDA together with a release protocol showing a
summary of the history of manufacture of the lot and the results of all of the manufacturer’s tests performed on the lot. In addition, the FDA conducts laboratory research related to
the regulatory standards on the safety, purity and potency of biological products.
We also must comply with the FDA’s advertising and promotion requirements, such as those related to direct-to-consumer advertising, the prohibition on promoting products for
uses or in-patient populations that are not described in the product’s approved labeling (known as "off-label use”), industry-sponsored scientific and educational activities, and
promotional activities involving the internet. Discovery of previously unknown problems or the failure to comply with the applicable regulatory requirements may result in
restrictions on the marketing of a product or withdrawal of the product from the market as well as possible civil or criminal sanctions. Failure to comply with the applicable U.S.
requirements at any time during the product development process, approval process or after approval may subject an applicant or manufacturer to administrative or judicial civil or
criminal sanctions and adverse publicity. FDA sanctions could include refusal to approve pending applications, withdrawal of an approval, clinical hold, warning or untitled letters,
product recalls, product seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, injunctions, fines, refusals of government contracts, mandated corrective advertising or
communications with doctors, debarment, restitution, disgorgement of profits, or civil or criminal penalties. Any agency or judicial enforcement action could have a material
adverse effect on us.
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Biological product manufacturers and other entities involved in the manufacture and distribution of approved biological products are required to register their establishments with
the FDA and certain state agencies and are subject to periodic unannounced inspections by the FDA and certain state agencies for compliance with GMPs and other laws.
Accordingly, manufacturers must continue to expend time, money and effort in the area of production and quality control to maintain GMP compliance. Discovery of problems with
a product after approval may result in restrictions on a product, manufacturer or holder of an approved BLA, including withdrawal of the product from the market. In addition,
changes to the manufacturing process or facility generally require prior FDA approval before being implemented and other types of changes to the approved product, such as
adding new indications and additional labeling claims, are also subject to further FDA review and approval.
Abbreviated Licensure Pathway of Biological Products as Biosimilar or Interchangeable
The Affordable Care Act includes a subtitle called the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 ("BPCIA”), which created an abbreviated approval pathway for
biological products shown to be highly similar to an FDA-licensed reference biological product. The BPCIA attempts to minimize duplicative testing, and thereby lower
development costs and increase patient access to affordable treatments. If our CardiALLO product is approved by the FDA, we could face competition from products regulated by
the FDA as biosimilar products.
Biosimilarity means that the biological product is highly similar to the reference product notwithstanding minor differences in clinically inactive components; and that there are no
clinically meaningful differences between the biological product and the reference product in terms of the safety, purity and potency of the product. In addition, the law provides
for a designation of "interchangeability” between the reference and biosimilar products, whereby the biosimilar may be substituted for the reference product without the
intervention of the health care provider who prescribed the reference product. The higher standard of interchangeability must be demonstrated by information sufficient to show
that:
•
•
•
the proposed product is biosimilar to the reference product;
the proposed product is expected to produce the same clinical result as the reference product in any given patient; and
for a product that is administered more than once to an individual, the risk to the patient in terms of safety or diminished efficacy of alternating or switching
between the biosimilar and the reference product is no greater than the risk of using the reference product without such alternation or switch.
FDA approval is required before a biosimilar may be marketed in the United States. However, complexities associated with the large and intricate structures of biological products
and the process by which such products are manufactured pose significant hurdles to the FDA’s implementation of the law that are still being worked out by the FDA. For
example, the FDA has discretion over the kind and amount of scientific evidence—laboratory, preclinical and/or clinical—required to demonstrate biosimilarity to a licensed
biological product.
The FDA intends to consider the totality of the evidence, provided by a sponsor to support a demonstration of biosimilarity, and recommends that sponsors use a stepwise
approach in the development of their biosimilar products. Biosimilar product applications thus may not be required to duplicate the entirety of preclinical and clinical testing used
to establish the underlying safety and effectiveness of the reference product. However, the FDA may refuse to approve a biosimilar application if there is insufficient information to
show that the active ingredients are the same or to demonstrate that any impurities or differences in active ingredients do not affect the safety, purity or potency of the biosimilar
product. In addition, as with BLAs, biosimilar product applications will not be approved unless the product is manufactured in facilities designed to assure and preserve the
biological product’s safety, purity and potency.
The submission of a biosimilar application does not guarantee that the FDA will accept the application for filing and review, as the FDA may refuse to accept applications that it
finds are insufficiently complete. The FDA will treat a biosimilar application or supplement as incomplete if, among other reasons, any applicable user fees assessed under the
Biosimilar User Fee Act of 2012 have not been paid. In addition, the FDA may accept an application for filing but deny approval on the basis that the sponsor has not
demonstrated biosimilarity, in which case the sponsor may choose to conduct further analytical, preclinical or clinical studies and submit a BLA for licensure as a new biological
product.
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The timing of final FDA approval of a biosimilar for commercial distribution depends on a variety of factors, including whether the manufacturer of the branded product is entitled
to one or more statutory exclusivity periods, during which time the FDA is prohibited from approving any products that are biosimilar to the branded product. The FDA cannot
approve a biosimilar application for twelve years from the date of first licensure of the reference product. Additionally, a biosimilar product sponsor may not submit an application
for four years from the date of first licensure of the reference product. A reference product may also be entitled to exclusivity under other statutory provisions. For example, a
reference product designated for a rare disease or condition (an "orphan drug”) may be entitled to seven years of exclusivity, in which case no product that is biosimilar to the
reference product may be approved until either the end of the twelve-year period provided under the biosimilarity statute or the end of the seven-year orphan drug exclusivity
period, whichever occurs later. In certain circumstances, a regulatory exclusivity period can extend beyond the life of a patent, and thus block biosimilarity applications from being
approved on or after the patent expiration date. In addition, the FDA may under certain circumstances extend the exclusivity period for the reference product by an additional six
months if the FDA requests, and the manufacturer undertakes, studies on the effect of its product in children, a so-called pediatric extension.
The first biological product determined to be interchangeable with a branded product for any condition of use is also entitled to a period of exclusivity, during which time the FDA
may not determine that another product is interchangeable with the reference product for any condition of use. This exclusivity period extends until the earlier of: (1) one year after
the first commercial marketing of the first interchangeable product; (2) 18 months after resolution of a patent infringement against the applicant that submitted the application for
the first interchangeable product, based on a final court decision regarding all of the patents in the litigation or dismissal of the litigation with or without prejudice; (3) 42 months
after approval of the first interchangeable product, if a patent infringement suit against the applicant that submitted the application for the first interchangeable product is still
ongoing; or (4) 18 months after approval of the first interchangeable product if the applicant that submitted the application for the first interchangeable product has not been sued.
U.S. Premarket Clearance and Approval Requirements for Medical Devices
Unless an exemption applies, each medical device we wish to distribute commercially in the United States will require either prior premarket notification, or 510(k) clearance, or prior
approval of a PMA application from the FDA. The FDA classifies medical devices into one of three classes. Devices deemed to pose low to moderate risk are placed in either class
I or II, which, absent an exemption, requires the manufacturer to file with the FDA a 510(k) submission requesting permission for commercial distribution. This process is known as
510(k) clearance. Some low-risk devices are exempt from this requirement. Devices deemed by the FDA to pose the greatest risk, such as life-sustaining, life-supporting or certain
implantable devices, or devices deemed not substantially equivalent to a previously cleared 510(k) device, are placed in class III, requiring approval of a PMA application.
Regulation of CardiAMP through the PMA Pathway
Combination products are therapeutic and diagnostic products that combine drugs, devices, and/or biological products. Because combination products involve components that
would normally be regulated under different types of regulatory authorities, and frequently by different centers of the FDA, they raise regulatory, policy, and review management
challenges. Differences in regulatory pathways for each component of the product can impact the regulatory processes for all aspects of product development and management,
including preclinical testing, clinical investigation, marketing applications, manufacturing and quality control, adverse event reporting, promotion and advertising, and post-
approval modifications.
A combination product is assigned to an FDA Agency Center or alternative organizational component that will have primary jurisdiction for its premarket review and regulation.
For cell-based therapy and related products, the FDA established the Office of Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies within CBER to consolidate the review of such products, and
the Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee to advise CBER on its review. In our case, the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System involves minimal manipulation of cells
within the procedure room, enabling it to be the first cardiac cell-based therapy we are aware of that CBER has indicated it will regulate through the PMA pathway.
PMA applications must be supported by valid scientific evidence, which typically requires extensive data, including technical, preclinical, clinical and manufacturing data, to
demonstrate to the FDA’s satisfaction reasonable safety and effectiveness of the cell-based therapy. After a PMA application is deemed complete, the FDA will accept the
application for filing and begin an in-depth review of the submitted information. During this review period, the FDA may request additional information or clarification of
information already provided. Also during the review period, an advisory panel of experts from outside the FDA may be convened to review and evaluate the application and
provide recommendations to the FDA as to the approvability of the device. As part of its review of the PMA, the FDA will conduct a pre-approval inspection of the manufacturing
facility or facilities to ensure compliance with the Quality System Regulation, or QSR, which requires manufacturers to follow design, testing, control, documentation and other
quality assurance procedures. FDA review of an initial PMA application is required by statute to take between six to ten months, although the process typically takes longer, and
may require several years to complete. If the FDA evaluations of both the PMA application and the manufacturing facilities are favorable, the FDA will either issue an approval
letter or an approvable letter, which usually contains a number of conditions that must be met in order to secure the final approval of the PMA. If the FDA’s evaluation of the PMA
or manufacturing facilities is not favorable, the FDA will deny approval of the PMA or issue a not approvable letter. A not approvable letter will outline the deficiencies in the
application and, where practical, will identify what is necessary to make the PMA approvable. The FDA may also determine that additional clinical trials are necessary, in which
case the PMA approval may be delayed for several months or years while the trials are conducted and then the data submitted in an amendment to the PMA. Once granted, PMA
approval may be withdrawn by the FDA if compliance with post-approval requirements, conditions of approval or other regulatory standards is not maintained, or problems are
identified following initial marketing.
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The FDA may approve a PMA application with post-approval conditions intended to ensure the safety and effectiveness of the device including, among other things, restrictions
on labeling, promotion, sale and distribution, collection of long-term follow-up data from patients in the clinical trial that supported approval, or new post-approval studies. Failure
to comply with the conditions of approval can result in materially adverse enforcement action, including the loss or withdrawal of the approval. PMA supplements are required for
modifications that could affect device safety or effectiveness, including, for example, certain types of modifications to the device’s indication for use, manufacturing process,
labeling and design. PMA supplements often require submission of the same type of information as an original PMA application, except that the supplement is limited to
information needed to support any changes to the device covered by the original PMA application, and may not require as extensive clinical data or the convening of an advisory
panel.
A clinical trial is almost always required to support a PMA application. We expect that the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System will require a single pivotal trial for PMA approval in the
CardiAMP Heart Failure and CardiAMP Chronic Myocardial Ischemia trials. However, there is no guarantee that the FDA will grant us regulatory approval to market the CardiAMP
Cell Therapy System on the basis of a single pivotal trial. Two well-controlled pivotal studies could be necessary to provide the FDA assurance of safety or effectiveness. In the
United States, absent certain limited exceptions, human clinical trials intended to support product clearance or approval require an IDE application, which the FDA reviews. Some
types of trials deemed to present "non-significant risk” are deemed to have an approved IDE once certain requirements are addressed, and IRB approval is obtained. If the device
presents a "significant risk” to human health, as defined by FDA regulations, the sponsor must submit an IDE application to the FDA and obtain IDE approval prior to
commencing the human clinical trials. The IDE application must be supported by appropriate data, such as animal and laboratory trial results, showing that it is safe to evaluate the
device in humans and that the trial protocol is scientifically sound. The IDE application must be approved in advance by the FDA for a specified number of subjects, unless the
product is deemed a non-significant risk device and eligible for more abbreviated IDE requirements. Clinical trials for a significant risk device may begin once the IDE application is
approved by the FDA and the responsible institutional review boards at the clinical trial sites. There can be no assurance that submission of an IDE will result in the ability to
commence clinical trials. Additionally, after a trial begins, the FDA may place it on hold or terminate it if, among other reasons, it concludes that the clinical subjects are exposed to
unacceptable health risks that outweigh the benefits of participation in the trial. During a trial, we are required to comply with the FDA’s IDE requirements for investigator
selection, trial monitoring, reporting, record keeping and prohibitions on the promotion or commercialization of investigational devices or making safety or efficacy claims for them,
among other things. We are also responsible for the appropriate labeling and distribution of investigational devices. Our clinical trials must be conducted in accordance with FDA
regulations and federal and state regulations concerning human subject protection, including informed consent and healthcare privacy, and the clinical trials must be conducted
pursuant to GCPs. The investigators must also obtain patient informed consent, rigorously follow the investigational plan and trial protocol, control the disposition of
investigational devices and comply with all reporting and record keeping requirements, among other things. The FDA’s grant of permission to proceed with clinical trials does not
constitute a binding commitment that the FDA will consider the trial design adequate to support marketing clearance or approval. In addition, there can be no assurance that the
data generated during a clinical trial will meet the chosen study endpoints or otherwise produce results that will lead the FDA to grant marketing clearance or approval. Similarly, in
Europe, the clinical trial must be approved by the local ethics committee and in some cases, including trials of high-risk devices, by the Ministry of Health in the applicable country.
After a device is placed on the market, it remains subject to significant regulatory requirements. Medical devices may be marketed only for the uses and indications for which they
are cleared or approved. Device manufacturers must also establish registration and device listings with the FDA. A medical device manufacturer’s manufacturing processes and
those of its suppliers are required to comply with the applicable portions of the QSR, which cover the methods and documentation of the design, testing, production, processes,
controls, quality assurance, labeling, packaging and shipping of medical devices. Domestic facility records and manufacturing processes are subject to periodic unscheduled
inspections by the FDA. The FDA also may inspect foreign facilities that export products to the United States.
Failure by us or our suppliers to comply with applicable regulatory requirements can result in enforcement action by the FDA or other regulatory authorities, which may result in
sanctions and related consequences including, but not limited to:
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adverse publicity, untitled letters or warning letters;
fines, injunctions, consent decrees and civil penalties;
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recall, detention or seizure of our products;
operating restrictions, partial suspension or total shutdown of production;
refusal of or delay in granting our requests for 510(k) clearance or premarket approval of new products or modified products;
withdrawing 510(k) clearance or premarket approvals that are already granted;
refusal to grant export approval for our products;
criminal prosecution; and
unanticipated expenditures to address or defend such actions.
Because elements of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System are already approved or cleared and manufactured for commercial use, we believe regulatory approval risks are primarily
those of clinical safety and efficacy in each of the two indications being assessed under separate IDEs.
Regulation of Companion Diagnostics
Companion diagnostics are subject to regulation by the FDA, the EMA and other foreign regulatory authorities as medical devices and require separate regulatory clearance or
approval prior to commercial use. We anticipate that the CardiAMP potency assay for each indication will require approval under a PMA submitted to the CDRH prior to
commercialization. We and our third-party collaborators who may develop our companion diagnostics will work cooperatively to generate the data required for submission with the
PMA application, and will remain in close contact with the CDRH to ensure that any changes in requirements are incorporated into the development plans. We further anticipate
that regulatory approval of the CardiAMP potency assay for each indication will be a prerequisite to our ability to market the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System. Representatives of
CDRH have participated in our meetings with CBER regarding CardiAMP Cell Therapy System to discuss the potential use of the CardiAMP potency assay, and we anticipate that
future meetings will include representatives from both CBER and CDRH to ensure that the PMA submissions (for CardiAMP and the CardiAMP potency assay) are coordinated
and subject to parallel review by these respective FDA centers. Accordingly, our objective is to align the development programs such that the CardiAMP potency assay will be
developed and approved contemporaneously with CardiAMP.
On July 31, 2014 the FDA issued "Guidance for Industry: In Vitro Companion Diagnostic Devices," to help companies identify the need for companion diagnostics at an earlier
stage in the drug development process and to plan for co-development of the drug and companion diagnostic test. The ultimate goal of the guidance is to stimulate early
collaborations that will result in faster access to promising new treatments for patients living with serious and life-threatening diseases. According to the draft guidance, for novel
products such as CardiAMP, the PMA for a companion diagnostic device should be developed and approved contemporaneously with the biological product. We believe our
programs for the development of the CardiAMP potency assay are consistent with the draft guidance as proposed.
Coverage and Reimbursement
Sales of our products will depend, in part, on the extent to which our products will be covered by third-party payors, such as government healthcare programs, commercial
insurance and managed healthcare organizations. These third-party payors are increasingly reducing reimbursements for medical products and services. In addition, the U.S.
government, state legislatures and foreign governments have continued implementing cost containment programs, including price controls, restrictions on reimbursement and
requirements for substitution of generic products. Adoption of price controls and cost-containment measures, and adoption of more restrictive policies in jurisdictions with
existing controls and measures, could further limit our net revenue and results. Decreases in third-party reimbursement for our therapeutic candidates or a decision by a third-party
payor to not cover our therapeutic candidates could reduce physician usage of our products once approved and have a material adverse effect on our sales, results of operations
and financial condition.
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Affordable Care Act
In March 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, or collectively, the Affordable Care Act,
was enacted, which includes measures that have or will significantly change the way health care is financed by both governmental and private insurers. Among the provisions of
the Affordable Care Act of greatest importance to the pharmaceutical industry are the following:
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The Medicaid Drug Rebate Program requires pharmaceutical manufacturers to enter into and have in effect a national rebate agreement with the Secretary of
the Department of Health and Human Services as a condition for states to receive federal matching funds for the manufacturer’s outpatient drugs furnished to
Medicaid patients. Effective in 2010, the Affordable Care Act made several changes to the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, including increasing
pharmaceutical manufacturers’ rebate liability by raising the minimum basic Medicaid rebate on most branded prescription drugs and biologic agents from
15.1% of average manufacturer price (AMP) to 23.1% of AMP and adding a new rebate calculation for "line extensions” (i.e., new formulations, such as
extended release formulations) of solid oral dosage forms of branded products, as well as potentially impacting their rebate liability by modifying the statutory
definition of AMP. The Affordable Care Act also expanded the universe of Medicaid utilization subject to drug rebates by requiring pharmaceutical
manufacturers to pay rebates on Medicaid managed care utilization as of 2010. Per a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2012, states have the option to
expand their Medicaid programs which in turn expands the population eligible for Medicaid drug benefits. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, or
CMS, has proposed to expand Medicaid rebate liability to the territories of the United States as well. In addition, the Affordable Care Act provides for the
public availability of retail survey prices and certain weighted average AMPs under the Medicaid program. The implementation of this requirement by the
CMS may also provide for the public availability of pharmacy acquisition of cost data, which could negatively impact our sales.
In order for a pharmaceutical product to receive federal reimbursement under the Medicare Part B and Medicaid programs or to be sold directly to U.S.
government agencies, the manufacturer must extend discounts to entities eligible to participate in the 340B drug pricing program. The required 340B discount
on a given product is calculated based on the AMP and Medicaid rebate amounts reported by the manufacturer. Effective in 2010, the Affordable Care Act
expanded the types of entities eligible to receive discounted 340B pricing, although, under the current state of the law, with the exception of children’s
hospitals, these newly eligible entities will not be eligible to receive discounted 340B pricing on orphan drugs when used for the orphan indication. In July
2013, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) issued a final rule allowing the newly eligible entities to access discounted orphan drugs if
used for non-orphan indications. While the final rule was vacated by a federal court ruling, HRSA has stated it will continue to allow discounts for orphan
drugs when used for any indication other than for orphan indications. In addition, as 340B drug pricing is determined based on AMP and Medicaid rebate
data, the revisions to the Medicaid rebate formula and AMP definition described above could cause the required 340B discount to increase.
Effective in 2011, the Affordable Care Act imposed a requirement on manufacturers of branded drugs and biologic agents to provide a 50% discount off the
negotiated price of branded drugs dispensed to Medicare Part D patients in the coverage gap (i.e., "donut hole”).
Effective in 2011, the Affordable Care Act imposed an annual, nondeductible fee on any entity that manufactures or imports certain branded prescription
drugs and biologic agents, apportioned among these entities according to their market share in certain government healthcare programs, although this fee
would not apply to sales of certain products approved exclusively for orphan indications.
The Affordable Care Act required pharmaceutical manufacturers to track certain financial arrangements with physicians and teaching hospitals, including any
"transfer of value” made or distributed to such entities, as well as any ownership or investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family
members. Manufacturers were required to begin tracking this information in 2013 and to report this information to CMS by March 2014.
As of 2010, a new Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute was established pursuant to the Affordable Care Act to oversee, identify priorities in, and conduct comparative
clinical effectiveness research, along with funding for such research. The research conducted by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute may affect the market for
certain pharmaceutical products.
There have been judicial and Congressional challenges and amendments to certain aspects of the Affordable Care Act, and with recent legislative activity we expect there could be
additional challenges, amendments and attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. New state and federal healthcare reform measures could limit the amounts that federal and state
governments will pay for our product candidates if we obtain regulatory approval for them and could have other impacts on consequences which cannot be reasonably predicted
at this time.
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Other Healthcare Laws and Compliance Requirements
If we obtain regulatory approval for any of our product candidates, we may be subject to various federal and state laws targeting fraud and abuse in the healthcare industry. These
laws may impact, among other things, our proposed sale, marketing and education programs. In addition, we may be subject to patient privacy regulations by both the federal
government and the states in which we conduct our business. The laws may affect our ability to operate include:
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the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, which prohibits, among other things, persons from knowingly and willfully soliciting, receiving, offering or paying
remuneration, directly or indirectly, to induce, or in return for, the purchase or recommendation of an item or service reimbursable under a federal healthcare
program, such as Medicare and Medicaid programs;
federal civil and criminal false claims laws and civil monetary penalty laws, which prohibit, among other things, individuals or entities from knowingly
presenting, or causing to be presented, claims for payment from Medicare, Medicaid, or other third-party payors that are false or fraudulent;
the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, which created new federal criminal statutes that prohibit executing a
scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program and making false statements relating to healthcare matters;
the federal transparency laws, including the federal Physician Payment Sunshine Act, that requires drug manufacturers to disclose payments and other
transfers of value provided to physicians and teaching hospitals and ownership and investment interest held by such physicians and their immediate family
members;
HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology and Clinical Health Act, or HITECH, and its implementing regulations, which imposes certain
requirements relating to the privacy, security and transmission of individually identifiable health information; and
State law equivalents of each of the above federal laws, such as anti-kickback and false claims laws which may apply to items or services reimbursed by any
third-party payor, including commercial 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 federal government, or otherwise restrict payments that may be made to
healthcare providers and other potential referral sources; state laws that require drug manufacturers to report information related to payments and other
transfers of value to physicians and other healthcare providers or marketing expenditures; 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 may not have the same effect, thus complicating compliance
efforts.
Because of the breadth of these laws and the narrowness of the statutory exceptions and safe harbors available, it is possible that some of our future business activities could be
subject to challenge under one or more of such laws. In addition, the Affordable Care Act broadened the reach of the fraud and abuse laws by, among other things, amending the
intent requirement of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and certain criminal healthcare fraud statutes. Pursuant to the statutory amendment, a person or entity no longer needs to
have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation. In addition, the Affordable Care Act provides that the government may
assert that a claim including items or services resulting from a violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the false claims
laws or the civil monetary penalties statute.
We are also subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, which prohibits improper payments or offers of payments to foreign governments and their officials for the
purpose of obtaining or retaining business.
Safeguards we implement to discourage improper payments or offers of payments by our employees, consultants, and others may be ineffective, and violations of the FCPA and
similar state laws may result in severe criminal or civil sanctions, or other liabilities or proceedings against us, any of which would likely harm our reputation, business, financial
condition and results of operations.
If our operations are found to be in violation of any of the laws described above or any other government regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to penalties, including
civil and criminal penalties, exclusion from participation in government healthcare programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid and imprisonment, damages, fines and the curtailment
or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our results of operation.
In addition to the foregoing, state and federal laws regarding environmental protection and hazardous substances, including the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Resource
Conservancy and Recovery Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act, affect our business. These and other laws govern our use, handling and disposal of various biological,
chemical and radioactive substances used in, and wastes generated by, our operations. If our operations result in contamination of the environment or expose individuals to
hazardous substances, we could be liable for damages and governmental fines. We believe that we are in material compliance with applicable environmental laws and that
continued compliance therewith will not have a material adverse effect on our business. We cannot predict, however, how changes in these laws may affect our future operations.
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Government Regulation outside the United States
In addition to regulations in the United States, we will be subject to a variety of regulations in other jurisdictions governing, among other things, clinical trials and any commercial
sales and distribution of our products. Because biologically sourced raw materials are subject to unique contamination risks, their use may be restricted in some countries.
Whether or not we obtain FDA approval or clearance for a product, we must obtain the requisite approvals or clearances from regulatory authorities in foreign countries prior to
the commencement of clinical trials or marketing of the product in those countries. Certain countries outside of the United States have a similar process that requires the
submission of a clinical trial application much like the PMA or IND prior to the commencement of human clinical trials. In Europe, for example, a Clinical Trial Authorization, or CTA,
must be submitted to each country’s national health authority and an independent ethics committee, much like the FDA and the IRB, respectively. Once the CTA is approved in
accordance with a country’s requirements, clinical trial development may proceed.
The requirements and process governing the conduct of clinical trials, product licensing, pricing and reimbursement vary from country to country. In all cases, the clinical trials are
conducted in accordance with GCP and the applicable regulatory requirements and the ethical principles that have their origin in the Declaration of Helsinki.
To obtain regulatory approval of an investigational biological product under European regulatory systems, we must submit a marketing authorization application. The application
used to file the PMAs for CardiAMP Cell Therapy System and BLA for CardiALLO Cell Therapy System in the United States are similar to that required in Europe, with the
exception of, among other things, country-specific document requirements. Europe also provides opportunities for market exclusivity. For example, in Europe, upon receiving
marketing authorization, new chemical entities generally receive eight years of data exclusivity and an additional two years of market exclusivity. If granted, data exclusivity
prevents regulatory authorities in Europe from referencing the innovator’s data to assess a generic application. During the additional two-year period of market exclusivity, a
generic marketing authorization can be submitted, and the innovator’s data may be referenced, but no generic product can be marketed until the expiration of the market exclusivity.
However, there is no guarantee that a product will be considered by Europe’s regulatory authorities to be a new chemical entity, and products may not qualify for data exclusivity.
The 10-year market exclusivity may be reduced to six years if, at the end of the fifth year, it is established that the product no longer meets the criteria for orphan designation, for
example, if the product is sufficiently profitable not to justify maintenance of market exclusivity. Additionally, marketing authorization may be granted to a similar product for the
same indication at any time if:
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the second applicant can establish that its product, although similar, is safer, more effective or otherwise clinically superior;
the applicant consents to a second orphan medicinal product application; or
the applicant cannot supply enough orphan medicinal product.
For other countries outside of Europe, such as countries in Eastern Europe, Latin America or Asia, the requirements governing the conduct of clinical trials, product licensing,
pricing and reimbursement vary from country to country. In all cases, again, the clinical trials are conducted in accordance with GCP and the applicable regulatory requirements and
the ethical principles that have their origin in the Declaration of Helsinki.
In Europe, we expect both CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems to be regulated as advanced therapy medicinal products, or ATMPs. To provide for a common
framework for the marketing of ATMPs, Regulation (EC) No 1394/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council on advanced therapy medicinal products, or ATMP
Regulation, was adopted in 2007. The ATMP Regulation was designed to ensure a high level of human health protection as well as the free movement of ATMPs in Europe. The
cornerstone of the ATMP Regulation is that a marketing authorization must be obtained prior to the marketing of ATMPs. In turn, the marketing authorization can only be granted
if, after a scientific assessment of the quality, efficacy and safety profile, it is demonstrated that the benefits outweigh the risks. The application for a marketing authorization must
be submitted to the EMA and the final decision is taken by the European Commission. This procedure ensures that these products are assessed by a specialized body (the
Committee for Advanced Therapies, or CAT) and that the marketing authorization is valid in all the European Union Member States.
The ATMP Regulation empowered the EMA to make scientific recommendations as to whether a given product should be considered an ATMP (hereinafter "classifications”).
Additionally, it provided for a new instrument, the so-called certification procedure, designed as an incentive for small and medium sized enterprises, or SMEs, that were involved
in the first stages of the development of ATMPs but lacked the resources to conduct clinical trials. Specifically, the certification that the quality and preclinical aspects of the
development are in conformity with the relevant regulatory requirements was expected to help SMEs attract capital and to facilitate the transfer of research activities to entities with
the capacity to market medicinal products.
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The ATMP Regulation builds on the procedures, concepts, and requirements designed for chemical-based medicinal products. However, ATMPs present very different
characteristics. Additionally, in contrast to chemical-based medicinal products, research in advanced therapies is –for the most part- conducted by academia, non-for-profit
organizations, and SMEs, which only have limited financial resources and often lack exposure to the regulatory system that governs medicines.
If we fail to comply with applicable foreign regulatory requirements, we may be subject to, among other things, fines, suspension or withdrawal of regulatory approvals, product
recalls, seizure of products, operating restrictions and criminal prosecution.
The advertising and promotion of our products in the EEA is subject to the provisions of the Medical Devices Directive, Directive 2006/114/EC concerning misleading and
comparative advertising, and Directive 2005/29/EC on unfair commercial practices, as well as other national legislation in the EEA countries governing the advertising and
promotion of medical devices. The European Commission has submitted a Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council on medical devices, amending
Directive 2001/83/EC, Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 and Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, to replace, inter alia, Directive 93/42/EEC and to amend regulations regarding medical devices
in the European Union, which could result in changes in the regulatory requirements for medical devices in Europe. In Germany, the advertising and promotion of our products can
also be subject to restrictions provided by the German Act Against Unfair Competition (Gesetzgegen den unlauteren Wettbewerb) and the law on the advertising of medicines
(Heilmittelwerbegesetz), criminal law, and some codices of conduct with regard to medical products and medical devices among others. These laws may limit or restrict the
advertising and promotion of our products to the general public and may impose limitations on our promotional activities with healthcare professionals.
Sales of medical devices are subject to foreign government regulations, which vary substantially from country to country. In order to market our products outside the United
States, we must obtain regulatory approvals or CE Certificates of Conformity and comply with extensive safety and quality regulations. The time required to obtain approval by a
foreign country or to obtain a CE Certificate of Conformity may be longer or shorter than that required for FDA clearance or approval, and the requirements may differ. In the EEA,
we are required to obtain Certificates of Conformity before drawing up an EC Declaration of Conformity and affixing the CE Mark of conformity to our medical devices. Many other
countries accept CE Certificates of Conformity or FDA clearance or approval although others, such as Brazil, Canada and Japan require separate regulatory filings.
Employees
As of December 31, 2019, we had 20 full-time and 4 part-time employees, consisting of clinical development, product development, regulatory, manufacturing, quality, finance,
administration, sales, and marketing. We also regularly use independent contractors across the organization to augment our regular staff. None of our employees are covered by
collective bargaining agreements and we consider relations with our employees to be good. We believe that our future success will depend in part on our continued ability to
attract, hire and retain qualified personnel.
Corporate Information
We were originally incorporated as NAM Corporation in Delaware on January 12, 1994. We changed our name to BioCardia, Inc. on October 26, 2016 in connection with a reverse
merger transaction ("the Merger”) in which our wholly-owned subsidiary, Icicle Acquisition Corp., merged with and into BioCardia Lifesciences, Inc. (which was named BioCardia,
Inc. prior to the Merger), with BioCardia Lifesciences continuing as the surviving company. Following the completion of the reverse merger transaction, we assumed the business
and operations of BioCardia Lifesciences and changed our name to BioCardia, Inc.
We operate in only one business segment, which is a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company developing novel therapeutics for cardiovascular diseases with large unmet
medical needs. See Note 1 to our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019 included in this Annual Report. Our principal executive offices are located
at 125 Shoreway Road, Suite B, San Carlos, CA 94070. Our telephone number is (650) 226-0120.
Our website address is www.biocardia.com. Information contained in our website is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report and should not be considered to be a
part of this Annual Report. Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to reports filed or furnished pursuant
to Sections 13(a) and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, are available free of charge on our investor relations website as soon as reasonably practicable
after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. The SEC also maintains a website that contains these reports and our
other electronic SEC filings.
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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information
in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the section titled "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our
consolidated financial statements and related notes, before investing in our securities. If any of the follows risks occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations
and prospects could be materially harmed. In that event, market prices of our securities could decline, and you could lose part or all of your investment.
Risks Relating to Our Business
We will require additional financing in 2020 in order to continue our Phase III pivotal trials of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for the treatment of ischemic systolic
heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia and to continue operations at the current level.
Our current cash resources are not sufficient to fund operations at the expected level of activity through the third quarter of 2020. We will need additional capital to continue
operations at the current level and to continue our Phase III pivotal trials. While we plan to raise additional capital to fund operations, including the trials, there can be no
assurances as to the availability of capital or the terms on which capital will be available.
We have a history of operating losses, and we may not be able to achieve or sustain profitability. In addition, we may be unable to continue as a going concern.
We are a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company and we have not yet generated a profit. We have incurred net losses during each of our fiscal years since our inception. Our
net loss for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $14.7 million and our accumulated deficit totaled $101.1 million as of December 31, 2019. We do not know whether or when we
will become profitable, if ever. We currently expect operating losses and negative cash flows to continue for at least the next several years.
To date, our only approved or cleared products are our Morph universal deflectable guide catheters and Morph AccessPro sheaths, or Morph, in the United States and Europe
and our Helix biotherapeutic delivery system, or Helix, in Europe. Our limited commercialization experience and number of approved products makes it difficult to evaluate our
current business and predict our future prospects. Our short commercialization experience and limited number of approved products also makes it difficult for us to forecast our
future financial performance and growth and such forecasts are limited and subject to a number of uncertainties, including our ability to successfully complete our Phase III pivotal
trials in heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia and obtain FDA approval for, and then successfully commercialize, the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System.
Our ability to generate sufficient revenue to achieve profitability depends on our ability, either alone or with strategic collaboration partners, to successfully complete the
development of, and obtain the regulatory approvals necessary to commercialize our therapeutic candidates. We do not anticipate generating revenues from sales of the CardiAMP
Cell Therapy System, the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System or any other biotherapeutic candidates within the next few years, and we may never generate sales of these products.
Our audited consolidated financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2019 have been prepared on the basis that we will continue as a going concern, which
contemplates the realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. We have incurred significant losses since our inception and we expect that we
will continue to incur losses as we aim to successfully execute our business plan and will be dependent on additional public or private financings, collaborations or licensing
arrangements with strategic partners, or additional credit lines or other debt financing sources to fund continuing operations. Based on our cash balances, recurring losses since
inception and our existing capital resources to fund our planned operations for a twelve-month period, there is substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.
As noted below, we will need to obtain additional funding from equity or debt financings, which may require us to agree to burdensome covenants, grant security interests in our
assets, enter into collaboration and licensing arrangements that require us to relinquish commercial rights, or grant licenses on terms that are not favorable. No assurance can be
given at this time as to whether we will be able to achieve our fundraising objectives, regardless of the terms. If adequate funds are not available, the Company may be required to
reduce operating expenses, delay or reduce the scope of its product development programs, obtain funds through arrangements with others that may require the Company to
relinquish rights to certain of its technologies or products that the Company would otherwise seek to develop or commercialize itself, or cease operations.
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Our success depends in large part on our ability to obtain approval for, and successfully commercialize, the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System.
The long-term viability of our company is largely dependent on the successful development and commercialization of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System. We are currently
enrolling patients in a Phase III pivotal trial that will be used to support regulatory approval, and we do not have significant long-term data on the CardiAMP Cell Therapy
System’s safety and efficacy in either heart failure or chronic myocardial ischemia. While we expect to successfully complete our ongoing Phase III pivotal trial of the CardiAMP
Cell Therapy System in heart failure, there can be no guarantee that the study will be completed, that the primary endpoints will be achieved, or that we will receive regulatory
approval for the sale and marketing in the United States. A number of companies in similar fields have suffered significant setbacks during clinical trials due to lack of efficacy or
unacceptable safety issues, notwithstanding promising preliminary results. Because we are depending heavily on sales of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System to achieve our
revenue goals, failure to successfully complete the study and receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, approval, in a timely manner or at all, will harm our financial
results and ability to become profitable. Even if we obtain regulatory approval, our ability to successfully market this product will be limited due to a number of factors, including
regulatory restrictions in our labeling or requirements to obtain additional post-approval data, if any. In addition, there can be no guarantee that the CardiAMP Cell Therapy
System will be accepted by the medical community as a valid alternative to currently available products. If we cannot sell the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System as planned, our
financial results will be harmed.
FDA acceptance of a Phase III pivotal trial is not a guarantee of an approval of a product candidate or any permissible claims about the product candidate. Failure to successfully
complete our ongoing Phase III trial of CardiAMP in heart failure would significantly impair our financial results. Such a failure could (i) delay or prevent the CardiAMP Cell
Therapy System from obtaining regulatory approval, (ii) require us to perform another clinical trial, which will be expensive, may not be successful and will significantly delay our
ability to commercialize the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System and (iii) impair our ability to convince hospitals and physicians of the benefits of our CardiAMP Cell Therapy System
product. Furthermore, even if we are granted regulatory clearances or approvals, they may include significant limitations on the indicated uses for CardiAMP, which may limit the
market for this product.
Because the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System is, to our knowledge, the first cardiac cell-based therapy with an accepted pivotal trial that is to be regulated by the FDA via the
premarket approval pathway, the approval process for the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System is uncertain.
Although we have obtained FDA acceptance of Phase III pivotal trials of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for the treatment of ischemic systolic heart failure and chronic
myocardial ischemia, this does not guarantee any particular outcome from regulatory review. To the best of our knowledge, the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for the treatment of
ischemic systolic heart failure is the first cardiac cell-based therapy with an accepted pivotal trial that is to be regulated by the FDA Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research,
or CBER, via the premarket approval, or PMA, pathway requiring a single trial. The CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for the treatment of chronic myocardial ischemia is also to be
regulated under the same IDE/PMA pathway. All other cardiac cell-based therapies in clinical trials are believed to be regulated by the same agency, but as biologics which
generally require two separate pivotal trials. There is no guarantee that the FDA will grant us regulatory clearance or approval to market the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System on the
basis of a single pivotal trial, or that the FDA will continue to allow us to develop the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System via the PMA pathway. Two well-controlled pivotal studies
could be necessary to provide FDA assurance of safety or effectiveness. If the FDA approval process does not occur as we anticipate or we are required to conduct more than one
pivotal study to obtain approval, we may incur substantial additional costs and delays to obtain approval, if at all, which would have a material adverse impact on our business,
financial condition and prospects.
Our CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapy system therapeutic candidates are based on novel technology, which makes it difficult to accurately and reliably predict the time
and cost of product development and subsequently obtaining regulatory approval. At the moment, no cell-based therapies have been approved in the United States for a
cardiac indication.
The success of our business depends on our ability to develop and commercialize our therapeutic candidates, including CardiAMP. We have concentrated our product research
and development efforts on our CardiAMP therapeutic candidate, a novel type of cell-based therapy. Our future success depends on the successful development of this
therapeutic approach. There can be no assurance that any development problems we experience in the future related to our therapeutic candidates and products will not cause
significant delays or unanticipated costs, or that such development problems can be solved. We may be unable to maintain and further develop sustainable, reproducible and
scalable manufacturing processes, or transfer these processes to collaborators, which may prevent us from completing our clinical studies or commercializing our products on a
timely or profitable basis, if at all.
In addition, the clinical study requirements of the FDA, the European Medicines Agency, or EMA, and other regulatory agencies and the criteria these regulators use to determine
the safety and efficacy of a product candidate vary substantially according to the type, complexity, novelty, intended use and market of the potential product candidates. The
regulatory approval process for novel product candidates such as our CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems may be more expensive and take longer than other, better
known or extensively studied pharmaceutical or other product candidates to develop. In addition, adverse developments in clinical trials of cell-based products or therapies
conducted by others may cause the FDA or other regulatory bodies to change the requirements for approval of any of our therapeutic candidates. At the moment, no other cell-
based therapies have been approved in the United States for a cardiac indication, which makes it difficult to determine how long it will take or how much it will cost to obtain
regulatory approvals for our therapeutic candidates in either the United States or elsewhere.
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Regulatory requirements governing cell-based therapy products have changed frequently and may continue to change in the future. For example, the FDA established the Office of
Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies within CBER to consolidate the review of gene therapy and related products, and the Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee
to advise CBER on its review. These regulatory authorities and advisory groups and the new requirements or guidelines they promulgate may lengthen the regulatory review
process, require us to perform additional studies, increase our development costs, lead to changes in regulatory positions and interpretations, delay or prevent approval and
commercialization of our product candidates or lead to significant post-approval limitations or restrictions. As we advance our product candidates, we will be required to consult
with the FDA and other regulatory authorities, and our products could be reviewed by the FDA’s advisory committee. We also must comply with applicable requirements, and if
we fail to do so, we may be required to delay or discontinue development of our product candidates.
We will require substantial additional financing to achieve our goals, and our failure to obtain this necessary capital when needed could force us to delay, limit, reduce or
terminate our product development or commercialization efforts.
Our operations have consumed substantial amounts of cash since inception. We expect to continue to incur significant expenses and operating losses for the foreseeable future in
connection with our planned research, development and product commercialization efforts, including our planned clinical trials for our CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy
System therapeutic candidates. In addition, we will require additional financing to achieve our goals and our failure to do so could adversely affect our commercialization efforts.
We anticipate that our expenses will increase substantially if and as we:
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continue the research and clinical development of our CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy System therapeutic candidates;
initiate and advance our CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy System therapeutic candidates in expensive clinical studies, including the ongoing Phase III
pivotal trial for our CardiAMP Cell Therapy System therapeutic candidate in heart failure and our recently approved Phase III pivotal trial for our CardiAMP
Cell Therapy System therapeutic candidate in chronic myocardial ischemia;
seek to identify, assess, acquire, and/or develop other product candidates and technologies;
seek regulatory and marketing approvals in multiple jurisdictions for our therapeutic candidates that successfully complete clinical studies;
build and maintain a sales, marketing and distribution infrastructure to commercialize any products for which we may obtain marketing approval, or otherwise
establish collaborations with third parties for the development and commercialization of our therapeutic candidates;
further develop and implement our manufacturing processes and expand our manufacturing capabilities and resources for commercial production;
seek coverage and reimbursement from third-party payors, including government and private payors for future products;
seek to maintain, protect and expand our intellectual property portfolio; and
seek to attract and retain skilled personnel.
If we were to experience any delays or encounter issues with any of the above, including clinical holds, failed studies, inconclusive or complex results, safety or efficacy issues, or
other regulatory challenges that require longer follow-up of existing studies, additional major studies, or additional supportive studies in order to pursue marketing approval, it
could further increase the costs associated with the above. Further, the net operating losses we incur may fluctuate significantly from quarter to quarter and year to year, such that
a period-to-period comparison of our results of operations may not be a good indication of our future performance.
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We have encountered, and may in the future encounter, substantial delays in our clinical studies.
We have encountered, and may in the future encounter, substantial delays in our clinical studies. We cannot guarantee that any preclinical testing or clinical trials will be
conducted as planned or completed on schedule, if at all. As a result, we may not achieve our expected clinical milestones. A failure can occur at any stage of testing. Events that
may prevent successful or timely commencement, enrollment or completion of clinical development include:
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delays in raising, or inability to raise, sufficient capital to fund the planned trials;
delays in reaching a consensus with regulatory agencies on trial design;
changes in trial design;
inability to identify, recruit and train suitable clinical investigators;
inability to add new clinical trial sites;
delays in reaching agreement on acceptable terms for the performance of the trials with prospective clinical research organizations, or CROs, and clinical trial
sites;
delays in obtaining required Institutional Review Board, or IRB, approval at each clinical trial site;
delays in recruiting suitable clinical sites and patients (i.e., subjects) to participate in clinical trials;
imposition of a clinical hold by regulatory agencies for any reason, including negative clinical results, safety concerns or as a result of an inspection of
manufacturing or clinical operations or trial sites;
failure by us, CROs or other third parties to adhere to clinical trial requirements;
failure to perform in accordance with the FDA’s current Good Clinical Practices, or GCP, or applicable regulatory guidelines in other countries;
delays in the testing, validation, manufacturing and delivery to the clinical sites;
delays caused by patients not completing participation in a trial or not returning for post-treatment follow-up;
delays caused by clinical trial sites not completing a trial;
failure to demonstrate adequate efficacy;
occurrence of serious adverse events in clinical trials that are associated with the therapeutic candidates or products that are viewed to outweigh its potential
benefits;
changes in regulatory requirements and guidance that require amending or submitting new clinical protocols; or
disagreements between us and the FDA or other regulatory agencies interpreting the data from our clinical trials.
Delays, including those caused by the above factors, can be costly and could negatively affect our ability to complete clinical trials for our therapeutic candidates. If we are not
able to successfully complete clinical trials or are not able to do so in a timely and cost-effective manner, we will not be able to obtain regulatory approval and/or will not be able to
commercialize our therapeutic candidates or products, which would have an adverse effect on our business. Clinical trial delays could also shorten any periods during which we
may have the exclusive right to commercialize our therapeutic candidates or products or allow our competitors to bring products to market before we do, which could impair our
ability to successfully commercialize our therapeutic candidates or products and may harm our business and results of operations.
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We may find it difficult to enroll patients in our clinical trials, which could delay or prevent development of our therapeutic candidates.
Identifying and qualifying patients to participate in clinical trials of our therapeutic candidates is critical to our success. The timing of our clinical trials depends on the speed at
which we can recruit patients to participate in testing our therapeutic candidates as well as completion of required follow-up periods. In general, if patients are unwilling to
participate in our cell-based therapy trials because of negative publicity from adverse events in the biotechnology or cell-based industries or for other reasons, including
competitive clinical trials for similar patient populations, the timeline for recruiting patients, conducting trials and obtaining regulatory approval for our therapeutic candidates may
be delayed. These delays could result in increased costs, delays in advancing our product development, delays in testing the effectiveness of our therapeutic candidates or
termination of the clinical trials altogether.
Patient enrollment and completion of clinical trials are affected by factors including:
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size of the patient population;
severity of the disease under investigation;
design of the trial protocol;
eligibility criteria for the particular trial;
perceived risks and benefits of the product candidate being tested;
proximity and availability of clinical trial sites for prospective patients;
availability of competing therapies and clinical trials;
efforts to facilitate timely enrollment in clinical trials;
patient referral practices of physicians;
ability to monitor patients adequately during and after treatment; and
the degree of treatment effect in event-driven trials.
Once enrolled, patients may choose to discontinue their participation at any time during the trial, for any reason. Participants also may be terminated from the study at the initiative
of the investigator, for example if they experience serious adverse clinical events or do not follow the study directions. If we are unable to maintain an adequate number of patients
in our clinical trials, we may be required to delay or terminate an ongoing clinical trial, which would have an adverse effect on our business.
We depend on our license and distribution agreement with Biomet Biologics, LLC, and if we fail to comply with our obligations under this agreement, or if our rights under
this agreement are otherwise reduced or terminated, we could lose intellectual property rights that are important to our business.
In October 2012, we entered into a license and distribution agreement with Biomet Biologics, LLC under which we obtained an exclusive, nontransferable, worldwide distribution
right, patent license and trademark license to Biomet Biologic, LLC’s point of care cell processing platform. Under the terms of the agreement, we are obligated to pay Biomet
Biologics, LLC a royalty based on the price of the disposables in the CardiAMP cell processing platform. A breach or termination of this agreement would materially adversely
affect the clinical development or commercialization strategy of our CardiAMP therapeutic candidate as currently planned. A reduction or elimination of our rights under this
agreement may result in our having to negotiate new or reinstated arrangements on less favorable terms, or our not having sufficient intellectual property rights to operate our
business as currently planned. The occurrence of such events could materially harm our business and financial condition.
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We rely on third parties to conduct some or all aspects of our product manufacturing, diagnostic protocol development, research, and preclinical and clinical testing, and
these third parties may not perform satisfactorily.
We do not currently, and do not expect to in the future, independently conduct all aspects of our product manufacturing, anticipated companion diagnostic testing, protocol
development, research and monitoring and management of our ongoing preclinical and clinical programs. We currently rely, and expect to continue to rely, on third parties with
respect to these items, and control only certain aspects of their activities.
Any of these third parties may terminate their engagements with us at any time. If we need to enter into alternative arrangements, our commercialization activities or our therapeutic
candidate or companion diagnostic development activities may be delayed or suspended. Our reliance on these third parties for research and development activities, including the
conduct of any IDE and IND-enabling studies, reduces our control over these activities but does not relieve us of our responsibility to ensure compliance with all required legal,
regulatory and scientific standards and any applicable trial protocols. For example, for therapeutic candidates that we develop and commercialize on our own, we will remain
responsible for ensuring that each of our IDE and IND-enabling studies and clinical trials are conducted in accordance with the trial plan and protocols.
If these third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties, meet expected deadlines or conduct our studies in accordance with regulatory requirements or our
stated study plans and protocols, we may be delayed in completing, or unable to complete, the preclinical studies and clinical trials required to support future IDE and IND
submissions and approval of our therapeutic candidates.
Reliance on third-party manufacturers entails exposure to risks to which we would not be subject if we manufactured the therapeutic candidates or companion diagnostic
ourselves, including:
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we may be unable to negotiate manufacturing agreements with third parties under commercially reasonable terms;
reduced control over the manufacturing process for our therapeutic candidates and companion diagnostic as a result of using third-party manufacturers for
many aspects of manufacturing activities;
termination or nonrenewal of manufacturing agreements with third parties in a manner or at a time that may be costly or damaging to us or result in delays in
the development or commercialization of our therapeutic candidates or companion diagnostic; and
disruptions to the operations of our third-party manufacturers or suppliers caused by conditions unrelated to our business or operations, including the
bankruptcy of the manufacturer or supplier.
Any of these events could lead to delays in the development of our therapeutic candidates, including delays in our clinical trials, or failure to obtain regulatory approval for our
therapeutic candidates, or it could impact our ability to successfully commercialize our current therapeutic candidates, companion diagnostic or any future products. Some of these
events could be the basis for FDA or other regulatory action, including injunction, recall, seizure or total or partial suspension of production.
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We rely on third parties to conduct, supervise and monitor our clinical trials. If these third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties 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 rely on CROs and clinical trial sites to ensure our clinical trials are conducted properly and on time. While we will have agreements governing their activities, we will have
limited influence over their actual performance. We will control only certain aspects of our CROs’ activities. Nevertheless, we will be responsible for ensuring that each of our
clinical trials is conducted in accordance with the applicable protocol, legal, regulatory and scientific standards, and our reliance on the CROs does not relieve us of our regulatory
responsibilities.
We and our CROs are required to comply with the FDA’s GCPs for conducting, recording and reporting the results of clinical trials to assure that the data and reported results are
credible and accurate and that the rights, integrity and confidentiality of clinical trial participants are protected. The FDA, the Competent Authorities of the Member States of the
EEA, and comparable foreign regulatory authorities, enforce these GCPs through periodic inspections of trial sponsors, principal investigators and clinical trial sites. If we or our
CROs fail to comply with applicable GCPs, the clinical data generated in our future clinical trials may be deemed unreliable and the FDA, the EMA, or other foreign regulatory
authorities may require us to perform additional clinical trials before approving any marketing applications. Upon inspection, the FDA may determine that our clinical trials did not
comply with GCPs. In addition, our future clinical trials will require a sufficient number of test subjects to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of our therapeutic candidates.
Accordingly, if our CROs fail to comply with these regulations or fail to recruit a sufficient number of patients, we may be required to repeat such clinical trials, which would delay
the regulatory approval process.
Our CROs are not our employees, and we are therefore unable to directly monitor whether or not they devote sufficient time and resources to our clinical and nonclinical programs.
These CROs may also have relationships with other commercial entities, including our competitors, for whom they may also be conducting clinical trials or other product
development activities that could harm our competitive position. If our CROs do not successfully carry out their contractual duties or obligations, fail to meet expected deadlines,
or if the quality or accuracy of the clinical data they obtain is compromised due to the failure to adhere to our clinical protocols or regulatory requirements, or for any 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 therapeutic candidates. If
any such event were to occur, our financial results and the commercial prospects for our therapeutic candidates would be harmed, our costs could increase, and our ability to
generate revenues could be delayed.
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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. Further, switching or adding additional CROs involves additional costs 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 could materially impact our ability to meet our desired clinical development timelines. Though we carefully manage our
relationships with our CROs, there can be no assurance that we will not encounter 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 also rely on other third parties to store and distribute our products for the clinical trials that we conduct. Any performance failure on the part of our distributors could
delay clinical development or marketing approval of our therapeutic candidates or commercialization of our products, if approved, producing additional losses and depriving us of
potential product revenue.
We depend on third party vendors to manufacture some of our components and sub-assemblies, which could make us vulnerable to supply shortages and price fluctuations
that could harm our business.
We currently manufacture some of our components and sub-assemblies internally and rely on third party vendors for other components and sub-assemblies used in our products
and therapeutic candidates. Our reliance on third party vendors subjects us to a number of risks that could impact our ability to manufacture our products and therapeutic
candidates and harm our business, including:
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interruption of supply resulting from modifications to, or discontinuation of, a supplier’s operations;
delays in product shipments resulting from uncorrected defects, reliability issues or a supplier’s failure to consistently produce quality components;
price fluctuations due to a lack of long-term supply arrangements with our suppliers for key components;
inability to obtain adequate supply in a timely manner or on commercially reasonable terms;
difficulty identifying and qualifying alternative suppliers for components in a timely manner;
inability of the manufacturer or supplier to comply with Quality System Regulations, or QSRs, enforced by the FDA and state regulatory authorities;
inability to control the quality of products manufactured by third parties;
production delays related to the evaluation and testing of products from alternative suppliers and corresponding regulatory qualifications; and
delays in delivery by our suppliers due to changes in demand from us or their other customers.
Any significant delay or interruption in the supply of components or sub-assemblies, or our inability to obtain substitute components, sub-assemblies or materials from alternate
sources at acceptable prices in a timely manner, could impair our ability to meet the demand of our customers and harm our business.
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Our future commercial success depends upon attaining significant market acceptance of our therapeutic candidates, if approved, among physicians, patients and healthcare
payors.
Even when product development is successful and regulatory approval has been obtained, our ability to generate significant revenue depends on the acceptance of our products
by physicians, payors and patients. Many potential market participants have limited knowledge of, or experience with, cell-based products and therapies, so gaining market
acceptance and overcoming any safety or efficacy concerns may be more challenging than for more traditional therapies. Our efforts to educate the medical community and third-
party payors on the benefits of our therapeutic candidates may require significant resources and may never be successful. Such efforts to educate the marketplace may require
more resources than are required by conventional therapies marketed by our competitors. We cannot assure you that our products will achieve the expected market acceptance and
revenue if and when they obtain the requisite regulatory approvals. Alternatively, even if we obtain regulatory approval, that approval may be for indications or patient
populations that are not as broad as intended or desired or may require labeling that includes significant use or distribution restrictions or safety warnings. The market acceptance
of each of our therapeutic candidates will depend on a number of factors, including:
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the efficacy and safety of the therapeutic candidate, as demonstrated in clinical trials;
the clinical indications for which the product is approved and the label approved by regulatory authorities for use with the product, including any warnings
that may be required on the label;
acceptance by physicians and patients of the product as a safe and effective treatment;
the cost, safety and efficacy of treatment in relation to alternative treatments;
the continued projected growth of markets for our various indications;
relative convenience and ease of administration;
the prevalence and severity of adverse side effects; and
the effectiveness of our sales and marketing efforts.
Market acceptance is critical to our ability to generate significant revenue. Any therapeutic candidate, if approved and commercialized, may be accepted in only limited capacities
or not at all. If any approved products are not accepted by the market to the extent that we expect, we may not be able to generate significant revenue and our business would
suffer.
If we fail to attract and keep senior management and key scientific personnel, we may be unable to successfully develop our therapeutic candidates, conduct our clinical
trials and commercialize our therapeutic candidates.
We are highly dependent on the members of our executive team, the loss of whose services may adversely impact the achievement of our objectives. Any of our executive officers
could leave our employment at any time, as all of our employees are "at will” employees. Recruiting and retaining other qualified employees, consultants and advisors for our
business, including scientific and technical personnel, will also be critical to our success.
Recruiting and retaining qualified scientific, clinical, manufacturing, sales and marketing personnel will also be critical to our success. We may not be able to attract and retain these
personnel on acceptable terms given the competition among numerous pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for similar personnel. We also experience competition for the
hiring of scientific and clinical personnel from universities and research institutions. In addition, we rely on consultants and advisors, including scientific and clinical advisors, to
assist us in formulating our research and development and commercialization strategy. Our consultants and advisors may be employed by employers other than us and may have
commitments under consulting or advisory contracts with other entities that may limit their availability to us.
We will need to expand our organization and we may experience difficulties in managing this growth, which could disrupt our operations.
As we mature and expand our research and development and other pre-commercialization activities, we expect to expand our existing full-time employee base and to hire more
consultants and contractors. In addition, we currently plan to commercialize the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, if approved, using an internal sales force to selected cardiologists,
interventional cardiologists and third-party payors in the United States. Our management may need to divert a disproportionate amount of its attention away from our day-to-day
activities and devote a substantial amount of time to managing these growth activities. We may not be able to effectively manage the expansion of our operations, which may
result in weaknesses in our infrastructure, operational mistakes, loss of business opportunities, loss of employees and reduced productivity among remaining employees. Our
expected growth could require significant capital expenditures and may divert financial resources from other projects, such as the development of additional product candidates. If
our management is unable to effectively manage our growth, our expenses may increase more than expected, our ability to generate and/or grow revenues could be reduced, and
we may not be able to implement our business strategy. Our future financial performance and our ability to commercialize product candidates and compete effectively will depend,
in part, on our ability to effectively manage any future growth.
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We face substantial competition, which may result in others discovering, developing or commercializing products before, or more successfully, than we do.
Our industry is highly competitive and subject to rapid change. The industry continues to expand and evolve as an increasing number of competitors and potential competitors
enter the market. Astra Zeneca, Bayer, Blue Rock Therapeutics, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Caladrius Biosciences, Capricor Therapeutics, Celixr, Cesca Therapeutics, Celyad, Daichii
Sankyo, Fuji Film, Mesoblast, Moderna, Sana Biotechnology, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Tenaya Therapeutics, Terumo, Vericel Corp, and Uniqure, among others. Many of our
competitors, potentially including the aforementioned, have significantly greater development, financial, manufacturing, marketing, technical and human resources than we do.
Large pharmaceutical and medical device companies, in particular, have extensive experience in clinical testing, obtaining regulatory approvals, recruiting patients and in
manufacturing pharmaceutical and medical device products. Recent and potential future merger and acquisition activity in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries may
result in even more resources being concentrated among a smaller number of our competitors. Established companies may also invest heavily to accelerate discovery and
development of novel products that could make our therapeutic candidates obsolete. As a result of all of these factors, our competitors may succeed in obtaining patent protection
and/or FDA approval or discovering, developing and commercializing our therapeutic candidates or competitors to our therapeutic candidates before we do. Specialized, smaller or
early-stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly those with a focus and expertise in the stem cell industry and/or those with collaboration
arrangements and other third-party payors. In addition, any new product that competes with an approved product must demonstrate compelling advantages in efficacy,
convenience, tolerability and safety in order to overcome price competition and to be commercially successful. If we are not able to compete effectively against potential
competitors, our business will not grow, and our financial condition and results of operations will suffer.
Even if we obtain regulatory approval for a product candidate, including our CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy System therapeutic candidates, these products or
therapies, along with our other regulated products, will be subject to ongoing regulatory scrutiny.
Even if we obtain regulatory approval or clearance in a jurisdiction, regulatory authorities may still impose significant restrictions on the indicated uses or marketing of our
therapeutic candidates or impose ongoing requirements for potentially costly post-approval studies or post-market surveillance. For example, once a product receives regulatory
approval or clearance for sale, we are obligated to monitor and report adverse events and any failure of a product to meet the specifications in the applicable regulatory approval or
clearance. We must also submit new or supplemental applications and obtain FDA approval or clearance for certain changes to the approved or cleared product, product labeling
or manufacturing process. Advertising and promotional materials must comply with FDA rules and are subject to FDA review, in addition to other potentially applicable federal and
state laws.
In addition, product manufacturers and their facilities are subject to payment of user fees and continual review and periodic inspections by the FDA and other regulatory
authorities for compliance with good manufacturing practices or QSRs and adherence to commitments made in the applicable regulatory approval. If we or 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, a regulatory agency may impose restrictions relative to that product or the manufacturing facility, including requiring recall or withdrawal of the product from the
market or suspension of manufacturing.
If we fail to comply with applicable regulatory requirements following approval of any of our therapeutic candidates, a regulatory agency may impose the following:
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restrictions on the marketing or manufacturing of our products, withdrawal of our products from the market, or voluntary or mandatory product recalls;
costly regulatory inspections;
fines, warning letters, or holds on clinical trials;
refusal by the FDA to approve pending applications or supplements to approved applications filed by us or our collaborators, or suspension or revocation of
applicable regulatory approvals;
product seizure or detention, or refusal to permit the import or export of products; and
injunctions or the imposition of civil or criminal penalties by FDA or other regulatory bodies.
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Any government investigation of alleged violations of law could require us to expend significant time and resources in response and could generate negative publicity. The
occurrence of any event or penalty described above may inhibit our ability to commercialize our therapeutic candidates and generate revenues.
Our ability to compete is highly dependent on demonstrating the benefits of CardiAMP to physicians, hospitals and patients.
In order to generate sales, we must be able to clearly demonstrate that CardiAMP is both a more effective treatment system and less costly than alternative products and
treatments offered by our competitors. If we are unable to convince physicians that CardiAMP leads to significant improvement in functional capacity, improved quality of life and
reduced hospitalization, our business will suffer.
We may fail to demonstrate safety and efficacy to the satisfaction of applicable regulatory agencies.
We have not obtained regulatory approval for either our CardiAMP or CardiALLO Cell Therapy System therapeutic candidates. We must conduct extensive testing of our
therapeutic candidates to demonstrate their safety and efficacy, including human clinical trials and, if applicable, preclinical animal testing, before we can obtain regulatory
approval to market and sell them. Conducting such testing is a lengthy, time-consuming, and expensive process and there is a high rate of failure. Our current and completed
preclinical and clinical results for our therapeutic candidates are not necessarily predictive of the results of our ongoing or future clinical trials. Promising results in preclinical
studies of a therapeutic candidate may not be predictive of similar results in humans during clinical trials, and successful results from early human clinical trials of a therapeutic
candidate may not be replicated in later and larger human clinical trials or in clinical trials for different indications. If the results of our ongoing or future clinical trials are negative or
inconclusive with respect to the efficacy of our therapeutic candidates or if we or they do not meet the clinical endpoints with statistical significance or if there are safety concerns
or adverse events associated with our therapeutic candidates, we may be prevented or delayed in obtaining marketing approval for our therapeutic candidates.
If we fail to obtain and maintain necessary regulatory clearances or approvals for our therapeutic candidates or products, or if clearances or approvals for our therapeutic
candidates or products in additional indications are delayed or not issued, our commercial operations would be harmed.
We are required to timely file various reports with the FDA, require that we report to the regulatory authorities if our therapeutic candidates or products may have caused or
contributed to a death or serious injury or malfunctioned in a way that would likely cause or contribute to a death or serious injury if the malfunction were to recur. If these reports
are not filed timely, regulators may impose sanctions and sales may suffer, and we may be subject to product liability or regulatory enforcement actions, all of which could harm our
business.
If we initiate a correction or removal to reduce a risk to health posed, we would be required to submit a publicly available Correction and Removal report to the FDA and in many
cases, similar reports to other regulatory agencies. This report could be classified by the FDA as a product recall which could lead to increased scrutiny by the FDA, other
international regulatory agencies and our customers regarding the quality and safety of our therapeutic candidates or products. Furthermore, the submission of these reports has
been and could be used by competitors against us in competitive situations and cause customers to delay purchase decisions or cancel orders and would harm our reputation.
The FDA and the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, also regulate the advertising and promotion of our therapeutic candidates or products to ensure that the claims we make are
consistent with our regulatory approvals, that there are adequate and reasonable data to substantiate the claims and that our promotional labeling and advertising is neither false
nor misleading in any respect. If the FDA or FTC determines that any of our advertising or promotional claims are misleading, not substantiated or not permissible, we may be
subject to enforcement actions, including warning letters, and we may be required to revise our promotional claims and make other corrections or restitutions.
FDA and state authorities have broad enforcement powers. Our failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements could result in enforcement action by FDA or state
agencies, which may include any of the following sanctions:
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adverse publicity, warning letters, fines, injunctions, consent decrees and civil penalties;
repair, replacement, refunds, recall or seizure of our products;
operating restrictions, partial suspension or total shutdown of production;
refusing our requests for premarket approval of new products, new intended uses or modifications to existing products;
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withdrawing premarket approvals that have already been granted; and
criminal prosecution.
If any of these events were to occur, our business and financial condition would be harmed.
Serious adverse events or other safety risks could require us to abandon development and preclude, delay or limit approval of our therapeutic candidates or products or limit
the scope of any approved indication or market acceptance.
Participants in clinical trials of our investigational cell-based therapies and products may experience adverse reactions or other undesirable side effects. While some of these can be
anticipated, others may be unexpected. We cannot predict the frequency, duration, or severity of adverse reactions or undesirable side effects that may occur during clinical
investigation. If any of our therapeutic candidates or products, prior to or after any approval for commercial sale, cause adverse events or are associated with other safety risks, a
number of potentially significant negative consequences could result, including:
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regulatory authorities may suspend (e.g., through a clinical hold) or terminate clinical trials;
regulatory authorities may deny regulatory approval of our therapeutic candidates or products;
regulatory authorities may restrict the indications or patient populations for which a therapeutic candidate or products is approved;
regulatory authorities may require certain labeling statements, such as warnings or contraindications or limitations on the indications for use, and/or impose
restrictions on distribution in the form of a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy, or REMS, in connection with approval, if any;
regulatory authorities may withdraw their approval, require more onerous labeling statements or impose a more restrictive REMS than any therapeutic
candidate or product that is approved;
we may be required to change the way the therapy or therapeutic candidate or product is administered or conduct additional clinical trials;
patient recruitment into our clinical trials may suffer;
we could be required to provide compensation to subjects for their injuries, e.g., if we are sued and found to be liable or if required by the laws of the relevant
jurisdiction or by the policies of the clinical site; or
our reputation may suffer.
There can be no assurance that adverse events associated with our therapeutic candidates or products will not be observed, even where no prior adverse events have occurred.
We may voluntarily suspend or terminate our clinical trials if at any time we believe that they present an unacceptable risk to participants or if preliminary data demonstrate that our
therapeutic candidates or products are unlikely to receive regulatory approval or are unlikely to be successfully commercialized. Regulatory agencies, IRBs or data safety
monitoring boards may at any time recommend the temporary or permanent discontinuation of our clinical trials or request that we cease using investigators in the clinical trials if
they believe that the clinical trials are not being conducted in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements, or that they present an unacceptable safety risk to participants.
If we elect or are forced to suspend or terminate a clinical trial for any reason this would have an adverse effect on our business.
Our therapeutic candidates are intended to treat patients who are extremely ill, and patient deaths that occur in our clinical trials could negatively impact our business even
if they are not shown to be related to our therapeutic candidates.
Generally, patients remain at high risk following their treatment with our CardiAMP and CardiALLO therapeutic candidates. As a result, it is likely that we will observe severe
adverse outcomes during our clinical trials for these therapeutic candidates, including patient death. If a significant number of study subject deaths were to occur, regardless of
whether such deaths are attributable to our therapeutic candidates, our ability to obtain regulatory approval for the applicable therapeutic candidate may be adversely impacted
and our business could be materially harmed.
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If we or our suppliers fail to comply with the FDA’s QSRs, our manufacturing operations could be delayed or shut down and product sales could suffer.
Our manufacturing processes and those of our third-party suppliers are required to comply with the FDA’s QSRs, which covers the procedures and documentation of the design,
testing, production, control, quality assurance, labeling, packaging, storage and shipping. We are also subject to similar state requirements and licenses. In addition, we must
engage in extensive record keeping and reporting and must make available our manufacturing facilities and records for periodic unannounced inspections by governmental
agencies, including the FDA, state authorities and comparable agencies in other countries. If we fail a Quality System inspection, our operations could be disrupted and our
manufacturing interrupted. Failure to take adequate corrective action in response to an adverse Quality System inspection could result in, among other things, a shut-down of our
manufacturing operations, significant fines, suspension of marketing clearances and approvals, seizures or recalls, operating restrictions and criminal prosecutions, any of which
would cause our business to suffer. Furthermore, our key component suppliers may not currently be or may not continue to be in compliance with applicable regulatory
requirements, which may result in manufacturing delays and cause our revenues to decline.
We have registered with the FDA as a medical device manufacturer and have obtained a manufacturing license from the California Department of Health Services, or CDHS. The
FDA has broad post-market and regulatory enforcement powers. We are subject to unannounced inspections by the FDA and the Food and Drug Branch of CDHS to determine
our compliance with the QSR and other regulations, and these inspections may include the manufacturing facilities of our suppliers. If the FDA or CDHS inspect our facility and
discover compliance problems, we may have to shut down our facility and cease manufacturing until we can take the appropriate remedial steps to correct the audit findings.
Taking corrective action may be expensive, time consuming and a distraction for management and if we experience a shutdown or delay at our manufacturing facility we may be
unable to produce our products, which may have an adverse impact on our business.
The requirements to obtain regulatory approval of the FDA and regulators in other jurisdictions can be costly, time-consuming, and unpredictable. If we are unable to obtain
timely regulatory approval for our therapeutic candidates, our business may be substantially harmed.
The regulatory approval process is expensive, and the time and resources required to obtain approval from the FDA or other regulatory authorities in other jurisdictions to sell any
therapeutic candidate or product is uncertain and approval may take years. Whether regulatory approval will be granted is unpredictable and depends upon numerous factors,
including the discretion of the regulatory authorities. For example, governing legislation, approval policies, regulations, regulatory policies, or the type and amount of preclinical
and clinical data necessary to gain approval may change during the course of a therapeutic candidate’s clinical development and may vary among jurisdictions. It is possible that
none of our existing or future therapeutic candidates will ever obtain regulatory approval, even if we expend substantial time and resources seeking such approval.
Further, regulatory requirements governing cell-based therapy products in particular have changed frequently and may continue to change in the future. For example, in November
2014, Japan’s parliament enacted new legislation to promote the safe and accelerated development of treatments using stem cells. The new Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices and
Other Therapeutic Products Act, or PMD Act, establishes a framework for expedited approval in Japan for regenerative medical products. As this is a new regulation, it is not clear
yet what impact it will have on the operation of our business. Any regulatory review committees and advisory groups and any contemplated new guidelines may lengthen the
regulatory review process, require us to perform additional studies, increase our development costs, lead to changes in regulatory positions and interpretations, delay or prevent
approval and commercialization of our therapeutic candidates or products or lead to significant post-approval limitations or restrictions. As we advance our therapeutic candidates
or products, we will be required to consult with these regulatory and advisory groups and comply with applicable guidelines. If we fail to do so, we may be required to delay or
discontinue development of our therapeutic candidates or products. Delay or failure to obtain, or unexpected costs in obtaining, the regulatory approval necessary to bring a
therapeutic candidate or product to market could decrease our ability to generate sufficient revenue to maintain our business.
Our therapeutic candidates could fail to receive regulatory approval for many reasons, including the following:
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we may be unable to successfully complete our ongoing and future clinical trials of therapeutic candidates;
we may be unable to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the FDA or other regulatory authorities that a therapeutic candidate is safe, pure, and potent for any or
all of a therapeutic candidate’s proposed indications;
we may be unable to demonstrate that a therapeutic candidate’s benefits outweigh the risk associated with the therapeutic candidate;
the FDA or other regulatory authorities may disagree with the design or implementation of our clinical trials;
the results of clinical trials may not meet the level of statistical significance required by the FDA or other regulatory authorities for approval;
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the FDA or other regulatory authorities may disagree with our interpretation of data from preclinical studies or clinical trials;
a decision by the FDA, other regulatory authorities or us to suspend or terminate a clinical trial at any time;
the data collected from clinical trials of our therapeutic candidates may be inconclusive or may not be sufficient to obtain regulatory approval in the United
States or elsewhere;
the inability to obtain sufficient quantities of the therapeutic candidates for use in clinical trials;
our third-party manufacturers of supplies needed for manufacturing therapeutic candidates may fail to satisfy FDA or other regulatory requirements and may
not pass inspections that may be required by FDA or other regulatory authorities;
the failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements following approval of any of our therapeutic candidates may result in the refusal by the FDA or
similar foreign regulatory agency to approve a pending PMA or a biologics license application, or BLA, or supplement to a PMA or BLA submitted by us for
other indications or new therapeutic candidates or products; and
the approval policies or regulations of the FDA or other regulatory authorities outside of the United States may significantly change in a manner rendering our
clinical data insufficient for approval.
We may gain regulatory approval for any of our therapeutic candidates in some but not all of the territories available and any future approvals may be for some but not all of the
target indications, limiting their commercial potential. Regulatory requirements and timing of product approvals vary from country to country and some jurisdictions may require
additional testing beyond what is required to obtain FDA approval. Approval by the FDA does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other countries or jurisdictions,
and approval by one foreign regulatory authority does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other countries or by the FDA. The foreign regulatory approval process
may include all of the risks associated with obtaining FDA approval. In addition, regulatory approval does not specify pricing or reimbursement which may not match our
expectations based on the results of our clinical data.
Even if we obtain and maintain approval for our therapeutic candidates or products from the FDA, we may never obtain approval for our therapeutic candidates or products
outside of the United States, which would limit our market opportunities and adversely affect our business.
Approval in the United States by the FDA does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other countries or jurisdictions, and approval by one regulatory authority does
not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other foreign countries or by the FDA. Sales of our therapeutic candidates or products, if approved, outside of the United States
will be subject to foreign regulatory requirements governing clinical trials and marketing approval.
Even if the FDA grants marketing approval, comparable regulatory authorities of foreign countries must also approve the manufacturing and marketing in those countries.
Approval procedures vary among jurisdictions and can involve requirements and administrative review periods different from, and greater than, those in the United States,
including additional preclinical studies or clinical trials. In many countries outside the United States, a therapeutic candidate or product must be approved for reimbursement before
it can be approved for sale in that country. In some cases, the price that we intend to charge, if approved, is also subject to approval. While we may decide to submit a request to
the EMA for approval of our therapeutic candidates, including CardiAMP, as Advanced Therapeutic Medicinal Products, or ATMPs, in Europe, obtaining such approval is a
lengthy and expensive process and the EMA has its own procedures for approval. Even if a therapeutic candidate or product is approved, the FDA or the EMA, as the case may
be, may limit the indications for which it may be marketed, require extensive warnings on the product labeling or require expensive and time-consuming clinical trials or reporting as
conditions of approval. Regulatory authorities in countries outside of the United States and Europe also have requirements for approval of therapeutic candidates or products with
which we must comply prior to marketing in those countries. Obtaining foreign regulatory approvals and compliance with foreign regulatory requirements could result in significant
delays, difficulties and costs for us and could delay or prevent the introduction in certain countries. Further, clinical trials conducted in one country may not be accepted by
regulatory authorities in other countries and regulatory approval in one country does not ensure approval in any other country, while a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory
approval in one country may have a negative effect on the regulatory approval process in others. Also, regulatory approval may be withdrawn. If we fail to comply with the
regulatory requirements in international markets and/or receive applicable marketing approvals, our target market will be reduced and our ability to realize the full market potential of
our therapeutic candidates or products will be harmed and our business will be adversely affected.
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We may face competition from biosimilars due to changes in the regulatory environment.
We may face competition for the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System from biosimilars due to the changing regulatory environment. In the United States, the Biologics Price
Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 created an abbreviated approval pathway for biological products that are demonstrated to be "highly similar,” or biosimilar to, or
"interchangeable” with an FDA-approved innovator (original) biological product. This new pathway could allow competitors to reference data from innovator biological products
already approved after 12 years from the time of approval. In Europe, a competitor may reference data from biological products already approved but will not be able to get on the
market until 10 years after the time of approval. This 10-year period will be extended to 11 years if, during the first eight of those 10 years, the marketing authorization holder obtains
an approval for one or more new therapeutic indications that bring significant clinical benefits compared with existing therapies. In addition, companies may be developing
biosimilars in other countries that could compete with CardiALLO, if approved. Additionally, the FDA may approve our competitors’ products through a PMA pathway, similar to
CardiAMP. If competitors are able to obtain marketing approval for biosimilars referencing CardiALLO, if approved, it may become subject to competition from such biosimilars
with the attendant competitive pressure and consequences.
If we fail to comply with environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, we could become subject to fines or penalties or incur costs that could have a material
adverse effect on the success of our business.
We are subject to numerous environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, including those governing laboratory procedures and the handling, use, storage, treatment and
disposal of hazardous materials and wastes. Our operations may involve the use of hazardous and flammable materials, including chemicals and biological materials. Our operations
may also produce hazardous waste products. We generally contract with third parties for the disposal of these materials and wastes. We cannot eliminate the risk of contamination
or injury from these materials, which could cause an interruption of our commercialization efforts, research and development efforts and business operations, environmental
damage resulting in costly clean-up and liabilities under applicable laws and regulations governing the use, storage, handling and disposal of these materials and specified waste
products. Although we believe that the safety procedures utilized by our third-party manufacturers for handling and disposing of these materials generally comply with the
standards prescribed by these laws and regulations, we cannot guarantee that this is the case or eliminate the risk of accidental contamination or injury from these materials. In
such an event, we may be held liable for any resulting damages and such liability could exceed our resources and state or federal or other applicable authorities may curtail our use
of certain materials and/or interrupt our business operations. Furthermore, environmental laws and regulations are complex, change frequently and have tended to become more
stringent. We cannot predict the impact of such changes and cannot be certain of our future compliance. In addition, we may incur substantial costs in order to comply with
current or future environmental, health and safety laws and regulations. These current or future laws and regulations may impair our research, development or production efforts.
Failure to comply with these laws and regulations also may result in substantial fines, penalties or other sanctions. We do not currently carry biological or hazardous waste
insurance coverage.
Although we maintain workers’ compensation insurance to cover us for costs and expenses we may incur due to injuries to our employees resulting from the use of hazardous
materials or other work-related injuries, this insurance may not provide adequate coverage against potential liabilities.
We are subject to various federal and state fraud and abuse laws, including, without limitation, the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and the federal False Claims Act.
Even though we do not and will not control referrals of healthcare services or bill directly to Medicare, Medicaid or other third-party payors, certain federal and state healthcare
laws and regulations pertaining to fraud and abuse will be applicable to our business. Healthcare fraud and abuse regulations are complex and can be subject to varying
interpretations as to whether or not a statute has been violated. The laws that may affect our ability to operate include:
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the federal Anti-Kickback Statute which prohibits, among other things, the knowing and willful payment of remuneration to induce or reward patient referrals
or the generation of business involving any item or service which may be payable by the federal health care programs (e.g., drugs, supplies, or health care
services for Medicare or Medicaid patients);
the federal False Claims Act which prohibits, among other things, individuals or entities from knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, claims for
payment for government funds (e.g., payment from Medicare or Medicaid) or knowingly making, using, or causing to be made or used a false record or
statement material to a false or fraudulent claim for government funds;
the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and
Clinical Health Act, or HITECH, and its implementing regulations, imposes certain requirements relating to the privacy, security and transmission of
individually identifiable health information. Among other things, HIPAA imposes civil and criminal liability for the wrongful access or disclosure of protected
health information;
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the federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act, created under Section 6002 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended, the ACA, requires
certain manufacturers of drugs, devices, biologics and medical supplies for which payment is available under Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health
Insurance Program (with certain exceptions) to report information related to certain payments or other transfers of value made or distributed to physicians and
teaching hospitals, or to entities or individuals at the request of, or designated on behalf of, those physicians and teaching hospitals and to report annually
certain ownership and investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family members;
the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act which prohibits, among other things, the adulteration or misbranding of drugs and devices;
the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act which prohibits corrupt payments, gifts or transfers of value to non-U.S. officials; and
non-U.S. and U.S. state law equivalents of each of the above federal laws, such as anti-kickback and false claims laws which may apply to items or services
reimbursed by any third-party payor, including commercial insurers.
The federal fraud and abuse laws have been interpreted to apply to arrangements between medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers and a variety of health care
professional. Although the federal Anti-Kickback Statute has several statutory exemptions and regulatory safe harbors protecting certain common activities from prosecution, all
elements of the potentially applicable exemption or safe harbor must be met in order for the arrangement to be protected, and prosecutors have interpreted the federal healthcare
fraud statutes to attack a wide range of conduct by medical device and pharmaceutical companies. In addition, most states have statutes or regulations similar to the federal anti-
kickback and federal false claims laws, which apply to items and services covered by Medicaid and other state programs, or, in several states, apply regardless of the payor.
Administrative, civil and criminal sanctions may be imposed under these federal and state laws.
Further, the ACA, among other things, amended the intent standard under the Anti-Kickback Statute such that a person or entity no longer needs to have actual knowledge of the
statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation. In addition, the ACA makes clear that a claim including items or services resulting from a violation of
the federal Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim under the federal False Claims Act. Any violations of these laws, or any action against us for violation of
these laws, even if we successfully defend against it, could result in a material adverse effect on our reputation, business, results of operations and financial condition.
Efforts to ensure that our business arrangements will comply with applicable healthcare laws may involve substantial costs. It is possible that governmental and enforcement
authorities will conclude that our business practices do not comply with current or future statutes, regulations or case law interpreting applicable fraud and abuse or other
healthcare laws and 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
significant impact on our business, including the imposition of civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, disgorgement, monetary fines, possible exclusion from
participation in Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs, contractual damages, reputational harm, diminished profits and future earnings, and curtailment of our
operations, any of which could harm our ability to operate our business and our results of operations. In addition, the clearance or approval and commercialization of any of our
products outside the United States will also likely subject us to foreign equivalents of the healthcare laws mentioned above, among other foreign laws.
A failure to adequately protect private health information could result in severe harm to our reputation and subject us to significant liabilities, each of which could have a
material adverse effect on our business.
Throughout the clinical trial process, we may obtain the private health information of our trial subjects. There are a number of state, federal and international laws protecting the
privacy and security of health information and personal data. As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, or ARRA, Congress amended the privacy and
security provisions of HIPAA. HIPAA imposes limitations on the use and disclosure of an individual’s healthcare information by healthcare providers conducting certain
electronic transactions, healthcare clearinghouses, and health insurance plans, collectively referred to as covered entities. The HIPAA amendments also impose compliance
obligations and corresponding penalties for non-compliance on certain individuals and entities that provide services to or perform certain functions on behalf of healthcare
providers and other covered entities involving the use or disclosure of individually identifiable health information, collectively referred to as business associates. ARRA also made
significant increases in the penalties for improper use or disclosure of an individual’s health information under HIPAA and extended enforcement authority to state attorneys
general. The amendments also create notification requirements to federal regulators, and in some cases local and national media, for individuals whose health information has been
inappropriately accessed or disclosed. Notification is not required under HIPAA if the health information that is improperly used or disclosed is deemed secured in accordance
with certain encryption or other standards developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS. Most states have 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 health information protected by HIPAA. Many
state laws impose significant data security requirements, such as encryption or mandatory contractual terms to ensure ongoing protection of personal information. Activities
outside of the United States implicate local and national data protection standards, impose additional compliance requirements and generate additional risks of enforcement for
noncompliance. The European Union’s Data Protection Directive, Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act and other data protection, privacy and
similar national, state/provincial and local laws may also restrict the access, use and disclosure of patient health information abroad. We may be required to expend significant
capital and other resources to ensure ongoing compliance with applicable privacy and data security laws, to protect against security breaches and hackers or to alleviate problems
caused by such breaches.
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A recall of any of our commercialized products, or the discovery of serious safety issues, could have a significant negative impact on us.
The FDA and other relevant regulatory agencies have the authority to require or request the recall in the event of material deficiencies or defects in design or manufacture or in the
event an unacceptable risk to health. Manufacturers may, under their own initiative, also initiate a recall. A government-mandated or voluntary recall could occur as a result of an
unacceptable risk to health, component failures, manufacturing errors, design or labeling defects or other deficiencies and issues. Recalls would divert managerial and financial
resources and have an adverse effect on our reputation, financial condition and operating results.
Further, under the FDA’s reporting regulations, we are required to report to the FDA any event that reasonably suggests that our products may have caused or contributed to a
death or serious injury or in which our product malfunctioned and, if the malfunction of the same or similar product marketed by us were to recur, would likely cause or contribute
to death or serious injury. The FDA also requires reporting of serious, life-threatening, unexpected and other adverse experiences and the submission of periodic safety reports
and other information. Malfunctions or other adverse event reports may result in a voluntary or involuntary recall and other adverse actions, which could divert managerial and
financial resources, impair our ability to manufacture in a cost-effective and timely manner and have an adverse effect on our reputation, financial condition and operating results.
Similar reporting requirements exist in Europe and other jurisdictions.
Any adverse event involving our products could result in future voluntary corrective actions, such as recalls or customer notifications, or regulatory agency action, which could
include inspection, mandatory recall or other enforcement action. Any corrective action, whether voluntary or involuntary, will require the dedication of our time and capital,
distract management from operating our business and may harm our reputation and financial results. For example, in 2014 we notified the FDA that we were going to initiate a
voluntary recall of our Morph AccessPro product based on a manufacturing observation, which was completed to the FDA’s satisfaction in the same year, and in 2017 we updated
our instructions for use for the Helix™ and Morph catheter products to provide guidance on known potential risks. There can be no guarantee that we will not experience similar
product recalls or changes in the future with these products or our other products or therapeutic candidates, if approved.
Modifications to our products may require reclassifications, new regulatory approvals or clearances, or may require us to cease marketing or recall the modified products
until new CE marking is obtained.
Currently there are eight Morph product family model numbers that have been approved for commercial use in the United States via a 510(k) clearance. A modification to these
products could lead to a reclassification and could result in further requirements (including additional clinical trials) to maintain each respective clearance or approval. If we fail to
comply with such further requirements, we may be required to cease marketing or to recall the modified product until we obtain clearance or approval, and we may be subject to
significant regulatory fines or penalties.
We work with outside scientists and their institutions in developing therapeutic candidates and products. These scientists may have other commitments or conflicts of interest,
which could limit our access to their expertise.
We work with scientific advisors and collaborators at academic research institutions in connection with our development programs. These scientific advisors serve as our link to
the specific pools of trial participants we are targeting in that these advisors may:
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identify individuals as potential candidates for study;
obtain their consent to participate in our research;
perform medical examinations and gather medical histories;
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conduct the initial analysis of suitability of the individuals to participate in our research based on the foregoing; and
collect data and biological samples from trial participants periodically in accordance with our study protocols.
These scientists and collaborators are not our employees, rather they serve as either independent contractors or the primary investigators under research collaboration agreements
that we have with their sponsoring academic or research institution. Such scientists and collaborators may have other commitments that would limit their availability to us.
Although our scientific advisors generally agree not to do competing work, if an actual or potential conflict of interest between their work for us and their work for another entity
arises, we may lose their services. It is also possible that some of our valuable proprietary knowledge may become publicly known through these scientific advisors if they breach
their confidentiality agreements with us, which would cause competitive harm to our business.
The use, misuse or off-label use of our products or therapies, if approved, may result in injuries that lead to product liability suits, which could be costly to our business.
We are not permitted to make claims about the use of our marketed products and will not be permitted to make claims about the use of our therapeutic candidates, if approved,
outside of their approved indications. Further, we are not and will not be able to proactively discuss or provide information on off-label uses of such products, with very specific
and limited exceptions. However, we cannot prevent a physician from using our products or therapeutic candidates, if approved, for off-label applications. Off-label use of our
products or therapies, if approved, is more likely to result in complications that have serious consequences. Product liability claims are especially prevalent in our industry and
could harm our reputation, divert management’s attention from our core business, be expensive to defend and may result in sizable damage awards against us. Although we
maintain product liability insurance, the amount or breadth of our coverage may not be adequate for the claims that may be made against us. In addition, failure to follow FDA rules
and guidelines relating to promotion and advertising can result in, among other things, the FDA’s refusal to approve a product or therapeutic candidate, the suspension or
withdrawal of an approved product or therapy from the market, product recalls, fines, disgorgement of money, operating restrictions, injunctions or criminal prosecutions.
Our employees, principal investigators, consultants and collaboration partners may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including noncompliance with laws
and regulatory standards and requirements and insider trading.
We are exposed to the risk of employee fraud or other misconduct. Misconduct by employees could include failures to comply with FDA regulations, to provide accurate
information to the FDA, to comply with manufacturing standards we have established, to comply with federal and state healthcare fraud and abuse laws and regulations, to report
financial information or data accurately or to 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 restrict or prohibit a wide range of
activity relating to pricing, discounting, marketing and promotion, sales commissions, 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, or a breach of
insider trading laws. 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
significant impact on our business, including the imposition of significant fines or other sanctions.
If we are unable to establish sales and marketing capabilities or enter into agreements with third parties to market and sell our therapeutic candidates, if approved, we may
be unable to generate any revenues.
We currently have a limited organization for the sales, marketing and distribution of products and the cost of establishing and maintaining such an organization may exceed the
cost-effectiveness of doing so. In order to market any products that may be approved, including CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems, we must build our sales,
distribution, marketing, managerial and other non-technical capabilities or make arrangements with third parties to perform these services. We have limited prior experience in the
marketing, sale or distribution of approved products and there are significant risks involved in building and managing a sales organization, including our ability to hire, retain, and
incentivize qualified individuals, generate sufficient sales leads, provide adequate training to sales and marketing personnel, and effectively manage a geographically dispersed
sales and marketing team. Any failure or delay in the development of our internal sales, marketing and distribution capabilities would adversely impact the commercialization of our
therapeutic candidates.
Our strategy is to obtain FDA approval and market the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System for potential heart failure and chronic myocardial ischemia indications using a dedicated
direct sales model focused on selected cardiologists and interventional cardiologists. We may in the future, choose to align ourselves with collaborators as part of our
commercialization strategy, particularly outside of the United States, and our future collaboration partners, if any, may not dedicate sufficient resources to the commercialization of
our therapeutic candidates or companion diagnostic or may otherwise fail in their commercialization due to factors beyond our control. If we are unable to establish effective
collaborations to enable the sale of our therapeutic candidates and companion diagnostic to healthcare professionals and in geographical regions, including the United States, that
will not be covered by our own marketing and sales force, or if our potential future collaboration partners do not successfully commercialize our therapeutic candidates or
companion diagnostic, our ability to generate revenues from product sales, including sales of CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems, will be adversely affected.
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Building an internal sales force involves many challenges, including:
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training employees that we recruit;
setting the appropriate system of incentives;
managing additional headcount; and
integrating a new business unit into an existing corporate architecture.
If we are unable to build our own sales force or negotiate a strategic partnership for the commercialization of CardiAMP or CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems in the United States,
we may be forced to delay the potential commercialization of these therapies or reduce the scope of our sales and marketing activities for CardiAMP or CardiALLO Cell Therapy
Systems. To fund commercialization activities, we will 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 CardiAMP or CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems to market or generate product revenue.
If we are unable to establish adequate sales, marketing and distribution capabilities, whether independently or with third parties, we may not be able to generate sufficient product
revenue and may not become profitable. We will be competing with many companies that currently have extensive and well-funded marketing and sales operations. Without an
internal team or the support of a third party to perform marketing and sales functions, we may be unable to compete successfully against these more established companies.
In addition, there are risks involved with both establishing our own sales and marketing capabilities and entering into arrangements with third parties to perform these services. For
example, recruiting and training a sales force is expensive and time-consuming and could delay any launch. If the commercial launch of a therapeutic candidate for which we recruit
a sales force and establish marketing capabilities is delayed or does not occur for any reason, we would have prematurely or unnecessarily incurred these commercialization
expenses. This may be costly, and our investment would be lost if we cannot retain or reposition our sales and marketing personnel.
We have limited experience manufacturing our therapeutic candidates or products in commercial quantities, which could harm our business.
Because we have only limited experience in manufacturing therapeutic candidates or products in commercial quantities, we may encounter production delays or shortfalls. Such
production delays or shortfalls may be caused by many factors, including the following:
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we intend to significantly expand our manufacturing capacity, and our production processes may have to change to accommodate this growth;
key components and sub-assemblies of our products and therapeutic candidates are currently provided by a single supplier or limited number of suppliers,
and we do not maintain large inventory levels of these components and sub-assemblies; if we experience a shortage in any of these components or sub-
assemblies, we would need to identify and qualify new supply sources, which could increase our expenses and result in manufacturing delays;
we may experience a delay in completing validation and verification testing for new controlled-environment rooms at our manufacturing facilities;
we have limited experience in complying with FDA’s QSRs, which applies to the manufacture of our products and therapeutic candidates; and
to increase our manufacturing output significantly, we will have to attract and retain qualified employees, who are in short supply, for our manufacturing
operations.
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If we fail to obtain and sustain an adequate level of reimbursement for our products by third-party payors, sales and profitability would be adversely affected.
Our ability to commercialize any therapeutic candidates or products successfully will depend, in part, on the extent to which coverage and reimbursement for our therapeutic
candidates or products and related treatments will be available from government healthcare programs, private health insurers, managed care plans, and other organizations.
Additionally, even if there is a commercially viable market, if the level of third-party reimbursement is below our expectations, our revenue and profitability could be materially and
adversely affected.
Third-party payors, such as government programs, including Medicare in the United States, or private healthcare insurers, carefully review and increasingly question the coverage
of, and challenge the prices charged for medical products and services, and many third-party payors limit coverage of or reimbursement for newly approved therapies or products.
Reimbursement rates and coverage from private health insurance companies vary depending on the company, the insurance plan and other factors. As a result, the coverage
determination process will require us to provide scientific and clinical support for the use of our therapeutic candidates to each private health insurance company separately, with
no assurance that adequate coverage and reimbursement will be obtained.
A current trend in the U.S. healthcare industry as well as in other countries around the world is toward cost containment, including a number of legislative and regulatory changes
to the health care system that could impact our ability to sell our approved therapies or products profitably. In particular, the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and
Modernization Act of 2003 revised the payment methodology for many products under Medicare in the United States, which has resulted in lower rates of reimbursement. In 2010,
the Affordable Care Act was enacted. This expansion in the government’s role in the U.S. healthcare industry may further lower rates of reimbursement.
Other legislative changes have been proposed and adopted in the United States since the Affordable Care Act was enacted. President Donald Trump has made statements that
suggest he plans to seek repeal of all or portions of the Affordable Care Act, and has stated that he will ask Congress to replace the current legislation with new legislation. There
is uncertainty with respect to the impact President Trump’s Administration may have, if any, and any changes likely will take time to unfold, and could have an impact on coverage
and reimbursement for healthcare items and services covered by plans that were authorized by the Affordable Care Act. However, we cannot predict the ultimate content, timing or
effect of any healthcare reform legislation or the impact of potential legislation on us. In addition, other legislative changes have been proposed and adopted since the Affordable
Care Act was enacted. These changes included aggregate reductions to Medicare payments to providers of up to 2% per fiscal year, effective April 1, 2013, which, due to
subsequent legislative amendments, will stay in effect through 2027 unless additional Congressional action is taken. In January 2013, President Obama signed into law the
American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, which, among other things, reduced Medicare payments to several providers, and increased the statute of limitations period for the
government to recover overpayments to providers from three to five years. These new laws may result in additional reductions in Medicare and other healthcare funding, which
could have a material adverse effect on customers for our products, if approved, and accordingly, on our financial operations.
In 2017, the European Union released new regulations to ensure patient safety with the use of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and in-vitro diagnostics that will go into effect over
a three-year period from 2020 to 2022. The new regulations replace predecessor directives and emphasize a global convergence of regulations. Marketing authorization timelines
will become more protracted and the costs of operating in Europe will increase. A significantly more costly path to regulatory compliance is anticipated. Adjusting to the new
Medical Device Regulation may prove to be costly and disruptive to our business.
Large public and private payors, managed care organizations, group purchasing organizations and similar organizations are exerting increasing influence on decisions regarding the
use of, and reimbursement levels for, particular treatments. In particular, third-party payors may limit the covered indications. Cost-control initiatives could decrease the price we
might establish, which could result in revenue and profitability being lower than anticipated.
There may be significant delays in obtaining coverage and reimbursement for newly approved therapies or products, and coverage may be more limited than the purposes for
which the therapy or product is approved by the FDA or other regulatory authorities. Moreover, eligibility for coverage and reimbursement does not imply that a therapy or
product will be paid for in all cases or at a rate that covers our costs, including research, development, manufacture, sale and distribution expenses. Interim reimbursement levels, if
applicable, may also be insufficient to cover our and any partner’s costs and may not be made permanent. Our inability to promptly obtain coverage and profitable payment rates
from both government-funded and private payors for any approved therapies or products that we develop could have a material adverse effect on our operating results, our ability
to raise capital needed to commercialize therapies or products and our overall financial condition.
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Furthermore, reimbursement systems in international markets vary significantly by country and by region, and reimbursement approvals must be obtained on a country-by-country
basis. In many countries, therapies or products cannot be commercially launched until reimbursement is approved and the negotiation process in some countries can exceed 12
months. In addition, pricing and reimbursement decisions in certain countries can be affected by decisions taken in other countries, which can lead to mandatory price reductions
and/or additional reimbursement restrictions across a number of other countries, which may thereby adversely affect our sales and profitability. In the event that countries impose
prices which are not sufficient to allow us to generate a profit, this would adversely affect sales and profitability.
Price controls may be imposed in foreign markets, which may adversely affect our future profitability.
In some countries, particularly European Union member states, Japan, Australia and Canada, the pricing of therapies and products is subject to governmental control. In these
countries, pricing negotiations with governmental authorities can take considerable time after receipt of marketing approval for a therapy or product. In addition, there can be
considerable pressure by governments and other stakeholders on prices and reimbursement levels, including as part of cost containment measures. Political, economic and
regulatory developments may further complicate pricing negotiations, and pricing negotiations may continue after reimbursement has been obtained. Reference pricing used by
various European Union member states and parallel distribution, or arbitrage between low-priced and high-priced member states, can further reduce prices. In some countries, we or
our partners may be required to conduct a clinical trial or other studies that compare the cost-effectiveness of our therapeutic candidates to other available therapies in order to
obtain or maintain reimbursement or pricing approval. Publication of discounts by third-party payors or authorities may lead to further pressure on the prices or reimbursement
levels within the country of publication and other countries. If reimbursement of our therapies or products is unavailable or limited in scope or amount, or if pricing is set at
unsatisfactory levels, our business, revenues or profitability could be adversely affected.
If the market opportunities for our therapeutic candidates or products are smaller than we believe they are, our revenues may be adversely affected and our business may
suffer.
It is very difficult to estimate the future commercial potential of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, and our commercialized products due to
factors such as safety and efficacy compared to other available treatments, changing standards of care, third-party payor reimbursement standards, patient and physician
preferences, and the availability of competitive alternatives that may emerge. We believe that approximately 70% of the NYHA Class II and Class III ischemic systolic heart failure
patients in the United States will be eligible for CardiAMP due to a sufficient CardiAMP potency assay score. However, if considerably less than approximately 70% of NYHA
Class II and Class III ischemic heart failure patients are eligible for CardiAMP due to an insufficient CardiAMP potency assay score, it would significantly and negatively impact
our business, financial condition and results of operations.
If product liability lawsuits are brought against us, we may incur substantial liabilities and may be required to limit commercialization of our therapeutic candidates or
products.
We face an inherent risk of product liability as a result of the human clinical use of our therapeutic candidates and products and will face an even greater risk if we continue to
commercialize our therapeutic candidates and products. For example, we may be sued if any therapy or product we develop allegedly causes injury or is found to be otherwise
unsuitable during product testing, manufacturing, marketing or sale. Any such product liability claims may include allegations of defects in manufacturing, defects in design, a
failure to warn of inherent dangers, negligence, strict liability, and a breach of warranties. Claims could also be asserted under state consumer protection acts. If we cannot
successfully defend ourselves against product liability claims, we may incur substantial liabilities or be required to limit commercialization. Even a successful defense would require
significant financial and management resources. Regardless of the merits or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in:
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decreased demand, even if such products or therapies are approved;
injury to our reputation;
withdrawal of clinical trial participants;
costs to defend the related litigations;
a diversion of management’s time and our resources;
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substantial monetary awards to trial participants or patients;
recalls, withdrawals, or labeling, marketing or promotional restrictions;
increased cost of liability insurance;
loss of revenue;
the inability to receive regulatory approvals or commercialize our approved products or therapies; and
a decline in our share price.
Although we maintain product liability insurance with coverage that we believe is consistent with industry norms for companies at our stage of development, the amount or
breadth of our coverage may not be adequate for the claims that may be made against us. Failure to obtain and retain sufficient product liability insurance at an acceptable cost to
protect against potential product liability claims could prevent or inhibit the commercialization of products or therapies we develop. Additionally, our insurance policies have
various exclusions, and we may be subject to a product liability claim for which we have no coverage or reduced coverage. Any claim that may be brought against us could result
in a court judgment or settlement in an amount that is not covered, in whole or in part, by our insurance or that is in excess of the limits of our insurance coverage. We will have to
pay any amounts awarded by a court or negotiated in a settlement that exceed our coverage limitations or that are not covered by our insurance, and we may not have, or be able to
obtain, sufficient capital to pay such amounts.
Our business and operations would suffer in the event of system failures.
Despite the implementation of security measures, our internal computer systems and those of our current and any future CROs and other contractors, consultants and potential
collaborators are vulnerable to damage from computer viruses, unauthorized access, natural disasters, terrorism, war and telecommunication and electrical failures. For example, our
systems have been impacted by computer viruses in the past, and while we have not experienced any material system failure, accident or security breach that has resulted in lasting
impacts to date, if such an event were to occur and cause interruptions in our operations, it could result in a material disruption of our development programs and our business
operations. For example, the loss of clinical trial data from completed or future clinical trials could result in delays in our regulatory approval efforts and significantly increase our
costs to recover or reproduce the data. Likewise, we rely on third parties for manufacturing our therapeutic candidates and conducting clinical trials, and similar events relating to
their computer systems could also have a material adverse effect on our business. To the extent that any disruption or security breach were to result in a loss of, or damage to, our
data or applications, or inappropriate disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, we could incur liability and the further development and commercialization of our
therapeutic candidates could be delayed.
Interruptions in supply or inventory loss may adversely affect our operating results and financial condition.
Our therapeutic candidates and products are manufactured and distributed using technically complex processes requiring specialized facilities, highly specific raw materials and
other production constraints. The complexity of these processes, as well as strict company and government standards for manufacture and storage, subjects us to production
risks. While batches released for use in clinical trials or for commercialization undergo sample testing, some defects may only be identified following release. In addition, process
deviations or unanticipated effects of approved process changes may result in these intermediate products not complying with stability requirements or specifications. The
investigation and remediation of any identified problems can cause production delays, substantial expense, lost sales and delays of new product or therapy launches. Any supply
interruption or the loss thereof could hinder our ability to timely distribute our approved products and satisfy demand. Any unforeseen storage failure or loss in supply could
delay our clinical trials and, if our therapeutic candidates are approved, result in a loss of our market share and negatively affect our revenues and operations.
We or the third parties upon whom we depend may be adversely affected by earthquakes or other natural disasters and our business continuity and disaster recovery plans
may not adequately protect us from a serious disaster.
Earthquakes or other natural disasters could severely disrupt our operations, and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and
prospects. A majority of our management operates in our principal executive offices located in San Carlos, California and we currently manufacture our Helix™ and Morph products
at this facility and use it for storage of our clinical trial materials and biobanking. If our San Carlos offices were affected by a natural or man-made disaster, particularly those that
are characteristic of the region, such as wildfires and earthquakes, or other business interruption, our ability to manage our domestic and foreign operations could be impaired,
which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. If a natural disaster, power outage or other event occurred that prevented us from
using all or a significant portion of our headquarters, that damaged critical infrastructure, such as the manufacturing facilities of our third-party contract manufacturers, or that
otherwise disrupted operations, it may be difficult or, in certain cases, impossible for us to continue our business for a substantial period of time. The disaster recovery and
business continuity plans we have in place currently are limited and are unlikely to prove adequate in the event of a serious disaster or similar event. We may incur substantial
expenses as a result of the limited nature of our disaster recovery and business continuity plans, which, particularly when taken together with our lack of earthquake insurance,
could have a material adverse effect on our business. The ultimate impact of any such events on us, our significant suppliers and our general infrastructure is unknown.
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The outbreak of the novel strain of coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, could adversely impact our business, including our preclinical studies and clinical
trials.
Public health crises such as pandemics or similar outbreaks could adversely impact our business. In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, which causes
coronavirus disease 2019 ("COVID-19”), surfaced in Wuhan, China. Since then, COVID-19 has spread to multiple countries, including the United States. In response to the spread
of COVID-19, we have closed our executive offices with our administrative employees continuing their work outside of our offices, restricted on-site staff to only those required to
execute their job responsibilities and limited the number of staff in any given research and development laboratory.
As a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, or similar pandemics, we have and may in the future experience disruptions that could severely impact our business, preclinical studies and
clinical trials, including:
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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;
delays or disruptions in non-clinical experiments due to unforeseen circumstances at contract research organizations and vendors along their supply chain;
increased rates of patients withdrawing from our clinical trials following enrollment as a result of contracting COVID-19, being forced to quarantine, or not accepting home
health visits;
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 our clinical trials;
interruption of key clinical trial activities, such as clinical trial site data monitoring, due to limitations on travel imposed or recommended by federal or state governments,
employers and others or interruption of clinical trial subject visits and study procedures (particularly any procedures that may be deemed non-essential), which may
impact the integrity of subject data and clinical study endpoints;
interruption or delays in the operations of the FDA and comparable foreign regulatory agencies, which may impact approval timelines;
interruption of, or delays in receiving, supplies of our product candidates from our contract manufacturing organizations due to staffing shortages, production slowdowns
or stoppages and disruptions in delivery systems; and
limitations on employee resources that would otherwise be focused on the conduct of our preclinical studies and clinical trials, including because of sickness of
employees or their families, the desire of employees to avoid contact with large groups of people, an increased reliance on working from home or mass transit disruptions.
These and other factors arising from the COVID-19 pandemic could worsen in countries that are already afflicted with COVID-19, could continue to spread to additional countries,
or could return to countries where the pandemic has been partially contained, each of which could further adversely impact our ability to conduct clinical trials and our business
generally, and could have a material adverse impact on our operations and financial condition and results.
In addition, the trading prices for our common stock and other biopharmaceutical companies have been highly volatile as a result of the COVID-19 epidemic. As a result, we may
face difficulties raising capital through sales of our common stock or such sales may be on unfavorable terms. The COVID-19 outbreak continues to rapidly evolve. The extent to
which the outbreak may impact our business, preclinical studies and clinical trials will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with
confidence, such as the ultimate geographic spread of the disease, the duration of the outbreak, travel restrictions and actions to contain the outbreak or treat its impact, such as
social distancing and quarantines or lock-downs in the United States and other countries, business closures or business disruptions and the effectiveness of actions taken in the
United States and other countries to contain and treat the disease.
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Risks Relating to Our Intellectual Property
We may not be able to protect our proprietary technology in the marketplace.
Our success will depend, in part, on our ability to obtain patents, protect our trade secrets and operate without infringing on the proprietary rights of others. We rely upon a
combination of patents, trade secret protection, and confidentiality agreements to protect the intellectual property of our therapeutic candidates and products. Patents might not be
issued or granted with respect to our patent applications that are currently pending, and issued or granted patents might later be found to be invalid or unenforceable, be
interpreted in a manner that does not adequately protect our current therapeutic candidates or products or any future therapeutic candidates or products, or fail to otherwise
provide us with any competitive advantage. As such, we do not know the degree of future protection that we will have on our therapeutic candidates or products and technology,
if any, and a failure to obtain adequate intellectual property protection with respect to our therapeutic candidates or products could have a material adverse impact on our
business.
Filing, prosecuting and defending patents throughout the world would be prohibitively expensive, so our policy is to patent technology in jurisdictions with significant or
otherwise relevant commercial opportunities or activities. However, patent protection may not be available for some of the therapeutic candidates or products we are developing. If
we must spend significant time and money protecting or enforcing our patents, designing around patents held by others or licensing, potentially for large fees, patents or other
proprietary rights held by others, our business, results of operations and financial condition may be harmed.
The patent protection of biotherapeutics is complex and uncertain.
The scope and extent of patent protection for our therapeutic candidates and products are particularly uncertain. To date, our principal therapeutic candidates have been based on
specific subpopulations of known and naturally occurring adult stem cells. We anticipate that the therapeutic candidates or products we develop in the future will continue to
include or be based on the same or other naturally occurring stem cells or derivatives or products thereof. Although we have sought and expect to continue to seek patent
protection for our therapeutic candidates and products, their methods of use, methods of manufacture, and methods of delivery, any or all of them may not be subject to effective
patent protection. Publication of information related to our therapeutic candidates and products by us or others may prevent us from obtaining or enforcing patents relating to
these products and therapeutic candidates. Furthermore, others may independently develop similar therapeutic candidates or products, may duplicate our therapeutic candidates
or products, or may design around our patent rights. In addition, any of our issued patents may be declared invalid. If we fail to adequately protect our intellectual property, we
may face competition from companies who attempt to create a generic therapeutic candidate or product to compete with our therapeutic candidates or products.
Filing, prosecuting and defending patents on therapeutic candidates or products 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, the laws of some foreign countries do not protect
intellectual property rights to the same extent as federal and state laws in the United States. 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.
Competitors may use our technologies in jurisdictions where we have not obtained patent protection to develop their own therapeutic candidates or products and further, may
export otherwise infringing therapeutic candidates or products to territories where we have patent protection, but enforcement is not as strong as that in the United States. These
therapeutic candidates or products may compete with our current or future therapeutic candidates or products, if any, and our patents or other intellectual property rights may not
be effective or sufficient to prevent them from competing.
Many companies have encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions. The legal systems of certain countries do
not favor the enforcement of patents, trade secrets and other intellectual property protection, particularly those relating to biotechnology products, which could make it difficult for
us to stop the infringement of our patents or marketing of competing therapeutic candidates or products in violation of our proprietary rights generally. 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 a significant commercial advantage from the intellectual property that we develop or license.
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We may be unable to adequately prevent disclosure of trade secrets and other proprietary information.
We maintain certain of our proprietary know-how and technological advances as trade secrets, especially where we do not believe patent protection is appropriate or obtainable,
including, but not exclusively, with respect to certain aspects of the manufacturing of our therapeutic candidates or products. However, trade secrets are difficult to protect. We
take a number of measures to protect our trade secrets including, limiting disclosure, physical security and confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements. We enter into
confidentiality agreements with our employees, consultants, outside scientific collaborators, contract manufacturing partners, sponsored researchers and other advisors and third
parties to protect our trade secrets and other proprietary information. These agreements may not effectively prevent disclosure of confidential information and may not provide an
adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized disclosure of confidential information. In addition, others may independently discover our trade secrets and proprietary information.
Costly and time-consuming litigation could be necessary to enforce and determine the scope of our proprietary rights. Failure to obtain or maintain trade secret protection, or
failure to adequately protect our intellectual property could enable competitors to develop generic products or use our proprietary information to develop other therapeutic
candidates or products that compete with our therapeutic candidates or products or cause additional, material adverse effects upon our business, results of operations and
financial condition.
We may be forced to litigate to enforce or defend our intellectual property rights, and/or the intellectual property rights of our licensors.
We may be forced to litigate to enforce or defend our intellectual property rights against infringement by competitors, and to protect our trade secrets against unauthorized use. In
so doing, we may place our intellectual property at risk of being invalidated, unenforceable, or limited or narrowed in scope and may no longer be used to prevent the manufacture
and sale of competitive product. Further, an adverse result in any litigation or other proceedings before government agencies such as the United States Patent and Trademark
Office, or the USPTO, may place pending applications at risk of non-issuance. Further, interference proceedings, derivation proceedings, entitlement proceedings, ex parte
reexamination, inter partes reexamination, inter partes review, post-grant review, and opposition proceedings provoked by third parties or brought by the USPTO or any foreign
patent authority may be used to challenge inventorship, ownership, claim scope, or validity of our patent applications. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of
discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential and proprietary information could be compromised by disclosure
during this type of litigation.
Intellectual property disputes could cause us to spend substantial resources and distract our personnel from their normal responsibilities.
Even if resolved in our favor, litigation or other legal proceedings relating to intellectual property claims may cause us to incur significant expenses and could distract our technical
and/or management personnel from their normal responsibilities. 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, it could have a substantial adverse effect on the market price of our shares. Such
litigation or proceedings could substantially increase our operating losses and reduce the resources available for development activities or any future sales, marketing or
distribution 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 litigation proceedings more effectively than we can because of their greater financial resources and personnel. In addition, the uncertainties associated with
litigation could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise the funds necessary to conduct our clinical trials, continue our internal research programs, in-license needed
technology or enter into strategic collaborations that would help us bring our therapeutic candidates to market. As a result, 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.
Patent reform legislation and recent court decisions could increase the uncertainties and costs surrounding the prosecution of our patent applications and the enforcement or
defense of our issued patents.
On September 16, 2011, the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, or the Leahy-Smith Act, was signed into law. The Leahy-Smith Act includes a number of significant changes to U.S.
patent law, including provisions that affect the way patent applications will be prosecuted and may also affect patent litigation. The USPTO has and continues to develop and
implement regulations and procedures to govern administration of the Leahy-Smith Act, and many of the substantive changes to patent law associated with the Leahy-Smith Act.
The full effect of these changes is currently unclear as the USPTO has not yet adopted all pertinent final rules and regulations, the courts have yet to address these provisions and
the applicability of the Leahy-Smith Act and new regulations on specific patents, including our patents discussed herein, have not been determined and would need to be
reviewed. Accordingly, it is not yet clear what, if any, impact the Leahy-Smith Act will have on the operation of our business. As a result, the Leahy-Smith Act and its
implementation could increase the uncertainties and costs surrounding the prosecution of patent applications and the enforcement or defense of issued patents, all of which could
have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition.
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On June 13, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., held that isolated DNA sequences are not patentable because
they constitute a product of nature. The Supreme Court did not address stem cells in particular, and as a result, it is not yet clear what, if any, impact this Supreme Court decision or
future decisions will have on the operation of our business.
If third parties claim that our therapeutic candidates or other products infringe upon their intellectual property, commercialization of our therapeutic candidates or products
and our operating profits could be adversely affected.
There is a substantial amount of litigation, both within and outside the United States, involving patent and other intellectual property rights in the biopharmaceutical industry. We
may, from time to time, be notified of claims that we are infringing upon patents, trademarks, copyrights, or other intellectual property rights owned by third parties, and we cannot
provide assurances that other companies will not, in the future, pursue such infringement claims against us or any third-party proprietary technologies we have licensed. Any such
claims could also be expensive and time consuming to defend and divert management’s attention and resources and could delay or prevent us from commercializing our therapeutic
candidates or products. Our competitive position could suffer as a result. Although we have reviewed certain third-party patents and patent filings that we believe may be relevant
to our therapeutic candidates or products, we have not conducted a freedom-to-operate search or analysis for our therapeutic candidates or products, and we may not be aware of
patents or pending or future patent applications that, if issued, would block us from commercializing our therapeutic candidates or products. Thus, we cannot guarantee that our
therapeutic candidates or products, or our commercialization thereof, do not and will not infringe any third party’s intellectual property.
From time to time, we have reviewed the claims of specific patents owned by third parties. While we have concluded that no claims of any of these patents would be infringed by
our products, that all relevant claims would expire before our products would be commercialized, or both, we cannot guarantee that the patent owners would not disagree and
conclude that our products would infringe these claims.
If we do not obtain patent term extension in the United States under the Hatch-Waxman Act and in foreign countries under similar legislation, thereby potentially extending
the term of our marketing exclusivity of our therapeutic candidates or products, our business may be materially harmed.
Depending on the timing, duration and specifics of FDA marketing approval of our therapeutic candidates or products, if any, one of the U.S. patents covering each of such
approved therapeutic candidate or product or the use thereof may be eligible for up to five years of patent term restoration under the Hatch-Waxman Act. The Hatch-Waxman Act
allows a maximum of one patent to be extended per FDA approved product. Patent term extension also may be available in certain foreign countries upon regulatory approval of our
therapeutic candidates, including by the EMA in the European Union or the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Agency in Japan. Nevertheless, we may not be granted patent
term extension either in the United States or in any foreign country because of, for example, failing to apply within applicable deadlines, failing to apply prior to expiration of
relevant patents or otherwise failing to satisfy applicable requirements. Moreover, the term of extension, as well as the scope of patent protection during any such extension,
afforded by the governmental authority could be less than we request. In addition, if a patent we wish to extend is owned by another party and licensed to us, we may need to
obtain approval and cooperation from our licensor to request the extension.
If we are unable to obtain patent term extension or restoration, or the term of any such extension is less than we request, the period during which we will have the right to
exclusively market our therapeutic candidates or products will be shortened and our competitors may obtain approval of competing products following our patent expiration, and
our revenue could be reduced, possibly materially.
Our reliance on third parties requires us to share our trade secrets, which increases the possibility that a competitor will discover them or that our trade secrets will be
misappropriated or disclosed.
Because we rely on third parties for manufacturing, and because we collaborate with various organizations and academic institutions on the advancement of our clinical trials, we
must, at times, share trade secrets with them. We seek to protect our proprietary technology in part by entering into confidentiality agreements and, if applicable, material transfer
agreements, consulting agreements or other similar agreements with our advisors, employees, third-party contractors and consultants prior to beginning research or disclosing
proprietary information. These agreements typically limit the rights of the third parties to use or disclose our confidential information, including our trade secrets. Despite the
contractual provisions employed when working with third parties, the need to share trade secrets and other confidential information 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. Given that our
proprietary position is based, in part, on our know-how and trade secrets, a competitor’s discovery of our trade secrets or other unauthorized use or disclosure would impair our
competitive position and may have a material adverse effect on our business.
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In addition, these agreements typically restrict the ability of our advisors, employees, third-party contractors and consultants to publish data potentially relating to our trade
secrets, although our agreements may contain certain limited publication rights. For example, any academic institution that we may collaborate with in the future will usually expect
to be granted rights to publish data arising out of such collaboration, provided that we are notified in advance and given the opportunity to delay publication for a limited time
period in order for us to secure patent protection of intellectual property rights arising from the collaboration, in addition to the opportunity to remove confidential or trade secret
information from any such publication. In the future we may also conduct joint research and development programs that may require us to share trade secrets under the terms of
our research and development partnerships or similar agreements. Despite our efforts to protect our trade secrets, our competitors may discover our trade secrets, either through
breach of our agreements with third parties, independent development or publication of information by any of our third-party collaborators. A competitor’s discovery of our trade
secrets would impair our competitive position and have an adverse impact on our business.
Risks Related to Our Common Stock
An active trading market may not develop for our securities or what the market price of our securities will be and as a result it may be difficult for you to sell your shares of
our securities.
Although our common stock and warrants to purchase common stock are listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbols "BCDA” and "BCDAW,” respectively, an active
trading market for our common stock or warrants may never develop or be sustained. You may not be able to sell your shares quickly or at the market price if trading in shares of
our securities is not active. Further, an inactive market may also impair our ability to raise capital by selling shares of our securities and may impair our ability to enter into strategic
partnerships or acquire companies or products by using shares of our securities as consideration, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition,
and results of operations.
The market price and trading volume of our securities may be volatile and may be affected by economic conditions beyond our control.
The market price of our securities is likely to be volatile. Some specific factors that could negatively affect the price of our securities or result in fluctuations in its price and trading
volume include:
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results of clinical trials of our therapeutic candidates;
results of clinical trials of our competitors’ products;
regulatory actions with respect to our therapeutic candidates or products or our competitors’ products;
actual or anticipated fluctuations in our quarterly operating results or those of our competitors;
publication of research reports by securities analysts about us or our competitors in the industry;
our failure or the failure of our competitors to meet analysts’ projections or guidance that we or our competitors may give to the market;
issuances by us of debt or equity securities;
litigation involving our company, including stockholder litigation; investigations or audits by regulators into the operations of our company; or proceedings
initiated by our competitors or clients;
strategic decisions by us or our competitors, such as acquisitions, divestitures, spin-offs, joint ventures, strategic investments or changes in business
strategy;
the passage of legislation or other regulatory developments affecting us or our industry; fluctuations in the valuation of companies perceived by investors to
be comparable to us;
trading volume of our common stock and warrants;
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sales or perceived potential sales of our common stock and/or warrants by us, our directors, senior management or our stockholders in the future;
short selling or other market manipulation activities;
announcement or expectation of additional financing efforts;
terrorist acts, acts of war or periods of widespread civil unrest;
natural disasters and other calamities;
changes in market conditions for biopharmaceutical stocks; and
conditions in the U.S. financial markets or changes in general economic conditions.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, or if they issue an adverse or misleading opinion regarding our stock, the price and
trading volume of our securities could decline.
The trading market for our securities will be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. We do not currently have
and may never obtain research coverage by securities and industry analysts. If no or few securities or industry analysts commence coverage of us, the trading price for our
securities would be negatively impacted. In the event we obtain securities or industry analyst coverage, if any of the analysts who cover us issue an adverse or misleading opinion
regarding us, our business model, our intellectual property or our stock performance, or if our clinical trials and operating results fail to meet the expectations of analysts, the price
of our securities would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of us or fail to publish reports on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the financial markets,
which in turn could cause the price or trading volume of our securities to decline.
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, 2019, our executive officers, directors, 5% stockholders and their affiliates beneficially owned approximately 69.8% of our 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, acting together, 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 believe are in your best
interest as one of our stockholders.
We have identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. If our remediation of this material weakness is not effective, or if we experience
additional material weaknesses in the future or otherwise fail to maintain an effective system of internal controls in the future, we may not be able to accurately or timely
report our financial condition or results of operations, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and, as a result, the value of our common stock.
As a public company, we are required to maintain internal control over financial reporting and to report any material weaknesses in such internal controls. Section 404 of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and determine the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and provide a management report on internal control
over financial reporting.
The effectiveness of our controls and procedures may in the future be limited by a variety of factors, including:
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faulty human judgements and simple errors, omissions or mistakes;
fraudulent actions of an individual or collusion of two or more people;
inappropriate management override of procedures; and
the possibility that any enhancements to controls and procedures may still not be adequate to assure timely and accurate financial information.
In connection with the preparation of our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2019, we identified a material weakness in our internal control over
financial reporting as of September 30, 2019, which remains unremediated at December 31, 2019. A material weakness is a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal
control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely
basis. The material weakness related to a lack of sufficient technical resources to appropriately perform effective and timely review of the accounting for and disclosure of non-
routine transactions, including the adoption of new accounting standards.
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We have taken certain steps to remediate this material weakness, including increasing the utilization of external technical accounting resources and designing and implementing
improved processes and internal controls. We cannot provide assurance that the measures we have taken to date, and are continuing to implement, will be sufficient to remediate
the material weakness we have identified or avoid potential future material weaknesses. Accordingly, there could continue to be a reasonable possibility that a material
misstatement of our financial statements would not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.
If our efforts are not successful, if we identify other material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting in the future, if we are unable to comply with the
requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner, or if we are unable to assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, we may be unable to report our financial
results accurately on a timely basis, which could cause our reported financial results to be materially misstated, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of
our financial reports and the market price of our Common Stock could be adversely affected, and we could become subject to investigations by the stock exchange on which our
securities are listed, the SEC, or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.
As a smaller reporting company, we are subject to scaled disclosure requirements that may make it more challenging for investors to analyze our results of operations and
financial prospects.
Currently, we are a "smaller reporting company,” as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. As a "smaller reporting company,” we are able to provide simplified executive
compensation disclosures in our filings and have certain other decreased disclosure obligations in our filings with the SEC, including being required to provide only two years of
audited financial statements in annual reports. Consequently, it may be more challenging for investors to analyze our results of operations and financial prospects.
Furthermore, we are a non-accelerated filer as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act, and, as such, are not required to provide an auditor attestation of management’s
assessment of internal control over financial reporting, which is generally required for SEC reporting companies under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Because we are
not required to, and have not, had our auditor’s provide an attestation of our management’s assessment of internal control over financial reporting, a material weakness in internal
controls may remain undetected for a longer period.
We may be exposed to additional risks as a result of our reverse merger transaction.
We may be exposed to additional risks as a result of our "reverse merger” transaction and rules and regulations relating to shell companies or former shell companies. There has
been increased focus in recent years by government agencies on transactions such as the reverse merger transaction, and we may be subject to increased scrutiny and/or
restrictions by the SEC and other government agencies and holders of our securities as a result of the completion of that transaction. This may make it more difficult for us to
obtain coverage from securities analysts of major brokerage firms. The occurrence of any such event could cause our business or stock price to suffer.
Our annual and quarterly operating results may fluctuate significantly or may fall below the expectations of investors or securities analysts, each of which may cause our
stock price to fluctuate or decline.
We expect our operating results to be subject to annual and quarterly fluctuations. Our net loss and other operating results will be affected by numerous factors, including:
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variations in the level of expenses related to our therapeutic candidates, products or future development programs;
if any of our therapeutic candidates receives regulatory approval, the level of underlying demand for these therapeutic candidates and wholesalers’ buying
patterns;
addition or termination of clinical trials or funding support;
our execution of any collaborative, licensing or similar arrangements, and the timing of payments we may make or receive under these arrangements;
any intellectual property infringement lawsuit in which we may become involved;
regulatory developments affecting our therapeutic candidates or products or those of our competitors;
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the timing and cost of, and level of investment in, research and development activities relating to our therapeutic candidates, which may change from time to
time;
our ability to attract, hire and retain qualified personnel;
expenditures that we will or may incur to acquire or develop additional therapeutic candidates and technologies;
future accounting pronouncements or changes in our accounting policies;
the timing and success or failure of clinical studies for our therapeutic candidates or competing product candidates, or any other change in the competitive
landscape of our industry, including consolidation among our competitors or partners;
the risk/benefit profile, cost and reimbursement policies with respect to our therapeutic candidates, if approved, and existing and potential future therapies or
biologics that compete with our products or therapeutic candidates; and
the changing and volatile U.S., European and global economic environments.
If our annual or quarterly operating results fall below the expectations of investors or securities analysts, the price of our securities could decline substantially. Furthermore, any
annual or quarterly fluctuations in our operating results may, in turn, cause the price of our stock to fluctuate substantially. We believe that annual and quarterly comparisons of
our financial results are not necessarily meaningful and should not be relied upon as an indication of our future performance.
Raising additional funds through debt or equity financing could be dilutive and may cause the market price of our Common Stock to decline.
To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, your ownership interest may be diluted, and the terms of these securities may
include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect your rights as a stockholder. Debt financing, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or
restricting our ability to take certain actions, such as incurring debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends. If we raise additional funds through collaborations,
strategic collaborations or partnerships, or marketing, distribution or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may be required to limit valuable rights to our intellectual
property, technologies, therapeutic candidates or future revenue streams, or grant licenses or other rights on terms that are not favorable to us. Furthermore, 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 therapeutic candidates.
Sales of a substantial number of shares of our Common Stock in the public market could cause our stock price to fall.
Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market or the perception that these sales might occur, could depress the market price of our common
stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities. We are unable to predict the effect that sales may have on the prevailing market
price of our common stock.
Future sales and issuances of our common stock or rights to purchase our common stock, including pursuant to our equity incentive plans, could result in additional dilution
of the percentage ownership of our stockholders and could cause our stock price to fall.
We expect that significant additional capital will be needed in the future to continue our planned operations. To the extent we raise additional capital by issuing equity securities,
our stockholders may experience substantial dilution. We may sell our common stock, convertible securities or other equity securities in one or more transactions at prices and in a
manner we determine from time to time. If we sell our common stock, convertible securities or other equity securities in more than one transaction, investors may be materially
diluted by subsequent sales. These sales may also result in material dilution to our existing stockholders, and new investors could gain rights superior to our existing stockholders.
We are at risk of securities class action litigation.
In the past, securities class action litigation has often been brought against a company following a decline in the market price of its securities. This risk is especially relevant for us
because biotechnology companies have experienced significant stock price volatility in recent years. If we face such litigation, it could result in substantial costs and a diversion of
management’s attention and resources, which could harm our business.
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Our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and certain other tax attributes may be limited.
We have incurred substantial losses during our history and do not expect to become profitable in the near future and we may never achieve profitability. None of our pre-Merger
tax attributes remain available after the Merger as a result of limitations Section 382 due to lack of business continuity. To the extent that we continue to generate taxable losses,
unused losses will carry forward to offset future taxable income, if any, until such unused losses expire. Losses generated after 2017 do not have an expiration date. Under Sections
382 and 383 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, if a corporation undergoes an "ownership change,” generally defined as a greater than 50% change (by value) in its
equity ownership over a three-year period, the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change net operating loss carryforwards, or NOLs, and other pre-change tax attributes (such as
research tax credits) to offset its post-change income or taxes may be limited. Our prior equity offerings and other changes in our stock ownership may have resulted in ownership
changes. We have not performed an analysis to assess whether an ownership change has occurred. If we have experienced an ownership change at any time since our formation,
utilization of our net operating loss carryforwards would be subject to an annual limitation under Section 382 of the Code. In addition, we may experience ownership changes in the
future as a result of subsequent shifts in our stock ownership, some of which are outside of our control. As a result, if we earn net taxable income, our ability to use our pre-change
net operating loss carryforwards to offset U.S. federal taxable income may be subject to limitations, which could potentially result in increased future tax liability to us. In addition,
at the state level, there may be periods during which the use of NOLs is suspended or otherwise limited, which could accelerate or permanently increase state taxes owed.
Recent U.S. tax legislation and future changes to applicable U.S. or foreign tax laws and regulations may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition
and results of operations.
We are subject to income and other taxes in the U.S. Changes in laws and policy relating to taxes or trade may have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and
results of operations. For example, the U.S. government recently enacted significant tax reform, and certain provisions of the new law may adversely affect us. Changes include, but
are not limited to, a federal corporate tax rate decrease from 34% to 21% for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017, the transition of U.S. international taxation from a
worldwide tax system to a more generally territorial system, and a one-time transition tax on the mandatory deemed repatriation of foreign earnings. The legislation is unclear in
many respects and could be subject to potential amendments and technical corrections and will be subject to interpretations and implementing regulations by the Treasury and
Internal Revenue Service, any of which could mitigate or increase certain adverse effects of the legislation. In addition, it is unclear how these U.S. federal income tax changes will
affect state and local taxation. Generally, future changes in applicable U.S. or foreign tax laws and regulations, or their interpretation and application could have an adverse effect
on our business, financial conditions and results of operations. Changes with respect to the transition to a territorial tax system are generally expected to have little impact given
our lack of foreign operations.
We do not intend to pay dividends on our common stock so any returns will be limited to the value of our stock.
We have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our common stock. We currently anticipate that we will retain future earnings for the development, operation and expansion
of our business and do not anticipate declaring or paying any cash dividends for the foreseeable future. Any return to stockholders will therefore be limited to the appreciation of
their stock.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Our principal executive office is located at 125 Shoreway Road, Suite B, San Carlos, CA 94070 in a facility we lease encompassing 13,718 square feet of office, lab, and
manufacturing space. The lease for this facility expires in 2021. We believe that our existing facilities are adequate for our current needs. If we determine that additional or new
facilities are needed in the future, we believe that sufficient options would be available to us on commercially reasonable terms.
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
The Company may be subject to various claims, complaints, and legal actions that arise from time to time in the normal course of business. Management does not believe that we
are a party to any material legal proceedings, except as described below. We currently do not expect the proceedings described below to have a material adverse effect on our
business, financial position, results of operations, or cash flows at this time. Regardless of the outcome, proceedings such as these can have an adverse impact on us because of
defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources, and other factors. There can be no assurance that existing or future legal proceedings arising in the ordinary
course of business or otherwise will not become material or have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.
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On April 9, 2019, BioCardia sent a letter to Ms. Surbhi Sarna, nVision Medical and Boston Scientific based on BioCardia’s discovery in January 2019 that Ms. Sarna had assigned
to a company she founded, nVision Medical, a patent and patent applications she had filed while a BioCardia employee. nVision subsequently was acquired by Boston Scientific.
BioCardia made various claims, including that the patent and patent application rightfully belonged to BioCardia pursuant to Ms. Sarna’s invention assignment agreement, that the
proceeds from the sale of nVision to Boston Scientific rightfully belonged to BioCardia because they were the direct result of Ms. Sarna’s breach of her obligation to assign to
BioCardia the patent and patent applications, and correction of inventorship on the patents and patent applications.
Correspondence was exchanged and possible ways to resolve BioCardia’s claims were discussed among the parties over the next few months. When it appeared that negotiations
had been unsuccessful, BioCardia filed a request for arbitration against Ms. Sarna on August 6, 2019, as required by Ms. Sarna’s invention assignment agreement. On September 6,
2019, Boston Scientific Corporation, Boston Scientific Scimed Inc, and Fortis Advisors LL (the "Boston Scientific Parties”) filed a complaint against BioCardia in the United States
District Court Northern District of California, Case no. 3:19-05645-VC, seeking declarations that the claims made in BioCardia’s correspondence were without basis (the "Federal
Action”). Ms. Sarna filed an action in San Mateo Superior Court later that month seeking to enjoin the arbitration BioCardia initiated, and instead to require litigation of BioCardia’s
claims against Ms. Sarna in state court. All parties subsequently agreed that BioCardia would withdraw its demand for arbitration, Ms. Sarna would withdraw her complaint seeking
to enjoin that arbitration, and the parties would litigate all of their disputes in the Federal Action.
Pursuant to that agreement, on October 31, 2019, BioCardia filed a counterclaim in the Federal Action against the Boston Scientific Parties and Ms. Sarna for breach of contract,
misappropriation of trade secrets and correction of inventorship on the patents naming Ms. Sarna as an inventor. BioCardia seeks imposition of constructive trusts both on the
patents naming Ms. Sarna as an inventor and the proceeds received from the sale of nVision to Boston Scientific, as well as damages, including unjust enrichment damages
measured by the proceeds received from the sale of nVision to Boston Scientific.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.
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ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
PART II
Market for our Common Stock
Our common stock trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "BCDA.”
Holders
As of December 31, 2019, there were approximately 201 holders of record of our common stock. The number of record holders was determined from the records of our transfer agent
and does not include beneficial owners of our common stock whose shares are held in the names of various security brokers, dealers, and registered clearing agencies.
Dividend Policy
We have never declared or paid any cash dividend on our capital stock. We currently intend to retain any future earnings and do not expect to pay any dividends in the
foreseeable future. Any determination to declare or pay dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on a number of factors, including
our financial condition, operating results, capital requirements, general business conditions and other factors that our board of directors may deem relevant.
Sales of Unregistered Securities
Except as previously reported by the Company on its current reports on Form 8-K, we did not sell any securities during the period covered by this Annual Report that were not
registered under the Securities Act.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to Item 12, "Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder
Matters” of Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.
ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Not applicable.
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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and related notes included elsewhere
in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This discussion contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially
from those discussed below. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those identified below and those set forth under the
Section entitled "Risk Factors” in Item 1A, and other documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Historical results are not necessarily indicative of future
results.
Special Note Regarding Smaller Reporting Company Status
As a result of having been a "smaller reporting company” (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended), we are allowed and have elected to omit
certain information, including three years of year-to-year comparisons and tabular disclosure of contractual obligations, from this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations; however, we have provided all information for the periods presented that we believe to be appropriate and necessary.
Overview
We are a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company developing novel therapeutics for cardiovascular diseases with large unmet medical needs. Our lead therapeutic candidate
is the investigational CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, or CardiAMP, which provides an autologous bone marrow derived cell therapy (using a patient’s own cells) for the treatment
of two clinical indications: heart failure that develops after a heart attack and chronic myocardial ischemia.
We are committed to applying our expertise in the fields of autologous and allogeneic cell-based therapies to improve the lives of patients with cardiovascular conditions. As we
engage in clinical trials of our therapeutic candidates, we have compensated and intend to compensate all parties performing the trials or studies only on terms that are standard
and customary in clinical study arrangements.
To date, we have devoted substantially all of our resources to research and development efforts relating to our therapeutic candidates and biotherapeutic delivery systems,
including conducting clinical trials, developing manufacturing and sales capabilities, in-licensing related intellectual property, providing general and administrative support for
these operations and protecting our intellectual property. We have also generated modest revenues from sales of our approved products. We have funded our operations primarily
through the sales of equity and convertible debt securities, and certain government and private grants.
CardiAMP Cell Therapy System
We initiated our U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, accepted Phase III pivotal trial for CardiAMP Cell Therapy in ischemic systolic heart failure, in December 2016. The
CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial is a Phase III, multi-center, randomized, double-blinded, sham-controlled study of up to 260 patients at 40 centers nationwide, which includes a 10-
patient roll-in cohort. The Phase III pivotal trial is designed to provide the primary support for the safety and efficacy of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System. The trial’s primary
endpoint is a clinical composite of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events and functional capacity as measured by six minute walk distance. Based on the results
achieved in the Phase II trial, our Phase III pivotal trial is designed to have more than 95% probability of achieving a positive result with statistical significance.
The ongoing CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial is enrolling today at 25 clinical sites. The trial investigators have enrolled 74 patients to date. On March 31, 2020, the Company
announced that the DSMB completed a prespecified data review, and that based on the DSMB’s review of all available safety data for patients randomized in the trial to date, there
were no safety concerns and that the DSMB recommended continuing the trial as planned. In the fourth quarter of 2020, a prespecified DSMB interim readout from the trial will
include all patients enrolled at that time point, and include our first DSMB review of efficacy on 60 patients at the one year follow-up, which includes the primary endpoint.
Enrollment remains our primary focus and challenge. We have recently identified two barriers for patients to participate in the trial. The first of these is that prospective patients are
interested in receiving therapy and are concerned about being in a non-treated control arm that does not have a path to receive therapy. Secondly, the requirement for patient out
of pocket copays in our Medicare reimbursed trial presents an additional impediment to patient follow-up. To address these barriers to patient participation, we submitted an
Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) supplement to the FDA with changes to enable patients in the control arm to "Cross Over” to therapy after certain follow-up visits in the
trial have been completed, which assures the trial control arm patients early access to therapy if the trial meets its primary endpoint and is deemed appropriate for the patients by
their physicians, and to enable BioCardia to cover the costs of all patient co-pays so that participation in the investigational trial is free for insured patients. The FDA has recently
approved this IDE supplement. These changes, coupled with site specific plans intended to further accelerate enrollment, are being actively rolled out. We have been excited by an
enormous uptick in the number of patient informed consents received for participation in the CardiAMP Heart Failure trial in March 2020 and a number of centers finally coming
online, however this solid progress has been delayed by COVID-19.
54
We are currently assessing the impact of COVID-19 on the enrollment in the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial. A number of clinical centers have already advised the Company that
they will not be performing elective procedures for some period of time. Many centers may also delay patient follow-up visits during this period out of concern for patient
exposure to COVID-19. In alignment with recent FDA guidance on clinical trials, "FDA Guidance on Conduct of Clinical Trials of Medical Products during COVID-19 Pandemic
Guidance for Industry, Investigators, and Institutional Review Boards”, the Company is taking steps to address unavoidable protocol deviations due to COVID-19 illness and/or
COVID-19 control measures.
The FDA has approved a second IDE for the randomized controlled pivotal trial of the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System in patients with refractory chronic myocardial ischemia for
up to 343 patients at up to 40 clinical sites in the United States. This therapeutic approach uses many of the same novel aspects as the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial and is
expected to leverage our experience and investment in the heart failure trial. We anticipate that many of the investigators and sites will be the same for both the heart failure and
chronic myocardial ischemia indications. We are working to initiate this trial with a 5-patient roll-in cohort. Timing is entirely dependent on the course of COVID-19 and the
response in the United States.
CardiALLO Cell Therapy System
Our second therapeutic candidate is the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, an investigational culture expanded bone marrow derived "off the shelf” mesenchymal cell therapy. We
are actively working to secure FDA acceptance of an Investigational New Drug ("IND”) application for a Phase I/II trial for CardiALLO Cell Therapy System for the treatment of
ischemic systolic heart failure. To date we have completed manufacturing validation runs of these cells at BioCardia to support future clinical studies and have received written
input from the FDA on the protocol design and the chemistry manufacturing and controls. Our goal is to receive FDA acceptance of the IND in the second quarter of 2020.
Helix™ Biotherapeutic Delivery System
BioCardia’s Helix Biotherapeutic Delivery System or "Helix” is believed to be the leading percutaneous catheter delivery system for cardiovascular regenerative medicine. It
enables investigational studies of local delivery of cell and gene-based therapies, including CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell therapies to treat cardiovascular indications. Helix is in
use or has potential to be used to treat many cardiac diseases including heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, obstructive
hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, myocardial infarction, chronic myocardial ischemia, and cardiac conduction disorders. The Helix’s small hollow, distal helical needle is advanced,
similar to an angioplasty catheter, and is passed over the aortic arch and across the aortic valve through the Company’s Morph guide catheter or "Morph”. The Helix is then
advanced from within the Morph, and its helical needle is rotated into the heart tissue to provide active fixation during therapeutic delivery, similar to the active fixation electrodes
used in cardiac pacing. This fixation to the beating heart wall provides for stability and control during the delivery procedure. It uses simplified fluoroscopic imaging, crosses the
aortic arch and valve over a guide wire, and provides the operator with three degrees of freedom to maximize operator control. The Helix is approved in Europe with CE Mark and is
under investigational use in the United States and is being used in pre-clinical and clinical investigations of cell, gene, and protein therapies.
Morph Deflectable Guide and Sheaths Product
BioCardia’s Morph catheter is designed to enable physicians to navigate through tortuous anatomy, customize the shape of the catheter to the patient’s anatomy and their clinical
needs during the procedure, and to have stellar back up support once positioned. Morph catheters enable all Helix procedures and have been commercially available to treat more
than ten thousand patients. A number of Morph guides and sheaths are approved for commercial sale in the United States, including the AVANCE™ steerable introducer which
received FDA clearance in May 2019 and was first used commercially in September 2019 and the Morph DNA guide, which received clearance in January 2020. Certain Morph
catheter systems are approved in Europe with CE Mark.
55
We have incurred net losses in each year since our inception. Our net losses were approximately $14.7 million, $14.0 million and $12.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2019,
2018 and 2017, respectively. As of December 31, 2019, we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $101.1 million. Substantially all of our net losses have resulted from costs
incurred in connection with our research and development programs, clinical trials, intellectual property matters, building our manufacturing and sales capabilities, and from general
and administrative costs associated with our operations. As discussed in more detail under "Liquidity and Capital Resources”, we have determined that there is substantial doubt
about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern, and we plan to raise additional capital, potentially including debt and equity arrangements, to finance our future
operations. There can be no assurances as to the availability of capital or the terms on which capital will be available, if at all.
Financial Overview
Revenue
We currently have a portfolio of enabling and delivery products, from which we have generated modest revenue. Net product revenues include commercial sales of our Morph
vascular access system in the US and EU and collaboration agreement revenues include revenue from partnering agreements with corporate and academic institutions. Under these
partnering agreements, we provide our Helix biotherapeutic delivery system and customer training and support for use in preclinical and clinical studies.
Cost of Goods Sold
Cost of goods sold includes the costs of raw materials and components, manufacturing personnel and facility costs and other indirect and overhead costs associated with
manufacturing our commercial enabling and delivery products, which generate net product revenue.
Research and Development Expenses
Our research and development expenses consist primarily of:
•
•
•
•
•
salaries and related overhead expenses, which include share-based compensation and benefits for personnel in research and development functions;
fees paid to consultants and contract research organizations, or CROs, including in connection with our preclinical studies and clinical trials and other
related clinical trial fees, such as for investigator grants, patient screening, laboratory work, clinical trial management and statistical compilation and
analysis;
costs related to acquiring and manufacturing clinical trial materials;
costs related to compliance with regulatory requirements; and
payments related to licensed products and technologies.
We expense all research and development costs in the periods in which they are incurred. Costs for certain development activities are recognized based on an evaluation of the
progress of completion of specific tasks using information and data provided to us by our vendors and clinical sites. Nonrefundable advance payments for goods or services to be
received in future periods for use in research and development activities are deferred and capitalized. The capitalized amounts are then expensed as the related goods are delivered
and the services are performed.
We plan to increase our research and development expenses for the foreseeable future as we continue the Pivotal CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial and the Pivotal CardiAMP Chronic
Myocardial Ischemia Trial, further develop CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems, and subject to the availability of additional funding, further advance the development
of other therapeutic candidates for additional indications. We typically use our employee and infrastructure resources across multiple research and development programs, and
accordingly, we have not historically allocated resources specifically to our individual programs.
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses
Selling, general and administrative expenses consist primarily of salaries and related costs for employees in executive, finance and administration, sales, corporate development and
administrative support functions, including share-based compensation expenses and benefits. Other selling, general and administrative expenses include sales commissions, rent,
accounting and legal services, obtaining and maintaining patents, the cost of consultants, occupancy costs, insurance premiums and information systems costs.
56
Other Income (Expense)
Other income and expense consist primarily of interest income we earn on our cash, cash equivalents and investments, changes in fair value of redemptive features embedded in
convertible notes, loss on extinguishment of convertible notes, and interest charges we incurred in periods during 2019 when we had convertible debt outstanding.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
Our management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our financial statements, which we have prepared in accordance with
generally accepted accounting principles in the United States. The preparation of our financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported
amounts of assets and liabilities. We evaluate these estimates and judgments on an ongoing basis. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various judgements that
we believe are reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily
apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.
We define our critical accounting policies as those that require us to make subjective estimates and judgments about matters that are uncertain and are likely to have a material
impact on our financial condition and results of operations as well as the specific manner in which we apply those principles. The following discussion addresses what we believe
to be the critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our financial statements that require significant estimates and judgments.
Research and Development—Clinical Trial Accruals
As part of the process of preparing our financial statements, we are required to estimate our expenses resulting from our obligations under contracts with vendors and consultants
and clinical site agreements in connection with conducting clinical trials. The financial terms of these contracts are subject to negotiations which vary from contract to contract and
may result in payment flows that do not match the periods over which materials or services are provided to us under such contracts. Our clinical trial accrual is dependent upon the
timely and accurate reporting of expenses of our CROs and other third-party vendors.
Our objective is to reflect the appropriate clinical trial expenses in our financial statements by matching those expenses with the period in which services and efforts are expended.
We account for these expenses according to the progress of the trial as measured by patient progression and the timing of various aspects of the trial. We determine accrual
estimates through discussion with applicable personnel and outside service providers as to the progress or state of completion of clinical trials, or the services completed. During
the course of a clinical trial, we adjust the rate of clinical trial expense recognition if actual results differ from the estimates. We make estimates of our accrued expenses as of each
balance sheet date in our financial statements based on facts and circumstances known at that time. Although we do not expect that our estimates will be materially different from
amounts actually incurred, our understanding of status and timing of services performed relative to the actual status and timing of services performed may vary and may result in
our reporting amounts that are too high or too low for any particular period. Through December 31, 2019, there had been no material adjustments to our prior period estimates of
accrued expenses for clinical trials. However, due to the nature of estimates, we cannot provide assurance that we will not make changes to our estimates in the future as we
become aware of additional information about the status or conduct of our clinical trials.
Share-Based Compensation
We measure and recognize share-based compensation expense for equity awards to employees, directors and consultants based on fair value at the grant date. We use the Black-
Scholes-Merton option-pricing model, or BSM, to calculate the fair value of stock options, which includes subjective assumptions such as the risk free interest rate, the expected
volatility in the value of the Company’s common stock, and the expected term of the option. Restricted stock units (RSUs) are measured based on the fair market values of the
underlying stock on the dates of grant. Share-based compensation expense recognized in the statements of operations is based on awards at the time of grant and is reduced for
actual forfeitures at the time that the forfeitures occur. Compensation cost for employee share-based awards will be recognized over the vesting period of the applicable award on a
straight-line basis.
57
Results of Operations
The table set forth below summarizes our results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 (in thousands). The results of operations from 2018 compared to
2017 and related discussion can be found in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, filed with the SEC on April 2, 2019, and such
results and related discussion are incorporated herein by reference.
Revenue:
Net product revenue
Collaboration agreement revenue
Total revenue
Costs and expenses:
Cost of goods sold
Research and development
Selling, general and administrative
Total costs and expenses
Operating loss
Other income (expense):
Interest income
Gain on change in fair value of redemption feature embedded in convertible notes
Interest expense
Loss on extinguishment of convertible notes
Other expense
Other income (expense)
Net loss
58
Years ended December 31,
2019
2018
182 $
528
710
358
8,562
6,003
14,923
(14,213)
87
52
(112)
(521)
(2)
(496)
(14,709) $
282
343
625
517
8,453
5,757
14,727
(14,102)
118
—
—
—
(3)
115
(13,987)
$
$
Revenue. Revenue increased by approximately $85,000 in 2019 compared to 2018 primarily due to an increase in collaboration agreement revenues, which offset decreases in net
product revenues. We expect collaboration agreement revenues to continue to increase modestly depending on progress in these existing collaborative programs and the initiation
of new partnership relationships. Net product revenue is expected to be limited during the year and will be subject to customer demand, the availability of production resources for
our new Morph product family members, and the timing of FDA clearance for market release of different models and sizes during the year.
Cost of Goods Sold. Cost of goods sold decreased by approximately $159,000 in 2019 compared to 2018, primarily due to the decrease in net product revenue. We expect cost of
goods sold to decrease in 2020 as manufacturing resources are focused on supporting clinical partners, development activities and the ongoing pivotal CardiAMP Heart Failure
Trial.
Research and Development Expenses. Research and development expenses increased by approximately $100,000 in 2019 compared to 2018 primarily due to expenses incurred in
the execution of the pivotal CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial, development of the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System and our other therapeutic programs, including fees paid to
consultants and contract research organizations (CRO), additional personnel costs and increased stock compensation expense. We expect research and development expenses to
increase moderately as we continue enrolling and treating patients in the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial and further develop the CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell processing and
delivery platforms.
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by approximately $200,000 in 2019 compared to 2018, primarily due to
additional stock-based compensation expense related to the modification of certain stock option awards during the year coupled with higher corporate expenses, including
business insurance premiums, additional accounting consulting staff and audit related fees. We expect selling, general and administrative expenses to decrease modestly in 2020
relative to 2019.
Other Income (Expense). Other income (expense) consisted primarily of amounts recognized in relation to the accounting for the convertible notes, including a gain on change in
fair value of the embedded redemption feature of $52,000, interest expense associated with the accretion of the debt discount of $104,000, and a loss upon extinguishment of
$521,000. There were no similar transactions entered into by the Company during 2018. Interest income of $87,000 and $112,000 was earned on cash and cash equivalents for the
years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
We have incurred net losses each year since our inception and as of December 31, 2019, we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $101.1 million. We anticipate that we will
continue to incur net losses for at least the next several years.
We have funded our operations principally through the sales of equity and convertible debt securities as well as the cash acquired through the Merger. As of December 31, 2019,
we had cash and cash equivalents of approximately $5.6 million.
The following table shows a summary of our cash flows for the periods indicated (in thousands):
Net cash provided by (used in):
Operating activities
Investing activities
Financing activities
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents
Years ended December 31,
2019
2018
$
$
(9,445) $
(146)
9,818
227 $
(11,069)
(66)
3,804
(7,331)
Cash Flows from Operating Activities. The decrease in cash used for operating activities of $1.6 million in 2019 compared to 2018 related primarily to increases in noncurrent
customer deposits and deferred revenue, and board cash compensation that was deferred during the year, coupled with 2018 management bonuses being settled in equity in 2019
instead of cash. Non-cash expenses recognized in 2019 in operations included reduction of the operating lease right-of-use asset of $440,000, extinguishment of debt related to
convertible notes payable of $521,000, interest expense totaling $112,000, which included accretion of the debt discount of approximately $104,000, partially offset by a gain of
$52,000 to mark derivatives to fair value upon settlement. We expect spending to increase as we continue enrolling and treating patients in the CardiAMP Heart Failure Trial, further
develop the CardiAMP and CardiALLO cell processing and delivery platforms and continue to strengthen and enhance the supporting organization.
Cash Flows from Investing Activities. Net cash used in investing activities of $146,000 and $66,000 during the years ended December 31, 2019, and 2018, respectively consists of
purchases of property and equipment, primarily lab equipment and related infrastructure.
Cash Flows from Financing Activities. Net cash provided by financing activities of $9.8 and $3.8 million during the years ended December 31, 2019, and 2018, respectively
consists of proceeds from the sale of common stock and related warrants.
59
Future Funding Requirements
To date, we have generated modest revenue from sales of our approved products. We do not know when, or if, we will generate any revenue from our development stage
biotherapeutic programs. We do not expect to generate any revenue from sales of our CardiAMP or CardiALLO therapeutic candidates unless and until we obtain regulatory
approval. At the same time, we expect our expenses to increase in connection with our ongoing development activities, particularly as we continue the research, development and
clinical trials of, and seek regulatory approval for, our therapeutic candidates. In addition, subject to obtaining regulatory approval for any of our therapeutic candidates and
companion diagnostic, we expect to incur significant commercialization expenses for product sales, marketing, manufacturing and distribution. We anticipate that we will need
additional funding in connection with our continuing operations.
Based upon our current operating plan, we believe that the cash and cash equivalents of $5.6 million as of December 31, 2019 are not sufficient to fund our operations beyond the
second quarter of 2020. In order to continue to further the development of our lead therapeutic candidates, the CardiAMP Cell Therapy System, and our second therapeutic
candidate, the CardiALLO Cell Therapy System, beyond the second quarter of 2020, we will be required to raise additional capital. We plan to raise additional capital, potentially
including debt and equity arrangements, to finance our future operations. We have based our estimates on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we may use our available
capital resources sooner than we currently expect. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with the development and commercialization of our therapeutic
candidates, we are unable to estimate the amounts of increased capital outlays and operating expenditures necessary to complete the development of our therapeutic candidates.
Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
the progress, costs, results and timing of our CardiAMP and CardiALLO clinical trials and related development programs;
FDA acceptance of our CardiAMP and CardiALLO therapies for heart failure and for other potential indications;
the outcome, costs and timing of seeking and obtaining FDA and any other regulatory approvals;
the costs associated with securing, establishing and maintaining commercialization and manufacturing capabilities;
the number and characteristics of product candidates that we pursue, including our product candidates in preclinical development;
the ability of our product candidates to progress through clinical development successfully;
our need to expand our research and development activities;
the costs of acquiring, licensing or investing in businesses, products, product candidates and technologies;
our ability to maintain, expand and defend the scope of our intellectual property portfolio, including the amount and timing of any payments we may be
required to make, or that we may receive, in connection with the licensing, filing, prosecution, defense and enforcement of any patents or other intellectual
property rights;
the general and administrative expenses related to being a public company;
our need and ability to hire additional management and scientific, medical and sales personnel;
the effect of competing technological and market developments; and
our need to implement additional internal systems and infrastructure, including financial and reporting systems.
60
Until such time that we can generate meaningful revenue from the sales of approved therapies and products, if ever, we expect to finance our operating activities through public or
private equity or debt financings, government or other third-party funding, marketing and distribution arrangements, and other collaborations, strategic alliances and licensing
arrangements or a combination of these approaches. To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, the ownership interests
of our common stock holders will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect the rights of our common stock
holders. Debt financing, if available, may involve agreements that include conversion discounts or covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as
incurring debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends. If we raise additional funds through government or other third-party funding, marketing and distribution
arrangements or other collaborations, or strategic alliances or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our technologies, future
revenue streams, research programs, products or therapeutic candidates or to grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us.
Our consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2019 have been prepared on the basis that the Company will continue as a going concern, which contemplates the
realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the ordinary course of business. Due to the factors described above, there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to
continue as a going concern within one year after the date these financial statements are issued. Our ability to continue as a going concern will depend in a large part, on our ability
to raise additional capital. If adequate funds are not available, we may be required to reduce operating expenses, delay or reduce the scope of our product development programs,
obtain funds through arrangements with others that may require us to relinquish rights to certain of our technologies or products that we would otherwise seek to develop or
commercialize ourselves, or cease operations. While we believe in the viability of our strategy to raise additional funds, there can be no assurances that we will be able to obtain
additional capital on acceptable terms and in the amounts necessary to fully fund our operating needs.
The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. If we are unable to continue as a going concern, we may be forced
to liquidate assets. In such a scenario, the values received for assets in liquidation or dissolution could be significantly lower than the values reflected in our financial statements.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
During the periods presented, we did not have, nor do we currently have, any off-balance sheet arrangements as defined under the rules of the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
See Note 2 of our notes to consolidated financial statements for information regarding recent accounting pronouncements that are of significance or potential significance to us.
ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
As of December 31, 2019, we would not expect our operating results or cash flows to be affected to any significant degree by the effect of a sudden change in market interest rates
or credit conditions.
We believe that the interest rate risk related to our accounts receivable is not significant. We manage the risk associated with these accounts through periodic reviews of the
carrying value for non-collectability and establishment of appropriate allowances.
We operate primarily in the United States and are not exposed to foreign exchange risk with respect to recognized assets and liabilities. We do not enter into hedging transactions
and do not purchase derivative instruments.
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
Consolidated Balance Sheets
Consolidated Statements of Operations
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
61
Page
61
62
63
64
65
66
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Stockholders and Board of Directors
BioCardia, Inc.:
Opinion on the Consolidated Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of BioCardia, Inc. and its subsidiary (the Company) as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the related consolidated
statements of operations, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2019, and the related notes (collectively, the
consolidated financial statements). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of
December 31, 2019 and 2018, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2019, in conformity with U.S.
generally accepted accounting principles.
Going Concern
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As discussed in Note 2 to the
consolidated financial statements, the Company has incurred net losses and negative cash flows from operations since its inception and had an accumulated deficit that raise
substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 2. The consolidated financial
statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Change in Accounting Principle
As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company has changed its method of accounting for leases as of January 1, 2019 due to the adoption of FASB
Accounting Standards Update 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842) and FASB Accounting Standards Update 2018-11, Leases (Topic 842): Targeted Improvements.
Basis for Opinion
These consolidated financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these consolidated financial
statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be
independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission
and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about
whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to
perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not
for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing
procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial
statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the
consolidated financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2012.
San Francisco, California
April 8, 2020
62
BIOCARDIA, INC.
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(In thousands, except share and per share data)
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $2 and $9 at December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018
Inventory
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
Total current assets
Property and equipment, net
Operating lease right-of-use asset, net
Other assets
Total assets
Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
Operating lease liability - current
Total current liabilities
Operating lease liability - noncurrent
Deferred revenue
Deferred rent
Total liabilities
Stockholders’ equity:
Preferred stock, $0.001 par value, 25,000,000 shares authorized as of December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018; no shares
issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018
Common stock, $0.001 par value, 100,000,000 shares authorized as of December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018; 6,825,183
and 4,845,697 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018
Additional paid-in capital
Accumulated deficit
Total stockholders’ equity
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
63
December 31,
2019
December 31,
2018
$
$
$
$
5,585 $
147
4
642
6,378
181
1,065
54
7,678 $
914 $
2,561
528
4,003
614
691
—
5,308
—
7
103,433
(101,070)
2,370
7,678 $
5,358
274
141
445
6,218
145
—
54
6,417
743
1,805
—
2,548
—
—
77
2,625
—
5
90,148
(86,361)
3,792
6,417
BIOCARDIA, INC.
Consolidated Statements of Operations
(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)
Revenue:
Net product revenue
Collaboration agreement revenue
Total revenue
Costs and expenses:
Cost of goods sold
Research and development
Selling, general and administrative
Total costs and expenses
Operating loss
Other income (expense):
Interest income
Gain on change in fair value of redemption feature embedded in convertible notes
Interest expense
Loss on extinguishment of convertible notes
Other expense
Total other income (expense)
Net loss
Net loss per share, basic and diluted
2019
Years ended December 31,
2018
2017
$
$
$
182 $
528
710
358
8,562
6,003
14,923
(14,213)
87
52
(112)
(521)
(2)
(496)
(14,709) $
(2.61) $
282 $
343
625
517
8,453
5,757
14,727
(14,102)
118
—
—
—
(3)
115
(13,987) $
(3.28) $
389
90
479
690
5,799
6,395
12,884
(12,405)
95
—
—
—
2
97
(12,308)
(2.90)
Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per share, basic and diluted
5,644,328
4,264,178
4,240,060
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
64
BIOCARDIA, INC.
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity
(In thousands, except share data)
Common stock
Shares
Cost
Additional
paid in capital
Accumulated
deficit
Total
Balance at December 31, 2016
Exercise of stock options
Share-based compensation
Net loss
Balance at December 31, 2017
Adjustments to opening balance for change in accounting principle
Sale of common stock and warrants, net of issuance costs of $200
Restricted stock units vested and issued
Exercise of stock options
Share-based compensation
Net loss
Balance at December 31, 2018
Reverse stock split fractional share true up
Restricted stock units vested and issued
Issuance of sale of stock and warrants, net of issuance costs of $1,259
Issuance of stock and warrants from conversion of convertible notes
Issuance of restricted stock units in lieu of 2018 cash bonus
Share-based compensation
Net loss
Balance at December 31, 2019
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
4,236,813 $
9,706
—
—
4,246,519 $
—
592,597
6,344
237
—
—
4,845,697 $
(494)
27,426
1,741,667
210,887
—
—
—
6,825,183 $
65
4 $
—
—
—
4 $
—
1
—
—
—
—
5 $
—
—
2
—
—
—
—
7 $
80,720 $
144
2,707
—
83,571 $
—
3,799
—
4
2,774
—
90,148 $
—
—
9,194
1,204
165
2,722
—
103,433 $
(60,142) $
—
—
(12,308)
(72,450) $
76
—
—
—
—
(13,987)
(86,361) $
—
—
—
—
—
—
(14,709)
(101,070) $
20,582
144
2,707
(12,308)
11,125
76
3,800
—
4
2,774
(13,987)
3,792
—
—
9,196
1,204
165
2,722
(14,709)
2,370
BIOCARDIA, INC.
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(in thousands)
Operating activities:
Net loss
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Write-off of inventory
Depreciation
Reduction in the carrying amount of right-of-use assets
Gain on change in fair value of redemption feature embedded in convertible notes
Loss on extinguishment of convertible notes
Non-cash interest expense on convertible shareholder notes
Share-based compensation
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable
Inventory
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
Accounts payable
Accrued liabilities excluding accrued interest on convertible note
Operating lease liability - current
Deferred revenue
Operating lease liability - noncurrent
Deferred rent
Net cash used in operating activities
Investing activities:
Purchase of property and equipment
Purchase of short-term investments
Maturity of short-term investments
Net cash used in investing activities
Financing activities:
Proceeds from sale of common stock and warrants
Issuance costs from sales of common stock and warrants
Proceeds from convertible loan payable
Proceeds from the exercise of common stock options
Net cash provided by financing activities
Net change in cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period
Supplemental disclosure for noncash investing and financing activities:
Conversion of notes and interest payable to stock and warrants
Issuance of restricted stock units in lieu of 2018 cash bonus
Right-of-use asset obtained in exchange for lease obligation
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
2019
Years ended December 31,
2018
2017
$
(14,709) $
(13,987) $
(12,308)
1
111
440
(52)
521
112
2,722
127
136
(198)
171
922
88
691
(528)
—
(9,445)
(146)
—
—
(146)
10,452
(1,259)
625
—
9,818
227
5,358
5,585 $
633 $
165 $
1,505 $
—
88
—
—
—
—
2,774
(179)
49
(104)
119
240
—
(65)
—
(4)
(11,069)
(66)
—
—
(66)
4,000
(200)
—
4
3,804
(7,331)
12,689
5,358 $
— $
— $
— $
—
78
—
—
—
—
2,707
(21)
(56)
16
377
415
—
96
—
25
(8,671)
(136)
(1,800)
1,800
(136)
—
—
—
144
144
(8,663)
21,352
12,689
—
—
—
$
$
$
$
66
(1)
Summary of Business
(a)
Description of Business
BioCardia, Inc., or the Company, is a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company developing novel therapeutics for cardiovascular diseases with large unmet
medical needs. Its lead therapeutic candidate is the CardiAMP cell therapy system and its second therapeutic candidate is the CardiALLO cell therapy system. To
date, the Company has devoted substantially all of its resources to research and development efforts relating to its therapeutic candidates and biotherapeutic
delivery systems including conducting clinical trials, developing manufacturing and sales capabilities, in-licensing related intellectual property, providing general
and administrative support for these operations and protecting its intellectual property.
The Company has three enabling device product lines: (1) the CardiAMP cell processing system; (2) the Helix biotherapeutic delivery system, or Helix; and (3) the
Morph vascular access product line, or Morph. The Company manages its operations as a single segment for the purposes of assessing performance and making
operating decisions.
(2)
Significant Accounting Policies
(a)
Basis of Presentation and Consolidation
These consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (GAAP) and
include all adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company’s financial position for the periods presented. The consolidated financial statements
include the accounts of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiary. All material intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated during the
consolidation process. Certain changes in the prior period consolidated balance sheet have been made to conform to the current period presentation. Specifically,
accounts payable was decreased by $277,000 and accrued expenses increased by the same amount as of December 31, 2018 to reflect the reclassification of
amounts owed to board members for board service. In addition, December 31, 2018, 2017, and 2016 balances for common stock and additional paid-in capital have
been changed by $39,000 to reflect the impact of the 2019 reverse stock split. These changes had no effect on the Consolidated Statement of Operations or
Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows.
(b)
Liquidity - Going Concern
The Company has incurred net losses and negative cash flows from operations since its inception and had an accumulated deficit of $101.1 million as of December
31, 2019. Management expects operating losses and negative cash flows to continue through at least the next several years. The Company expects to incur
increasing costs as the pivotal CardiAMP Heart Failure trial is advanced and development of the CardiAMP and CardiALLO Cell Therapy Systems continue.
Therefore, absent additional funding, management believes cash and cash equivalents of $5.6 million as of December 31, 2019 are not sufficient to fund the
Company beyond the second quarter of 2020. These factors raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern beyond one year
from the date these financial statements are issued. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this
uncertainty.
The Company’s ability to continue as a going concern and to continue further development of its therapeutic candidates beyond the second quarter of 2020, will
require the Company to raise additional capital. The Company plans to raise additional capital, potentially including debt and equity arrangements, to finance its
future operations. While management believes this plan to raise additional funds will alleviate the conditions that raise substantial doubt, these plans are not
entirely within its control and cannot be assessed as being probable of occurring. If adequate funds are not available, the Company may be required to reduce
operating expenses, delay or reduce the scope of its product development programs, obtain funds through arrangements with others that may require the
Company to relinquish rights to certain of its technologies or products that the Company would otherwise seek to develop or commercialize itself, or cease
operations.
(c)
Use of Estimates
The preparation of the financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP requires Company management to make certain estimates and assumptions that affect
the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. Significant items subject to
such estimates and assumptions include the useful lives of property and equipment, right-of-use assets and related liabilities, allowances for doubtful accounts
and sales returns; inventory valuation, derivative instruments, clinical accruals, and share-based compensation.
67
(d)
Cash Equivalents
The Company classifies all highly liquid investments with an original maturity date of 90 days or less at the date of purchase as cash equivalents. The Company
maintains its cash and cash equivalents with reputable financial institutions.
(e)
Concentration of Credit Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to a concentration of credit risk consist of cash and cash equivalents. The Company maintains its cash
at financial institutions, which at times, exceed federally insured limits. At December 31, 2019, the Company’s cash was held by one financial institution and the
amount on deposit was in excess of FDIC insurance limits. The Company has not recognized any losses from credit risks on such accounts since inception. The
Company believes it is not exposed to significant credit risk on cash and cash equivalents.
(f)
Accounts Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts
Accounts receivable are recorded at the invoiced amount and do not bear interest. The Company considers the creditworthiness of its customers but does not
require collateral in advance of a sale. The Company evaluates collectability and maintains an allowance for doubtful accounts for estimated losses inherent in its
accounts receivable portfolio when necessary. The estimate is based on the Company’s historical write-off experience, customer creditworthiness, facts and
circumstances specific to outstanding balances and payment terms. Account balances are charged off against the allowance after all means of collection have
been exhausted and the potential for recovery is considered remote. The allowance for doubtful accounts was $2,000 and $9,000 as of December 31, 2019 and 2018,
respectively.
(g)
Inventory
Inventory is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Cost is determined using the average-cost method. Net realizable value is the estimated selling price
in the ordinary course of business, less reasonably predictable costs of completion, disposal, and transportation. The Company analyzes its inventory levels
quarterly and writes down inventory that has become obsolete or has a cost basis in excess of its expected net realizable value or inventory quantities in excess of
expected requirements. Excess requirements are determined based on comparison of existing inventories to forecasted sales, with consideration given to inventory
shelf life. Expired inventory is disposed of and the related costs are recognized in cost of goods sold.
(h)
Property and Equipment, Net
Property and equipment, net, are carried at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful
lives of the related assets, as described in the table below. Maintenance and repairs are expensed as incurred. When assets are retired or otherwise disposed of,
the cost and the related accumulated depreciation and amortization are removed from the accounts and any resulting gain or loss is reflected in the accompanying
consolidated statements of operations.
Asset
Computer equipment and software
Laboratory and manufacturing equipment
Furniture and fixtures
Leasehold improvements
68
Estimated useful
lives (in years)
3
3
3
5 years or lease term, if shorter
(i)
Right-of-Use Assets
Operating lease right-of-use asset and liabilities - The Company will determine if an arrangement is a lease at the inception of the arrangement. All leases are
assessed for classification as an operating lease or finance lease. The Company will recognize a lease liability and a ROU asset for all leases, including operating
leases, with a term greater than 12 months. ROU assets represent the Company's right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent
its obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease.
The Company’s lease liabilities are recognized at the applicable lease commencement date based on the present value of the lease payments required to be paid
over the lease term. Variable lease payments are expensed as incurred and are not included the computation of the lease liability. The lease liability discount rate is
generally the Company’s incremental borrowing rate unless the lessor’s rate implicit in the lease is readily determinable, in which case the lessor’s implicit rate is
used.
The Company's ROU assets are also recognized at the applicable lease commencement date. The ROU asset equals the carrying amount of the related lease
liability, adjusted for any lease payments made prior to lease commencement and lease incentives provided by the lessor, if any. The Company reduces a right-of-
use (ROU) asset, and the periodic reduction is the difference between the straight-line total lease cost for the period (including reduction of initial direct costs) and
the periodic accretion of the lease liability using the effective interest method.
The Company’s lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that it will exercise any such options. Operating
lease cost for lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
The Company’s lease contracts often include lease and non-lease components. The Company has elected the practical expedient offered by the standard to not
separate lease from non-lease components and accounts for them as a single lease component.
The Company has elected not to recognize ROU assets and lease liabilities for leases with a term of twelve months or less. Lease cost for short-term leases is
recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
(j)
Long-lived Assets
Impairment assessment of long-lived assets - The carrying value of long-lived assets, including property and equipment and operating lease right-of-use assets, is
reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the asset may not be recoverable. An impairment loss is recognized when the
total of estimated future undiscounted cash flows, expected to result from the use of the asset and its eventual disposition, are less than its carrying amount.
Impairment, if any, would be assessed using discounted cash flows or other appropriate measures of fair value. Through December 31, 2019, there have been no
such impairment losses.
(k)
Clinical Trial Accruals
As part of the process of preparing its consolidated financial statements, the Company is required to estimate its expenses resulting from its obligations under
contracts with vendors and consultants and clinical site agreements in connection with conducting clinical trials. The financial terms of these contracts are subject
to negotiation and may result in payment flows that do not match the periods over which materials or services are provided by the vendor under the contracts.
The Company’s objective is to reflect the clinical trial expenses in its consolidated financial statements by matching those expenses with the period in which the
services and efforts are expended. The Company accounts for these expenses according to the progress of the trial as measured by patient progression and the
timing of various aspects of the trial. The Company makes estimates of its accrued expenses as of each balance sheet date in its consolidated financial statements
based on the facts and circumstances known at that time. Although, the Company does not expect its estimates to be materially different from amounts actually
incurred, its understanding of the status and timing of services relative to the actual status and timing of services performed may vary and may result in reported
amounts that differ from the actual amounts incurred.
(l)
Derivatives
The Company accounts for its derivative instruments as either assets or liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet and measures them at fair value. Derivatives
are adjusted to fair value through other (expense) income, net in the consolidated statements of operations.
(m)
Deferred Rent
Prior to the adoption of ASU No. 2018-11, Leases (Topic 842): Targeted Improvements, deferred rent consisted of the difference between cash payments and the
recognition of rent expense on a straight-line basis. The Company’s lease for its facility provides for fixed increases in minimum annual rental payments. The total
amount of rental payments due over the lease term was charged to rent expense ratably over the life of the lease.
69
(n)
Revenue Recognition
Net product revenue – BioCardia currently has a portfolio of enabling and delivery products. Revenue from product sales is recognized generally upon shipment
to the end customer, which is when control of the product is deemed to be transferred. Product sale transactions are evidenced by customer purchase orders,
customer contracts, invoices and/or related shipping documents.
Collaboration agreement revenue – Collaboration agreement revenue is income from agreements under partnering programs with corporate and academic
institutions, wherein the Company provides biotherapeutic delivery systems and customer training and support for their use in clinical trials and studies. These
programs provide additional clinical data, intellectual property rights and opportunities to participate in the development of combination products for the
treatment of cardiac disease.
In determining the appropriate amount of revenue to be recognized as it fulfills its obligations under each of its agreements, the Company performs the following
steps: (i) identification of the promised goods or services in the contract; (ii) determination of whether the promised goods or services are performance
obligations, including whether they are distinct in the context of the contract; (iii) measurement of the transaction price, including the constraint on variable
consideration; (iv) allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations; and (v) recognition of revenue when (or as) the Company satisfies each
performance obligation. As part of the accounting for these arrangements, the Company must develop assumptions that require judgment to determine the stand-
alone selling price for each performance obligation identified in the contract.
The Company uses key assumptions to determine the stand-alone selling price, which may include forecasted revenues, development timelines, reimbursement
rates for personnel costs, discount rates and probabilities of technical and regulatory success. This evaluation is subjective and requires the Company to make
judgments about the promised goods and services and whether those goods and services are separable from other aspects of the contract. Further, determining
the standalone selling price for performance obligations requires significant judgment, and when an observable price of a promised good or service is not readily
available, the Company considers relevant assumptions to estimate the standalone selling price, including, as applicable, market conditions, development
timelines, probabilities of technical and regulatory success, reimbursement rates for personnel costs, forecasted revenues, potential limitations to the selling price
of the product and discount rates.
The Company applies judgment in determining whether a combined performance obligation is satisfied at a point in time or over time, and, if over time, concluding
upon the appropriate method of measuring progress to be applied for purposes of recognizing revenue. The Company evaluates the measure of progress each
reporting period and, as estimates related to the measure of progress change, related revenue recognition is adjusted accordingly. Changes in the Company’s
estimated measure of progress are accounted for prospectively as a change in accounting estimate. The Company recognizes collaboration revenue by measuring
the progress toward complete satisfaction of the performance obligation using an input measure. The Company will re-evaluate the estimate of expected costs to
satisfy the performance obligation each reporting period and make adjustments for any significant changes.
Amounts received prior to satisfying the revenue recognition criteria are recorded as contract liabilities in the Company’s balance sheets. If the related
performance obligation is expected to be satisfied within the next twelve months this will be classified in current liabilities. The Company receives payments from
its customers as established in each contract. Upfront payments and fees are recorded as deferred revenue upon receipt or when due and may require deferral of
revenue recognition to a future period until the Company performs its obligations under these arrangements. The Company does not assess whether a contract
with a customer has a significant financing component if the expectation at contract inception is such that the period between payment by the customer and the
transfer of the promised goods or services to the customer will be one year or less. At December 31, 2019, deferred revenue consisted of $691,000 of future service
revenues of approximately $191,000 and future license fee revenues of $500,000 to be recognized at a point in time before July 2021.
Multiple contracts with the same customer - When two or more contracts are entered into with the same customer at or near the same time, the Company
evaluates the contracts to determine whether the contracts should be accounted for as a single arrangement. Contracts are combined and accounted for as a
single arrangement if one or more of the following criteria are met: (i) the contracts are negotiated as a package with a single commercial objective; (ii) the amount
of consideration to be paid in one contract depends on the price or performance of the other contract; or (iii) the goods or services promised in the contracts (or
some goods or services promised in each of the contracts) are a single performance obligation.
Contract costs - The Company recognizes as an asset the incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer if the costs are expected to be recovered. The
Company has elected a practical expedient wherein it recognizes the incremental costs of obtaining a contract as an expense when incurred if the amortization
period of the asset that it otherwise would have recognized is one year or less. To date, the Company has not incurred any material incremental costs of obtaining
a contract with a customer.
Contract modifications - Contract modifications, defined as changes in the scope or price (or both) of a contract that are approved by the parties to the contract,
such as a contract amendment, exist when the parties to a contract approve a modification that either creates new or changes existing enforceable rights and
obligations of the parties to the contract. Depending on facts and circumstances, the Company accounts for a contract modification as one of the following: (i) a
separate contract; (ii) a termination of the existing contract and a creation of a new contract; or (iii) a combination of the preceding treatments. A contract
modification is accounted for as a separate contract if the scope of the contract increases because of the addition of promised goods or services that are distinct
and the price of the contract increases by an amount of consideration that reflects the Company’s standalone selling prices of the additional promised goods or
services. When a contract modification is not considered a separate contract and the remaining goods or services are distinct from the goods or services
transferred on or before the date of the contract modification, the Company accounts for the contract modification as a termination of the existing contract and a
creation of a new contract. When a contract modification is not considered a separate contract and the remaining goods or services are not distinct, the Company
accounts for the contract modification as an add-on to the existing contract and as an adjustment to revenue on a cumulative catch-up basis.
70
(o)
Shipping Costs
Costs incurred for the shipping of products to customers totaled approximately $6,000, $6,000 and $5,000 for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017,
respectively, and are included in cost of goods sold in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
(p)
Product Warranties
The Company provides a standard warranty of serviceability on all its products for the duration of the product’s shelf life, which is two years for Helix and Morph
products currently. Estimated future warranty costs, if any, are accrued and charged to costs of goods sold in the period that the related revenue is recognized.
Historical data and trends of product reliability and costs of repairing or replacing defective products are considered. Due to the low historical warranty claims
experience, a general warranty accrual has not been required or recorded as of December 31, 2019 and 2018.
(q)
Research and Development
The Company’s research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Research and development expense include the costs of basic research activities as
well as other research, engineering, and technical effort required to develop new products or services or make significant improvement to an existing product or
manufacturing process. Research and development costs also include pre-approval regulatory and clinical trial expenses and support costs for collaborative
partnering programs wherein the Company provides biotherapeutic delivery systems and customer training and support for their use in clinical trials and studies.
The Company’s research and development costs consist primarily of:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Salaries, benefits and other personnel-related expenses, including share-based compensation
Fees paid for services provided by clinical research organizations, research institutions, consultants and other outside service providers
Costs to acquire and manufacture materials used in research and development activities and clinical trials
Laboratory consumables and supplies
Facility-related expenses allocated to research and development activities
Fees to collaborators to license technology
Depreciation expense for equipment used for research and development and clinical purposes.
(r)
Cost of Goods Sold
Cost of goods sold includes the costs of raw materials and components, manufacturing personnel and facility costs and other indirect and overhead costs
associated with manufacturing our commercial enabling and delivery products, which generate net product revenue.
(s)
Share-Based Compensation
The Company measures and recognizes share-based compensation expense for equity awards to employees, directors and consultants based on fair value at the
grant date. The Company uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to calculate fair value of its stock option grants. The compensation cost for restricted stock
awards is based on the closing price of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant. Share-based compensation expense recognized in the consolidated
statements of operations is based on the period the services are performed and recognized as compensation expense on a straight-line basis over the requisite
service period. The Company accounts for forfeitures as they occur.
71
Measurement of nonemployee awards - The measurement of equity-classified nonemployee awards is fixed at the grant date, and the Company may use the
expected term to measure nonemployee options or elect to use the contractual term as the expected term, on an award-by-award basis. This differs from the
guidance in ASC 505-50 that requires the use of the contractual term. Forfeitures of nonemployee awards will be recognized as they occur.
The Black-Scholes option pricing model (BSM) requires the input of subjective assumptions, including the risk-free interest rate, the expected volatility in the
value of the Company’s common stock, and the expected term of the option. These estimates involve inherent uncertainties and the application of management’s
judgment. If factors change and different assumptions are used, the share-based compensation expense could be materially different in the future. These
assumptions are estimated as follows:
Risk-free Interest Rate
The risk-free interest rate assumption is based on the zero-coupon U.S. Treasury instruments appropriate for the expected term of the stock option grants.
Expected Volatility
The Company has limited historical data of its own to utilize in determining expected volatility. As such the Company based the volatility assumption on a
combined weighted average of the Company’s own historical data and that of a selected peer group. The peer group was developed based on companies in the
biotechnology and medical device industries whose shares are publicly-traded.
Expected Term
The expected term represents the period of time that options are expected to be outstanding. As the Company does not have sufficient historical experience for
determining the expected term of the stock options awards granted, the expected life is determined using the simplified method, which is an average of the
contractual terms of the option and its ordinary vesting period.
(t)
Income Taxes
The Company accounts for income taxes based on the asset and liability method whereby deferred tax asset and liability account balances are determined based
on differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets, liabilities, operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are
measured using the enacted tax rates and laws that will be in effect when the differences are expected to reverse. A valuation allowance is provided when it is more
likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized.
In evaluating the ability to recover its deferred income tax assets, the Company considers all available positive and negative evidence, including its operating
results, forecasts of future taxable income, and ongoing tax planning. In the event the Company was to determine that it would be able to realize its deferred tax
assets in the future in excess of their net recorded amount, it would make an adjustment to the valuation allowance, which would reduce the provision for income
taxes. Conversely, in the event that all or part of the net deferred tax assets are determined not to be realizable in the future, an adjustment to the valuation
allowance would be charged to earnings in the period such determination is made.
The Company recognizes and measures benefits for uncertain tax positions using a two-step approach. The first step is to evaluate the tax position taken or
expected to be taken in a tax return by determining if the weight of available evidence indicates that it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained
upon audit, including resolution of any related appeals or litigation processes. For tax positions that are more likely than not to be sustained upon audit, the
second step is to measure the tax benefit as the largest amount that is more than 50% likely to be realized upon settlement. Significant judgment is required to
evaluate uncertain tax positions. The Company evaluates its uncertain tax positions quarterly. Evaluations are based upon a number of factors, including the
technical merits of the tax position, changes in facts or circumstances, changes in tax law, interactions with tax authorities during the course of audits, and
effective settlement of audit issues. The Company’s policy is to recognize interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax
expense in the consolidated statements of operations and accrued interest and penalties within accrued liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets. No such
interest and penalties have been recorded to date.
72
(u)
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
The Company applies fair value accounting for all financial assets and liabilities and nonfinancial assets and liabilities that are required to be recognized or
disclosed at fair value in the consolidated financial statements. The Company defines fair value as the price that would be received from selling an asset or paid to
transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Where observable prices or inputs are not available, valuation
models are applied. These valuation techniques involve some level of management estimation and judgment, the degree of which is dependent on the price
transparency for the instruments or market and the instruments complexity.
The Company’s financial assets and liabilities consist principally of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and accounts payable. The fair value of the
Company’s cash equivalents is determined based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets. The recorded values of the Company’s accounts
receivable and accounts payable approximate their current fair values due to the relatively short-term nature of these accounts.
(v)
Net Loss per Share
Basic net loss per share is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding. Diluted net loss per share
is computed by dividing the net loss by the weighted-average number of common share equivalents outstanding for the period determined using the treasury-
stock method. Common stock equivalents are comprised of restricted stock units, warrants to purchase common stock and options outstanding under the stock
option plans. For all periods presented, there is no difference in the number of shares used to calculate basic and diluted shares outstanding since the effects of
potentially dilutive securities are antidilutive due to the net loss position.
(w)
Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements
In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842) ("ASU 2016-02”), as amended, which generally requires lessees to recognize operating
and financing lease liabilities and corresponding right-of-use assets on the balance sheet and to provide enhanced disclosures surrounding the amount, timing
and uncertainty of cash flows arising from leasing arrangements. The amended guidance required lessees to recognize a majority of their leases on the balance
sheet as a ROU asset and a lease liability. In July 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-11, Leases (Topic 842): Targeted Improvements, or ASU No. 2018-11. In
issuing ASU No. 2018-11, the FASB is permitting another transition method for ASU 2016-02, which allows the transition to the new lease standard by recognizing
a cumulative-effect adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings in the period of adoption. The Company elected this available transition method.
The Company adopted the new standard using the cumulative-effect method on January 1, 2019. The Company's adoption included lease codification
improvements that were issued by the FASB through March 2019.
The FASB made available several practical expedients in adopting the amended lease accounting guidance. The Company elected the package of practical
expedients permitted under the transition guidance, which among other things, allowed registrants to carry forward historical lease classification, its assessment
on whether a contract is or contains a lease, and its initial direct costs for any leases that exist prior to adoption of the new standard. BioCardia also elected to
keep leases with an initial term of 12 months or less off the consolidated balance sheet, and to recognize the associated lease payments in the statements of
operations on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
The most significant impact was the recognition of ROU assets and related lease liabilities for operating leases on the condensed consolidated balance sheet. The
Company recognized ROU assets and related lease liabilities of $1,505,000 and $1,593,000 respectively, related to operating lease commitments, as of January 1,
2019. The operating lease ROU asset represents the lease liability, plus any lease payments made at or before the commencement date, less any lease incentives
received. The amended guidance did not have a material impact on the Company's cash flows or results of operations. See Note 6 of the condensed consolidated
financial statements.
In June 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-07, Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting. ASU 2018-
07 is intended to reduce the cost and complexity and to improve financial reporting for nonemployee share-based payments. ASU 2018-07 expands the scope of
Topic 718, Compensation-Stock Compensation (which currently only includes share-based payments to employees) to include share-based payments issued to
nonemployees for goods or services. Consequently, the accounting for share-based payments to nonemployees and employees will be substantially aligned. No
longer will nonemployee awards be marked-to-market every reporting period, nor will the expected term be required to be the contractual term. However, forfeitures
will continue to be recognized when incurred. ASU 2018-07 supersedes Subtopic 505-50, Equity-Based Payments to Non-Employees. The Company adopted ASU
2018-07 effective January 1, 2019 using the cumulative-effect method for equity-classified nonemployee awards for which a measurement date has not been
established as of the adoption date. The cumulative effect did not have a material impact on the condensed consolidated balance sheet, statement of operations or
statement of cash flows.
73
In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, issued Accounting Standards Update, or ASU, No. 2014-09, which amends the guidance for
accounting for revenue from contracts with customers. This ASU supersedes the revenue recognition requirements in Topic 605, Revenue Recognition, and
creates a new Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. In 2015 and 2016, the FASB issued additional ASUs related to Topic 606 that delayed the
effective date of the guidance and clarified various aspects of the new revenue guidance, including principal versus agent considerations, identifying performance
obligations, and licensing, and they include other improvements and practical expedients. The Company adopted this new standard on January 1, 2018 using the
cumulative-effect method. The impact of adoption was immaterial to the consolidated financial statements.
In May 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-09 Compensation – Stock Compensation (Topic 718) Scope of Modification Accounting. The amendments in ASU
2017-09 provide guidance about which changes to the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award require an entity to apply modification accounting in
Topic 718. The Company adopted ASU 2016-01 on January 1, 2018, and the adoption did not have a material impact on its financial statements.
(x) Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Disclosure Framework—Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for
Fair Value Measurement. ASU 2018-13 considers cost and benefits, and removes, modifies and adds disclosure requirements in Topic 820. The amendments on
changes in unrealized gains and losses, the range and weighted average of significant unobservable inputs used to develop Level 3 fair value measurements, and
the narrative description of measurement uncertainty is to be applied prospectively for only the most recent interim or annual period presented in the initial fiscal
year of adoption. All other amendments are to be applied retrospectively to all periods presented. ASU 2018-13 is effective for the Company for fiscal years
beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods within that fiscal year and early adoption is permitted. Management does not expect that adoption of
this guidance will have a significant impact on the Company’s financial statements.
In November 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-18, Collaborative Arrangements (Topic 808): Clarifying the Interaction Between Topic 808 and Topic
606 ("ASU 2018-18”). ASU 2018-18 clarifies when certain transactions between collaborative arrangement participants should be accounted for under Topic 606
and incorporates unit-of-account guidance consistent with Topic 606 to aid in this determination. ASU 2018-18 is effective for public companies for annual and
interim periods beginning after December 15, 2019, with early adoption permitted. ASU 2018-18 should generally be applied retrospectively to the date of initial
application of Topic 606. Management does not expect that adoption of this guidance will have a significant impact on the Company’s financial statements.
In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12 Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes, which removes certain exceptions for
intra period allocations, recognizing deferred taxes for investments and calculating income taxes in interim periods. This ASU also adds guidance to reduce
complexity in certain areas, including recognizing deferred taxes for tax goodwill and allocating taxes to members of a consolidated group. The guidance is
effective for the Company for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted.
Management is currently assessing the impact of this standard on the Company’s financial statements.
In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments, an
amendment which modifies the measurement and recognition of credit losses for most financial assets and certain other instruments. The amendment updates the
guidance for measuring and recording credit losses on financial assets measured at amortized cost by replacing the "incurred loss” model with an "expected loss”
model. Accordingly, these financial assets will be presented at the net amount expected to be collected. The amendment also requires that credit losses related to
available-for-sale debt securities be recorded as an allowance through net income rather than reducing the carrying amount under the current, other-than-
temporary-impairment model. For smaller reporting companies the guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022, including interim
periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. Management does not expect that adoption of this guidance will have a significant impact on the
Company’s financial statements.
74
Other recent accounting pronouncements issued by the FASB, including its Emerging Issues Task Force, and the American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants did not or are not believed by management to have a material impact on the Company’s financial statement presentation or disclosures.
(3)
Fair Value Measurements
The fair value of financial instruments reflects the amounts that the Company estimates to receive in connection with the sale of an asset or paid in connection with the
transfer of a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date (exit price). The Company follows a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes
the use of inputs used in valuation techniques into the following three levels:
Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities
Level 2 – observable inputs other than quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other
inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities
Level 3 – unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.
The following table sets forth the fair value of the financial assets measured on a recurring basis as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 and indicates the fair value hierarchy
utilized to determine such fair value (in thousands).
Assets:
Money market funds
Assets:
Money market funds
(4)
Inventories
As of December 31, 2019
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Total
$
4,637 $
— $
— $
4,637
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Total
As of December 31, 2018
$
5,358 $
— $
— $
5,358
Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value using the average cost method. Inventories consist of the following (in thousands):
Raw materials
Work in process
Finished goods
Total
December 31,
2019
2018
— $
—
4
4 $
79
39
23
141
$
$
75
Write downs for excess or expired inventory are based on management’s estimates of forecasted usage of inventories and are included in cost of goods sold. A
significant change in the timing or level of demand for certain products as compared to forecasted amounts may result in recording additional write downs for excess or
expired inventory in the future. Charges to cost of goods sold for inventory write-downs, reserve adjustments, scrap, shrinkage and expired inventories totaled
approximately $36,000, $12,000 and $33,000 for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, respectively.
(5)
Property and Equipment, Net
Property and equipment, net consist of the following (in thousands):
Computer equipment and software
Laboratory and manufacturing equipment
Furniture and fixtures
Leasehold improvements
Construction in progress
Property and equipment, gross
Less accumulated depreciation
Property and equipment, net
December 31,
2019
2018
$
$
132 $
550
55
332
69
1,138
(957)
181 $
119
481
55
332
3
990
(845)
145
Depreciation expense totaled approximately $111,000, $88,000 and $78,000 for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, respectively. All of the Company’s
property and equipment is located in the United States.
(6) Lease
The Company adopted the new lease standard on January 1, 2019 using the cumulative-effect method. Prior periods were not retrospectively adjusted and
continue to be reported under the accounting standards in effect for those periods.
The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception by assessing whether it conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of
time in exchange for consideration. The Company’s operating lease is primarily related to a property lease for its laboratory and corporate offices. BioCardia’s
lease agreement does not contain any material residual guarantees or material restrictive covenants, nor does it contain an additional lease extension.
ROU assets and lease liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The Company’s
lease does not provide an implicit rate. The Company used an adjusted historical incremental borrowing rate, based on the information available at the approximate
lease commencement date, to determine the present value of lease payments. The net lease asset was adjusted for deferred rent, lease incentives, and prepaid rent.
Variable rent expense is made up of expenses for common area maintenance and shared utilities and were not included in the determination of the present value of
lease payments. The Company has no finance leases. The new lease standard did not materially impact its condensed consolidated statements of operations.
The components of lease expense for the year ended December 31, 2019 was as follows (in thousands, except years and percentages):
Straight-line rent expense recognized for operating lease
Variable rent expense recognized for operating lease
Total rent expense
Weighted average remaining lease term (in years)
Weighted average discount rate
76
December 31,
2019
$
$
601
264
865
2.0
12.05%
Supplemental cash flow information related to the operating lease was as follows (in thousands):
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities
Cash lease expense (imputed interest expense component of net income)
Future minimum lease payments under the operating lease as of December 31, 2019 are as follows (in thousands):
For the years ended December 31,
2020
2021
Total undiscounted lease payments
Less imputed interest
Total operating lease liabilities
December 31,
2019
2019
612
161
630
649
1,279
137
1,142
$
$
$
$
Prior to the Company’s adoption of the new lease standard, future minimum lease payments as of December 31, 2018, which were undiscounted, were as follows (in thousands):
For the years ended December 31,
2019
2020
2021
Total undiscounted lease payments
2018
612
630
649
1,891
$
$
Prior to the Company’s adoption of the new lease standard, rent expense was recognized on a straight-line basis over the life of the lease. Rental expense was
approximately $601,000 for both years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017.
(7)
Collaborative Agreements
The Company has entered into various collaborations related to clinical development. These agreements allow partners to utilize the Company’s enabling biotherapeutic
delivery systems, including training and support during clinical and pre-clinical delivery of biotherapeutics. Under the terms of these agreements, the Company typically
receives a use fee and payments for the systems and services provided. The Company gains access to certain data generated by its partners for use in its own product
development efforts and also receives nonexclusive patent rights to any partner-discovered BioCardia technology improvement inventions. Revenue from collaborative
agreements is recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations in the line "Collaboration agreement revenue”.
77
(8)
Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):
Accrued expenses
Accrued salaries and employee benefits
Accrued director compensation
Accrued clinical trial costs
Grant liability
Customer deposits
Total
(9)
Stockholders’ Equity
December 31,
2019
2018
$
$
10 $
652
648
519
630
102
2,561 $
127
368
277
276
645
112
1,805
Public Offering on Form S-1 Registration Statement - In April 2019, the Company submitted a Form S-1 Registration Statement (S-1) to the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC), which was subsequently amended. On August 2, 2019, the Company entered into an underwriting agreement with Maxim Group LLC, as
representative of the several underwriters named therein, relating to a firm commitment underwritten public offering pursuant to the S-1, of 1,666,667 units consisting of
one share of common stock, par value of $0.001 per share, and a warrant to purchase one share of common stock. The offering price to the public was $6.00 per unit. The
warrants, which are equity classified, are immediately exercisable for shares of common stock at a price of $6.30 per share and expire five years from the date of issuance.
In addition, the underwriters were granted 11,958 warrants exercisable at a per warrant exercise price of $6.60 as part of their compensation. The underwriters were granted
a 45-day option to purchase up to 250,000 additional shares of common stock, and/or 250,000 additional warrants to cover over-allotments, if any. The closing of the
offering occurred on August 6, 2019. After deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company, BioCardia
realized net proceeds of approximately $8.84 million. On September 4, 2019, the underwriters exercised the over-allotment and purchased 75,000 shares of common stock
and 250,000 warrants for net proceeds of approximately $420,000, after deducting underwriting discounts of approximately $32,000.
Up List to Nasdaq - On August 2, 2019 the Company’s common stock and warrants to purchase common stock began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market. Previously
the common stock was quoted on the OTCQB Marketplace (OTCQB) under the symbol, "BCDA”. "BCDA” and "BCDAW” are the trading symbols for the Company’s
common stock and warrants to purchase common stock, respectively, on the Nasdaq Capital Market.
Convertible Note Financing - On July 5, 2019, BioCardia entered into a note purchase agreement pursuant to which the Company issued on such date $625,000 in
aggregate principal amount of convertible promissory notes to accredited investors, a portion of which were certain of the Company’s officers and directors and a
principal stockholder (or their respective affiliates). The notes accrued 14.0% simple interest and mature six months from the issue date, on January 5, 2020. If at any time
prior to the maturity date, the Company closes a public stock offering for the purpose of raising capital in which the Company’s common stock is listed or quoted on the
New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the Nasdaq Global Market or the Nasdaq Capital Market, the outstanding principle and interest would
automatically convert into the securities offered in the financing at a unit price equal to a 50% discount to the qualified financing price. The convertible notes conversion
features were determined to be an embedded derivative requiring bifurcation and separate accounting at estimated fair value. The fair value of the derivative was treated
as a discount on the notes, which is subject to accretion over the term of the note. The change in fair value of the derivative liability was approximately $52,000. The loss
on extinguishment of the convertible notes approximated $521,000. Interest expense on the notes for the year ended December 31, 2019 totaled $112,000 and included
$104,000 of accretion of the discount.
Upon the closing of the Company’s public offering of units on August 6, 2019 the unpaid principal and interest on the convertible notes totaling approximately $633,000,
converted into 210,887 units, each unit consisting of one share of common stock and a warrant to purchase one share of common stock, at a conversion price of $3.00 per
unit. Holders of the convertible notes had the option of converting the notes into units of one share of common stock and a warrant at a unit price of $8.00 prior to the
automatic conversion in the Company’s public offering. The warrants have the same terms, including exercise price and expiration date, as the warrants issued in the
public offering.
78
Reverse Stock Split - On June 6, 2019 the Company effected a 1-for-9 reverse stock split of the Company’s common stock. Neither the par value nor the authorized
number of shares was adjusted as a result of the reverse stock split. All issued and outstanding common stock, warrants, stock options, restricted stock units and per
share amounts contained in the accompanying consolidated financial statements and notes to the consolidated financial statements have been retroactively adjusted to
give effect to the reverse stock split for all periods presented.
Sales of Unregistered Common Stock and Warrants - On December 24, 2018, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with entities affiliated with
BioCardia’s existing investors (the "Investors”), relating to an offering and sale of an aggregate of 592,592 shares (as adjusted) of the Company’s common stock at a
purchase price of $6.75 per share (as adjusted), and warrants to purchase up to one-half of the number of shares of common stock sold to an Investor, up to an aggregate
for all Investors of 296,296 shares (as adjusted) of common stock, for aggregate net proceeds of $3.8 million net of $200,000 expenses. The warrants are exercisable
immediately for cash and, because six months have passed, are also exercisable on a cashless basis until an effective registration statement has been filed registering the
resale of the shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants. At December 31, 2019 no effective registration statement has been filed. Warrants can be settled in
unregistered shares. The warrants have an exercise price of $6.75 per share and will expire on December 24, 2023. The issued warrants are standalone financial
instruments and were equity classified in accordance with US GAAP.
Warrants – Set forth below is a table of activity of warrants for common stock and the related weighted average exercise price per warrant.
Balance, December 31, 2018
Warrants for common stock sold
Warrants for common stock exercised
Balance, December 31, 2019
(10)
Share-Based Compensation
Number of
Common Stock
Warrants
Weighted
Average
Exercise Price
296,296 $
2,139,512 $
-
2,435,808 $
6.75
6.30
6.36
BioCardia Lifesciences adopted, and the BioCardia Lifesciences shareholders approved, the 2002 Stock Plan in 2002 (the "2002 Plan”), and the Company assumed the
2002 Plan in the Merger. The Company has not granted or do not intend to grant any additional awards under the 2002 Plan following the Merger. In 2016, BioCardia
Lifesciences adopted, and the BioCardia Lifesciences shareholders approved, the 2016 Equity Incentive Plan (the "2016 Plan”), and the Company assumed the 2016 Plan
in the Merger. BioCardia has granted awards, including incentive stock options and non-qualified stock options, under the 2016 Plan following the Merger. Under the
2002 Plan and the 2016 Plan, the number of shares, terms, and vesting periods are determined by the Company’s board of directors or a committee thereof on an option-
by-option basis. Options generally vest ratably over service periods of four years and expire ten years from the date of grant. The per share exercise price shall be no less
than the fair market value on the date of grant. Compensation cost for employee share-based awards is based on the grant-date fair value and is recognized over the
vesting period of the applicable award on a straight-line basis. The number of shares reserved for issuance or transfer pursuant to awards under the 2016 Plan will be
increased by (i) the number of shares represented by awards outstanding under 2016 Plan that are returned to the plan because they are either forfeited or lapse
unexercised or that are repurchased for the original purchase price thereof, (ii) if approved by the Administrator of the 2016 Plan, an annual increase on the first day of
each fiscal year equal to at least (A) 4% of the shares of common stock outstanding (on an as converted basis) on the last day of the immediately preceding fiscal year;
(B) 268,997 shares (as adjusted for the reverse stock split of common stock on June 6, 2019); or (C) such other amount as the board of directors may determine no later
than the last day of the immediately preceding fiscal year. As of December 31, 2019, 461,605 shares have been authorized and available for awards under the 2016 Plan.
The Company recognizes in the consolidated statements of operations the grant-date fair value of stock options and other equity-based compensation. Share-based
compensation expense for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 was recorded as follows (in thousands):
Cost of goods sold
Research and development
Selling, general and administrative
Share-based compensation expense
2019
Years ended December 31,
2018
2017
191 $
1,115
1,416
2,722 $
143 $
953
1,678
2,774 $
140
678
1,889
2,707
$
$
79
The following table summarizes activity under the Company’s stock option plans, including the 2002 Plan and the 2016 Plan and related information (in thousands, except
share and per share amounts and term):
Balance, December 31, 2018
Stock options granted
Stock options exercised
Stock options canceled
Balance, December 31, 2019
Exercisable and vested, December 31, 2019
Options outstanding
Number of shares
Weighted average
exercise price
Weighted average
remaining
contractual term
(years)
Aggregate intrisinsic
value
(in thousands)
608,547 $
254,785
—
(41,868)
821,464 $
428,793 $
25.20
5.28
—
26.86
18.99
23.62
7.8
7.6 $
6.6 $
-
-
The aggregate intrinsic value represents the difference between the total pre-tax value (i.e., the difference between the Company’s stock price and the exercise price) of
stock options outstanding as of December 31, 2019, based on the Company’s common stock closing price of $3.68 per share, which would have been received by the
option holders had all their in-the-money options been exercised as of that date.
The total intrinsic value of options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 was approximately zero, $3,000 and $400,000, respectively. The
weighted average grant-date fair value of options granted during the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 was $3.87, $15.48 and $52.20 per share, respectively.
Employee, Director and Non-employee Share-Based Compensation
During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, the Company granted stock options to certain employees, non-employee directors and non-employees to purchase
254,785 and 188,716 shares of common stock, respectively. The fair value of each option grant was estimated on the date of the grant using the Black-Scholes option
pricing model with the following assumptions:
Risk-free interest rate
Volatility
Dividend yield
Expected term (in years)
2019
-
-
None
-
1.40
74
6.25
Years ended December 31,
2018
-
-
None
6.25
2.89%
83%
2.66
81
2.14%
94%
10.0
2017
-
-
None
-
1.76
81
5.00
2.25%
89%
6.25
Unrecognized share-based compensation for employees, non-employee directors and non-employee options granted through December 31, 2019 is approximately $3.4
million to be recognized over a remaining weighted average service period of 2.1 years.
Share-Based Compensation (RSUs)
During the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company granted to certain members of management 34,713 restricted stock units, or RSUs in lieu of paying bonuses. The
fair value of each RSU is estimated on the closing market price on the grant date.
80
The following summarizes the activity of non-vested RSUs:
Balance, December 31, 2018
RSUs granted
RSUs vested
RSUs forfeited
Balance, December 31, 2019
Number of
shares
29,698 $
34,713
(27,430)
-
36,981 $
Weighted
average
grant date
fair value
per share
25.56
4.75
19.46
—
10.56
RSUs are generally subject to forfeiture if employment terminates prior to the release of vesting restrictions. The related compensation expense, which is based on the
grant date fair value of the Company’s common stock multiplied by the number of units granted, is recognized ratably over the period during which the vesting
restrictions lapse. Unrecognized share-based compensation for RSUs granted through December 31, 2019 was approximately $171,000 to be recognized over a remaining
weighted average service period of 0.1 year.
Nonemployee Share-Based Compensation
During the year ended December 31, 2019 the Company complied with the requirements of ASU No. 2018-07, Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to
Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting. ASU 2018-07 expanded the scope of Topic 718, Compensation-Stock Compensation (which currently only includes
share-based payments to employees) to include share-based payments issued to nonemployees for goods or services. Consequently, the accounting for share-based
payments to nonemployees and employees are substantially aligned. No longer will nonemployee awards be marked-to-market every reporting period, nor will the
expected term be required to be the contractual term. During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, the Company granted options to purchase zero and 5,139
shares of common stock to consultants. These options were granted in exchange for consulting services to be rendered and vest over the term specified in the grant,
which correlates to the period the services are rendered. The Company recorded nonemployee share-based compensation expense of $176,000 and $768,000 for the years
ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 respectively. During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 the Company accounted for share-based compensation
arrangements with nonemployees, using the Black Scholes option pricing model, based on the fair value as these instruments vest. Accordingly, at each reporting date,
the Company revalued the unearned portion of the share-based compensation and the resulting change in fair value is recognized in the consolidated statements of
operations over the period the related services are rendered. The following assumptions were used to value the awards.
Years ended December 31,
Risk-free interest rate
Volatility
Dividend yield
Expected term (in years)
(11)
Concentrations
2.80
78
2018
-
-
None
-
7.6
8.8
2.95%
85%
2017
-
-
None
-
2.25
81
8.6
2.40%
87%
9.8
Most of the Company’s customers are located in the United States. Two customers accounted for 43% and 25% of total revenues in 2019. One customer accounted for
approximately 29% of revenue in 2018 and no single customer accounted for more than 10% of revenue in 2017. One customer accounted for 15% of accounts receivable
at December 31, 2019. One customer accounted for 23% of accounts receivable at December 31, 2018.
81
(12)
Net Loss per Share
The following table sets forth the computation of the basic and diluted net loss per share for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 (in thousands, except
share and per share data):
Numerator:
Net loss
Denominator:
Weighted average shares used to compute net loss per share, basic and
diluted
Net loss per share, basic and diluted
$
$
2019
Years ended December 31,
2018
2017
(14,709) $
(13,987) $
(12,308)
5,644,328
(2.61) $
4,264,178
(3.28) $
4,240,060
(2.90)
The following weighted-average outstanding common stock equivalents were excluded from the computation of diluted net loss per share for the periods presented
because including them would have been antidilutive:
Stock options to purchase common stock
Unvested restricted stock units
Common stock warrants
Total
(13)
Income Taxes
2019
Years ended December 31,
2018
2017
821,464
36,981
2,435,808
3,294,253
608,547
29,698
296,296
934,541
468,122
10,888
-
479,010
The Company’s provision for income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 was $0 for all years.
The provision for income taxes differs from the amount which would result by applying the federal statutory income tax rate to pre-tax loss for the years ended December
31, 2019, 2018 and 2017. The reconciliation of the provision computed at the federal statutory rate to the Company’s provision (benefit) for income taxes was as follows
(in thousands):
Tax at federal statutory rate
State, net of federal benefit
Research and development credit
Stock-based compensation
Change in Federal Tax Rate
Other
Change in valuation allowance
Total provision for income taxes
2019
Years ended December 31,
2018
2017
(3,089) $
(414)
(225)
446
-
5
3,277
— $
(2,937) $
(455)
(236)
440
-
22
3,166
- $
(4,185)
(1,238)
(135)
344
8,172
7
(2,965)
-
$
$
82
Deferred income taxes reflect the net tax effects of temporary differences between carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the
amounts used for income tax purposes as well as net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards, net of any adjustment for unrecognized tax benefits. The components of
the net deferred income tax assets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 were as follows (in thousands):
Accrued compensation
Inventory adjustments
Depreciation and amortization
Stock-based compensation
Net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards
Other
Gross Deferred Tax Asset
Valuation Allowance
Net deferred tax asset
Years ended December 31,
2019
2018
148 $
297
98
744
23,809
11
25,107
(25,107)
- $
84
276
113
648
20,698
12
21,831
(21,831)
-
$
$
The Company has approximately $80.5 million and $58.6 million of federal and state net operating loss carryforwards, respectively, as of December 31, 2019. For tax
reporting purposes, operating loss carryforwards are available to offset future taxable income; such carryforwards expire in varying amounts beginning in 2022 and
2028 for federal and state purposes, respectively, with 2019 and 2018 federal NOLs having no expiration date.
Generally, utilization of the net operating loss carryforwards and credits may be subject to a substantial annual limitation due to the ownership change limitations
provided by section 382, which discusses limitations on NOL carryforwards and certain built-in losses following ownership changes, and section 383, which
discusses, special limitations on certain excess credits, etc., of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) of 1986, as amended and similar state provisions. Accordingly, the
Company’s ability to utilize net operating loss carryforwards may be limited, potentially significantly, as the result of such an "ownership change”. The Company
has not yet performed a comprehensive study to determine if it has undergone any ownership changes. If the Company is able to potentially utilize its net operating
loss carryforwards, it will perform a comprehensive section 382 study to determine what, if any, limitation on its ability to utilize its NOLs exists.
At December 31, 2019, the Company has federal and state research and development credits of approximately $2.4 million and $1.8 million available to offset future
federal and state income taxes, respectively. The federal tax credit carryforward expires beginning in 2028. The state credit carryforwards have no expiration.
The Company does not believe that these assets are realizable on a more-likely than not basis; therefore, the net deferred tax assets have been fully offset by a
valuation allowance. The Company did not have deferred tax liabilities as of December 31, 2019 or 2018. The net increase in the total valuation allowance for the year
ending December 31, 2019 is $3.2 million, primarily from the net operating losses generated. The net increase in the total valuation allowance for the year ending
December 31, 2018 is $3.2 million, primarily from the net operating losses generated.
No liability related to uncertain tax positions is reported in the financial statements.
The aggregate changes in the balance of gross unrecognized tax benefits were as follows (in thousands):
Balance, beginning of year
Additions based on tax positions related to the current year
Balance, end of year
Years ended December 31,
2019
2018
$
$
891 $
155
1,046 $
725
166
891
Recognition of approximately $753,000 and $636,000 of unrecognized tax benefits would impact the effective rate at December 31, 2019 and 2018 respectively, if
recognized. Contributing to the increase in amount impacting the rate in 2018 was the consideration of the federal tax rate change as a result of the Tax Act. Increases
in 2019 relate to increased research and development activity.
83
The Company is subject to U.S. federal, California, Colorado, Florida and Minnesota income taxes. Tax regulations within each jurisdiction are subject to the
interpretation of the related tax laws and regulations and require significant judgment to apply. The Company was incorporated in 2002 and is subject to U.S. federal,
state, and local tax examinations by tax authorities for all prior years.
(14)
Contingencies and Uncertainties
Contingencies - The Company may be subject to various claims, complaints, and legal actions that arise from time to time in the normal course of business. Management
is not aware of any current legal or administrative proceedings that are likely to have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial position, results of
operations, or cash flows.
Uncertainties - Prior to December 31, 2019, a new strain of coronavirus originating in Wuhan, China (the "COVID-19 outbreak”) affected the People’s Republic of China,
and the unknown risks to the international community began to escalate as the virus spread globally beyond its point of origin. Disclosures concerning the COVID-19
outbreak by the government of the People’s Republic of China were not extensive prior to December 31, 2019.
In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of COVID-19, a novel strain of Coronavirus, a global pandemic. This outbreak is causing major
disruptions to businesses and financial markets worldwide as the virus spreads. If the outbreak continues to spread, it may affect the Company’s operations and those of
third parties on which the Company relies, including causing disruptions in the supply of the Company’s product candidates and the conduct of current and planned
preclinical and clinical studies. BioCardia may need to limit operations and may experience limitations in employee resources. There are risks that the COVID-19 outbreak
may be more difficult to contain if the outbreak reaches a larger population or broader geography, in which case the risks described herein could be elevated
significantly. The extent to which the coronavirus impacts the Company’s results will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be
predicted, including new information which may emerge concerning the severity of the coronavirus and the actions to contain the coronavirus or treat its impact, among
others.
Additionally, while the potential economic impact brought by, and the duration of, a coronavirus pandemic is difficult to assess or predict, the impact of the coronavirus
on the global financial markets may reduce the Company’s ability to access capital, which could negatively impact the Company’s short-term and long-term liquidity, and
the Company’s ability to complete its preclinical and clinical studies on a timely basis, or at all. The ultimate impact of coronavirus is highly uncertain and subject to
change. The Company does not yet know the full extent of potential delays or impacts on its business, financing, preclinical and clinical trial activities or the global
economy as a whole. However, these effects could have a material, adverse impact on the Company’s liquidity, capital resources, operations and business and those of
the third parties on which BioCardia relies.
(15)
Grant Funding
In June 2016, the Company entered into a grant agreement with Maryland Technology Development Corporation ("TEDCO”). TEDCO was created by the Maryland State
Legislature in 1998 to facilitate the transfer and commercialization of technology from Maryland’s research universities and federal labs into the marketplace. TEDCO
administers the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund to promote State funded stem cell research and cures through financial assistance to public and private entities
operating within the State. Under the agreement, TEDCO has agreed to provide the Company an amount not to exceed $750,000 to be used solely to finance the costs to
conduct the research project entitled "Heart Failure Trial” over a period of three years. This agreement has been extended for another year to June 2020.
As of December 31, 2019, the Company has received approximately $750,000 under the grant which is accounted for as a reduction to research and development expenses
as the related qualifying costs are incurred. Approximately $120,000 of the qualifying costs had been incurred as of December 31, 2019. The remaining $630,000 was
recorded as grant liability on the consolidated balance sheet at December 31, 2019. The amount is recorded as a liability as the amounts are refundable, should a default
by the Company, as defined in the agreement, occur prior to incurring the qualifying costs.
(16)
Related Party Transactions
OPKO
BioCardia, Inc. (the "Company”) and OPKO Health, Inc. ("OPKO”) previously entered into a consulting agreement dated August 19, 2016, between the Company and
OPKO (the "Consulting Agreement”). The chairman and chief executive officer of OPKO is a beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding shares of the
Company’s common stock.
Pursuant to the terms of the Consulting Agreement, OPKO was to provide advisory services to the Company in support of strategic transactions, financings and other
matters as agreed between the parties from time to time. Also, in August 2016, the Company granted OPKO a ten-year option to purchase 46,553 shares of common stock,
with a 4-year vesting period and an exercise price of $16.20 per share, to OPKO as consideration for consulting services to be provided under the Consulting Agreement.
The term of the Consulting Agreement was initially for 4 years and was to have been automatically renewed for successive one-year periods.
Effective August 29, 2019, the Company and OPKO mutually agreed to terminate the Consulting Agreement without penalty or payment of any kind as the services
under the Consulting Agreement were no longer necessary. In connection with the termination of the Consulting Agreement, OPKO’s option grant was amended such
that it is unaffected by the termination of the Consulting Agreement and will continue to vest and remain outstanding for the remainder of its ten-year term unless earlier
exercised. As a result of this modification of the option grant, all future unrecognized stock-based compensation expense was remeasured and recognized in August
2019. BioCardia recorded $225,000 expense (of which $167,000 pertains to the option modification) in share-based compensation expense related to the OPKO stock
option in selling, general and administrative expense during the year ended December 31, 2019. The Company recorded $142,000 and $480,000 as share-based
compensation expense related to the OPKO stock option during the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.
Convertible Note Financing
On July 5, 2019, BioCardia entered into a note purchase agreement pursuant to which the Company issued on such date $625,000 in aggregate principal amount of
convertible promissory notes to accredited investors, a portion of which were certain of the Company’s officers and directors and a principal stockholder (or their
respective affiliates). See note 9 above.
Sales of Unregistered Common Stock and Warrants
On December 24, 2018, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with entities affiliated with BioCardia’s existing investors (the "Investors”), relating to
an offering and sale of an aggregate of 592,592 shares (as adjusted) of the Company’s common stock at a purchase price of $6.75 per share (as adjusted), and warrants to
purchase up to one-half of the number of shares of common stock sold to an Investor, up to an aggregate for all Investors of 296,296 shares (as adjusted) of common
stock, for aggregate net proceeds of $3.8 million net of $200,000 expenses. See note 9 above.
(17)
Employee Benefit Plans
The Company’s U.S. employees are eligible to participate in a retirement and savings plan that qualifies under Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code. Participating
employees may contribute up to 75% of their pretax salary, but not more than statutory limits. The Company made matching contributions of $25,000 and $26,000 during
the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively, but did not make a contribution in the year ending December 31, 2017.
84
(18)
Subsequent Events
On November 26, 2019, at BioCardia’s 2019 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, the Company’s stockholders approved a one-time repricing of certain outstanding stock
options granted to service providers (covering a total of 515,036 shares of BioCardia’s common stock with per share exercise prices between $10.05 and $97.21) under the
2002 Stock Plan and the 2016 Equity Incentive Plan. Pursuant to such approval, as of January 29, 2020 the exercise price of such options was automatically repriced to
$5.32 per share (the "Repricing”). This is being accounted for as a modification and the incremental compensation cost to be recorded in the Consolidated Statement of
Operations is not expected to be material.
In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of COVID-19, a novel strain of Coronavirus, a global pandemic. This outbreak is causing major
disruptions to businesses and financial markets worldwide as the virus spreads. The extent of the effect on the Company’s operational and financial performance will
depend on future developments, including the duration, spread and intensity of the pandemic, and governmental, regulatory and private sector responses, all of which
are uncertain and difficult to predict. Although the Company is unable to estimate the financial effect of the pandemic at this time, if the pandemic continues to evolve
into a severe worldwide health crisis, it could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, clinical development programs, clinical trials, and ability to raise
future equity or debt financing. The financial statements do not reflect any adjustments as a result of the pandemic.
ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE
None.
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
We maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports under the Exchange Act, is recorded,
processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to management,
including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating the disclosure
controls and procedures, management recognized that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of
achieving the desired control objectives, as our controls are designed to do, and management necessarily was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the risk related to
controls and procedures.
In connection with the preparation of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, as of December 31, 2019, an evaluation was performed under the supervision and with the participation of
our management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures (as
defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act). Due to the material weakness in internal control over financial reporting below, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial
Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective as of December 31, 2019. These conclusions were communicated to the Audit Committee.
Notwithstanding the existence of the material weakness described below, management has concluded that the consolidated financial statements in this Form 10-K fairly present, in
all material respects, the Company’s financial position, results of operations and cash flows for all periods and dates presented.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Other than those noted below under the section titled "Previously Identified Material Weaknesses in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting,” there were no changes to our
internal control over financial reporting identified in connection with the evaluation required by rule 13a-15(d) and 15d-15(d) of the Exchange Act that occurred during the quarter
ended December 31, 2019 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange
Act) to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of our financial reporting and the preparation of consolidated financial statements for external purposes in
accordance with U.S. GAAP.
Management assessed our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019. Management based its assessment on criteria established in Internal Control—
Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework). Management’s assessment included evaluation of
elements such as the design and operating effectiveness of key financial reporting controls, process documentation, accounting policies, and our overall control environment.
Based on this assessment, management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of December 31, 2019 to provide reasonable assurance
regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of consolidated financial statements for external reporting purposes in accordance with U.S. GAAP. We reviewed
the results of management’s assessment with the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors.
85
Previously Identified Material Weaknesses in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
We previously identified a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting as of September 30, 2019. The material weakness resulted from a lack of sufficient technical
resources to appropriately perform effective and timely review of the accounting for and disclosure of complex non-routine transactions, including the adoption of new accounting
standards. This material weakness remains unremediated as of December 31, 2019.
We are implementing measures designed to improve our internal control over financial reporting and remediate the material weakness, including the following:
•
•
we are enhancing our control processes for identifying and reviewing non-routine transactions, including formalized reviews of these transactions by senior
accounting management and more robust documentation of the related conclusions and required accounting; and
we are engaging external consultants to provide expertise and assistance sufficient to evaluate, resolve and document the accounting for complex non-routine
transactions.
Inherent Limitations on Effectiveness of Controls
Our management, including the CEO and CFO, does not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures or our internal control over financial reporting will prevent or detect all
errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well-designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be
met. The design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Further, because
of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that misstatements due to error or fraud will not occur or that all control
issues and instances of fraud, if any, have been detected. The design of any system of controls is based in part on certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and
there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions. Projections of any evaluation of the effectiveness of
controls to future periods are subject to risks. Over time, controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions or deterioration in the degree of compliance with
policies or procedures.
ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
None.
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Board of Directors
PART III
Our business affairs are managed under the direction of our board of directors, which is currently composed of eight members. All of our directors other than Peter Altman are
independent within the meaning of the listing standards of the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC. Our board of directors is divided into three staggered classes of directors. At each
annual meeting of stockholders, a class of directors will be elected for a three-year term to succeed the same class whose term is then expiring.
86
The following table sets forth the names, ages as of December 31, 2019, and certain other information for each of the directors with terms expiring at the 2020 Annual Meeting (who
are also nominees for election as a director at the 2020 Annual Meeting) and for each of the continuing members of our board of directors:
Directors with Terms expiring at the Annual
Class
Age
Position
Meeting
Peter Altman, Ph.D.
Fernando L. Fernandez(1)
Continuing Directors
Jim Allen(3)
Andrew Blank(1)(2)
Richard Pfenniger, Jr.(2)
Richard Krasno, Ph.D.(3)
Jay M. Moyes(1)(2)
Simon H. Stertzer, M.D.(3)
I
I
II
II
II
III
III
III
53
58
64
63
64
77
65
83
President, Chief Executive Officer and Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Director
Since(4)
Current
Term
Expires
2002
2016
2019
2019
2016
2016
2011
2002
2020
2020
2021
2021
2021
2022
2022
2022
(1) Member of the audit committee
(2) Member of the compensation committee
(3) Member of the nominating and corporate governance committee
(4)
Service on our board of directors prior to 2016 noted in the narrative below includes service with BioCardia Lifesciences, Inc., the company we merged with in our reverse
merger transaction in October 2016.
Business Experience of Directors
Peter Altman, Ph.D. has served as our President and Chief Executive Officer since 2002, where he has global responsibility for the development, manufacture and marketing
of our therapeutic candidates and products. He was founding Chief Executive Officer from 1999 to 2003 and board member of CareDx from 1999 to 2014, a developer of a diagnostics
to be used in chronic inflammatory diseases, including cardiac transplantation. He was also founding Chief Executive Officer for Lumen Therapeutics from 2004 to 2005, an early-
stage pharmaceutical company. He has 33 years of experience in life science research and product development, is named inventor in more than 50 U.S. patents, and has authored
40 scientific publications. Dr. Altman currently serves as a director on the board of directors of Oncocyclist Biotech, since 2018. He received his Ph.D. in
Bioengineering/Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the University of California, San Francisco and University of California, Berkeley, his Management of Technology certificate from
the Walter A. Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, and both his Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the
Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Dr. Altman has been elected Fellow of the American Heart Association.
We believe that Dr. Altman possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors, including his extensive experience in the
biotechnology, medical device and diagnostic industries and the operational insight and expertise he has accumulated as our President and Chief Executive Officer.
87
Fernando L. Fernandez was appointed to our board of directors in October 2016. Mr. Fernandez has served as the Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer of
United Data Technologies, an information technology company, since November 2016. Mr. Fernandez served as the Market Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Care
Delivery segment of Humana, Inc., a health and well-being company, from December 2012 to October 2016. From June 2004 to December 2012, Mr. Fernandez served as the Senior
Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Continucare Corporation, a medical care service company. He currently serves as a director for South Florida Business
Forum since January 2018. Mr. Fernandez spent his early career in public accounting and finance functions at other companies, including Whitman Education Group, Inc., Frost-
Nevada LP, and PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP. Mr. Fernandez holds a Bachelor of Business Administration, Accounting from the University of Miami, and is a CPA.
We believe that Mr. Fernandez possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors, including his expertise in accounting and
finance.
Jim Allen was appointed to our board of directors effective October 1, 2019. Mr. Allen is Chief Executive Officer and President of Sea Star, Inc., a real estate development
company, and has served in that capacity since he founded the company in February 1989. Mr. Allen has founded multiple companies from concept to full operation involving the
development of various technologies, patents, manufacturing processes, and sales, distribution and maintenance programs. Six of his ventures have resulted in sales to publicly-
traded companies. One of his companies was sold to Roper Technologies, Inc. and he is currently serving in a consulting capacity for TransCore Atlantic LLC, a Roper
Technologies, Inc. company. He is a named inventor on 29 issued and pending patents. Mr. Allen has studied business at Troy University and Auburn University at
Montgomery.
We believe that Mr. Allen possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors, including his operational expertise and extensive
track record of successful business ventures.
Andrew Scott Blank was appointed to our board of directors effective October 1, 2019. Mr. Blank is President of National Brands, Inc., an investment group that was one of
the largest Anheuser-Bush beer distributors prior to divesture of those operations, and has served in that capacity since March 2, 1993. Mr. Blank also currently serves as
President of WareITis Technologies, developer of one of the foremost enterprise level content management software suites called Records Studio, President of Archive America,
one of the country’s largest family-owned document storage firms, and President of Seaboard Warehouse Terminals, a provider of nationwide third-party logistics services. Mr.
Blank also currently serves on the board of directors of Neumentum, Inc. Mr. Blank holds a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Miami.
We believe that Mr. Blank possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors, including his operational expertise and extensive
track record in the management of fast-growth companies.
Richard C. Pfenniger, Jr. was appointed to our board of directors in October 2016. From May 2014 to February 2015, Mr. Pfenniger served as Interim Chief Executive Officer
of Vein Clinics of America, Inc., a medical group specializing in the treatment of vein disease. From January 2013 to May 2013, Mr. Pfenniger served as Interim Chief Executive
Officer of IntegraMed America, Inc., an operator of the largest U.S. network of fertility centers. From October 2003 until October 2011, when it was acquired by Metropolitan Health,
Inc., he served as Chairman of the board of directors and President and Chief Executive Officer of Continucare Corporation, a provider of primary care physician and practice
management services. Prior thereto, Mr. Pfenniger served as Chief Executive Officer of Whitman Education, Inc. from 1997 to 2003 and as Chief Operating Officer of IVAX
Corporation from 1994 to 1997 after having served as the Senior Vice President – Legal Affairs from 1989 to 1994. Mr. Pfenniger currently serves as a director on the board of
directors of OPKO Health, Inc., a pharmaceutical and medical diagnostic company, since 2008; on TransEnterix, Inc., a medical device company, since 2005; on GP Strategies, Inc., a
corporate training and performance improvement company, since 2005; and on IntegraMed America, Inc. since 2012. Mr. Pfenniger currently serves on the boards of nonprofits
Town Square Neighborhood Development Corporation and the Frost Museum of Science. Mr. Pfenniger holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Florida and a Bachelor
of Business Administration degree from Florida Atlantic University.
88
We believe that Mr. Pfenniger possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors, including his expertise with public companies
and the healthcare industry.
Richard Krasno, Ph.D. was appointed to our board of directors in October 2016. Dr. Krasno has served as a director of OPKO Health, Inc. since 2017. Dr. Krasno previously
served as a director on the board of Ladenburg Thalmann from 2006 until 2020 and on the board of Castle Brands, Inc. from 2014 until 2019. Dr. Krasno served as the executive
director of the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust from 1999 to 2014 and, from 1999 to 2010, as president of the four affiliated funds. Prior to that, Dr. Krasno was the president of
the Monterey Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California. From 2004 to 2012, Dr. Krasno also served as a director of the University of North Carolina Health Care
System and served as chairman of the board of directors from 2009 to 2012. From 1981 to 1998, he served as president and chief executive officer of the Institute of International
Education in New York. He also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Education in Washington, D.C. from 1979 to 1980. Mr. Krasno holds a Bachelor of Science from the
University of Illinois and a Ph.D. from Stanford.
We believe that Mr. Krasno possesses specific attributes including his qualifications and skills, including financial literacy and expertise, his managerial experience and the
knowledge and experience he has attained through his service as a director of publicly-traded corporations, which qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors.
Jay M. Moyes has served on our board of directors since 2011. He has served on the board of directors of Puma Biotechnologies from April 2012 to present, on the board of
directors of Achieve Life Sciences from 2018 to the present, on the board of directors of Predictive Technology Group, Inc. from February 2019 until December 2019 and on the
board of directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee of Osiris Therapeutics, a biosurgical company, from May 2006 until December 2017. He also served as a member of the
board of directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee of Integrated Diagnostics, a privately held molecular diagnostics company, from 2011 to 2016. From 2012 to 2014, Mr.
Moyes served as a member of the board of directors of Amedica Corporation, a publicly traded orthopaedics company, and as Chief Financial Officer from 2013 to 2014. From 2008
to 2009, Mr. Moyes served as Chief Financial Officer of CareDx, a publicly traded molecular diagnostics company. Prior to that, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Myriad
Genetics, Inc., a publicly held healthcare diagnostics company, from June 1996 until his retirement in November 2007, and as Vice President of Finance from July 1993 until July
2005. From 1991 to 1993, Mr. Moyes served as Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Genmark, a privately held genetics company. Mr. Moyes held various
positions with the accounting firm of KPMG from 1979 to 1991. He also served as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Utah Life Science Association from 1999 to 2006. Mr.
Moyes holds a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Utah, a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Weber State University, and was formerly a Certified Public
Accountant.
We believe that Mr. Moyes possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our board of directors, including his extensive background in finance and
accounting in the life sciences industry.
Simon H. Stertzer, M.D. is Chairman of our board of directors and has served on our board of directors since 2002. Dr. Stertzer is a Professor of Medicine, Emeritus at the
Stanford University School of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine. He was appointed Professor of Medicine at Stanford University in 1998, and became Professor
Emeritus at Stanford University in 2011. Dr. Stertzer serves on the medical advisory board of Avenda Health, a private prostate cancer therapy company, and was appointed in June
2019. Dr. Stertzer is managing member of Windrock Enterprises, LLC, a real estate investment company, since May 1999. He has served as a Director of Frontiere Algorithmic
Design LLC, a software development company, from June, 2014. Dr. Stertzer was a founder and board member of Arterial Vascular Engineering, an angioplasty balloon and stent
company that went public in 1996 and was subsequently acquired by Medtronic. He also serves as Director of AVIA App LLC since 2015. Dr. Stertzer received his Doctor of
Medicine degree from New York University. He also earned a Certificat de Physiologie from University of Paris (Sorbonne) and had a fellowship at New York University Hospital in
Cardiovascular Disease. Dr. Stertzer received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities from Union College.
We believe that Dr. Stertzer possesses specific attributes that qualify him to serve as Chairman of our board of directors, including his historical association with our
company and his expertise in interventional cardiology and the operational experience he has accumulated in the life sciences industry.
Director Independence
In accordance with the listing requirements of the NASDAQ Stock Market and our Corporate Governance Guidelines, a majority of our Board must be composed of independent
directors. Our Board has determined that all of our directors, other than Dr. Altman, qualify as "independent” directors in accordance with listing requirements of The NASDAQ
Stock Market, or NASDAQ, and Rule 10A-3 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the "Exchange Act.” Dr. Altman is not considered independent because he is
an employee of BioCardia.
89
Board Leadership Structure
Board Structure. Our board of directors has eight authorized seats divided into three classes (Class I, Class II and Class III) with staggered three-year terms. Two Class II directors
are to be elected at the 2020 Annual Meeting to serve a three-year term expiring at the 2023 Annual Meeting of stockholders or until their respective successors have been elected
and qualified. The Class II and Class III directors will continue to serve their respective terms until the respective 2021 and 2022 Annual Meetings of stockholders.
Board Leadership Structure. Our board of directors does not have a policy on whether or not the role of the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman should be separate or, if it is to
be separate, whether the Chairman should be selected from the non-employee directors or be an employee. Currently, we operate with Dr. Altman serving as a director and our
President and Chief Executive Officer and Dr. Stertzer serving as our Chairman. We believe that the separation of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer positions suit the
talents, expertise and experience that each of Drs. Altman and Stertzer bring to the Company.
Board Committees. Our board of directors has established an audit committee, a compensation committee and a nominating and corporate governance committee. The composition
and responsibilities of each of the committees of our board of directors is described below. Members will serve on these committees until their resignation or until as otherwise
determined by our board of directors.
Family Relationships
There are no family relationships among any of our directors or executive officers.
Board Committees
Our board of directors has established an audit committee, a compensation committee and a nominating and corporate governance committee. The composition and responsibilities
of each of the committees of our board of directors is described below. Members will serve on these committees until their resignation or until as otherwise determined by our
board of directors.
Audit Committee
Our audit committee currently consists of Jay Moyes, who is the chair of the committee, Fernando Fernandez and Andrew Blank, each of whom are independent for Audit
Committee purposes under the requirements of NASDAQ and the SEC rules and regulations. Each of Mr. Moyes and Mr. Fernandez is an "audit committee financial expert” as the
term is defined under SEC regulations. The audit committee operates under a written charter. The functions of the audit committee include:
•
•
•
•
overseeing the engagement of our independent registered accounting firm;
reviewing our audited financial statements and discussing them with the independent registered accounting firm and our management;
meeting with the independent registered accounting firm and our management to consider the adequacy of our internal controls; and
reviewing our financial plans, reporting recommendations to our full board of directors for approval and authorizing actions.
Both our independent registered accounting firm and internal financial personnel regularly meet with our audit committee and have unrestricted access to the audit committee.
Our audit committee operates under a written charter adopted by our board of directors, a current copy of which is available on the Corporate Governance portion of our website at
investors.biocardia.com.
Compensation Committee
Our compensation committee currently consists of Richard Pfenniger, who is the chair of the committee, Jay Moyes and Andrew Blank, each of whom are independent in
accordance with the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC standards. Each member of our compensation committee is also a non-employee director, as defined pursuant to Rule 16b-3
promulgated under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act”). The compensation committee operates under a written charter. The functions of the
compensation committee include:
•
reviewing and, if deemed appropriate, recommending to our board of directors policies, practices and procedures relating to the compensation of our directors,
officers and other managerial employees and the establishment and administration of our employee benefit plans;
90
•
•
determining or recommending to the board of directors the compensation of our executive officers; and
advising and consulting with our officers regarding managerial personnel and development.
Our compensation committee operates under a written charter adopted by our board of directors, a current copy of which is available on the Corporate Governance portion of our
website at investors.biocardia.com.
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Our nominating and corporate governance committee consists of Simon Stertzer, who is the chair of the committee, Richard Krasno and Jim Allen, each of whom are independent in
accordance with the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC standards. The nomination committee operates under a written charter. The functions of the nominating and corporate
governance include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
establishing standards for service on our board of directors;
identifying individuals qualified to become members of our board of directors and recommending director candidates for election or re-election to our
board;
considering and making recommendations to our board of directors regarding the size and composition of the board of directors, committee composition
and structure and procedures affecting directors;
reviewing compliance with relevant corporate government guidelines;
reviewing governance-related stockholder proposals and recommending Board responses; and
reviewing actual and potential conflicts of interest of Board members and corporate officer, other than related-party transactions reviewed by the Audit
Committee, and approving or prohibiting any involvement of such persons in matters that may involve a conflict of interest or taking of a corporate
opportunity.
Our nominating and corporate governance committee operates under a written charter adopted by our Board of Directors, a current copy of which is available on the Corporate
Governance portion of our website at investors.biocardia.com.
Non-Employee Director Compensation
Cash and Equity Compensation
We compensate non-employee members of the board of directors. Directors who are also employees do not receive cash or equity compensation for service on the board of
directors in addition to compensation payable for their service as our employees. The non-employee members of our board of directors are reimbursed for travel, lodging and other
reasonable expenses incurred in attending board of directors or committee meetings. Our directors typically receive equity grants annually at the fair market value of our common
stock at the time of grant under our 2016 Plan.
In January 2017 our compensation policy for non-employee directors was established. The cash and equity components of our compensation policy for non-employee directors are
set forth below:
Position
Base Fee
Chairperson Fee
Chairman of the Board
Audit Committee
Compensation Committee
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Committee Member Fee
Audit Committee
Compensation Committee
Nominating and Corporate governance
Equity Grant
44,000
$
Annual Cash
Retainer
40,000 $
25,000
15,000
10,000
7,500
7,500
5,000
3,750
91
Under our non-employee director compensation program, each non-employee director received an initial equity award in January of 2017 of either an option to purchase 2,472
shares of common stock or receive 1,703 restricted stock units which, in either case, vest over three years upon the anniversary of the grant date, subject to continued service
through the vesting date. We expect additional annual equity grants may be made to our non-employee directors and that compensation for our non-employee directors will be
competitive at the 50th percentile of our peer group. In July 2018, the board elected to defer quarterly payment of the cash portion of director compensation until the Company has
raised sufficient financing.
Compensation for 2019
The following table sets forth summary information concerning the compensation awarded to, paid to, or earned by the non-employee members of our board of directors for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2019:
Director
Fernando L. Fernandez
Richard Krasno, Ph.D.
Jay M. Moyes
Richard C. Pfenniger, Jr.
Thomas Quertermous, M.D.(3)
Simon H. Stertzer, M.D.
Allan R. Tessler(3)
Jim Allen
Andrew Blank
Fees
Earned or
Paid in
Cash($)(1)
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
47,500.00 $
43,750.00 $
58,125.00 $
46,250.00 $
38,812.50 $
76,250.00 $
41,250.00 $
10,937.50
13,125.00
Stock
Awards
($)(2)
Option
Awards
($)(2)
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
— $
— $
— $
— $
— $
— $
— $
— $
— $
Total ($)
47,500.00
43,750.00
58,125.00
46,250.00
38,812.50
76,250.00
41,250.00
10,937.50
13,125.00
(1)
(2)
(3)
This amount reflects the amount of cash earned pursuant to our non-employee director compensation policy described above. No cash was paid to any director in 2019
due to the board’s election to defer payment of any cash portion of director compensation until we have raised sufficient funding.
Directors did not receive equity grants in 2019 under our policy described above.
On September 25, 2019, pursuant to shareholder requests for appointments to the board of directors, the board of directors accepted offers to resign from each of Thomas
Quertermous, M.D. and Allan R. Tessler and appointed Jim Allen and Andrew Blank to fill these vacancies, effective October 1, 2019.
The following table lists all outstanding equity awards held by our non-employee directors as of December 31, 2019.
Name
Fernando L. Fernandez
Richard Krasno, Ph.D.
Jay M. Moyes
Richard C. Pfenniger, Jr.
Thomas Quertermous, M.D.
Simon H. Stertzer, M.D.
Allan R. Tessler
Jim Allen
Andrew Blank
92
Aggregate
Number of
Stock Options
Outstanding
as of
December 31,
2019
Aggregate
Number of
Stock Awards
Outstanding
as of
December 31,
2019
—
—
5,931 (2)
—
3,921 (3)
12,218 (4)
1,508 (5)
—
—
567 (1)
567 (1)
—
567 (1)
—
—
567 (1)
—
—
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
Includes 567 shares subject to a restricted stock award that vested on January 13, 2020.
Includes (i) 4,283 shares subject to an option, which are fully vested and immediately exercisable, (ii) 824 shares subject to an option that vested January 13, 2019,
and (iii) 824 shares subject to an option that vested on January 13, 2020.
Includes (i) 2,273 shares subject to an option, which are fully vested and immediately exercisable, (ii) 824 shares subject to an option that vested January 13, 2019,
and (iii) 824 shares subject to an option that vested on January 13, 2020.
Includes (i) 10,570 shares subject to an option which are fully vested and immediately exercisable, (ii) 824 shares subject to an option that vested January 13, 2019,
and (iii) 824 shares subject to an option that vested on January 13, 2020.
Includes 1,508 shares subject to an option, which are fully vested and immediately exercisable.
On September 25, 2019, pursuant to shareholder requests for appointments to the board of directors, the board of directors accepted offers to resign from each of
Thomas Quertermous, M.D. and Allan R. Tessler and appointed Jim Allen and Andrew Blank to fill these vacancies, effective October 1, 2019.
Code of Ethics
We have adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that applies to all of our (1) officers, (2) employees (including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer,
principal accounting officer or controller and other employees who perform financial or accounting functions), and (3) agents and representatives, including our independent
directors and consultants, who are not employees of ours, with regard to their BioCardia-related activities. Our code of business conduct and ethics is available on our website at
www.biocardia.com under the heading "Corporate Governance” under the section titled "Investors”. We will post on this section of our website any amendment to our code of
business conduct and ethics, as well as any waivers of our code of business conduct and ethics, that are required to be disclosed by the rules of the SEC.
Executive Officers
The following table identifies certain information about our executive officers as of December 31, 2019. Officers are elected by our board of directors to hold office until their
successors are elected and qualified.
Name
Peter Altman, Ph.D.
Henricus Duckers, M.D., Ph.D., FESC
David McClung
Phil Pesta
Age
53
52
56
53
Position
President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director
Chief Medical Officer
Chief Financial Officer
Vice President of Operations
The service of our executive officers prior to 2016 noted in the narrative below includes service with BioCardia Lifesciences, Inc., the company we merged with in the reverse
merger transaction in October 2016. For a brief biography of Dr. Altman, please see "Board of Directors and Corporate Governance−Nominees for Director.”
Henricus Duckers has served as our Chief Medical Officer since 2016. From 2013 to 2016, Dr. Duckers was the Chair of Regenerative Medicine and the Head of R&D in the
Department of Cardiology and Pulmonology at the University Medical Center Utrecht. He has over 20 years of experience in cardiovascular research, is named inventor in ten U.S.
patents, and has authored 140 scientific publications in cardiology, neurology and cell biology. Dr. Duckers studied Medicine and Pharmacy at the University of Utecht, as well as
Management in Health Care (Univ. Rotterdam). From 1992 to 1993 he completed his Ph.D. at the Rudolf Magnus Institute for NeuroScience, Cum Laude, and obtained a registration
as clinical pharmacologist. He was trained as an interventional cardiologist at the Thoraxcenter Rotterdam, where, he, among other notable achievements, also supervised the
molecular cardiology program.
David McClung has served as our Chief Financial Officer since September 2017 and has been with the Company since September 2013, also serving as Vice President of
Finance from March 2016 to August 2017 and as Senior Director of Finance & Controller from September 2013 to February 2016. Mr. McClung has more than 20 years of finance
and accounting experience in publicly and privately financed organizations, including startup enterprises, large public companies and middle-market businesses. Before joining our
company, Mr. McClung served as Director of Finance and Controller at Sonitus Medical, Inc., a privately-held manufacturer of an FDA cleared prosthetic hearing device for the
treatment of single-sided deafness and conductive hearing loss, from June 2011 to August 2013. Prior to that, Mr. McClung served as Controller at NextWave Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
a specialty pharmaceutical company acquired by Pfizer, Inc., from April 2010 to June 2011. Mr. McClung spent his early career in public accounting and finance functions at other
companies, including Matson Navigation, Inc., The Clorox Company and KPMG LLP. Mr. McClung earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting from Georgia State University,
graduating with honors. He is an actively licensed CPA and member of the AICPA and the California Society of CPAs.
93
Phil Pesta has served as our Vice President of Operations since July 2011. Mr. Pesta has more than 20 years of experience in the medical device industry, primarily in
manufacturing and operations roles. Before joining our company, Mr. Pesta was with Boston Scientific. He was most recently responsible for developing the operations transfer
plan for the divestiture of their neurovascular division to Stryker Corporation. Prior to that, Mr. Pesta held simultaneous roles as Director of Engineering at Boston Scientific’s
electrophysiology division and Plant Manager at the embolic protection division. Earlier in his career, Mr. Pesta held positions in project management and manufacturing
engineering at other companies, including Conceptus, Novare Surgical Systems, Medtronic Anneurx and Modified Polymer Components. He has facilitated the commercial launch
of multiple products and is listed as an inventor on three U.S. patents. Mr. Pesta earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in General Design Studies from San Jose State University.
Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports
Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires that our executive officers and directors, and persons who own more than 10% of our common stock, file reports of ownership and
changes of ownership with the SEC. Such directors, executive officers and 10% stockholders are required by SEC regulation to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) forms they
file.
SEC regulations require us to identify in this Annual Report on Form 10-K anyone who filed a required report late during the most recent fiscal year. Based on our review of
forms we received, or written representations from reporting persons stating that they were not required to file these forms, we believe that during our fiscal year ended December
31, 2019, all Section 16(a) filing requirements were satisfied on a timely basis, except as previously reported by the Company, and with respect to the following failures to timely file:
(i) two Form 4’s for Peter Altman (filed with the SEC on September 24, 2018 and March 27, 2020) to report three transactions, (ii) a Form 4 for Jay Moyes (filed with the SEC on
September 26, 2018) to report one transaction, (iii) a Form 4 for Simon Stertzer (filed with the SEC on September 26, 2018) to report one transaction, (iv) a Form 4 for Thomas
Quertermous (filed with the SEC on September 26, 2018) to report one transaction, (v) a Form 4 for Allan Tessler (filed with the SEC on September 26, 2018) to report one
transaction, (vi) a Form 4 for Richard Krasno (filed with the SEC on September 26, 2018) to report one transaction, (vii) a Form 4 for Richard Pfenniger (filed with the SEC on
September 26, 2018) to report one transaction, (viii) a Form 4 for Fernando Fernandez (filed with the SEC on September 26, 2018) to report one transaction; (ix) a Form 4 for Henricus
Duckers (filed with the SEC on March 27, 2020) to report two transactions; (x) a Form 4 for Phil Pesta (filed with the SEC March 27, 2020) to report two transactions; (xi) a Form 4 for
David McClung (filed with the SEC on March 27, 2020) to report two transactions; (xii) a Form 3 for Andrew Blank (filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020); and (xiii) a Form 3 for
Jim Allen (filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020).
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
The director compensation information provided in Item 10 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K is hereby incorporated by reference in this Item 11.
Fiscal 2019 Summary Compensation Table
The following table sets forth total compensation paid to our named executive officers, who are comprised of (1) our principal executive officer and (2) our next two highest
compensated executive officers other than the principal executive officer.
Name and Principal Position
Peter Altman, Ph.D.
President, Chief Executive Officer, and
Director
David McClung
Chief Financial Officer
Henricus Duckers
Chief Medical Officer
Year
2019
2018
2019
2018
2019
2018
Salary ($)
Bonus ($)
362,700.00
360,000.00
302,250.00
300,000.00
350,000.00
350,000.00
—
—
—
—
—
—
94
Stock
Awards
($)(1)
57,600.00 (2)
—
30,000.00 (2)
—
14,000.00 (2)
—
Option
Awards
($)(1)
257,200.98 (4)
All Other
Compensation
($)
742,000.00 (3)
102,244.76 (4)
294,982.10 (3)
107,945.94 (4)
311,417.40 (3)
—
—
—
Total ($)
677,500.98
1,102,000.00
434,494.76
594,982.10
471,945.94
661,417.40
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
This amount reflects the aggregate grant fair value computed in accordance with ASC Topic 718. The assumptions that we used to calculate these amounts are
discussed in Notes 2 and 13 to our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019. The fair value of certain options outstanding as of
December 31, 2019 does not give effect to the Repricing, which occurred as of January 29, 2020 and modified the exercise price of each such option to $5.32 per share.
This amount was earned in the fiscal year ending December 31, 2018, but was not paid out as RSUs until 2019. Such RSUs vested on January 29, 2020.
The option vests and becomes exercisable in equal installments over forty-eight months on each monthly anniversary of February 1, 2018.
The option vests and becomes exercisable in equal installments over forty-eight months on each monthly anniversary of September 1, 2019.
Employment Agreements
Peter Altman
We have not entered into an employment agreement with Dr. Altman. Accordingly, he is employed on an at-will basis. Dr. Altman’s current annual base salary is $370,800.00
and he is eligible for an annual bonus equal to 40% of his base salary.
Dr. Altman is also eligible for equity compensation under our equity compensation plans, as determined from time to time by the compensation committee of our board of
directors.
David McClung
We have not entered into an employment agreement with Mr. McClung. Accordingly, he is employed on an at-will basis. Mr. McClung’s current annual base salary is
$309,000.00 and he is eligible for an annual bonus equal to 25% of his base salary.
Mr. McClung is also eligible for equity compensation under our equity compensation plans, as determined from time to time by the compensation committee of our board of
directors.
Henricus Duckers
We have not entered into an employment agreement with Dr. Duckers. Accordingly, he is employed on an at-will basis. Dr. Duckers’ current annual base salary is $350,000.00
and he is eligible for an annual bonus equal to 25% of his base salary.
Dr. Duckers is also eligible for equity compensation under our equity compensation plans, as determined from time to time by the compensation committee of our board of
directors.
Potential Payments on Termination or Change of Control
We have entered into change of control and severance agreements with each of our named executive officers. Under each of these agreements, if, within the period three months
prior to and 12 months following a "change of control” (such period, the "change in control period”), we terminate the employment of the applicable employee other than for
"cause,” death or disability, or the employee resigns for "good reason” (as such terms are defined in the employee’s change of control and severance agreement) and, within 60
days following the employee’s termination, the employee executes an irrevocable separation agreement and release of claims, the employee is entitled to receive (i) a lump sum
payment equal to the following percentage of the employee’s annual base salary: 150% for Dr. Altman, 100% for Mr. McClung and 100% for Dr. Duckers, (ii) a lump sum payment
equal to the following percentage of the employee’s target annual bonus: 150% for Dr. Altman, 100% for Mr. McClung and 100% for Dr. Duckers, (iii) reimbursement of premiums to
maintain group health insurance continuation benefits pursuant to "COBRA” for employee and employee’s dependents for 18 months for Dr. Altman, 12 months for Mr. McClung
and 12 months for Dr. Duckers, and (iv) accelerated vesting as to 100% of the employee’s outstanding unvested equity awards.
95
Additionally, under each of these agreements, if, outside of the change in control period, we terminate the employment of the applicable employee other than for cause, death or
disability, or the employee resigns for good reason and, within 60 days following the employee’s termination, the employee executes an irrevocable separation agreement and
release of claims, the employee is entitled to receive (i) a lump sum payment equal to the following percentage of the employee’s annual base salary: 100% for Dr. Altman, 50% for
Mr. McClung and 50% for Dr. Duckers, (ii) reimbursement of premiums to maintain group health insurance continuation benefits pursuant to "COBRA” for employee and
employee’s dependents for 12 months for Dr. Altman, 6 months for Mr. McClung and 6 months for Dr. Duckers, and (iii) the employee’s outstanding unvested equity awards will
vest as to an additional 24 months for Dr. Altman, 12 months for Mr. McClung and 12 months for Dr. Duckers.
Pursuant to the change of control and severance agreements, in the event any payment or benefit provided to our named executive officers would be subject to the excise tax
imposed by Section 4999 of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended, or the Code (as a result of a payment being classified as a parachute payment under Section 280G of the
Code), the applicable employee will receive such payment as would entitle him to receive the greatest after-tax benefit, even if it means that we pay him a lower aggregate payment
so as to minimize or eliminate the potential excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code.
96
Outstanding Equity Awards at 2019 Year-End
The following table sets forth summary information regarding the outstanding equity awards for each of the named executive officers as of December 31, 2019:
Option Awards(1)(2)
Stock Awards(2)
Name
Peter Altman
David McClung
Henricus Duckers
Grant Date
4/10/2010
7/5/2014
8/19/2016
2/1/2018
8/27/2019
8/27/2019
6/23/2014
8/9/2016
8/19/2016
2/1/2018
8/27/2019
8/27/2019
8/9/2016
8/19/2016
2/1/2018
8/27/2019
8/27/2019
Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options (#)
Exercisable
Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options (#)
Unexercisable
Option
Exercise
Price ($)(3)
754 (4)
35,290 (4)
112,038 (5)
22,222 (5)
7,401 (9)
—
2,514 (4)
7,024 (6)
6,168 (7)
8,834 (5)
2,942 (9)
—
15,732 (8)
11,754 (7)
9,327 (5)
3,106 (9)
—
—
—
22,407
22,222
63,653
—
—
149
1,233
8,834
25,304
—
2,247
2,351
9,326
26,715
—
16.20
16.20
16.20
23.40
5.00
—
16.20
16.20
16.20
23.40
5.00
—
16.20
16.20
23.40
5.00
—
Number of
Shares or
Units of Stock
That Have
Not Vested (#)
Market Value
of Shares or
Units of Stock
That Have
Not Vested
($))(9)
—
—
—
—
—
12,126 (10)
—
—
—
—
—
6,315 (10)
—
—
—
—
2,947 (10)
—
—
—
—
—
44,623.68
—
—
—
—
—
23,239.20
—
—
—
—
10,844.96
Option
Expiration
Date
4/10/2020
7/5/2024
8/19/2026
2/1/2028
8/27/2029
—
6/23/2024
8/9/2026
8/19/2026
2/1/2028
8/27/2029
—
8/9/2026
8/19/2026
2/1/2028
8/27/2029
—
(1)
Information for this table is depicted on an award-by-award basis unless the exercise price and expiration date are identical.
(2) Where applicable, share numbers have been adjusted to reflect each of the Company’s reverse stock splits, which became effective on November 2, 2017 and May 7, 2019,
respectively.
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
This column represents the fair value of a share of our common stock on the date of grant, as determined by our board of directors. The weighted average exercise price of
outstanding options as of December 31, 2019 does not give effect to the Repricing, which occurred as of January 29, 2020 and modified the exercise price of each such
option to $5.32 per share.
This option is fully vested and immediately exercisable.
This option vests and becomes exercisable in equal monthly installments over four years from the grant date.
This option vests and becomes exercisable in equal monthly installments over four years beginning April 28, 2016.
This option vests and becomes exercisable in equal monthly installments over four years beginning November 24, 2016.
This option vests and becomes exercisable in equal monthly installments over four years from the grant date, subject to a one-year cliff.
(9) Amounts shown are valued at the closing price of our common stock on December 31, 2019 of $3.68 per share.
(10) Restricted stock unit awards vested on January 29, 2020.
97
401(k) Savings Plan
We maintain a tax-qualified retirement plan, or our 401(k) plan, that provides eligible employees with an opportunity to save for retirement on a tax-advantaged basis. Eligible
employees are able to participate in our 401(k) plan as of the first day of the month following the date they meet our 401(k) plan’s eligibility requirements, and participants are able
to defer up to 100% of their eligible compensation subject to applicable annual Internal Revenue Code limits. All participants’ interests in their deferrals are 100% vested when
contributed. Our 401(k) plan permits us to make matching contributions and discretionary contributions to eligible participants.
ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance with the rules of the SEC and generally includes voting or investment power with respect to securities. In accordance with SEC
rules, shares of our common stock which may be acquired upon exercise of stock options which are currently exercisable or which become exercisable within 60 days of December
31, 2019 are deemed beneficially owned by the holders of such options and are deemed outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage of ownership of such person, but
are not treated as outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage of ownership of any other person.
As of December 31, 2019 there were 6,825,183 shares of common stock outstanding. The following table sets forth information with respect to the beneficial ownership of our
common stock as of December 31, 2019, by (i) each stockholder known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our common stock (our only class of voting securities),
(ii) each of our directors and executive officers, and (iii) all of our directors and executive officers as a group. To the best of our knowledge, except as otherwise indicated, each of
the persons named in the table has sole voting and investment power with respect to the shares of our common stock beneficially owned by such person, except to the extent such
power may be shared with a spouse. To our knowledge, none of the shares listed below are held under a voting trust or similar agreement, except as noted. Other than the Merger,
to our knowledge, there is no arrangement, including any pledge by any person of our securities or any of our parents, the operation of which may at a subsequent date result in a
change in control of the Company.
Unless otherwise noted below, the address of each person listed on the table is c/o BioCardia, Inc., 125 Shoreway Road, Suite B, San Carlos, CA 94070.
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner
5% Stockholders:
Entities affiliated with Stertzer Family Trust(2)
Frost Gamma Investments Trust(3)
Jim Allen(4)
Entities affiliated with Gerald P. Peters(5)
Sabiah Ltd. (6)
Named Executive Officers and Directors:
Jim Allen(4)
Andrew Blank(7)
Peter Altman, Ph.D.(8)
Henricus Duckers(9)
Fernando L. Fernandez(10)
Richard Krasno(11)
David McClung(12)
Jay M. Moyes(13)
Richard C. Pfenniger, Jr. (14)
Simon H. Stertzer, M.D.(2)
All directors and executive officers as a group (11 people)
* Represents beneficial ownership of less than 1%.
98
Number of
Shares
Beneficially
Owned(1)
Percentage
of Beneficial
Ownership
1,521,563
1,541,700
1,016,513
592,473
583,937
1,016,513
233,334
420,726
59,736
6,315
6,315
68,227
9,892
11,870
1,521,563
3,384,419
17.4%
17.6%
11.6%
6.8%
6.7%
11.6%
2.7%
4.8%
*
*
*
*
*
*
17.4%
38.7%
(1) Where applicable, share numbers have been adjusted to reflect each of the Company’s reverse stock splits, which became effective on November 2, 2017 and May 7, 2019.
(2) Consists of (i) 709,513 shares of common stock held by the Stertzer Family Trust, (ii) 230,704 shares of our common stock held by Windrock Enterprises L.L.C., (iii) 11,656
shares of our common stock held by the Stertzer Gamma Trust, (iv) 91,544 shares our common stock held by Stertzer Holdings LLC, , (v) 3,594 shares of our common stock held
by Dr. Stertzer (vi) 1,333 shares of our common stock held by Dr. Stertzer and his spouse Kimberly Stertzer, (vii) 12,218 shares subject to options that are vested and exercisable
within 60 days of December 31, 2019, held by Dr. Stertzer, (viii) 326,742 shares subject to warrants held by the Stertzer Family Trust, (ix) 41,667 shares subject to warrants held
by Stertzer Holdings LLC and (x) 92,592 shares subject to warrants held by Windrock Enterprises L.L.C. Dr. Stertzer and his spouse are co-trustees of the Stertzer Family Trust,
and sole members and managers of Windrock Enterprises L.L.C., and share voting and dispositive control over the shares held by the Stertzer Family Trust and Windrock
Enterprises L.L.C. Dr. Stertzer is the grantor of the Stertzer Gamma Trust and may be deemed to have voting and dispositive control over the shares held by the Stertzer Gamma
Trust. Dr. Stertzer may be deemed to have voting and dispositive control over the shares held by Stertzer Holdings LLC.
(3) Dr. Phillip Frost is the trustee and Frost Gamma Limited Partnership is the sole and exclusive beneficiary of Frost Gamma Investments Trust. Dr. Frost is one of two limited
partners of Frost Gamma Limited Partnership. The general partner of Frost Gamma Limited Partnership is Frost Gamma, Inc. and the sole shareholder of Frost Gamma, Inc. is
Frost-Nevada Corporation. Dr. Frost is also the sole shareholder of Frost-Nevada Corporation. The address for these entities is 4400 Biscayne Boulevard, Suite 1500, Miami,
Florida 33137.
(4) Consists of (i) 515,931 shares of our common stock held by Mr. Allen, (ii) 398 shares of our common stock held by Mr. Allen and Kyle Johnson and over which Mr. Allen
shares voting and dispositive power, (iii) 92 shares of our common stock, held by Wesley Upchurch and over which Mr. Allen shares voting and dispositive power, (iv) 92
shares of our common stock, held by Judson Upchurch and over which Mr. Allen shares voting and dispositive power, and (v) 500,000 shares subject to warrants held by Mr.
Allen.
(5) Consists of (i) 166,086 shares of our Common Stock held by Gerald P. Peters, (ii) 89,487 shares of our Common Stock held by The Peters Corporation, (iii) 33,456 shares of our
common stock held by the Peters Family Art Foundation, (iv) 53,500 shares of our common stock held in the Kathleen K. Peters & Gerald P. Peters III Revocable Trust UTA
dtd. Sept. 29, 2008, (v) 76,759 shares of our common stock held in an account for the benefit of Mr. Peters, (vi) 7,185 shares of our common stock held in an account for the
benefit of his spouse, and (vii) 166,000 shares subject to warrants held by Mr. Peters. Gerald P. Peters, President, Chief Executive Officer and Financial & Fiscal Officer of the
Peters Family Art Foundation may be deemed to have voting and dispositive control over the shares held by the Peters Family Art Foundation. The address for the Peters
Family Art Foundation is P.O. Box 2437, Santa Fe, NM 87504. Mr. Peters may be deemed to have voting and dispositive control over the shares held by The Peters Corporation.
(6) Consists of (i) 417,270 shares of our common stock held by Sabiah Ltd. and (ii) 116,667 shares subject to warrants held by Sabiah Ltd. Luis M de la Fuente, his wife and child
are the stockholders of Sabiah Ltd. and share voting and dispositive control over the shares held by Sabiah Ltd. The address for this entity is P.O. Box 438, Road Town,
Tortola, British Virgin Islands.
(7) Consists of (i) 116,667 shares of our common stock held by Mr. Blank and (ii) 116,667 shares subject to warrants held by Mr. Blank.
(8) Consists of (i) 163,411 shares of our common stock held by Dr. Altman, (ii) 189,831 shares subject to options vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019, and
(iii) 67,484 shares subject to warrants held by Dr. Altman.
(9) Consists of (i) 8,435 shares of our common stock held by Dr. Duckers, (ii) 42,866 shares subject to options vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019, and (iii)
8,435 shares subject to warrants held by Dr. Duckers.
(10) Consists of 6,315 shares subject to options held by Mr. Moyes that are vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019.
(11) Consists of 6,315 shares subject to options held by Mr. Krasno that are vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019.
99
(12) Consists of (i) 17,559 shares of our common stock held by Mr. McClung, (ii) 33,797 shares subject to options vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019, and
(iii) 16,871 shares subject to warrants held by Mr. McClung.
(13) Consists of 3,961 shares of our common stock and 5,931 shares subject to options held by Mr. Moyes that are vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019.
(14) Consists of 11,870 shares subject to options held by Mr. Pfenniger that are vested and exercisable within 60 days of December 31, 2019.
Equity Compensation Plan Information
The following table summarizes our equity compensation plan information as of December 31, 2019. Information is included for equity compensation plans approved by our
stockholders and equity compensation plans not approved by our stockholders. We will not grant equity awards in the future under any of the equity compensation plans not
approved by our stockholders included in the table below.
(a) Number of
Securities to be
Issued Upon
Exercise of
Outstanding
Options,
Warrants and
Rights(1)
(b) Weighted
Average
Exercise Price
of Outstanding
Options,
Warrants and
Rights(2)
(c) Number of
Securities
Remaining
Available for
Future
Issuance Under
Equity
Compensation
Plans
(Excluding
Securities
Reflected in
Column (a))(1)
811,892 $
46,553 $
854,445 $
19.11
16.20
18.95
461,605
—
461,605
100
Plan Category
Equity compensation plans approved by stockholders(1)
Equity compensation plans not approved by stockholders(3)
Total
(1) Where applicable, share numbers have been adjusted to reflect each of the Company’s reverse stock splits, which became effective on November 2, 2017 and May 7, 2019,
respectively.
(2) The weighted average exercise price is calculated based solely on outstanding stock options. It does not take into account the shares of our common stock underlying RSUs,
which have no exercise price. The weighted average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rights as of December 31, 2019 does not give effect to the Repricing,
which occurred as of January 29, 2020 and modified the exercise price of certain options to $5.32 per share.
(3) In August 2016, the Company granted an option to purchase common stock outside of the Company’s stock option plans to a consultant.
ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE
Policies and Procedures for Related Party Transactions
We have adopted a formal policy that our executive officers, directors, holders of more than 5% of any class of our voting securities, and any member of the immediate family of
and any entity affiliated with any of the foregoing persons, are not permitted to enter into a related party transaction with us without the prior consent of our audit committee, or
other independent members of our board of directors if it is inappropriate for our audit committee to review such transaction due to a conflict of interest. Any request for us to
enter into a transaction with an executive officer, director, principal stockholder, or any of their immediate family members or affiliates, in which the amount involved exceeds the
lesser of $120,000 or one percent of the average of our total assets at year-end for the last two completed fiscal years must first be presented to our audit committee for review,
consideration and approval. In approving or rejecting any such proposal, our audit committee is to consider the relevant facts and circumstances available and deemed relevant to
the audit committee, including, but not limited to, whether the transaction is on terms no less favorable than terms generally available to an unaffiliated third party under the same
or similar circumstances and the extent of the related party’s interest in the transaction. All of the transactions described above were entered into prior to the adoption of this
policy.
Related Party Transactions
We describe below transactions and series of similar transactions, since the beginning of our last fiscal year ended December 31, 2018, to which we were a party or will be a party,
in which:
•
•
the amounts involved exceeded or will exceed the lesser of $120,000 or one percent of the average of our total assets at year-end for the last two completed
fiscal years; and
any of our directors, nominees for director, executive officers or holders of more than 5% of our outstanding capital stock, or any immediate family member
of, or person sharing the household with, any of these individuals or entities, had or will have a direct or indirect material interest.
Other than as described below, there has not been, nor is there any currently proposed, transactions or series of similar transactions to which we have been or will be a party.
Other Transactions
We have granted stock options to our named executive officers and certain of our directors. See the section titled "Executive Compensation−Outstanding Equity Awards at 2019
Year-End” for a description of these stock options.
We have entered into change of control and severance agreements with certain of our executive officers that provides for certain severance and change in control benefits. See the
section titled "Executive Compensation−Potential Payments on Termination or Change of Control.”
101
On December 24, 2018, the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement with entities affiliated with Dr. Simon H. Stertzer, the Chairman of our Board of Directors and a
beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock, and Frost Gamma Investments Trust, a beneficial owner of more than 5% of the
outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock (the "Investors”), relating to an offering and sale (the "2018 Offering”) of an aggregate of 592,592 shares of the Company’s
common stock at a purchase price of $6.75 per share, and warrants to purchase up to one-half of the number of shares of common stock sold to an Investor, up to an aggregate for
all Investors of 296,295 shares of Common Stock (the "Warrant Shares”) at an exercise price of $6.75 per share, for aggregate net proceeds of $3.8 million. The warrants will expire
on December 24, 2023. The warrants contain customary adjustments and are exercisable immediately for cash and after six months will also be exercisable on a cashless basis if
there is no effective registration statement registering the resale of the Warrant Shares. The Investors do not have registration rights in connection with any securities purchased
in the 2018 Offering. The closing of the 2018 Offering took place on December 24, 2018.
BioCardia, Inc. (the "Company”) and OPKO Health, Inc. ("OPKO”) previously entered into a consulting agreement dated August 19, 2016, between the Company and OPKO (the
"Consulting Agreement”). The chairman and chief executive officer of OPKO is a beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock. In
2019, the Company terminated the consulting agreement and modified the options such that the options will continue vesting and will remain outstanding through the original
contractual term.
On July 5, 2019, the Company entered into a note purchase agreement pursuant to which we issued on such date $0.625 million in aggregate principal amount of convertible
promissory notes, a portion of which was issued to certain of our officers and directors and a principal stockholder (or their respective affiliates). Interest on the convertible notes
accrued at the rate of 14.0% per year. The unpaid principal amount of the convertible notes, together with all interest accrued but unpaid thereon, automatically converted into
units upon the closing of our public offering on August 6, 2019, at a conversion price equal to 50% of the price to the public in the offering. Based on the public offering price of
$6.00 per Unit, the $0.625 million principal amount of the outstanding convertible notes and interest thereon converted into approximately 146,616 units, consisting of 210,887
shares of our common stock and 210,887 warrants to purchase shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $6.30 per share.
Indemnification Agreements
We have entered into indemnification agreements with each of our directors and executive officers. The indemnification agreements, our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws require us to indemnify our directors to the fullest extent permitted by Delaware law.
The information related to the independence of our directors in Item 10 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K is hereby incorporated by reference in this Item 13.
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES
Fees Paid to the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firms
The following table presents fees for professional audit services and other services rendered to our company by KPMG for our fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.
Audit Fees(1)
Audit−Related Fees(2)
Tax Fees(3)
All Other Fees(4)
Total Fees
KPMG
(In Thousands)
$
$
The following table presents fees for professional audit services and other services rendered to our company by KPMG for our fiscal year ended December 31, 2018.
Audit Fees(1)
Audit−Related Fees(2)
Tax Fees(3)
All Other Fees(4)
Total Fees
102
KPMG
(In Thousands)
$
$
527
—
—
—
527
411
—
—
—
411
(1) Audit Fees consist of professional services rendered in connection with the audit of our annual consolidated financial statements, including audited financial statements
presented in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, services that are normally provided by the independent registered public accountants in connection with statutory and
regulatory filings or engagements for those fiscal years and timely review of our quarterly consolidated financial statements.
(2) Audit-Related Fees consist of fees for professional services for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of our
consolidated financial statements and are not reported under "Audit Fees.” These services include accounting consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting
standards.
(3) Tax Fees consist of fees for professional services for tax compliance, tax advice and tax planning. These services include assistance regarding federal, state and international
tax compliance.
(4) All Other Fees consist of permitted services other than those that meet the criteria above.
All fees described above were pre-approved by the BioCardia Audit Committee.
Auditor Independence
In our fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, there were no other professional services provided by KPMG that would have required our audit committee to consider their
compatibility with maintaining the independence of KPMG.
Audit Committee Policy on Pre-Approval of Audit and Permissible Non-Audit Services of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
Our audit committee has established a policy governing our use of the services of our independent registered public accounting firm. Under the policy, our audit committee is
required to pre-approve all audit and non-audit services performed by our independent registered public accounting firm in order to ensure that the provision of such services does
not impair the public accountants’ independence.
103
ITEM 15. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Documents filed as part of this report are as follows:
1.
Consolidated Financial Statements:
PART IV
Our Consolidated Financial Statements are listed in the "Index to Financial Statements” of BioCardia, Inc. in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
2.
Financial Statement Schedules
All financial statement schedules have been omitted because they are not required, not applicable, or the required information is included in the financial statements or notes
thereto included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
3.
Exhibits
The documents listed in the Exhibit Index of this Annual Report on Form 10-K are incorporated by reference or are filed with this report, in each case as indicated therein (numbered
in accordance with Item 601 of Regulation S-K).
104
Exhibit
Number
2.1(1)
2.2(2)
3.1(3)
3.2(4)
4.1(5)
4.2(6)#
4.3(7)#
4.4(8)#
4.5(9)#
4.6(10)#
4.7(11)#
4.8(12)
4.9(13)
4.10*
10.1(14)#
10.2(15)#
10.3(16)
10.4(17)
10.5(18)
10.6(19)
10.7(20) †
10.8(21)
21.1*
23.1*
24.1*
31.1*
31.2*
32.1**
32.2**
Description
EXHIBIT INDEX
Agreement and Plan of Merger dated August 22, 2016
First Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger dated October 21, 2016
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as amended May 6, 2019
Amended and Restated Bylaws
Specimen common stock certificate
BioCardia 2002 Stock Plan, as amended
Form of Stock Option Agreement under BioCardia 2002 Stock Plan
BioCardia 2016 Equity Incentive Plan
Form of Stock Option Agreement under BioCardia 2016 Equity Incentive Plan
Form of Restricted Stock Unit Agreement under BioCardia 2016 Equity Inventive Plan
Form of Warrant for Common Stock Purchase Warrants issued December 24, 2018
Form of Common Stock Purchase Warrant
Form of Representative’s Warrant
Description of Registered Securities
Form of Indemnification Agreement for directors and executive officers
Form of Change of Control and Severance Agreement with each executive officer.
Lease Agreement, dated September 29, 2008, by and between the Company and ARE-San Francisco No. 29, LLC.
First Amendment to Lease, dated May 31, 2010, by and between the Company and ARE-San Francisco No. 29, LLC.
Second Amendment to Lease, dated May 29, 2013 by and between the Company and ARE-San Francisco No. 29, LLC.
Third Amendment to Lease, dated November 4, 2016, by and between the Company and ARE-San Francisco No. 29, LLC.
License and Distribution Agreement, dated October 30, 2012, by and between the Company and Biomet Biologics, LLC, as amended.
Form of Warrant Agreement
Subsidiaries of the Company
Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.
Power of Attorney (see page 106 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K).
Certification of Principal Executive Officer.
Certification of Principal Financial Officer.
Certification of Principal Executive Officer Pursuant to Rule 13a-14(b) and Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Subsections (a) and (b) of Section 1350,
Title 18, United States Code).
Certification of Principal Financial Officer Pursuant to Rule 13a-14(b) and Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Subsections (a) and (b) of Section 1350, Title
18, United States Code).
101.INS*
101.SCH*
101.CAL*
101.DEF*
101.LAB*
101.PRE*
XBRL Instance Document.
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema.
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase.
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase.
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase.
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase.
105
_____________________
†
#
*
**
Confidential treatment has been granted with respect to certain portions of this Exhibit.
Indicates management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.
Filed herewith.
Furnished herewith.
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)
(14)
(15)
(16)
(17)
(18)
(19)
(20)
(21)
Previously filed as Exhibit 2.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on August 25, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 2.2 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 3.1 to the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed by us on August 14, 2019.
Previously filed as Exhibit 3.2 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on April 11, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.3 to the registration statement on Form S-8 filed by us on February 8, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.6 to the registration statement on Form S-8 filed by us on February 8, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.7 to the registration statement on Form S-8 filed by us on February 8, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.8 to the registration statement on Form S-8 filed by us on February 8, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on December 27, 2018.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on August 7, 2019.
Previously filed as Exhibit 4.10 to Amendment No. 3 to the registration statement on Form S-1 filed by us on July 23, 2019.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.4 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.2 to the Annual Report on Form 10-K filed by us on March 30, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.5 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.6 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.7 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.6 to the Annual Report on Form 10-K filed by us on March 30, 2017.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.8 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on October 27, 2016.
Previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by us on August 7, 2019.
106
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
SIGNATURES
BIOCARDIA INC.
By:
/s/ Peter Altman
Peter Altman
President and Chief Executive Officer
Date: April 9, 2020
POWER OF ATTORNEY
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Peter Altman and David McClung, and each of them,
his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact, each with full power of substitution, for him or her in any and all capacities, to sign any amendments to this Annual Report on Form 10-K
and to file the same, with exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming all that
each of said attorneys-in-fact or their substitute or substitutes may do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons, on behalf of the registrant on the dates and
the capacities indicated.
Signature
Title
Date
/s/ Peter Altman
(Peter Altman)
/s/ David McClung
(David McClung)
/s/ Simon H. Stertzer
(Simon H. Stertzer)
/s/ Fernando L. Fernandez
(Fernando L. Fernandez)
/s/ Richard Krasno
(Richard Krasno)
/s/ Jay M. Moyes
(Jay M. Moyes)
/s/ Richard P. Pfenniger, Jr.
(Richard P. Pfenniger, Jr.)
/s/ Andrew Blank
(Andrew Blank)
/s/ James Allen
(James Allen)
President and Chief Executive Officer and Director
(Principal Executive Officer)
Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
Chairman of the Board
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
107
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
April 9, 2020
DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES
REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
EXHIBIT 4.10
Capital Stock
The Company’s authorized capital stock consists of 125,000,000 shares of capital stock, par value $0.001 per share, of which 100,000,000 shares are common stock, par value
$0.001 per share and 25,000,000 of preferred stock, par value $0.001 per share.
The following is a summary of the material provisions of our capital stock provided for in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated
bylaws. For additional detail about our capital stock, please refer to our certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, each as amended.
Common Stock
Our board of directors is authorized, without stockholder approval, to issue additional shares of our capital stock.
Our common stock trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "BCDA.”
Voting
Each holder of our common stock is entitled to one vote for each share on all matters submitted to a vote of the stockholders, including the election of directors. Our amended
and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws do not provide for cumulative voting rights. Because of this absence of cumulative voting, the
holders of a majority of the shares of our common stock entitled to vote in any election of directors can elect all of the directors standing for election, if they should so
choose. Subject to the rights of holders of any series of preferred stock with respect to the election of directors, a director may be removed from office by our stockholders only
for cause and only by the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% in voting power of our stock entitled to vote thereon.
The Delaware General Corporation Law provides generally that the affirmative vote of a majority of the shares entitled to vote on any matter is required to amend a
corporation’s certificate of incorporation or bylaws, unless the corporation’s certificate of incorporation or bylaws, as the case may be, requires a greater percentage. The
affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% in voting power of our stock entitled to vote thereon shall be required for our stockholders to amend, alter or repeal our
amended and restated bylaws.
Dividend Rights
Subject to preferences that may be applicable to any then outstanding preferred stock, holders of our common stock are entitled to receive equally on a per share basis those
dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by our board of directors out of legally available funds. We have never declared or paid cash dividends on any of our
capital stock and currently do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.
Rights to Receive Liquidation Distributions
In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of our common stock will be entitled to share ratably in the net assets legally available for distribution to
stockholders after the payment of all of our debts and other liabilities and the satisfaction of any liquidation preferences that may be granted to the holders of any then
outstanding shares of preferred stock.
Rights and Preferences
Holders of our common stock have no preemptive, conversion or subscription rights, and there are no redemption or sinking fund provisions applicable to our common stock.
The rights, preferences and privileges of the holders of our common stock are subject to, and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of
preferred stock, which we may designate and issue in the future.
Warrants
The Company has registered certain warrants to purchase 1,916,667 shares of our common stock under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Public
Warrants”). The material terms and provisions of the Public Warrants are summarized below. This summary of certain terms and provisions of the Public Warrants is not
complete. For the complete terms of the Public Warrants, you should refer to the form of Public Warrant and the Warrant Agreement which are incorporated by reference as
exhibits to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this exhibit is a part.
The Public Warrants entitle the registered holder to purchase one share of our common stock at a price equal to $6.30 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below,
immediately following the issuance of such warrant and terminating at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, five (5) years after their initial issuance. The Public Warrants are listed on
the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "BCDAW.” The Public Warrants were issued pursuant to a Warrant Agreement between us and Continental Stock Transfer &
Trust, as Warrant Agent.
The exercise price and number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances, including in the event of a
stock dividend or recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the Public Warrants will not be adjusted for issuances of common stock at prices below the
exercise price of the Public Warrants.
The Public Warrants may be exercised upon surrender of the warrant certificate on or prior to the expiration date at the offices of the warrant agent, with the exercise form on the
reverse side of the warrant certificate completed and executed as indicated, accompanied by full payment of the exercise price, by certified or official bank check payable to us,
for the number of warrants being exercised. Under the terms of the Warrant Agreement, we must use our best efforts to maintain the effectiveness of the registration statement
and current prospectus relating to common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants until the expiration of the Public Warrants. If we fail to maintain the
effectiveness of the registration statement and current prospectus relating to the common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants, the holders of the warrants shall
have the right to exercise the Public Warrants solely via a cashless exercise feature provided for in the Public Warrants, until such time as there is an effective registration
statement and current prospectus. The holders of the Public Warrants may not exercise the Public Warrants via cashless exercise or otherwise in such situation if the trading
price of a share of our common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants does not exceed the exercise price per share of the Public Warrants. The warrant holders do
not have the rights or privileges of holders of common stock or any voting rights until they exercise their warrants and receive shares of common stock. After the issuance of
shares of common stock upon exercise of the warrants, each holder will be entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters to be voted on by stockholders.
A holder may not exercise any portion of a Public Warrant to the extent that the holder, together with its affiliates and any other person or entity acting as a group, would own
more than 4.99% of the outstanding common stock after exercise, as such percentage ownership is determined in accordance with the terms of the Public Warrant, except that
upon prior notice from the holder to us, the holder may waive such limitation up to a percentage not in excess of 9.99%.
No fractional shares of common stock will be issued upon exercise of the Public Warrants. If, upon exercise of the Public Warrant, a holder would be entitled to receive a
fractional interest in a share, we will, upon exercise, pay a cash adjustment in respect of such fraction in an amount equal to such fraction multiplied by the exercise price. If
multiple Public Warrants are exercised by the holder at the same time, we shall pay a cash adjustment in respect of such final fraction in an amount equal to such fraction
multiplied by the exercise price.
Effect of Certain Provisions of our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws contain provisions that could have the effect of delaying, deferring, or discouraging
another party from acquiring control of us. These provisions and certain provisions of Delaware law, which are summarized below, could discourage takeovers, coercive or
otherwise. These provisions are also designed, in part, to encourage persons seeking to acquire control of us to negotiate first with our board of directors. We believe that the
benefits of increased protection of our potential ability to negotiate with an unfriendly or unsolicited acquirer outweigh the disadvantages of discouraging a proposal to acquire
us.
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws provide for the following:
•
•
Undesignated Preferred Stock. The ability to authorize undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our board of directors to issue one or more series of
preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to change control of our company. These and other provisions
may have the effect of deferring hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control or management of our company.
Limits on Ability of Stockholders to Act by Written Consent or Call a Special Meeting. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our
stockholders may not act by written consent except in limited circumstances. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires that special
meetings of the stockholders be called only by our board of directors, our chief executive officer or our president (in the absence of a chief executive officer). This limit
on the ability of stockholders to act by written consent or call a special meeting may lengthen the amount of time required to take stockholder proposed actions.
•
•
Requirements for Advance Notification of Stockholder Nominations and Proposals. Our amended and restated bylaws establish advance notice procedures with
respect to stockholder proposals and the nomination of candidates for election as directors, other than nominations made by or at the direction of our board of
directors or a committee of the board of directors.
Board Classification. Our board of directors is divided into three classes. The directors in each class are elected to serve for a three-year term, one class being elected
each year by our stockholders. This system of electing and removing directors may tend to discourage a third party from making a tender offer or otherwise attempting
to obtain control of us, because it generally makes it more difficult for stockholders to replace a majority of the directors.
Anti-Takeover Effects of Delaware Law
Certain provisions of Delaware law contain provisions that could have the effect of delaying, deferring or discouraging another party from acquiring control of us. These
provisions, which are summarized below, are expected to discourage certain types of coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids. These provisions are also
designed in part to encourage anyone seeking to acquire control of us to first negotiate with our board of directors. We believe that the advantages gained by protecting our
ability to negotiate with any unsolicited and potentially unfriendly acquirer outweigh the disadvantages of discouraging such proposals, including those priced above the
then-current market value of our common stock, because, among other reasons, the negotiation of such proposals could improve their terms.
Delaware Anti-Takeover Statute
We are subject to the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law regulating corporate takeovers. In general, Section 203 prohibits a publicly-held
Delaware corporation from engaging, under certain circumstances, in a business combination with an interested stockholder for a period of three years following the date the
person became an interested stockholder unless:
•
•
•
prior to the date of the transaction, the board of directors of the corporation approved either the business combination or the transaction which resulted in the
stockholder becoming an interested stockholder;
upon completion of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting
stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding for purposes of determining the voting stock outstanding, but not for
determining the outstanding voting stock owned by the interested stockholder, (1) shares owned by persons who are directors and also officers and (2) shares owned
by employee stock plans in which employee participants do not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a
tender or exchange offer; or
at or subsequent to the date of the transaction, the business combination is approved by the board of directors of the corporation and authorized at an annual or
special meeting of stockholders, and not by written consent, by the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3% of the outstanding voting stock which is not owned by the
interested stockholder.
Generally, a business combination includes a merger, asset or stock sale, or other transaction resulting in a financial benefit to the interested stockholder. An interested
stockholder is a person who, together with affiliates and associates, owns or, within three years prior to the determination of interested stockholder status, did own 15% or more
of a corporation’s outstanding voting stock. We expect the existence of this provision to have an anti-takeover effect with respect to transactions our board of directors does
not approve in advance. We also anticipate that Section 203 may discourage business combinations or other attempts that might result in a premium over the market price for
the shares of our common stock held by our stockholders.
The provisions of Delaware law could have the effect of discouraging others from attempting hostile takeovers and, as a consequence, they may also inhibit temporary
fluctuations in the market price of our common stock that often result from actual or rumored hostile takeover attempts. These provisions may also have the effect of preventing
changes in our management. It is possible that these provisions could make it more difficult to accomplish transactions that our stockholders may otherwise deem to be in their
best interests.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust. The address of Continental Stock Transfer & Trust is 1 State Street 30th Floor,
New York, New York 10004-1561. Shares of our common stock will be issued in uncertificated form only, subject to limited circumstances.
Name of Subsidiary
BioCardia Lifesciences, Inc.
Subsidiaries of BioCardia, Inc.
Jurisdiction of Organization
Delaware
Exhibit 21.1
Exhibit 23.1
The Board of Directors
BioCardia, Inc.:
Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
We consent to the incorporation by reference in the registration statements (No. 333-215968, 333-224368, 333-236405) on Form S-8 and the registration statement (No. 333-218124)
on Form S-3 of BioCardia, Inc. of our report dated April 8, 2020, with respect to the consolidated balance sheets of BioCardia, Inc. as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the related
consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2019, and the related notes, which
report appears in the December 31, 2019 annual report on Form 10-K of BioCardia, Inc.
Our report dated April 8, 2020 contains an explanatory paragraph that states that the Company has incurred net losses and negative cash flows from operations since its inception
and had an accumulated deficit that raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments
that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Our report dated April 8, 2020 refers to a change in the method of accounting for leases as of January 1, 2019.
San Francisco, California
April 8, 2020
Exhibit 31.1
Certification of Principal Executive Officer
Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
I, Peter Altman, certify that:
1. I have reviewed this Annual Report on Form 10-K of BioCardia, Inc.;
2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the
statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the
financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
4. The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined
in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the
registrant and have:
(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our
supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within
those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
(b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our
supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external
purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the
effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and
(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant's most
recent fiscal quarter (the registrant's fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially
affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting; and
5. The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed to the registrant's auditors and the audit committee of the registrant's board
of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are
reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant's ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant's
internal control over financial reporting.
Date: April 9, 2020
/s/ Peter Altman
Name: Peter Altman
Title: President and Chief Executive Officer
Exhibit 31.2
Certification of Principal Financial Officer
Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
I, David McClung, certify that:
1. I have reviewed this Annual Report on Form 10-K of BioCardia, Inc.;
2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the
statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the
financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
4. The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined
in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the
registrant and have:
(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our
supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within
those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
(b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our
supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external
purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the
effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and
(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant's fourth
fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting; and
5. The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed to the registrant's auditors and the audit committee of the registrant's board
of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are
reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant's ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant's
internal control over financial reporting.
Date: April 9, 2020
/s/ David McClung
Name: David McClung
Title: Chief Financial Officer
Certification of Principal Executive Officer
Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
Exhibit 32.1
Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, I, Peter Altman, the President and Chief
Executive Officer of BioCardia, Inc. (the "Company"), hereby certify, that, to my knowledge:
1. The Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 (the "Report") of the Company fully complies with the requirements of
Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and
2. The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.
Date: April 9, 2020
/s/ Peter Altman
Name: Peter Altman
Title: President and Chief Executive Officer
Certification of Principal Financial Officer
Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
Exhibit 32.2
Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, I, David McClung, the Vice President of Finance
of BioCardia, Inc. (the "Company"), hereby certify, that, to my knowledge:
1. The Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 (the "Report") of the Company fully complies with the requirements of
Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and
2. The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.
Date: April 9, 2020
/s/ David McClung
Name: David McClung
Title: Chief Financial Officer