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Biofrontera AG

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FY2016 Annual Report · Biofrontera AG
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Success Stories 
Annual Report 2016 

When surfing 
gets under 
your skin 

When the sun 
hammers 
down on the 
building site 

Medical 
treatment 
with positive 
side-effects 

Help for  
„the soul’s 
mirror“ 

 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
Key figures and highlights 2016 

Success stories 

Biofrontera Management Board interview 

Investor Relations 

Corporate Governance 

Report of the Supervisory Board of Biofrontera AG for the 2016 financial year 

Combined management report for parent company and Group  

as of 31 December 2016 

Consolidated balance sheet as of 31 December 2016 

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income for the 2016 financial year  

Statement of changes in equity for 2016 

Consolidated cash flow statement for the 2016 financial year 

Notes to the consolidated financial statements as of 31 December 2016 

Auditor’s Report 

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12 

16 

21 

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Key figures and highlights 2016 

Highlights 2016  

!! Sales increased by 48% to ¤6.1 million  
!! Received marketing approval in the US for Ameluz® and BF-RhodoLED® by the FDA in May 2016, 

product launch in the US in October 2016 

!! Received approvals by the European Commission of label extensions for Ameluz® to include the 

treatments of field cancerization and basal cell carcinoma  

!! Positive Phase III results for Ameluz® in combination with daylight PDT 
!! Co-development agreement with Maruho Co. Ltd.  
!! Significant improvement of liquidity through successful implementation of capital increases 

Key consolidated figures calculated in accordance with IFRS  

In kEUR 

Profit & Loss 

Sales revenue 

sales revenue from product sales 

sales revenue from development projects 

down payments 

Research and development costs 

Sales costs 

General administrative costs 

Loss from operations 

Total result for the period 

Cash flow 

Cash flows from operational activities 

Cash flows from investment activities 

Cash flows from financing activities 

In kEUR 

Balance sheet 

Balance sheet total 

Current liabilities (w/o provisions) 

Long-term liabilities 

Equity, subscribed capital and capital reserve 

Equity ratio 

Liquid funds 

Employees as at 31 December 

Biofrontera share 
Shares outstanding 

Share price (closing Xetra) 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

31.12.2016 

31.12.2015 

6,130.3 

4,913.5 

1,176.8 

40.0 

-4,640.3 

-8,763.4 

-2,853.1 

-11,778.8 

-10,732.2 

-10,739.6 

-455.3 

22,361.8 

31.12.2016 

31.12.2015 

23,878.7 

2,616.0 

3,596.9 

136,399.2 

66.34% 

15,126.1 

94 

31.12.16 

37,722,433 

3.16 

4,137.9 

4,067.9 

0.0 

70.0 

-6,204.0 

-4,170.0 

-2,759.3 

-10,231.0 

-11,204.6 

-9,717.3 

17.0 

5,150.1 

9,497.7 

2,035.1 

11,229.9 

105,015.7 

-50.63% 

3,959.2 

58 

31.12.15 

25,490,430 

1.85 

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The number of skin cancer cases has jumped more 
than fourfold over the past 40 years. New cases of 
non-melanoma skin cancer in the USA alone are 
estimated at around 5 million per year. Around half 
of Europeans over 60 contract actinic keratosis – 
which is an early-stage non-melanoma skin cancer. 
This preliminary stage accounts for 58 million 
patients in the USA. The number of cases in young 
people is also rising constantly due to changes in 
leisure and vacation habits. Meanwhile, German 
healthcare insurance funds are screening 
intensively for skin cancer in the 35+ age group as 
part of a campaign that has helped raise awareness 
about the risks deriving from sun-induced changes 
to skin. People are nevertheless not really 
sufficiently aware about this widespread condition. 

4 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
When surfing gets under your skin 

Regular skin screening  

Sabine Meier (42) knows that as a blue-eyed blonde with fair skin 
she has to be on the lookout for light-induced changes to her skin. 
A passionate surfer, she has been travelling around the world for 
years, spending a lot of time being active in the sun. She also 
ranks in a group at risk due to hereditary factors – her mother was 
diagnosed with skin cancer at the age of 60. When Sabine turned 
35, this led her to see her dermatologist every couple of years 
since for precautionary skin checkups – an easy decision for her 
to make as her health care insurer pays the costs. 

Diagnosis: actinic keratosis – what next? 

These checkups proved to be a good idea: "Thanks to my regular 
skin screenings, my dermatologist discovered an actinic keratosis 
on my temple early on – I was quite shocked when I found out. I 
knew it was an early-stage cancer. Then he explained to me both 
the benefits and disadvantages of the various possible therapies, 
with their risks and chances of recovery. In my case, my 
dermatologist recommended photodynamic therapy with Ameluz®. 
This seemed to make sense because I had a superficial skin 
tumour that PDT could treat – PDT is not only effective and covers 
a wide area but is also gentle. I was so relieved to avoid a painful 
surgical operation that might also eventually leave scars."  

The skin forgets nothing... 

Sabine Meier plans to carry on surfing, but is now especially well 
protected: "Now I take more care to have sufficient protection 
against the sun. I apply a highly waterproof light protection factor 
and then reapply it several times a day. I tell my children how 
important it is to protect against sunburn with the right clothing, 
suncream, as well as avoiding midday sun and sunbathing too 
much. I'm aware sunburns in childhood and teenage years 
increase the risk of getting skin cancer later." 

!

!

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

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!

A network of dermoto-oncologists from across the 
whole of Germany – "onkoderm" – has set up its 
own "actinic keratosis" working group. Its experts 
have developed a set of therapy guidelines for 
dermatologists treating actinic keratosis. 
Dermatologists generally draw a distinction 
between treatments addressing a wide area (field-
directed) and treatments directly targeting affected 
areas (lesion-directed). Individual visible actinic 
keratoses mostly indicate that changes have 
occurred to further skin cells, but they're not yet 
visible as they're still below the skin's surface. The 
importance of addressing the entire skin area is 
being increasingly emphasised as a consequence, 
with the recommendation to apply corresponding 
therapy options. Photodynamic therapy with 
Ameluz® represents one of such options. 

6 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Medical treatment with positive 
side-effects 

PPDDTT  ––  aann  iinnnnoovvaattiivvee  mmeeddiiccaall  tthheerraappyy  

Professor Thomas Dirschka, a dermatologist from Wuppertal, has 
already been working with photodynamic therapy using Ameluz® for 
several years. "PDT is a comparatively uncomplicated and gentle 
method to treat actinic keratosis and superficial basal cell 
carcinomas highly effectively. It is significantly more effective than 
other therapy methods. The very good cosmetic result is also an 
important reason prompting my patients to opt for this approach 
rather than for a surgical operation or cryotherapy." 

The treatment is very targeted and can be implemented effectively. 
The photosensitising gel is applied to the affected skin area and 
covered with a dressing. The dressing is removed after about three 
hours and the patient is then treated for approximately ten minutes 
with cold red light, for instance with the BF-Rhodo-LED® lamp. An 
alternative during summer months is for patients to spend two to two 
and a half hours in the daylight, with even cloudy skies irradiating 
sufficient sunlight for the therapy to work. Although this daylight 
application form has not yet been approved for Ameluz®, it has 
already been tested with great success in controlled clinical studies. 
"An inflammation reaction occurs at the onset of the therapy with 
reddening, flaking and – very infrequently – blister formation. This 
generally abates within 14 days at the most. As a result, the Ameluz® 
therapy leaves skin smoother, and even rejuvenates the skin – so it 
meets the highest cosmetic requirements," Professor Dirschka notes 
about the treatment method.  

SSaattiissffiieedd  ppaattiieennttss  

Treatment over a large area is possible with photodynamic therapy. 
This approach's advantage is that it covers and treats not only lesions 
themselves but also other solar damage on an extensive basis. It even 
completely and sustainably removes lesions undetectable to the 
naked eye. When presented with various therapy options, most 
patients opt for PDT with Ameluz® due to its positive side-effects. And 
Prof. Dirschka knows he has made the best possible treatment 
available to his patients: "Unfortunately, photodynamic therapy is not 
yet part of the range of services offered by statutory health 
insurance, although private health insurers generally bear all of the 
costs of this innovative therapy."  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
  
  
When the sun hammers down on 
the building site 

Why protect against the sun? 

Hans Keller (50) has already worked at a big German 
construction firm for 25 years. He works outdoors most of 
the time. Here he sees a growing shift in awareness among 
his colleagues: "In the past we often used to take our shirts 
off to work in the summer. Nobody gave a second thought to 
sun protection."  

Professional bodies raise awareness 

Since the recognition of multiple actinic keratoses and 
squamous cell carcinoma as occupational illnesses, 
professional bodies such as BG Bau – a statutory insurance 
organisation for the construction sector – are increasingly 
informing their members about measures to prevent sun-
induced skin diseases. These include wearing protective 
clothing and applying sun protection cream, as well as 
workplace installations such as sun awnings. Individuals with 
skin changes due to the light are advised to see their 
company doctors and have frequent preventative checkups. 
These awareness campaigns and prevention measures aim to 
reduce the number of cases in the future, and enable them 
to be diagnosed at earlier stages. 

Win-win for employers and employees 

Hans Keller has been seeing his company doctor regularly 
for the last three years. "Even if I know the professional 
cooperative and accident insurance would pay to treat skin 
cancer in my case, I now do a lot more to protect myself 
from the sun than I did before," he notes. "My job is already 
physically demanding enough – I don't want to get skin 
cancer too." Hans Keller would like to take early retirement 
in five years' time – although due to his back, rather than 
skin cancer. 

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Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Due to their jobs, outdoor workers are exposed to 
much more solar UV irradiation than other workers. 
In Germany, outdoor workers account for around 
2.7 million individuals, especially farmers, 
gardeners, construction workers, roofers and 
fishermen. A construction worker's annual UV 
exposure is almost five times as high as that of an 
employee working solely in closed premises, 
according to studies that have been conducted 
(Source: Knutschke, P., et al. [2007]: "Personal 
monitoring of UV exposure in outdoor workers", 
published [in German only] by the German Federal 
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health [BAuA] 
(p. 121)]. In particular, working outdoors can trigger 
actinic keratosis, basal cell carcinoma and 
squamous cell carcinoma. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
Help for the “soul’s mirror“ 

A long road of suffering 

Melanie Hopfer (36) has already suffered from psoriasis for many years. Like many with 
her condition, she's tried out innumerable OTC and prediction medications, creams and 
ointments over the course of time. "I'd almost given up hope. A friend told me about 
belixos® and I thought, I'll give it a try. But I wasn't expecting much. Well, what can I say? 
I'm over the moon! After just one week, you could hardly see the flaky and reddish parts 
of the skin any longer. Now they're completely gone and the itching is also a thing of 
the past. It's incredible! – I didn't even get this effect with ointments that contain 
cortisone. The cream is incredibly concentrated, it rubs in superfast and isn't greasy – 
they're also positive factors I like." 

Broad action spectrum   

The belixos® active substance cosmetic range brings together the best of nature and 
science. Pure plant biocolloids are combined with medicinal herb extracts to create an 
active substance with proven deep action effect. With its regenerative care properties, 
the different products in this care series – now a total of five – provide relief for various 
skin irritations and illnesses such as atopic dermatitis and rosacea. Melanie Hopfer 
appreciates this broad range of possible applications. "After the success with psoriasis, 
I've also started using belixos® for other skin problems. It acts really well to provide 
quick relief for sunburn itch and insect bites. The cream has also already helped me 
with spots and healing small burns. And I feel my overall skin condition has got a lot 
better. It's a little miracle cream out of a tube – now I wouldn't want to be without it." 

Stringent quality and environmental regulations 

belixos® is produced according to stringent quality and environmental regulations. All 
the substances it contains are carefully selected and optimally dosed. Its skin 
compatibility was tested dermatologically and certified as "very good" by the 
independent Dermatest Institute.  
!

10 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Skin – the human being's biggest sense 
organ – functions as protective shield, mood 
indicator and as a temperature and moisture 
regulator at the same time. Ever greater 
numbers of individuals are suffering from 
skin diseases such as acne, atopic 
dermatitis, psoriasis and skin cancer due to 
the increasing impact of external factors. 
Conditions are evident through changes to 
the skin such as itching, discomfort and 
inflammatory reactions. Matters are made 
worse for many patients by the psychological 
burden of being stigmatised due to skin 
disease.  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
Biofrontera Management Board 
interview 

In 2016, you received and announced various approvals as 
well  as  approval  extensions  for  your  main  product, 
Ameluz®.  What  does  this  signify  now  for  your  business 
going forward and for Biofrontera shareholders? 

Professor Hermann Lübbert:  
First of all, we've made great progress as far as the regional 
reach  of  Ameluz®  is  concerned.  But  in  parallel  we've  also 
achieved  successes  in  terms  of  application  areas  and 
indications for our medication. 

In  March,  for  example,  Switzerland's  mandatory  health 
insurance fund decided it would pay the costs for Ameluz® 
therapy.  In  April,  Ameluz®  was  approved  to  treat  actinic 
keratosis  in  Israel  making  it  the  13th  country  alongside  12 
European countries where our medication can be marketed.  
We  celebrated  perhaps  our  greatest  success  in  terms  of 
geographic  expansion  in  May  when  the  US  Food  and  Drug 
Administration  issued  approval  for  Ameluz®  for  the  US 
market,  as  was  expected.  This  makes  us  the  first  German 
pharmaceutical  startup  to  receive  centralised  European 
approval and even US approval for a drug it has developed 
itself. 

“This makes us the first German 
pharmaceutical startup to receive 
centralized European approval and 
even US approval for a drug it has 
developed itself“  

Professor Hermann Lübbert – CEO 

In  September,  the  European  Commission  expanded  its 
approval to include the treatment of field cancerisation with 
Ameluz®. This means that larger skin areas that have been 
sun-damaged can now be treated with Ameluz®.  

We're also well on the way to expanding the possibilities to 
use Ameluz® to treat actinic keratosis. So far we can only do 
this in combination with our BF-RhodoLED®, which we have 
developed and produce ourselves. At the end of June 2016, 
we  launched  the  Phase  III  study  with  Ameluz®  in  daylight 
in 
PDT.  This  approach  no 
combination  with  our  lamp,  but  instead  uses  natural  or 
artificial  daylight.  We  plan  to  file  a  corresponding 
application  for  approval  extension  in  May  2017,  which  will 
open up significant additional market opportunities for us. 

longer  utilises  Ameluz® 

All of the successes I've just referred to relate only to the 
treatment of actinic keratosis, an early-stage skin cancer. In 
January  2017,  the  European  Commission  also  granted 

approval extension for Ameluz® to treat a further indication, 
basal  cell  carcinoma.  This  represents  a  very  important 
milestone for us because basal cell carcinomas account for 
around 50 to 80 percent of all skin cancer types in humans.  
Treating  them  with  photodynamic  therapy  is  a  highly 
effective alternative to surgical operations and also leads to 
excellent cosmetic results.  

–

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Thomas Schaffer:  
The sales potential for Ameluz® has risen enormously as a 
result of the milestones we've achieved in 2016. In the USA, 
58 million people suffer from actinic keratosis, for example, 
with  a  rising  trend  –  so,  it's  a  huge  market.  Significant 
growth opportunities offer themselves to us here, especially 
as  health 
insurers  pay  doctors  for  treatments,  and 
dermatologists  are  very  positively  disposed  towards 
photodynamic therapy as a consequence. A rapid approval 
expansion  to  include  daylight  PDT  with  Ameluz®  would 
certainly  play  a  crucial  role  in  boosting  acceptance  of 
photodynamic  therapy  among  dermatologists  in  Europe, 
and  the  treatment  could  also  become  established  here  in 
Germany  for  statutory  health  insurance  patients.  The 
approval of the new indication of basal cell carcinoma here 
in Europe also gives us access to the clinics business for the 
first time. If the sales growth we expect in Europe and the 
USA materialises, it will also be reflected in the share price 
sooner or later. It goes without saying that it's important to 
us that our shareholders who have supported us over  the 
past  years  and  have  believed  in  Biofrontera  are  rewarded 
for their patience and loyalty accordingly.  

12 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This  sounds  as  if  the  shift  from  a more  research-based 
company to a pharmaceutical company with its own sales 
revenues is now complete. If you look back, how long has 
it taken overall?  

Ameluz® 2016: Application areas and regional reach 

The 

first 

steps 

Professor Hermann Lübbert:  
The  question  here  is  how  far  back  we  look.  In  2004,  we 
acquired a patent to combine the substance aminoevulinic 
acid (ALA) with a nanoemulsion and started to develop our 
own  patent-protected  nanoemulsion  technology  (BF-200). 
This enabled us to chemically stabilise ALA and achieve good 
skin  penetration  properties. 
to 
commercialisation  were  followed  in  2008  by  the  Phase  III 
study  for  BF-200  ALA.  In  a  Phase  III  study,  a  medication's 
efficacy  and  tolerability  are  demonstrated,  and  the  study 
data  are  crucial  to  it  receiving  approval.  We  applied  for 
European  regulatory  approval  for  BF-200  ALA  after 
completing the study in September 2010. About a year later, 
in  December  2011,  the  European  Commission  then  issued 
European approval for Ameluz® (BF-200 ALA) to treat actinic 
keratosis. We've since been pushing full speed ahead with 
its market launch in Europe. Just half a year later, in June 
2012, we submitted our documents for our initial discussion 
with the FDA to approve Ameluz® in the United States. We 
had to do a lot of homework before being able to then file 
our application in July 2015. Working together with the FDA 
proved  to  be  a  very  pleasant  experience,  and  as  we 
completed all the requisite steps on time we ran perfectly to 
schedule  and  received  US  approval  for  Ameluz®  to  treat 
actinic keratosis in May 2016.  

Ameluz® 2017: Application areas and regional reach 

Nonetheless,  we'll  not  be  saying  goodbye  to  research.  A 
number of further indications can be treated with Ameluz®, 
and  we  can't  simply  leave  this  potential  untapped.  This 
research  will  have  to  run  in  parallel  with  what  has  now 
become  our  very  strong  focus  on  marketing.  In  July,  we 
launched  a  joint  development  project  with  our  main 
shareholder, 
the  Japanese  pharmaceutical  company 
Maruho.  We've  started  to  develop  four  new  products  all 
based on our patented nanoemulsion technology. Maruho is 
assuming all the project costs – so it's bearing the main risk, 
as  conducting  the  research  work  has  already  generated 
related  revenue  for  us  this  year.  Although  Maruho  also 
remains the new products' owner, we have a free licence to 
market  in  Europe.  So  we're  not  going  to  resting  on  our 
laurels  with  the  success  of  Ameluz®  ,  but  instead  we're 
expanding  the  Ameluz® 
indications  and  our  product 
portfolio to support Biofrontera's long-term growth.  

“The sales potential for Ameluz® has 
risen enormously as a result of the 
milestones we've achieved in 2016.” 

Thomas Schaffer – CFO 

The  USA,  in  particular,  promises  enormous  market 
potential – based on its large population alone. And with 
the US approval of Ameluz®, this potential is now open to 
you.  How  have  you  prepared  in  terms  of  your  sales 
platform, and what do you plan for next year? 

Christoph Dünwald:  
As  you're  aware,  we  firmly  anticipated  the  approval  to  be 
issued in May. So we were able to make a lot of preparations 
in  advance.  We  already  founded  our  US  subsidiary 
Biofrontera Inc. in April 2015. This was an important step as 
it enabled us to conduct market analyses at an early stage 
and  come  up  with  ideas  as  to  how  to  structure  our  sales 
program. We finally arrived at the conclusion that we would 
not transfer sales and marketing to a licensing partner, but 
instead  do  it  ourselves.  It's  a  big  task,  but  one  we're 
confident in taking on. And also – having come this far – we 
don't want to relinquish a big share of the future profits to 
third parties. After we obtained the approval, we rented our 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

13 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
establishing  close  relationships  with  supportive  opinion 
leaders since 2015.  

Not only the past years' preliminary work has had to be 
financed,  but  also  the  establishment  of  the  sale 
structures  you've  just  outlined.  How  much  have  you 
already invested this year and where do the funds come 
from?  And  how  have  the  past  investments  paid  off  in 
terms of new sales? 

Thomas Schaffer:  
Our growth initiatives are and have been oriented mainly to 
further commercialising our Ameluz® product. For example, 
we  increased  our  sales  and  marketing  spend  by  EUR  3.8 
million year-on-year to reach EUR 8.8 million in 2016, so we 
have been making a considerable investment in establishing 
our  US  business.  These  investments  are  now  increasingly 
paying  off.  After  the  successful  approval,  we  already 
achieved  over  a  million  euros  of  sales  in  the  USA  in  the 
fourth quarter, which made a significant contribution to our 
sales growth last year. We achieved an overall sales volume 
of  EUR  6.1  million  in  the  2016  financial  year,  a  48  percent 
increase  compared  with  the  previous  year  (2015:  EUR  4.1 
million). I think this already makes it clear where our journey 
can go over the coming years.  

totalling  EUR  24.5  million 

To  finance  this,  we  made  recourse  to  our  access  to  the 
capital  markets  and  raised  new  funds.  We  raised  gross 
proceeds 
from  existing 
shareholders  and  selected  new  investors  in  Germany  and 
abroad in capital increases in February, April and November. 
And further, in December 2016 and January 2017 we issued 
two subordinated convertible bonds with a total volume of 
EUR  10.0  million  with  final  maturity  dates  at  the  2021  and 
fully 
2022  year-ends  respectively,  which  were  also 
subscribed.  

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business premises in Wakefield, north of Boston, in June and 
important  appointments  for  our  US 
made  our  first 
subsidiary,  particularly 
in  the  sales  area,  of  course. 
Meanwhile  we've  appointed  four  regional  sales  managers 
and 16 field sales people, as well as key positions in the areas 
of  medical  and  product  application  advice,  finance, 
marketing and sales support, and quality management. It's 
particularly  pleasing  to  us  here  that  we've  been  able  to 
recruit many staff who are experienced in the PDT business 
model and have good networks. We're also the novelty on 
the  American  PDT  market  and  we're  enjoying  a  lot  of 
attention.  Of  course,  this  helps  us  a  lot  in  making  a 
successful market entry into the world's biggest healthcare 
market.  In  August,  we  accelerated  production  of  our  BF-
RhodoLED® to ensure a rapid market launch for Ameluz®. Of 
installed  at 
first  have 
course, 
dermatologists,  and  the  dermatologists  have  to  take  the 
requisite training. In October, we then officially launched the 
marketing  of  Ameluz®  at  the  Fall  Clinical  Dermatology 
Conference  in  Las  Vegas  with  a  VIP  launch  event,  and 
presented  Ameluz®  to  the  dermatology  community.  We 
already achieved sales of more than a million euros in the 
USA in the fourth quarter, the first BF-RhodoLED® PDT lamps 
are  already  installed  in  American  dermatology  practices, 
and  we're  confident  sales  in  2017  will  jump  sharply,  as 
photodynamic  therapy  is  a  much  more  widely  established 
treatment option in the USA than in Europe due to the more 
favourable reimbursement environment.  

to  be 

lamps 

the 

„We finally arrived at the conclusion 
that we would not transfer sales and 
marketing to a licensing partner, but 
instead do it ourselves“  

Christoph Dünwald – CCO 

We're now successively expanding our team and aiming for 
a US sales team comprising five regional managers and 45 
sales staff by the end of 2017. After initially concentrating 
on  marketing  in  sundrenched  regions  such  as  Florida,  the 
South  and  California,  we  aim  to  have  expanded  to  be 
operating  our  marketing  and  sales  activities  across  the 
whole of the USA by the end of the year. We've also been 

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Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Belixos® 2016: Application areas and regional reach 

Besides  Ameluz®,  you're  also  marketing  the  belixos® 
active cosmetic range. How does this fit with your overall 
strategy and your sales strategy, and what news is there 
to report from 2016? 

Christoph Dünwald:  
In 2016, we could add a fifth product – belixos® To Go – to our 
belixos® care range for skin problems. Our roll-on applicator 
is  a  genuine  all-round  talent  and  alleviates  acute  skin 
problems such as insect bites and small burns. Many people 
today  suffer  from  some  very  unpleasant  skin  irritations. 
belixos® products alleviate such problems and restore the 
skin's natural balance. The belixos® range meanwhile has a 
considerable fan base and we're pleased with the positive 

feedback  from  our  customers  who  are  successfully  using 
our products to treat atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, eczema, 
rosacea, acne and photodamage. A product to supplement 
our Ameluz® which deserves particular mention is belixos® 
Protect,  which  prevents  and  remedies  sun-induced  DNA 
damage  that  can  develop  into  tumours.  Of  course,  sales 
generated by belixos® account for just a small proportion of 
our  total  sales.  Nevertheless  –  belixos®  is  successful,  is 
growing fast and fits outstandingly with our positioning as a 
specialist  provider  in  dermatology.  Expansion  into  the 
American  market  will  also  boost  the  market  potential 
considerably. 

Over the past years you've grown the number of your staff 
from 38 to 94 as of the end of 2016. In particular, you hired 
a number of US staff during the second half of 2016. How 
do  you  convince  such  individuals  of  Biofrontera's  merits 
and recruit them long-term?  

Professor Hermann Lübbert::  
A  small  company  like  Biofrontera  makes  entirely  different 
demands of its staff than a pharmaceutical giant. Our staff 
have  to  be  multifaceted,  because  their  projects  mostly 
present  them  with  a  wide  range  of  completely  different 
tasks. All employees at Biofrontera can take responsibility – 
in  fact,  they  have  to  take  responsibility  –  and  have 
opportunities to implement very varied structures within a 
broad  area  of  activity.  The  opportunity  to  help  shape  the 
business  and  play  an  active  role  in  our  success  story  is  a 
very strong motivation for many. We're very proud of our 
fantastic staff who tackle challenges with full commitment 
every day and have brought Biofrontera to where it is today 
– namely, on a successful track. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Investor Relations 

The shares of Biofrontera AG, Leverkusen, have been traded in the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange 
since 3 June 2014. They have already been listed in the Regulated Market of the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange since 2006, and they 
have been listed on the Regulated Market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since 2012.  
!
The Biofrontera share 
Key share data 

Share class 

Stock exchange 

Other trading platforms 

Transparency level 

Shares in issue as of 31 December 2016 

Share capital 

ISIN 

WKN (German Securities Identification) 

Ticker symbol 

Designated Sponsor 

Share price as of 31 December 2016 

52-week high* (10 May 2016) 

52-week low* (07 January 2016) 

Registered shares (no par value) 

Frankfurt Stock Exchange 

XETRA, Berlin, Düsseldorf, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate 

Prime Standard 

37,722,433  

EUR 37,722,433  

DE0006046113 

604611 

B8F 

Lang & Schwarz Broker GmbH 

EUR 3.16  

EUR 3.69  

EUR 1.86  

Market capitalisation as of 31 December 2016 

EUR 119 million 

Average daily trading volume (52 weeks as of 31 December 2016) 

63,629 shares per day  

*All share prices based on XETRA closing prices 
!
Share price performance 

The  capital  market  environment  in  2016  was  characterised  by  high  volatility  in  the  context  of  somewhat  low  earnings 
expectations and rising political uncertainty due to the Brexit vote and the presidential elections in the USA. Despite general 
market turbulence, the price of the Biofrontera share was chiefly affected by specific corporate news and performed extremely 
well over the course of the year. In the first quarter, the share continued to stagnate at the level of the previous year's end, 
marking its low of EUR 1.86 on 7 January. Following the successes with approvals and expanded approvals for Ameluz®, however, 
and despite a capital increase, the share recorded a constant increase from early April, climbing to its high of EUR 3.69 on 10 
May. The peak in trading volumes was reached at a volume of 694,054 shares on the day after the FDA approval was announced. 
The share nevertheless suffered some price losses in this context, as some investors used the share price high to take profits. 
A further dip in the share price to EUR 2.38 occurred in mid-June during the days surrounding the Brexit vote, although the share 
price had already recovered from this setback by the end of June. It closed the end of the year at a price of EUR 3.16. Starting 
from the previous year's close at EUR 1.85, the total share price appreciation amounts to an above-average increase of 70.8 
percent for 2016. The Biofrontera share thereby significantly outperformed its comparable index, the TecDAX, which shed 1.0 
percent of its value over the same period. The share price performance remained positive after the end of the financial year 
under review. 

16 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Share price chart 

Shareholder structure  

The shareholder structure of Biofrontera AG as of 31 December 2016 is as follows: 

* directly and/or indirectly attributable 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

17 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
Further financial instruments  

Key data for warrant bond with warrants I*!

Stock exchange 

WKN (German Securities ID) 

ISIN 

Term, final maturity date  

Step coupons 

Par/denomination 

12 month-high* (29/08/2016) 

12 month-low* (15/02/2016) 

Closing price 31/12/2016 

*Price data: Düsseldorf Stock Exchange 

Key data for warrant bond with warrants* 

Stock exchange 

WKN (German Securities ID) 

ISIN 

Term, final maturity date  

Coupon 

Par/denomination 

12 month-high* (05/09/2016) 

12 month-low* (01/02/2016) 

*Price data: Düsseldorf Stock Exchange 

Key data for the 2016-2021 Convertible Bond!

Stock exchange 

WKN (German Securities ID) 

ISIN 

Term, final maturity date  

Coupon 

Par/denomination 

Total volume 

Initial conversion price 

Conversion price from 01/01/2017 

Conversion price from 01/01/2018 

Key data for the 2017-2022 Convertible Bond!

Stock exchange 

WKN (German Securities ID) 

ISIN 

Term, final maturity date  

Coupon 

Par/denomination 

Total volume 

Initial conversion price 

Conversion price from 01/04/2017 

Conversion price from 01/01/2018 

Düsseldorf 

A0Z169 

DE000A0Z1690 

8 years, 31/12/2017 

4 % (2010), 6 % (2011), 8 % (2012) 

EUR 100.00  

EUR 104.00   

EUR 77.00  

EUR 101.50  

Düsseldorf 

A1KQ9Q 

DE000A1KQ9Q9 

5 years, 31/12/2016 (repaid early on 06/12/2016) 

5 % 

EUR 100.00  

EUR 102.00  

EUR 92.43  

Not admitted to trading 

A2BPFQ 

DE000A2BPFQ5 

4 years, 31/12/2020 

6 % 

EUR 100.00  

EUR 4,999,000  

EUR 3.00  

EUR 4.00  

EUR 5.00  

Düsseldorf, since February 2017 

A2BPDE 

DE000A2BPDE6 

5 years, 31/12/2021 

6 % 

EUR 100.00  

EUR 4,999,000  

EUR 3.50  

EUR 4.00  

EUR 5.00  

18 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Investor relations work   

Biofrontera sets great store by active, comprehensive and continuous communication with investors and analysts. The aim at 
all times is to provide information about the company on a basis that is reliable, open and prompt. 

Road shows and conferences offer the Biofrontera management the opportunity to conduct extensive and personal discussions 
with institutional investors (both equity and debt investors) and analysts. Such discussions were conducted on many days during 
the  2016  financial  year,  including  at  capital  market  centres  in  the  USA  and  many  important  European  cities.  Biofrontera 
participated mainly at internationally oriented, cross-sector conferences in 2016, but was also represented at events with a 
specialist focus.  

For  private  investors,  Biofrontera  uses  its  own  format  to  explain  and  discuss  central  corporate  topics  in  detail.  This  year's 
shareholder evening on 13 December 2016 focussed on investor questions about the company's strategic objectives, such as 
establishing sales for Ameluz® in the USA.   

Along  with  quarterly  statements  for  the  first  and  third  quarters  and  the  half-year  financial  report,  Biofrontera  informed 
investors, analysts and further interested capital market participants in a total of 35 press releases and 14 IR releases. The 
Management  Board  held  telephone  conferences  to  comment  on  the  Group's  published  results  and  report  on  significant 
developments and current activities. The annual analysts' conference occurred as part of the Equity Capital Forum in Frankfurt 
on 22 November 2016. 

The Ordinary Annual General Meeting of Biofrontera AG was held on 31 May 2016 in Leverkusen, and was attended by a total of 
46 percent of the 30,347,813 shares comprising the dividend-entitled share capital of Biofrontera AG as of this date.  The presence 
thereby improved slightly compared with the previous year. New elections of Dr. Mark Reeth, Dr. John Borer, Kevin Weber and 
Hansjörg Plaggemars as well as the re-election of Jürgen Baumann and Dr. Ulrich Granzer to the Supervisory Board are of note 
here. Unfortunately, the management's proposals relating to authorising the Management Board to create a new Authorised 
Capital  and  to  issue  profit  participation  certificates,  warrants,  convertible  profit-sharing  certificates,  as  well  as  bonds  with 
warrants and/or convertible bonds, including creation of a corresponding Contingent Capital, failed to achieve the requisite 
three quarters majority of the share capital represented.  

Biofrontera implemented three capital measures in 2016. A first capital increase was completed in February, when Biofrontera 
issued 2,357,384 new shares to generate net issue proceeds of around EUR 4.4 million. Shareholders' subscription rights were 
excluded for this capital increase. In a second capital measure, where shareholders were granted statutory subscription rights, 
a total of 2,499,999 new shares were placed in April with net issue proceeds of around EUR 4.9 million. The proceeds from both 
of these capital measures were applied to finance the approval and market launch of Ameluz® in the USA as well as the expansion 
of  the  European  approval  of  Ameluz®  to  treat  basal  cell  carcinoma.  In  a  third  capital  measure  in  November  2016,  where  all 
shareholders were also granted statutory subscription rights, a further 5,012,950 shares were placed with net issue proceeds of 
around EUR 14.7 million. Along with commercialising Ameluz® in the USA, the proceeds from this capital measure, too, served 
mainly the early repayment (on 6 December 2016) of the bond maturing on 1 January 2017 in an amount of around EUR 9 million, 
including accrued interest.  

Besides  these  capital  measures,  49,990  subordinated  convertible  bonds  in  a  total  nominal  amount  of  EUR  4,999,000  were 
successfully placed in November 2016. 

In  January  2017  a  further  49,990  subordinated  convertible  bonds  in  a  total  nominal  amount  of  EUR  4,999,000  could  be 
successfully placed. 

Analyst coverage  

Biofrontera was covered by the following analysts in 2016: 

Broker  

Shore Capital Stockbroker Limited 

EQUI.TS GmbH 

sc-consult GmbH 

!
!

Analyst 

Tara Raveendran 

Thomas Schießle  

Holger Steffen 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

19 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Roadshows 

Date  

27/01/2016 

08/02/2016 

09/02/2016 

26/02/2016 

01/03/2016 

15-17/03/2016 

04-05/04/2016 

13/04/2016 

18/04/2016 

19/04/2016 

21/04/2016 

25-26/04/2016 

19/05/2016 

20/05/2016 

23/05/2016 

20/06/2016 

21/06/2016 

07/07/2016 

09/08/2016 

10/10/2016 

02/11/2016 

03/11/2016 

07/11/2016 

10/11/2016 

28-29/11.2016 

Conferences 

Location 

Warsaw 

London 

Brussels 

London 

Geneva 

New York 

New York 

Vienna 

Copenhagen 

Stockholm 

Munich 

New York 

Monaco 

Zürich 

London 

Vienna 

Zürich 

Paris 

New York 

Amsterdam 

Düsseldorf 

Amsterdam 

Munich 

Vienna 

London 

Date  

Conference 

11-14 January 2016 

10-12 February 2016 

28 April 2016 

6-10 June 2016 

14 June 2016 

10-11 August 2016 

12-13 September 2016 

19-21 October 2016 

20-23 October 2016 

8 November 2016 

22 November 2016 

1-2 December 2016 

6 December 2016 

J.P. Morgan 34th Annual Healthcare Conference (San Francisco)  

Source Capital Conference (New York) 

Munich Capital Market Conference  

Jefferies Global Health Care Conference (New York) 

Prior Capital Market Conference (Frankfurt) 

Canaccord Genuity Annual Growth Conference (Boston) 
18th Annual Rodman & Renshaw Global Investment Conference (New York) 

Dawson James Annual Growth Stock Conference (Florida) 

Fall Clinical Dermatology Conference (Las Vegas) 

Bio Europe (Cologne) 

Equity Capital Forum (Frankfurt) 

CEO/CFO Summit Bio Germany (Hamburg) 

LD Micro Main Event (Los Angeles) 

20 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
Corporate governance report for the 2016 financial year including 
the corporate governance declaration pursuant to Section 289 a 
HGB 

I. Statement pursuant to Section 161 AktG (disclosure pursuant to Section 289 
a (2) subsection 1 HGB forming part of the corporate governance declaration) 

The Management and Supervisory boards issued the following compliance statement in April 2017: 

Statement by the Management and Supervisory boards of Biofrontera AG (the company) 
concerning  the  German  Corporate  Governance  Code,  pursuant  to  Section  161  of  the 
German Stock Corporation Act (AktG)  

Pursuant to Section 161 German Stock Corporation Act (AktG), the Management and Supervisory boards of Biofrontera AG are 
obligated to state each year that the recommendations of the "Government Commission on the German Corporate Governance 
Code" ("Code"), as published by the Federal Ministry of Justice in the official section of the electronic Federal Gazette, have 
been and are being complied with, or which recommendations were not or are not being adhered to and why such is the case 
("compliance  statement").  The  compliance  statement  must  be  made  permanently  accessible  to  the  shareholders.  The 
Management and Supervisory boards hereby issue the following compliance statement: 

Since the submission of its last compliance statement in December 2015, Biofrontera AG has complied with the recommendations 
of the Code in the version specified therein taking into account the exceptions therein stated, and will comply with the version 
dated 5 May 2015, with the following exceptions: 

Deductibles in respect of the D&O insurance (No. 3.8 subsection 3) 

The  company  has  taken  out  D&O  insurance  cover,  which  provides  no  deductible  for  Supervisory  Board  members.  In  the 
company's  view,  such  a  deductible  is  not  required  to  ensure  the  Supervisory  Board  members'  motivation  and  sense  of 
responsibility. A deductible would, however, probably undermine the company's aspirations to attract outstanding people from 
Germany and abroad to serve on its Supervisory Board. The Supervisory Board has consequently been expressly exempted from 
the  new  provisions  regarding  the  deductible  in  the  German  Act  regarding  the  Appropriateness  of  Management  Board 
Remuneration (VorstAG) (Section 116 AktG). 

Presentation of Management Board remuneration in the remuneration report (No. 4.2.5) 

No.  4.2.5  of  the  Code  includes  recommendations  relating  to  the  presentation  of  Management  Board  remuneration  in  the 
remuneration report. These include in particular the use of standardised tables. The remuneration system for the Management 
Board as well as the total amounts granted are presented in accordance with legal stipulations in the Management Report as 
well  as  in  the  Notes.  These  provide  in  the  company’s  view  a  comprehensive,  transparent  and  understandable  overview  and 
therefore an additional advantage from the presentation recommendations of the Code cannot be recognized. 

General limit to be specified for the term of office on the Supervisory Board (No. 5.4.1) 

As part of its diversity goals, the Supervisory Board should specify a general limit for the term of office on the Supervisory 
Board. In the company's case, however, specifying a general limit for the term of office is not considered appropriate from 
today's perspective because the Supervisory Board is of the opinion that it is not possible to determine in the abstract a length 
of time that could usefully be specified as a general maximum limit for the term of office. Instead, each case should be assessed 
individually as to whether the length of membership on the Supervisory Board to date might conflict with proper and impartial 
performance of the mandate.  

Structure of remuneration for the Supervisory Board (No. 5.4.6) 

The company does not take committee membership into consideration when remunerating the Supervisory Board members. 
Given the close coordination in the six-member Supervisory Board, a differentiation of the Supervisory Board remuneration 
according  to  committee  membership  is  not  currently  required,  especially  as  the  members  generally  have  around  the  same 
workloads resulting from membership of the various committees.  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

21 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Reporting (No. 7.1.2) 

Financial reports, half-yearly reports and interim reports are published within the statutory periods.  

Leverkusen, Germany, April 2017  

Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert 

Thomas Schaffer 

Christoph Dünwald   

Management Board of Biofrontera AG  

Dr. Ulrich Granzer 
Chairman of the Supervisory Board 

II. Corporate Governance Report 

The  current  corporate  governance  report  is  available  on  the  company's  website  at  www.biofrontera.com  in  the  section 
"Investors", sub-section "Corporate Governance". 
!

22 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report  of  the  Supervisory  Board  of  Biofrontera  AG  for  the  2016 
financial year 

Dear Shareholders 

regulator, 

The  company  continued  to  make  further  significant 
progress  in  terms  of  markets  and  products  in  the  2016 
financial  year.  In  May  2016  it  was  announced  that  the 
American 
(Food  And  Drug 
the  FDA 
Administration),  had  issued  approval  for  Ameluz®  in 
combination  with  the  BF-RhodoLED®  PDT 
lamp  for 
unlimited  marketing  in  the  USA  for  both  the  lesion-
directed  and  field-directed  treatment  of  mild  and 
moderate  actinic  keratosis  on  the  face  and  scalp.  The 
establishment of our US subsidiary also progressed. We 
then started sales and marketing in the USA in October 
2016. In September 2016, we received European approval 
to  use  Ameluz® 
thereby 
In 
considerably  expanding 
issued 
November  2016,  the  European  Commission 
approval for Ameluz® for an indefinite period, after it had 
first  been  limited  to  five  years  in  accordance  with 
standard  processes.  In  December  2016,  the  European 
regulator  recommended  an  expanded  approval  for 
Ameluz®  to  include  basal  cell  carcinoma,  with  the 
European Commission approving this new indication for 
Ameluz® in January 2017. On the financing side, we raised 
further funding during the reporting period. The 5 % bond 
with  warrants  2011/2016  was  repaid  early  in  December 
2016.  

its  market  potential. 

field  cancerisation, 

for 

Personnel changes on the Supervisory Board 

On  31  May  2016,  new  Supervisory  Board  elections  were  held  on  the  rotation  basis.  The  AGM  on  31  May  2016  appointed  as 
Supervisory Board members Mr. Jürgen Baumann, independent management consultant, resident in Monheim, Mr. John Borer, 
Head of Investment Banking at The Benchmark Company LLC, New York, USA, resident in Jersey City, NJ, USA, Dr. Ulrich Granzer, 
owner  and  Managing  Director  of  Granzer  Regulatory  Consulting  &  Services,  Munich,  resident  in  Krailling,  Mr.  Hansjörg 
Plaggemars, member of the Management Board of Deutsche Balaton Aktiengesellschaft, Heidelberg, resident in Stuttgart, Mr. 
Mark Reeth, independent management consultant, resident in Frederick, MD, USA, and Mr. Kevin Weber, Principal of Skysis LLC., 
Scottsdale, AZ, USA, resident in Scottsdale, AZ, USA, subject to the condition that their period of office ends as of the end of the 
AGM that approves their discharge for the 2020 financial year. 

Mrs. Ulrike Kluge, Mr. Alfred Neimke, Mr. Andreas Fritsch and Prof. Dr. Bernd Wetzel stepped down from the Supervisory Board 
as their mandates expired at the end of the 31 May 2016 AGM. The Supervisory Board would like to extend its heartfelt thanks – 
including on the Management Board's behalf – to Mrs. Kluge, Mr. Fritsch and Prof. Wetzel for their many years of trusting and 
constructive collaboration, whereby they have made a significant contribution to the company. 

One of the company's shareholders brought a lawsuit on charges of nullity, alternatively recession, against the election by the 
31 May 2016 AGM of Mr. Jürgen Baumann, Mr. John Borer and Mr. Kevin Weber as Supervisory Board members. The lawsuit pending 
before the Cologne District Court was registered under file reference 82 O 105/16. The legal dispute was ended on 9 March 2017 
when the lawsuit was withdrawn.  

Supervision and consultation 

In  the  reporting  period,  the  Supervisory  Board  discharged  the  responsibilities  incumbent  upon  it  according to  the  law,  the 
company's bylaws, the German Corporate Governance Code (Code), and its rules of business procedure. The Supervisory Board's 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

23 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
activities  included  supervising  and  consulting  with  the  Management  Board  about  the  management  of  the  company  and  the 
Group. 

The Supervisory Board monitored the Management Board's activities and discussed with it its future business decisions and 
plans. The Supervisory Board's discussions with the Management Board were always based on reports by Management Board, 
and also involved reviewing and taking into consideration business documents and presentations. In particular, the Supervisory 
Board also reviewed the legality, propriety and expediency of measures proposed by the company's management team, as well 
as the economic feasibility of such measures. 

The Supervisory Board was kept continuously informed by the Management Board, both during and outside meetings, about the 
company's  current  performance.  The  Management  Board  provided  the  Supervisory  Board  with  regular,  timely  and 
comprehensive reports. The Supervisory Board was always consulted immediately about decisions of fundamental significance 
for the company. Deviations in business performance from the plans were explained in detail and discussed by the Supervisory 
Board. On the basis of the Management Board's written and verbal reports, the Supervisory Board comprehensively discussed 
business  developments  and  the  company's  situation  in  its  meetings.  Furthermore,  the  Chief  Executive  Officer  and  the 
Supervisory Board Chairman regularly exchanged information and ideas. Additionally, the Supervisory Board always examined 
the extent to which its decisions, proposals and recommendations were subsequently taken into account and implemented by 
the Management Board in running the company. 

Whenever approval from the Supervisory Board was required for decisions made by the Management Board due to the set of 
such decisions defined by the Supervisory Board or because of legal requirements or corresponding requirements of the Annual 
General Meeting, or if the Management Board requested approval with regard to any other measures, the Supervisory Board was 
informed  in  advance  through  the  submission  of  written  information  and  documents  relevant  to  the  decision.  Approval  was 
subsequently granted following consultation at meetings of the Supervisory Board or – in the case of decisions involving a 
circulation procedure – in or after a conference call. If necessary, the Supervisory Board also inspected the company's books 
and documents.  

Consultations and areas of focus 

In fulfilling its responsibilities, the Supervisory Board held four meetings during the reporting year:  

7 April 2016 

The meeting on 7 April 2016 was the meeting held concerning the financial statements. The Management Board reported on 
developments  during  2015  and  during  the  first  quarter  of  2016,  especially  the  financial  and  liquidity  position,  the  status  of 
marketing  and  sales,  as  well  as  research  and  development.  After  discussing  the  2015  separate  financial  statements,  the 
consolidated financial statements and the combined management report for the company and the Group, the Supervisory Board 
approved the reports of the auditor present at the meeting, raised no reservations on the basis of the results of its own audit, 
and approved both the separate and consolidated financial statements. It thereby followed the recommendation of its Audit 
Committee. Both the separate and consolidated financial statements of Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft for the 2015 financial 
year were adopted as a consequence. 

The Supervisory Board also discussed the statutory amendments based on the German Auditing Reform Act (AReG), and EU 
Regulation No. 537/2014. It was found in this context that the recommendation for the appointment of independent auditors or 
auditing  firms  required  a  selection  procedure  for  the  2017  financial  year  in  the  meaning  of  Article  16  of  EU  Regulation  No. 
537/2014. The Audit Committee was mandated to prepare a set of criteria for the selection procedure. The Nomination Committee 
reported on the selection of candidates for the rotational election of new Supervisory Board members at the 2016 AGM. 

1 June 2016 

The 1 June 2016 meeting convened the Supervisory Board newly elected by the AGM on 31 May 2016. Dr. Granzer was elected 
Chairman and Mr. Baumann was elected to be his Deputy. The formation of the following committees was also approved at this 
meeting:  Audit  Committee,  Nomination  Committee,  Personnel  Committee  and  the  R&D  &  Market  Access  Committee.  The 
Supervisory Board also approved the set of criteria to be published for the selection procedure for the independent auditor. The 
corresponding tender of the audit of the separate and consolidated financial statements for the financial year ending as of 31 
December 2017 was published on 25 July 2016 in the German Federal Gazette (Bundeanzeiger). The Management Board reported 
on business development, especially the planned market entry in the USA.  

24 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
21 September 2016 

The Management Board reported first on the planned expansion of the approval for Ameluz® for basal cell carcinoma. It also 
reported on developments with daylight therapy with Ameluz®. Furthermore, business development in Europe and progress with 
the planned market entry in the USA were discussed.  

7 December 2016 

The Management Board reported on business development during the first nine months of 2016 and provided an outlook for the 
2016 results. The Supervisory Board concerned itself with the budget planning for 2017, which it approved.  

The Supervisory Board then consulted concerning the result of the tender for the audit of the separate and consolidated financial 
statements for the financial year ending 31 December 2017. Overall, four audit firms expressed interest in a mandate, three of 
which  had  submitted  specific  offers.  These  were  assessed  on  the  basis  of  the  defined  selection  criteria.  The  result  of  the 
appraisal had been submitted to the Supervisory Board, along with a reasoned recommendation. On this basis, the Supervisory 
Board  decided  to  propose  Warth  &  Klein  Grant  Thornton  AG  Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft,  Düsseldorf,  to  the  AGM  as  the 
auditor for the 2017 financial year.  

All  members  participated  at  all  of  the  aforementioned  Supervisory  Board  meetings.  The  Supervisory  Board  also  passed 
resolutions outside of the scope of meetings.  

Supervisory Board committees 

The Supervisory Board has currently formed as permanent committees an Audit Committee, a Nomination Committee, Personnel 
Committee  and  an  R&D  &  Market  Access  Committee  (which  aggregates  the  former  Research  &  Development  Committee  and 
Business Development Committee). The Supervisory Board appoints a Supervisory Board member as committee chair in each 
case. Pursuant to the rules of business procedure for the Supervisory Board, the Supervisory Board Chair is expected to chair 
the committees that handle Management Board contracts and prepare Supervisory Board meetings. The Supervisory Board Chair 
should  not  be  the  Audit  Committee  Chair  too.  These  requirements  are  taken  into  account  when  making  appointments.  The 
committee chairs report to the Supervisory Board on the committees' work.  

All the committee members participated in all the committee meetings in 2016.  

Audit Committee 

The  Audit  Committee  focuses  particularly  on  issues  relating  to  financial  accounting  and  risk  management,  the  auditor's 
mandatory independence and the issuing of the audit mandate to the auditor, as well as overseeing the audit of the company's 
annual financial statements. In companies as defined in Section 264d of the German Commercial Code (HGB), which includes 
Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft, the Supervisory Board's nomination for the selection of the auditor must be based on the Audit 
Committee's recommendation. Furthermore, in companies as defined in Section 264d of the German Commercial Code (HGB), at 
least one independent member of the Supervisory Board must possess expertise in the financial accounting or auditing areas 
and be a member of the Audit Committee.  

The  Audit  Committee  comprised  the  following  individuals  during  the  reporting  year  up  until  31  May  2016:  Jürgen  Baumann, 
Andreas Fritsch and Alfred Neimke. Mr. Fritsch occupied the chair.  

The Audit Committee has comprised the following individuals since 1 June 2016: Hansjörg Plaggemars, Jürgen Baumann and John 
Borer. Mr. Plaggemars currently occupies the chair. 

The committee met twice during the reporting year: the first time with the auditor in order to prepare for the Supervisory 
Board's financial statements meeting on 7 April 2016, and the second time in advance of the budget meeting on 7 December 
2016. On 7 December 2016, the committee also made a recommendation to the plenum regarding the selection of the auditor for 
the 2017 financial year.  

Personnel Committee 

The  Personnel  Committee  prepares  decisions  for  the  Supervisory  Board  regarding  the  appointment  and  dismissal  of 
Management Board members. Unlike in the past, the plenum is now assigned responsibility for remuneration decisions, as a 
result  of  changes  in  the  German  Act  regarding  the  Appropriateness  of  Management  Board  Remuneration  (VorstAG),  so  the 
Personnel Committee now only performs preparatory work.  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

25 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Personnel Committee comprised the following individuals during the reporting year up until 31 May 2016: Jürgen Baumann, 
Dr. Ulrich Granzer, Prof. Dr. Bernd Wetzel. Mr. Baumann currently occupies the chair.  

The Personnel Committee has comprised the following individuals since 1 June 2016: Jürgen Baumann, John Borer and Dr. Ulrich 
Granzer. Mr. Baumann is the current chairperson. 

The committee met on 7 April 2016. The meeting discussed target attainment by the Management Board members during 2015 
as well as setting performance targets for 2016, which the plenum adopted correspondingly. 

Research & Development Committee 

The  Research  &  Development  Committee  handles  key  issues  related  to  product  development.  After  discussions  within  the 
Research and Development Committee, it makes appropriate recommendations to the Management Board and the Supervisory 
Board. The Research & Development Committee comprised the following individuals during the financial year under review up 
until 31 May 2016: Dr.Ulrich Granzer, Ulrike Kluge, Prof. Dr. Bernd Wetzel. Prof. Dr. Bernd Wetzel occupied the chair.  

Business Development Committee 

The Business Development Committee assessed the opportunities for licensing deals and related contractual terms, consulted 
with the Management Board on specific negotiations and prepared resolutions for the Supervisory Board on matters requiring 
approval. Resolutions regarding licensing or direct selling were also discussed in the Business Development Committee. The 
Business Development Committee comprised the following individuals during the reporting year up until 31 May 2016: Jürgen 
Baumann, Dr. Ulrich Granzer, Ulrike Kluge. Mrs. Kluge occupied the chair.  

R&D & Market Access Committee 

Since 1 June 2016, the R&D & Market Access Committee has aggregated the functions of the Research & Development Committee 
as well as the Business Development Committee. It has comprised the following individuals since 1 June 2016: Mark Reeth, Dr. 
Ulrich Granzer and Kevin Weber. Mr. Reeth currently occupies the chair. 

Nomination Committee 

In addition to the chairperson, the Nomination Committee includes two further Supervisory Board members who are elected to 
the committee. The Nomination Committee proposes suitable candidates to the Supervisory Board for its nominations of future 
members of the Supervisory Board at the Annual General Meeting. Here, the Nomination Committee considers the balance and 
variety  of  knowledge,  skills  and  experience  of  all  the  Supervisory  Board  members,  and  prepares  candidate  profiles.  The 
Nomination Committee is also to make proposals to the Supervisory Board concerning, and communicate results from, a regular 
assessment of the knowledge, capabilities and experience of both the members individually as well as the Supervisory Board in 
its  entirety.  In  the  course  of  performing  its  duties,  the  Nomination  Committee  can  draw  on  company  resources  it  deems 
appropriate and also on external consultants within the necessary framework.  

The Nomination Committee comprised the following individuals until 31 May 2016: Jürgen Baumann (Chairman), Dr. Ulrich Granzer, 
Prof. Dr. Bernd Wetzel. 

The Nomination Committee has comprised the following individuals since 1 June 2016: Dr. Ulrich Granzer, Hansjörg Plaggemars 
and Mark Reeth. Dr. Granzer occupies the chair. 

The Nomination Committee met twice in the reporting year, on 29 March 2016 and 15 April 2016, to prepare a proposal to the 
Supervisory Board as to which candidates should be proposed to the AGM for election.  

Separate and consolidated financial statements for 2016 

The audit firm Warth & Klein Grant Thornton AG, Düsseldorf, was appointed Group auditor for the 2016 financial year by the 
Annual General Meeting on 31 May 2016 and was subsequently given the corresponding mandate by the Supervisory Board. The 
auditor's declaration of independence was received before the nomination was made at the AGM. Warth & Klein Grant Thornton 
AG audited the separate and consolidated financial statements of Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft, which the Management Board 
prepared, and the combined management report for the 2016 financial year, and issued unqualified audit opinions for them. 
Furthermore, the auditor noted that the Management Board had established an appropriate information and monitoring system 
which  was  suitable,  both  in  terms  of  its  design  and  operation,  to  identify  at  an  early  stage  any  developments  that  might 
jeopardise the company as a going concern.  

26 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The consolidated financial statements were prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).  

The financial statements documents were discussed in detail by the Audit Committee on 5 April 2017 and at the subsequent 
financial statements meeting of the Supervisory Board on 5 April 2017 – on each occasion in the presence of, and after a report 
by, the auditor. All Supervisory Board members received the financial statements documents and the audit reports drawn up by 
the  auditor  in  good  time  before  the  financial  statements  meeting,  and  studied  the  documents  thoroughly.  At  the  financial 
statements  meeting,  the  separate  and  consolidated  financial  statements  were  discussed  extensively  with  the  Management 
Board. The auditor reported on the audit, commented on the main audit topics and was at the Supervisory Board's disposal to 
answer questions and provide information. The auditor also provided information about its findings on internal controlling and 
risk management with regard to the accounting process.  

All questions posed by the Supervisory Board were answered in full by the Management Board and the auditor.  

The Supervisory Board took note of the audit reports, the separate and consolidated financial statements and the combined 
management report for the company and the Group.  

After discussing the separate financial statements, the consolidated financial statements and the combined management report 
for the company and the Group, the Supervisory Board approved the auditor's reports and the results of the audit, expressed 
no reservations on the basis of the results of its own audit, and approved both the separate and the consolidated financial 
statements.  

The annual financial statements of Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft were adopted as a consequence.  
This Supervisory Board report was adopted at the financial statements meeting on 5 April 2017.  

Auditor responsible 

Mrs. Renate Hermsdorf has been the auditor appointed to perform the audit for Biofrontera AG since the 2013 financial year, Mr. 
Ralf Clemens performed this role for the financial year elapsed, 2016.  

Corporate governance and compliance declaration pursuant to Section 161 AktG 

The Supervisory Board reviews the efficiency of its operational activities on an annual basis. The Supervisory Board worked to 
issue the declaration of compliance with the recommendations of the German Corporate Governance Code for 2016. Further 
information on corporate governance is available in the annual report and online at www.biofrontera.com, under "Investors" / 
"Corporate Governance".  

Details of the Supervisory Board's objectives regarding its composition and the status of implementation are also published 
there.  

Equal participation by men and women 

Regarding the law on the equal participation of men and women in leadership positions in the private and public sectors, the 
Supervisory Board in 2015 set the target for female participation in the Supervisory Board at one third, in other words, two out 
of the current total of six seats. The deadline for achieving the target was set at 31 August 2016, in line with the objectives 
regarding the composition of the Supervisory Board defined on 22 February 2011. Despite this target, it was not possible to 
submit two women as candidates for the Supervisory Board on the occasion of the regular new elections at the Ordinary AGM 
on 31 May 2016. This is because, regrettably, despite a corresponding search, no candidate who corresponded to the formulated 
requirements profile and was consequently considered as a proposed candidate was nominated or identified as part of the 
nomination process. As Mrs. Kluge was also not available for re-election, the target could not be reached. The Supervisory Board 
subsequently set a target for the proportion of women on the Supervisory Board at one third, in other words, two out of a current 
total of six seats. The deadline for achieving this target was set at 31 August 2021. The target for the proportion of women on 
the Management Board was set in 2015 at 0 %. The deadline for achieving the target was set as 30 June 2017. The Supervisory 
Board was guided in its decision by the fact that, based on the existing management contracts, a higher target would only be 
achievable if the number of staff on the Management Board were to be increased. No plans to do this currently exist, however.  

Further details can be found in the corporate governance declaration.  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

27 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Conflicts of interest 

Dr. Granzer advised the company in 2016 in a capacity extending beyond his Supervisory Board membership. Dr. Granzer assisted 
the  company  with  the  implementation  of  the  US  approval's  regulatory  processes,  in  particular  during  the  preparation  of 
meetings with the FDA and the creation of the registration dossier. When deciding on the assignment of such tasks, Dr. Granzer 
abstained from voting, to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest. No evidence exists of any conflicts of interest of which 
the Supervisory Board must be notified without delay, and of which the Annual General Meeting should be informed, in relation 
to members of the Management or Supervisory boards. 

By  way  of  precaution,  it  should  be  noted  that  Deutsche  Balaton  Aktiengesellschaft,  Heidelberg,  whose  Management  Board 
includes Mr. Hansjörg Plaggemars, holds a total of 8.28 % of the shares and voting rights in Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft on 
the basis of published voting rights notifications. The shares held by Deutsche Balaton Aktiengesellschaft are attributed to Mr. 
Wilhelm  Konrad  Thomas  Zours,  whose  voting  rights  interest  in  Biofrontera  Aktiengesellschaft  amounts  to  a  total  of  11.21  % 
(indirect) on the basis of voting rights announcements. 

The Supervisory Board would like to thank the Management Board and the staff of both Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft and the 
Biofrontera Group for their great commitment and dedication during the past financial year.  
!

Biofrontera AG 

Leverkusen, 5 April 2017 

Dr. Ulrich Granzer 
Chairman of the Supervisory Board 

28 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
Combined management report for parent company and Group as of 
31 December 2016 

Basis of the Group 
Group structure 

This report describes the business performance of the Group (hereinafter also referred to as "Biofrontera" or the "Biofrontera 
Group") for the 2016 financial year. The Group consists of the parent company Biofrontera AG and five wholly owned direct 
subsidiaries  –  Biofrontera  Bioscience  GmbH,  Biofrontera  Pharma  GmbH,  Biofrontera  Development  GmbH,  Biofrontera 
Neuroscience GmbH and Biofrontera Inc. Biofrontera Inc. has its registered office in Wilmington, Delaware, USA. All the other 
companies are based at the parent company’s seat in Leverkusen, Germany.  

The listed public stock corporation ("Aktiengesellschaft" in German, abbreviated "AG") performs a holding company function in 
the  group  of  companies  and  ensures  the  necessary  financing  for  the  Group.  Biofrontera  Bioscience  GmbH  undertakes  the 
research and development tasks for the Group and is the holder of patents and the approval for Ameluz®. Based on a licence 
agreement  with  Biofrontera  Bioscience  GmbH,  Biofrontera  Pharma  GmbH  (which  is  also  the  holder  of  the  approval  for  BF-
RhodoLED®)  is  responsible  for  the  manufacturing  and  also  the  further  licensing  and  marketing  of  the  Biofrontera  Group's 
approved products. 

Biofrontera Development GmbH and Biofrontera Neuroscience GmbH were established as additional wholly-owned subsidiaries 
of Biofrontera AG in December 2012. The purpose of both companies is to pursue the further development of pipeline products 
that do not form part of Biofrontera's core business and consequently cannot be sufficiently financed as part of normal business 
development. The product BF-derm1 to treat severe chronic urticaria is now the responsibility of Biofrontera Development GmbH, 
while the product BF-1 for the prophylactic treatment of migraines is the responsibility of Biofrontera Neuroscience GmbH. This 
outsourcing of development candidates has created a structure through which the financing of the further development of these 
two products can be uncoupled from the normal Group financing. 

Biofrontera Inc. is responsible for US marketing of the Biofrontera Group's approved products. 

Group strategy 

The  strategic  objective  of  the  Biofrontera  Group  is  the  global  positioning  as  a  pharmaceuticals  company  specialising  in 
dermatology. Focus areas of activity include further expanding our products' sales, especially in the USA, as well as extending 
the approvals of Ameluz® to include further indications to enhance its market potential.  

Biofrontera  is  the  first  smaller  German  company  to  receive  centralised  approval  for  a  completely  independently  developed 
medication marketed under the Ameluz® brand. Since its launch in February 2012, Biofrontera has been deploying its own sales 
force to market Ameluz® among dermatologists in Germany, as well as in Spain since March 2015. Ameluz® is also available in 
the United Kingdom, although Biofrontera will not actively market it there until the start of the coming financial year, after the 
expansion of approval in January 2017 to include basal cell carcinoma (BCC). Licensing partners distribute the drug in other 
European Union countries, as well as in Israel and Switzerland. In July, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) issued a positive 
recommendation to improve Ameluz® to treat field cancerisation. The European Commission issued the effective expansion of 
the approval in September 2016. As the skin-rejuvenating effects of Ameluz® were also measured in the study on field-directed 
treatment that was conducted for this purpose, these results have also been included in the approved new product information. 

In May 2016, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued US approval for Ameluz® in combination with the BF-RhodoLED® 
lamp for the lesion-directed and field-directed PDT (photodynamic therapy) of actinic keratosis. In early July 2015, the company 
had submitted a new drug application (NDA) to the FDA. As Ameluz® and BF-RhodoLED® had to be approved as a combination of 
a drug and a medical device in the USA, the approval application there proved to be unusually complex. The FDA conducted 
extensive investigations and inspections in the subsequent months. The approval for both lesion-directed and field-directed 
treatment of mild to moderate actinic keratoses on the face and scalp was then issued without conditions. The world's largest 
healthcare market is consequently open to Biofrontera. A US subsidiary, Biofrontera Inc., based in Wilmington, Delaware, has 
been set up to market in the USA. All requisites structures were created for the market launch in the USA, which occurred in 
October 2016. Ameluz® for the US market is produced in Switzerland and imported into the USA. The PDT lamp for the US market 
is also produced at Biofrontera's headquarters in Leverkusen, Germany.  
Biofrontera  has  thereby  established  itself  as  an  internationally  operating  specialist  pharmaceutical  company.  The  Group 
strategy focuses in the short term on further expanding business in Europe and the USA, as well as on the indication expansion 
for basal cell carcinoma, which occurred in the EU in January 2017, and which is now also aimed for in the USA. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

29 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The indication expansion for Ameluz® to treat BCC was initiated in 2014. The Phase III clinical testing was conducted in direct 
comparison with competitor product Metvix®. Patient recruitment was completed in May 2015 and the last patient completed the 
clinical part of the trial in November 2015. This is followed by a 5-year follow-up period for all patients. The results of the trial 
have been available since January 2016 and prove that Ameluz® is highly clinically effective for the BCC indication. The recently 
published  recurrence  rates  after  12  months  confirm  the  better  efficacy  of  Ameluz®.  In  comparison  with  competitor  product 
Metvix®,  it  demonstrated  significantly  higher  healing  rates,  especially  with  thicker  and  nodular  BCCs.  Despite  statistically 
significant inferiority in the treatment of mild and moderate actinic keratosis on the face and scalp, as well as the restriction of 
its  approval  as  a  second  therapy  option  with  its  approval  to  treat  BCCs,  Metvix®  had  enjoyed  a  big  competitive  advantage 
compared with Ameluz® to date. Especially in those European countries where dermatologists are based mainly in hospitals and 
fewer independent practices exist, the market opportunities for Ameluz® had been significantly reduced by the previous lack of 
approval for BCC. The company applied to the EMA in July 2016 for an indication expansion of Ameluz® for basal cell carcinoma, 
which the European Commission issued in January 2017. Biofrontera hopes for a significantly improved market position from 
this new indication. 

The 2016 business year was a quite crucial year for Biofrontera, when it made preparations for a successful future. Given this, 
and the related challenges for Biofrontera, the Group also strengthened its personnel base. Along with hiring appropriate staff 
in the USA, the German organisation also needed to grow slightly, as many tasks for the USA are performed from Germany, and 
the development partnership with Maruho also ties up personnel capacities. 

Products 
Ameluz®  

Ameluz® 78 mg/g Gel ("love the light" – development name: BF-200 ALA) received a first centralised European approval for the 
treatment of mild and moderate actinic keratoses on the face and scalp in December 2011. Its superiority compared to its direct 
competitor product Metvix® was demonstrated for this indication during Phase III development. Actinic keratoses are superficial 
forms of skin cancer, and a risk exists that they can spread to deeper layers of skin. The combination of Ameluz® with light 
treatment is an innovative approach that constitutes a form of photodynamic therapy (PDT). The product information approved 
by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) explicitly mentions the significant superiority of Ameluz® for removing all a patient's 
keratoses compared to its direct competitor product. 

In the Phase III approval trials, Ameluz® showed excellent healing rates and demonstrated marked and statistically significant 
superiority compared to the approved comparator product tested in parallel. In the first Phase III trial in which the drug was 
combined with an LED lamp, in 87% of patients treated with Ameluz®, all keratoses were completely removed, and in terms of 
the number of individual keratosis lesions, as many as 96% were completely eradicated (all the values stated are ITT – intent to 
treat – values). In the second Phase III approval trial, the effectiveness of Ameluz® was tested in comparison with the approved 
standard medication. The results of the trial provided evidence that Ameluz® was clearly superior to the competitor product 
already available in Europe at the time. Based on the average for all lamps, Ameluz® resulted in the complete healing of actinic 
keratoses in 78% of patients, whereas the approved competitor product achieved a healing rate of only 64%. With LED lamps, 
the healing rates increased to 85% for Ameluz® and 68% for the competitor product. The side effect profile was comparable for 
both products.  

As approval in the USA requires a combination of drug and lamp, Biofrontera has developed its own PDT lamp, BF-RhodoLED®, 
and has had it CE-certified in the EU, which also required the entire company to be certified pursuant to the ISO 9001 and ISO 
13485 standards. In preparation for the approval in the USA, a Phase III trial was performed with a combination of Ameluz® and 
BF-RhodoLED®. With this combination, 91% of patients were cleared from all keratoses, and in terms of the number of individual 
lesions, 94% were completely removed after treatment (99.1% of mild and 91.7% of moderate lesions).  

The  patients  treated  in  the  field  therapy  trial  were  observed  by  the  trial  doctors  over  the  course  of  a  year  after  the  final 
treatment. Here, the long-term nature of the pharmaceutical effect of Ameluz® was analysed in terms of effectiveness, safety 
and cosmetic result. A total of 63.3% of the patients who were initially completely asymptomatic were still asymptomatic a year 
later. The long-term effectiveness achieved applying field-directed therapy consequently lies in the data range already observed 
in previous long-term studies on lesion-directed PDT with Ameluz®.  

As it has been widely reported in the specialist literature that PDT enjoys pronounced skin-rejuvenating properties, particularly 
in the case of sun-damaged skin, and in this trial – for the first time in a Phase III trial of PDT anywhere in the world – the drug 
was  applied  over  large  surface  areas  (field-directed  therapy),  the  cosmetic  result  was  measured  without  taking  the 
disappearance of the keratotic lesions into account. All the parameters that were tested improved significantly as a result of 
the  treatment.  An  improvement  in  the  skin  appearance  of  patients  treated  with  Ameluz®  observed  immediately  after  PDT 
continued to develop during the follow-up period. Before PDT, only 14.8% of patients had no impairments to the surface of the 

30 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
skin. Whereas twelve weeks after the last PDT, 63% of patients were already free of such cosmetic damage, this percentage rose 
after a year to 72.2%. Similar results were also observed for pigment disorders. Before PDT, hyperpigmentation occurred in 
59.3% and hypopigmentation in 46.3% of patients, with 48.1% exhibiting irregular pigmentation. Twelve weeks after Ameluz® 
PDT, these rates initially fell to 42.6%, 29.6% and 29.6%, and decreased over the course of a year to 24.1%, 11.1% and 18.5%. 
These results clearly show that the skin rejuvenation effect achieved using photodynamic therapy with Ameluz® is long-lasting, 
and the repair processes triggered by the therapy remain active for at least 12 months. 

The results on skin-appearance improvement have meanwhile been included in the official product information in the EU.  

Both of the Phase I trials required by the American approval authority, the FDA, were also already completed in 2015. These 
clinical  trials  were  initiated  with  a  total  of  approximately  240  patients  or  test  persons  to  add  the  safety  data  required  for 
registration in the USA to the European approval package for Ameluz®. Specifically, one of the trials was a sensitisation study, 
which determines the potential of Ameluz® to trigger allergies, and the other was a maximal use trial, which tests the absorption 
in the blood of the active ingredient in Ameluz®, aminolevulinic acid, and the light-activated metabolite protoporphyrin IX in 
cases of treatment with the maximum quantity, in other words, the application of a complete tube onto the defective skin. No 
safety concerns were identified in either of the trials. 

Actinic keratosis is classified as a tumour that requires treatment, and the international treatment guidelines list photodynamic 
therapy as the gold standard for the removal of actinic keratoses, particularly for patients with large keratotic areas. The latest 
statistics show that actinic keratosis is becoming a widespread disease, with up to 8 million people affected in Germany alone, 
with a marked uptrend. A total of even as many as 58 million individuals are estimated to suffer actinic keratosis in the USA. In 
particular, subclinical and mild actinic keratoses can develop into life-threatening squamous cell carcinomas, and this happens 
to the relevant lesions within two years on average. The fact that doctors are consequently taking actinic keratosis increasingly 
seriously  is  illustrated  by  the  fact  that  actinic  keratosis  has  been  recognised  in  Germany  as  an  occupational  disease  since 
summer 2013. Since then, occupational insurance associations have been obligated to cover the treatment costs of patients who 
have mainly worked outdoors for a long time and who fulfil certain criteria, for the duration of these patients' lives. The related 
payment modalities were set in March 2016, with PDT being included as a treatment method. PDT can be used to treat actinic 
keratosis in the context of an occupational disease, and can be billed accordingly. 

At present, actinic keratoses are treated using a wide range of methods. Lesions are treated, sometimes for weeks, with topical 
creams, which are often ineffective, or the diseased skin may be removed by mechanical intervention (curettage) or freezing 
(cryotherapy), which very often leads to scar formation or permanent pigment disorders, besides offering little efficacy.  

The market for topical creams continues to report constant growth, and medicinally and legally questionable PDT formulations 
continue to be used in Germany. Because Ameluz® is the market leader among independent dermatologists in Germany in the 
PDT proprietary medicinal product market, a significant increase in sales can and must result from the aforementioned sectors. 

The overall advantages of Ameluz® in terms of effectiveness, handling, user-friendliness and skin rejuvenation effects, as well 
as  the  high  healing  rates  of  PDT  in  the  treatment  of  actinic  keratoses,  will  increasingly  bring  this  treatment  option  to  the 
attention of dermatologists over the next few years. This will be helped by the recent expansion of the range of indications to 
include basal cell carcinoma, as the vast majority of PDT treatments are conducted for this indication, particularly in the UK and 
Spain. 

Biofrontera has conducted a Phase III trial for the extension of the European approval to include the BCC indication. BCCs are 
the most common invasive tumours that affect humans and account for approximately 50% to 80% of all skin cancers. Around 
30% of all Caucasians develop at least one BCC in their lifetime, and cases are increasing rapidly worldwide due to increased 
exposure to UV light. Surgical removal is the most frequent treatment currently used in the USA but this can lead to clearly 
visible scarring, whereas treatment with PDT, which is an alternative particularly in the treatment of thin BCCs, gives rise to 
excellent cosmetic results. In the pivotal Phase III trial, a total of 278 patients were treated. This trial was under the clinical 
management of Prof. Colin Morton (UK) and Prof. Markus Szeimies (Germany) and was conducted at 27 clinical trial centres in 
England and Germany. Patient recruitment for the trial, which was conducted in direct comparison with the competitor product 
Metvix®, was completed in May 2015 and the last patient completed the trial in November 2015. The trial's results have been 
available since January 2016. The results confirm the company's positive expectations. In the clinical trial, the effectiveness and 
safety  of  Ameluz®  were  compared  with  that  of  Metvix®,  a  drug  already  approved  in  the  EU  for  the  treatment  of  BCC.  Non-
aggressive  (superficial  and  nodular)  BCCs  with  a  thickness  of  up  to  2  mm  were  included  in  the  trial.  Ameluz®  achieved  the 
complete  elimination  of  all  BCCs  from  the  patient  in  93.4%  of  cases  compared  to  91.8%  with  Metvix®.  Greater  differences 
occurred with thicker BCCs. For example, 89.3% of nodular carcinomas were removed entirely with Ameluz®, and just 78.6% with 
Metvix®. Recurrence rates after 12 months were higher for Metvix® than for Ameluz®.  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

31 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Based on the results of this Phase III trial, Biofrontera applied to the European regulator in July 2016 for approval to treat BCC 
with Ameluz®, which the European Commission issued in January 2017. 

Between June and September 2016, patients were treated as part of a Phase III clinical trial, in which the efficacy and safety of 
Ameluz® in combination with PDT in daylight were measured in comparison with Metvix® in treating mild and moderate actinic 
keratosis. This comparative, randomised, observer-blind multicentre trial was conducted at seven trial centres in Spain and 
Germany with a total of 52 patients. Each patient had between 3 and 9 mild to moderate actinic keratoses (Olsen grades 1 and 2) 
on each of two comparable treatment areas on the face and/or scalp. The selection medication for the respective treatment 
side was random. The last patient completed the clinical phase of the trial in December 2016. The trial's results prove the non-
inferiority  (relevant  from  a  regulatory  standpoint)  of  Ameluz®  compared  with  Metvix®.  All  relevant  secondary  endpoints 
produced comparable or higher cure rates for Ameluz® in relation to Metvix®.  

Daylight PDT comprises a favourable and pain-free alternative to PDT treatment with a special lamp. Here, the topically applied 
medication is activated by natural or artificial daylight. The clinical endpoint of the trial is the total cure rate for all lesions on 
each treatment side 12 weeks after treatment. The secondary clinical endpoint comprises determining medication safety and 
additional efficacy parameters. The trial was jointly directed by Dr. Susana Puig, Research Director at the Biomedical Research 
Institute August Pi i Sunyer and professor at the University of Barcelona as the main research director in Spain, and Prof. Thomas 
Dirschka, founder of the private dermatology practice CentroDerm as the main research director in Deutschland. As treatment 
in daylight PDT does not need to be administered at a physician's practice it competes directly with the self-applied topical 
medications that are much more widely disseminated in Europe, and is consequently also reimbursed by statutory healthcare 
funds in Germany. 

BF-RhodoLED® 

BF-RhodoLED® is a lamp designed for PDT, and utilises LEDs emitting red light at a wavelength of approximately 635 nm.  Light 
at this wavelength, which is ideally suited for PDT illumination with drugs containing ALA or methyl ALA, is red but is still below 
the warming infrared range. The BF-RhodoLED® lamp combines a controlled and consistent emission of light at the required 
wavelength with simplicity, user-friendliness and energy efficiency. In the European version, light energy and fan power settings 
can be adjusted during a PDT treatment session to reduce any pain caused by the treatment. No other lamp on the market offers 
comparable power and flexibility. BF-RhodoLED® has been CE-certified since November 2012 and is distributed throughout the 
EU. For marketing in the USA, the final assembly of the PDT lamp was relocated to Biofrontera's premises, and Biofrontera itself 
has been performing final assembly since July 2016. From the FDA's perspective, Biofrontera is consequently the manufacturer 
responsible for the product. 

Belixos® 

Belixos® is a modern active cosmetic product specially developed for sensitive and irritated skin. The biocolloid technology 
patented  by  Biofrontera,  which  optimises  epidermal  penetration,  makes  the  products  unique:  pure  plant  biocolloids  are 
combined  with  medicinal  plant  extracts  to  form  an  extraordinary  combination  of  active  substances  with  proven  depth 
penetration, drawing together the best of nature and science. 

Belixos® Creme rapidly and reliably soothes itching and is the ideal basic treatment for inflamed, reddened and flaky skin. It 
soothes the skin, reduces scratching and allows the skin to regenerate naturally. Belixos® Creme, which has been available since 
2009, has consequently proved particularly useful as an effective basic treatment for atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. 

Over the past two years, other specialist regenerative cosmetic products for skin problems have been developed. The typical 
deep yellow colour is the unmistakeable mark of quality. This is derived from the traditional medicinal plant extract obtained 
from the roots of Mahonia aquifolium. Belixos® products use only natural active substance extracts with clinically proven effects.  

Belixos® Liquid is an innovative scalp tonic with a practical pipette for dosing, which soothes scalps irritated by psoriasis or 
eczema,  for  example,  and  restores  their  balance.  For  itchy  and  flaky  scalps,  a  combination  of  anti-inflammatory  mahonia, 
moisturising oats, irritation-relieving panthenol and a special zinc PCA complex is used.  

Belixos® Gel is specially cosmetically formulated for skin that is inflamed, reddened and prone to skin blemishes, providing an 
effective  treatment  for  rosacea  and  acne.  The  gel  texture  is  formulated  to  be  extra  grease-free,  has  a  complex  of  active 
substances consisting of anti-inflammatory mahonia and Sepicontrol A5, is antibacterial, removes hardened skin and regulates 
sebum. 

32 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Belixos® Protect is a modern daily care product specially developed for sun-damaged skin. With its skin-regenerative properties 
deriving from highly concentrated niacinamide, it leaves skin smooth and helps repair damaged skin. It also contains UVA and 
UVB broad spectrum protection with SPF15 to protect against further light-induced skin ageing and hyperpigmentation.  

Belixos® to go is a roll-on acute care product available since July 2016, which utilises a highly precise stainless steel ball to 
deliver care for itchy skin, insect bites and minor skin irritations. Anti-inflammatory mahonia, calming beach chamomile and the 
anti-irritative Sepicalm S Complex lead to faster relief for irritations and inflammation. 

Belixos® products are manufactured according to stringent quality and environmental regulations. They are free of paraffins, 
parabens,  ethyl  alcohol,  animal  products,  dyes  and  fragrances  that  may  have  negative  dermatological  effects.  Its  skin 
compatibility was certified as "very good" by the independent Dermatest Institute. Belixos® is obtainable in selected pharmacies, 
dermatological institutes and from the online retailer Amazon. 

Sales and markets 

With its central European approval, Ameluz® can be sold and distributed in all EU countries as well as in Norway, Iceland and 
Liechtenstein. In many European countries, however, price and reimbursement status have to be defined before market launch, 
which can be a very protracted process. To date In Europe, the company has commenced sales and distribution in Germany, the 
UK, Spain, Austria, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and Slovenia. The drug is 
available in these countries at a pharmacy retail price of between just under EUR 200 and approximately EUR 270 per 2g tube. 

Ameluz® is marketed in Germany and, since March 2015, also in Spain by Biofrontera's own field sales force, and in other European 
countries through marketing partners. Biofrontera is preparing its own sales operation in the UK, having already terminated its 
contract with a local marketing company on 31 July 2015. Biofrontera also conducts sales in Slovenia, with a local company 
supporting it in marketing. 

Distribution to public pharmacies generally occurs through pharmaceutical wholesalers, whereas hospital pharmacies are also 
supplied directly. In addition to regular visits by the field sales force to dermatologists, Biofrontera has presented Ameluz® at 
major dermatological conferences in Germany and other European countries since it was launched on the market. The feedback 
from dermatologists has been extraordinarily positive. The market share of Ameluz® in the segment of PDT medications made 
available by public-sector German pharmacies has long been constant at above 70%, but over the past months of 2016 has 
reduced  proportionally  a  little  again  due  to  the  launch  of  a  daylight  PDT  product  identical  to  Metvix®.  Nonetheless,  all  PDT 
products together command only a small share of the overall market for preparations to treat actinic keratosis, because only 
approximately  5%  of  patients  are  treated  with  proprietary  medicinal  products  for  PDT.  Although  PDT  achieves  the  highest 
healing rates by far, the complexity of the treatment and time required by medical practices to administer it have hindered 
significant market penetration in the statutory health insurance sector area to date. A film about PDT can be viewed on YouTube, 
in 
at 
at 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xEO8DWCO8o). 

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aK4a3R5kqMA, 

German 

English 

and 

in 

The  treatment  of  actinic  keratosis  with  daylight  therapy  will  play  an  ever  greater  role  in  Europe  in  the  future.  Competitor 
medication Metvix® has already received one approval for this indication, and since recently has been marketed specially for 
the  daylight  application  under  another  brand  name.  Statutory  healthcare  funds  reimburse  the  treatment  as  this  approach 
dispenses with additional PDT treatment work in physicians' practices, and patients apply the medication themselves. It can be 
expected that in the future daylight PDT will gain market shares that to date have been reserved for self-applied topical creams. 
Biofrontera successfully concluded a Phase III clinical trial on daylight PDT in January 2017, and having submitted the application 
for approval in the second quarter of 2017 also expects to receive approval for it during the first half of 2018. 

Approval for BCC is a prerequisite for the widespread use of Ameluz® in hospitals, as BCC is mainly treated there, whereas this 
is only quite rarely the case for actinic keratosis. This indication plays an essential role in the breakthrough of Ameluz® especially 
in European countries outside Germany where dermatologists work mainly in hospitals. BCCs are the most common invasive 
tumours that affect humans and account for 50% to 80% of all invasive white skin cancers. Around 30% of all Caucasians 
develop at least one BCC in their lifetime, and this is a rapidly growing trend worldwide due to increased exposure to UV light. 
BCCs are mostly removed surgically, although this can result in unattractive scar formation. Treatment with PDT is a highly 
effective alternative which also leads to excellent cosmetic results. According to a market study published in 2014 by Technavio, 
the  international  market  for  actinic  keratosis  medications  is  expected  to  grow  by  approximately  8%  annually,  from 
approximately USD 546 million USD 942  million in 2020. However, the market for BCC medications is expected to grow to a 
multiple of its current size, from approximately USD 236 million today to nearly USD 5 billion over the same period, because the 
availability of new drugs (Ameluz® is also mentioned in this context) will mean that fewer and fewer patients undergo operations. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

33 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In Denmark, Sweden and Norway, Ameluz® is marketed by Desitin Arzneimittel GmbH, in Benelux by Bipharma N.V., and in Austria 
by Pelpharma Handels GmbH. In Slovenia, Biofrontera conducts its own sales and distribution activities, and is supported in its 
marketing  activities  by  PHA  Farmed  Consultancy  s.p.  The  cooperation  with  Spirit  Healthcare  in  the  UK  was  terminated  by 
Biofrontera as of 31 July 2015, and Biofrontera is currently preparing to set up its own sales operation in the UK. Sales in Spain 
were initially handled by Allergan SA, but since March 2015 Biofrontera has marketed its products itself in Spain through its own 
branch operation, Biofrontera Pharma GmbH sucursal en España. Louis Widmer SA has been granted the Ameluz® distribution 
licence for Switzerland and Liechtenstein, and the Ameluz® distribution licence for Israel has been allocated to Perrigo Israel 
Agencies Ltd. It was necessary to undergo an independent approval process in these countries, which was conducted by the 
aforementioned distribution partners in collaboration with Biofrontera. In Switzerland, both the approval and the reimbursement 
approval were issued in December 2015. Market launch occurred at the start of 2016. In Israel, the Israeli health authorities issued 
approval for Ameluz® in April 2016. Reimbursement by healthcare insurance funds was approved for immunosuppressed patients. 
Marketing is expected to start in the coming months. 

The  contracts  with  the  respective  sales  partners  have  been  concluded  in  such  a  way  that  Biofrontera  has  received  no 
downpayment, or only a modest downpayment, and the regional partners purchase Ameluz® from Biofrontera at a price that is 
linked to their own sales price. Biofrontera's share of the sales price varies considerably depending on the market conditions in 
each country, ranging from 35% to 60% of net sales.  

Biofrontera launched Ameluz® in the US market in October 2016. In advance, with the help of a consulting firm specialising in 
market  access  and  a  team  of  medical  advisors,  a  start  was  made  with  analysing  the  actinic  keratosis  drug  market  and 
reimbursement  systems  in  the  American  healthcare  system.  For  this,  Biofrontera  also  drew  on  the  experience  of  DUSA 
Pharmaceuticals Inc. with a competitor product already sold and distributed in the USA, Levulan Kerastick®. Marketing in the 
USA is occurring through the company's own subsidiary, Biofrontera Inc., which was founded for this purpose in March 2015. 
Very qualified and experienced local staff were hired for important key positions in the USA, with hiring continuing. Most of the 
staff have switched from direct competitors to join Biofrontera. As the drug and the lamp are approved as a combined product 
in the USA, the speed of market penetration in the USA will also depend in part on the speed of placing the BF-RhodoLED® PDT 
lamps. Until an individual reimbursement code is issued – which Biofrontera applied for in January 2017 and will prospectively 
come into force in January 2018 – Ameluz® is being reimbursed in the USA through a so-called miscellaneous code. Although this 
is a normal procedure for any newly launched medication due to the prescribed application periods, this still makes it difficult 
to process reimbursement in physicians' practices, and is consequently continuing to hamper sales revenue growth in 2017. 

Further development projects 

In July 2016, the company agreed a research partnership with Maruho Co., Ltd, ("Maruho"), a Japanese company specialising in 
dermatology,  as  part  of  which  possibilities  to  jointly  develop  pharmaceutical  products  based  on  Biofrontera's  proprietary 
nanoemulsion technology are to be researched. Ameluz® was developed with a similar strategy. The nanoemulsion technology 
stabilised the active substance and improved skin penetration, leading to greater clinical efficacy. According to the agreement, 
Maruho will bear all costs connected with the exploratory research of for new product candidates. It is planned that Maruho will 
be the owner of the new products and that Biofrontera will receive the licence to market in Europe. In some cases of a change 
of control Maruho has the right but not an obligation to terminate the cooperation agreement. 

Patent and trademark developments since 31 December 2015 

Nanoemulsion 

The  patent  was  issued  in  Europe  on  21  September  2016  (Bulletin  2016/38).  Regional  phases  were  launched  in  Europe  for 
Switzerland, Germany, Spain, France, the UK and Italy. 

The Chilean and Israeli share of the patent has also been issued. 

A further office action has also been issued in the USA for the "nanoemulsion" patent (PCT/EP2007/011404), to which a response 
was provided to deadline.  

Migraine 

An information disclosure statement was submitted to the United States Patents and Trademark Office (USPTO) for the patent 
"Antimigraine  compounds  and  their  use"  (US  Patent  Application  No.  14/765,176).  An  office  action  was  also  issued  that  was 
answered to deadline in November 2016. 

34 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Belixos® 

The patent "Pharmaceutical and/or cosmetic composition for treating the skin" (US Patent Application No. 13/081,737) is not 
being pursued further. 

Brand development 

The European Community trademark "Daylight-PDT" (Number 014943518) is not being pursued further. 

Steering system 

The Management Board manages Biofrontera AG, and is responsible for and supervises the operating business. The Management 
Board receives and reviews internal management reports to this end. 

Sales revenue forms the central management metric in the context of such reporting, which is reported by product and region.  

Change in liquidity are also utilised as an important key indicator and management metric, and are monitored on a daily basis. 
Liquidity is defined as the sum of the cash position and bank deposits. Further Research- and development costs as well as 
equity form important management metrics. 

Key financial performance indicators 

Sales revenue 

Internal  steering  focuses  on  sales  revenue  trends.  Consolidated  sales  revenue  comprises  sales  to  both  wholesalers  and 
physicians and clinics, as well as sales to our licensing partners. 

As medications in Germany are not sold directly to patients, the company also receives data about pharmacies' sales, reported 
by regional segments, enabling an analysis of prescription trends in Germany. 

Liquidity 

A daily summary of all funds held on bank accounts is prepared in order to monitor liquidity. 

Key non-financial performance indicators 

Number of employees 

Personnel figures (measured in terms of full-time equivalents/FTEs) represents a further relevant management metric. In the 
recruitment of personnel, the company focuses primarily on staff possessing the requisite qualifications and expertise to reach 
the objectives that are set in the operative and administrative areas. Personnel costs are always monitored on the basis of 
normal salary levels for the sector. 

This steering system is applied on a consolidated basis so the entire Group is managed according to standard systems. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

35 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Economic and business report 
for the 2016 financial year for the Biofrontera Group: 

!! Sales revenue: at EUR 6.1 million (prior-year period: EUR 4.1 million), year-on-year sales revenue growth of 48%. First 
significant sales revenues in the USA as well as sales revenues from the development partnership with Maruho 

!! Operating result: EUR -11.8 million (prior-year period: EUR -10.2 million) 

!! Consolidated loss before tax: EUR -10.6 million (prior-year period: EUR -11.2 million) 

!! Cash and cash equivalents as of 31 December: EUR 15.1 million (previous year: EUR 4.0 million) 

!! Undiluted earnings per share amounted to EUR -0.36 (previous year: EUR -0.48) 

Biofrontera Group financial position and performance 
Sales revenue 

The Biofrontera Group generated total sales revenue of EUR 6,130 thousand in the 2016 financial year, equivalent to an increase 
of more than 48% compared with the previous year's level (EUR 4,138 thousand). Sales revenue in Germany of EUR 2,515 thousand 
reflected a reduction compared with the previous year's EUR 3,028 thousand. In European countries outside Germany, sales 
revenue reported a marked increase of 20% to reach EUR 1,247 thousand (previous year: EUR 1,040 thousand). Sales revenue in 
the USA stood at EUR 1,153 thousand (previous year: EUR 0 thousand). The development projects with Maruho generated EUR 1,177 
thousand in the reporting period (previous year: EUR 0 thousand). Licence revenue (one-off payments) amounted to EUR 40 
thousand in the 2016 financial year (previous-year period: EUR 70 thousand). Based on disclosure changes in accordance with 
BilRuG Biofrontera AG has, in its individual statutory financial report, recorded revenues of EUR 2,038 thousand (previous year: 
EUR 1,814 thousand) for the first time. 

Cost of sales, gross profit  

The gross profit on sales improved from EUR 2,902 thousand in the 2015 financial year to EUR 4,478 thousand in the 2016 financial 
year. The gross margin increased to 73%, compared to 70% in the same period in the previous year. 

The cost of sales amounted to EUR 1,652 thousand, or 27% of the sales revenue, improving relative to sales revenue compared 
with the previous year (EUR 1,236 thousand, or 30%). 

Development costs 

Biofrontera has also continued to invest in research and development and the further development of its products. Research 
and development costs amounted to EUR 4,640 thousand in the 2016 financial year, a reduction of EUR 1,564 thousand, or 25%, 
year-on-year. The decrease mainly reflects the EUR 2,072 thousand submission fee (PDUFA fee) paid upon submission of the 
application for approval to the FDA during the first half of 2015. The FDA reimbursed this fee in March 2016, with the credit being 
reported under the other income item. 

Sales and marketing costs 

Sales  and  marketing  costs  amounted  to  EUR  8,763  thousand  in  the  2016  financial  year,  a  significant  increase  of  EUR  4,593 
thousand to more than double the previous year's level (EUR 4,170 thousand). Sales and marketing costs include the costs of 
our own field sales team in Germany, Spain and the USA, as well as marketing expenses. The increase is chiefly attributable to 
expenses for the start-up of sales activities and to establish sales structures in the USA. 

Administrative costs 

Administrative costs increased by EUR 94 thousand year-on-year to EUR 2,853 thousand in the 2016 financial year (previous year: 
EUR 2,759 thousand). Financing costs shown under administrative costs include primarily consultancy and placement fees in 
connection with support in the search for investors. 

Financial result 

The financial result consists primarily of the interest payable for the 2009/2017 warrant bond (EUR 463 thousand, previous year: 
EUR 439 thousand) and for the 2011/2016 warrant bond placed in 2011 (EUR 727 thousand, previous year: EUR 727 thousand), 
calculated using the effective interest method. The aforementioned interest expenses on the warrant bond 2009/2017 of EUR 463 

36 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
thousand (previous year: EUR 439 thousand) include the opposite effect of EUR 204 thousand (previous year: EUR 193 thousand) 
from the repurchase of part of the warrant bond on 28 February 2014. 

The interest on Warrant Bond I for the 2015 financial year was paid at the end of December 2015, and the interest on Warrant 
Bond II was paid at the beginning of January 2016. The interest for the 2016 financial year for Warrant Bond I was paid at the 
start of January 2017. In December 2016, Warrant Bond II was repaid early at par plus accrued interest. 

Other income and expenses 

The submission fee paid to the FDA in 2015 (PDUFA fee) was reimbursed in an amount of EUR 2,140 thousand in March 2016 after 
a "small business waiver" was granted. This fee was reported under research and development costs in the income statement 
for 2015. The reimbursement is reported under other income. The individual statutory accounts of Biofrontera AG show other 
operational income of EUR 298 thousand (previous year: EUR 55 thousand) and other operational expenses of EUR 1,060 thousand 
(previous year: 492 thousand) after reclassification in accordance with BilRuG. 

Investments 

The additions to intangible assets and to property, plant and equipment in the reporting period arise mainly from the purchase 
of special software (EUR 20 thousand; previous year: EUR 0), right-of-use assets connected with the prototype of the PDT lamp 
(EUR 36 thousand; previous year: EUR 26 thousand), laboratory devices (EUR 290 thousand; 2015: EUR 35 thousand) and fixtures 
and equipment (EUR 117 thousand; 2015: EUR 42 thousand). The asset disposals with costs totaling EUR 66 thousand (previous 
year: EUR 20 thousand) resulted primarily from sales of the rental lamps in an amount of EUR 52 thousand (previous year: EUR 20 
thousand). 

Inventories 

Inventories  stand  at  EUR  3,646  thousand  (previous  year:  EUR  1,534  thousand).  These  included:  finished  products  (Ameluz®) 
amounting to EUR 751 thousand, BF-RhodoLED® lamps recorded in the inventories amounting to EUR 1,001 thousand and Belixos® 
products amounting to EUR 67 thousand as well as work in progress, and raw materials and supplies reported at EUR 1,827 
thousand. 

Receivables 

Trade receivables increased by EUR 729 thousand, from EUR 895 thousand as of 31 December 2015 to EUR 1,624 thousand, due to 
the higher level of sales revenue in the 2016 financial year.  

Share capital 

The fully paid in share capital of the parent company, Biofrontera AG, amounted to EUR 37,722,433.00 on 31 December 2016. It 
was  divided  into  37,722,433  registered  shares  with  a  nominal  value  of  EUR  1.00  each.  The  share  capital  amounted  to 
EUR 25,490,430.00 on 31 December 2015, and was increased during the course of 2016 financial year initially by a capital increase 
in February 2016 by an amount of EUR 2,357,384.00, divided into 2,357,384 registered shares, a capital increase in April 2016 of 
EUR 2,499,999.00, divided into 2,499,999 registered shares, and a further capital increase in November 2016 of EUR 5,012,950.00, 
divided into 5,012,950 registered shares.  

As part of the capital increase implemented in February 2016, the company's share capital was increased against cash capital 
contributions  by  EUR  2,357,384.00  through  issuing  2,357,384  new  ordinary  registered  shares  from  authorised  capital. 
Shareholders' subscription rights were excluded for this capital increase. The new shares were offered to selected institutional 
investors at an issue price of EUR 1.90 per new share, consequently for a total issue amount of EUR 4,479,029.60. These shares 
were fully placed. The net issue proceeds amounted to EUR 4.4 million. 

As  part  of  the  capital  increase  implemented  in  April  2016,  the  company's  share  capital  was  increased  against  cash  capital 
contributions by EUR 2,499,999.00 through issuing 2,499,999 new ordinary registered shares from authorised capital. Statutory 
subscription rights were granted to the shareholders. An "additional subscription" was also offered. In other words, shareholders 
exercising subscription rights could apply to subscribe for unsubscribed new shares at the subscription price. The subscription 
price per share amounted to EUR 2.00. The net issue proceeds amounted to EUR 4.9 million. 

As part of the capital increase implemented in November 2016, the company's share capital was increased against cash capital 
contributions by EUR 5,012,950.00 through issuing 5,012,950 new ordinary registered shares from authorised capital. The new 
shares are dividend-entitled from 1 January 2016. Statutory subscription rights were granted to the shareholders in a 6:1 ratio 
at the subscription price. The subscription price per new share amounted to EUR 3.00. The net issue proceeds amounted to 
EUR 14.7 million. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

37 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In November 2016, 49,990 subordinated convertible 2016/2021 bonds were issued in a total nominal amount of EUR 4,999,000 
("convertible bond"). The bonds were issued at a subscription price of 100% of the nominal value per bond in a denomination of 
EUR 100.00 per bond, and were fully placed. Shareholders were granted indirect subscription rights to the bonds. The conversion 
price amounted initially to EUR 3.00 per share, EUR 4.00 per share from 1 January 2017 and EUR 5.00 per share from 1 January 
2018. Shareholders were granted statutory subscription rights in a 607:1 ratio at an issue price of EUR 100.00 per bond. The 
complete issue volume amounted to EUR 5.0 million.  

The exercising of warrant rights from the 2011/2016 warrant bond generated issue proceeds of EUR 2.2 million in the 2016 financial 
year. 

Group equity and company equity 

The Group has equity amounting to EUR 15,842 thousand on the basis of IFRS accounting principles.  

Biofrontera AG has equity of EUR 95,566 thousand as of 31 December 2016 on the basis of accounting policies pursuant to the 
German Commercial Code (HGB) (previous year: EUR 65,496 thousand). Overindebtedness in the meaning of insolvency law does 
not exist at the two subsidiaries Biofrontera Bioscience GmbH and Biofrontera Pharma GmbH, as positive going concern forecasts 
exist for both companies. The net loss incurred for the year for Biofrontera AG amounts to EUR -1,962 thousand (previous year: 
EUR -7,263 thousand).  

Financial position  

The company's capital management body regularly reviews the equity ratio of both the Group and the parent company. The 
management's  objective  is  to  ensure  an  appropriate  equity  base  within  the  framework  of  capital  market  expectations,  and 
creditworthiness in relation to national and international business partners. The company's Management Board ensures that all 
Group companies have sufficient equity and debt funding at their disposal.  

Cash flow from operating activities reduced year-on-year from EUR -9,717 thousand to EUR -10,740 thousand in 2016. 

Cash flow from investing activities diminished by EUR 472 thousand two EUR -455 thousand, especially due to capital expenditure, 
which increased by EUR 304 thousand to EUR 485 thousand.  

Cash  flow  from  financing  activities  improved  by  EUR  17,212  thousand  year-on-year,  from  EUR  5,150  thousand  to  EUR  22,362 
thousand. This change arises particularly from the proceeds of new share issues generating EUR 24.2 million of issue proceeds. 
In the prior-year period, two capital increases with issue proceeds totalling EUR 6.3 million were implemented. 

The company was able to meet its payment obligations at all times, but will continue to depend on additional financing measures 
in the future. To date, Biofrontera has always succeeded in providing the necessary financing for its business operations through 
injections  of  equity.  As  a  result  of  the  capital  increases  implemented  in  February,  April  and  November  2016,  the  company 
currently  has  sufficient  liquidity  at  its  disposal.  However,  the  planned  investments  in  marketing  in  the  USA  and  obligations 
arising from the warrant bond that was issued will necessitate further capital measures during the course of the 2017 financial 
year.  

On the basis of its previous, invariably successful experience with capital measures, the Management Board assumes that the 
liquidity required for business activities can continue to be secured. Should – contrary to expectations – these valid estimates 
not be realised, a going concern risk would ensue.  

Target attainment in 2016: 

Group sales revenue 

Research and development costs 

Consolidated result before tax 

  Outlook for 2016 

Target attainment as 31 
December 2016 

EUR 6 to 7 million 

EUR 4 to 5 million 

EUR -11 to -12 million 

EUR 6.1 million 

EUR 4.6 million 

EUR -10.6 million 

Biofrontera reached all its financial targets in 2016. The previous year's forecast was for sales revenue of between EUR 6 million 
and  EUR  7  million.  A  reduction  in  sales  revenue  in  Germany  was  more  than  offset  by  sales  revenue  generated  from  the 
development projects with Maruho. Sales revenues in European countries outside Germany were as expected. Initial revenues 
of EUR 1.2 million were achieved in the USA during the final quarter of the financial year under review.  

38 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Biofrontera also made significant investments in research and development in 2016, including in the "regulatory affairs" area. 
Research and development costs of EUR 4.6 million were in line with budget. 

The consolidated result before tax of EUR -10.6 million was also slightly improved compared with the forecast. 

Personal matters 
Management Board 

The Management Board consists of Prof. Hermann Lübbert (Chief Executive Officer), Mr. Thomas Schaffer (Chief Financial Officer) 
and Mr. Christoph Dünwald (Chief Commercial Officer). 

The remuneration of the Management Board members consists of a fixed salary that is paid in twelve equal monthly instalments. 
In addition, an annual performance-based bonus exists for the Management Board members, as well as a long-term remuneration 
component  consisting  of  participation  in  the  company's  share  option  programme.  Company  cars  are  also  available  to  the 
directors for business and private use.  

Staff 

As of 31 December 2016, 94 employees worked for the Biofrontera Group (previous year: 58). Of these, 20 were employed at 
Biofrontera AG (previous year: 17), 9 at Biofrontera Bioscience GmbH (previous year: 6) and 41 at Biofrontera Pharma GmbH 
including  the  Spanish  office  (previous  year:  34).  No  staff  are  employed  at  Biofrontera  Development  GmbH  or  Biofrontera 
Neuroscience GmbH. Biofrontera Inc. employed a total of 24 staff (previous year: 1).  

Employee stock option programme 2010 

In order not to be at a disadvantage in the future in recruiting and retaining staff, the company must continue to be able to offer 
share and/or securities-based remuneration. Moreover, in accordance with the German Act regarding the Appropriateness of 
Management  Board  Remuneration  (VorstAG),  such  schemes  must  be  linked  to  the  company's  long-term  performance  and 
profitability. As the stock option programme approved by the Annual General Meeting of the company on 24 May 2007 could not 
be utilised, the Annual General Meeting held on 2 July 2010 granted the Management and Supervisory boards the authorisation 
to issue, within the next 5 years, up to 839,500 options to directors and employees. Further related provisions were specified in 
the invitation to the Annual General Meeting and are available on the company's website. The issue of the first tranche of these 
options is described in the consolidated financial statements for the financial year ending 31 December 2010. The second tranche 
occurred in calendar 2011 and is described in the consolidated financial statements for the financial year ending 31 December 
2011. In the first half of 2012, a further 116,500 options were issued at an exercise price of EUR 3.30 and EUR 4.09 respectively 
each (third tranche). On 2 September 2013, 179,500 options were issued with an exercise price of EUR 3.373 each (fourth tranche). 
In a further tranche (fifth tranche) on 2 April 2014, a total of 159,350 options were issued at an exercise price of EUR 3.43 each. 
A total of 137,250 options were forfeited by employees leaving the company. A further 106,400 options (from the first tranche) 
lapsed because the exercise conditions were not met. The cost expensed in the reporting period amounted to EUR 62 thousand 
(previous year: EUR 103 thousand).  

The authorisation to issue options under the 2010 share option programme ended on 1 July 2015. By resolution of the Annual 
General Meeting on 28 August 2015, the Conditional Capital III provided to service options under this programme was reduced 
to EUR 542,400.00. 

Employee stock option programme 2015 

After  the  end  of  the  2010  employee  share  option  programme,  the  company's  Annual  General  Meeting  on  28  August  2015 
authorised  the  Management  and  Supervisory  boards  until  27  August  2020  to  issue  to  Management  Board  members  and 
employees up to 1,814,984 subscription rights to up to EUR 1,814,984 of the company's ordinary registered shares according to 
the more detailed specifics of the authorisation resolutions. Further related provisions were specified in the invitation to the 
Annual General Meeting and are available on the company's website (2015 option programme). 

On 18 April 2016, a total of 425,000 options were issued for the first time from the potential 1,814,914 share options (exercise 
price: EUR 2.49 per option). On 1 December 2016, a further 130,500 options (second tranche) were issued with an exercise price 
of EUR 3.28 each. A total of 7,500 options were forfeited by employees leaving the company. Due to the blocking period, no 
options have yet been exercised or forfeited. As a consequence, 1,259,483 options are still outstanding on 31 December 2016. The 
expenditure recognised in the reporting period was EUR 49 thousand (previous year: EUR 0). No previous year's figures exist as 
the share option programme was not set up until the 2015 financial year"!
!

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

39 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Supervisory Board 

As a result of the resolution passed by the Annual General Meeting held on 31 May 2016, the Supervisory Board has consisted of 
the following members since 31 May 2016, with these members acting as representatives of the shareholders: 

Dr. Ulrich Granzer!

Jürgen Baumann!
John Borer!

Hansjörg Plaggemars!

Mark Reeth!
Kevin Weber!

Supervisory  Board  Chairman,  Owner  and  Managing  Director  of  Ulrich  Granzer  Regulatory 
Consulting & Services, resident in Munich, Germany 
Deputy Supervisory Board Chairman, management consultant, resident in Monheim 
Head of Investment Banking at The Benchmark Company LLC, New York, USA, resident in Jersey 
City, NJ, USA 
Management  Board  member  of  Deutsche  Balaton  Aktiengesellschaft,  Heidelberg,  resident  in 
Stuttgart 
Attorney, resident in Frederick, MD, USA 
Principal of Skysis, LLC, Scottsdale, AZ, USA, resident in Scottsdale, AZ, USA 

The Supervisory Board members held the following other supervisory board positions and positions on comparable domestic 
and foreign boards during the reporting period: 

Hansjörg Plaggemars 

OOC CTV Verwaltungs GmbH, Managing Director 
Stellar Diamonds plc, Non-Executive Board Member 
Carus Grundstücksgesellschaft am Taubenfeld AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Eurohaus Frankfurt AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Youbisheng Greenpaper AG i.I., Supervisory Board Chairman 
Ming Le Sports AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Nordic SSW 1000 Verwaltungs AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Balaton Agro Invest AG, Deputy Supervisory Board Chairman  
Carus AG, Deputy Supervisory Board Chairman  
Deutsche Balaton Immobilien I AG, Supervisory Board member 
Ultrasonic AG i.I., Supervisory Board member 

In the 2016 financial year, compensation paid to Supervisory Board members amounted to EUR 113 thousand (previous year: 
EUR 113 thousand). The compensation transactions are classified as short-term employee benefits as per IAS 24.17(a).  

40 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Risk, opportunity and forecast report 
Risk and opportunity report 
Risk management system 

Biofrontera's management deploys a comprehensive risk management system to counter risks within the Group. 

The risk and opportunity management system for the Biofrontera Group applies equally to Biofrontera AG. By virtue of its holding 
company function, Biofrontera AG controls all the legally independent entities within the Biofrontera Group. For this reason, 
risks and opportunities must be assessed on a standard basis across the entire Group.  

The primary objective of the Biofrontera Group is to achieve sustainable and long-term growth while increasing the company's 
value continuously. Risk management plays a major role in achieving this objective. Risk management at Biofrontera involves 
the identification of risks that could lead to lasting or significant harm to the company's financial position and performance, as 
well  as  the  responsible  analysis  and  monitoring  of  such  risks  and  initiation  of  suitable  countermeasures.  This  requires  the 
establishment of guidelines, organisational structures and measuring and monitoring processes that are specifically geared to 
the Biofrontera Group's activities. 

Correspondingly detailed risk prevention measures are essential to fully exploit the opportunities arising from Biofrontera's 
business  activities.  In  the  2016  financial  year,  Biofrontera's  existing  risk  management  structures  were  further  developed  to 
reflect the quality management system required for pharmaceutical manufacturers and businesses as well as medical device 
manufacturers. This system incorporates sales and marketing activities, as well as the international responsibilities of licence 
holders with regard to the manufacture and sale of drugs, medical devices and cosmetics. 

The management of opportunities and risks at Biofrontera 

The  Biofrontera  Group's  risk  management  system  is  integrated  into  the  Group's  corporate  processes  and  decision-making 
processes, thereby forming an integral element of planning and controlling processes Group-wide. Risk management and control 
mechanisms are coordinated with each other. They ensure that risks relevant to the company are identified and assessed at an 
early stage, while at the same time enabling the company to respond rapidly to potential opportunities. 

Risk  management  at  Biofrontera  is  organised  both  locally  and  centrally.  Opportunities  and  risks  are  regularly  identified, 
evaluated  and  analysed  at  all  hierarchical  levels.  All  Group  management  staff  are  involved  in  Group-wide  risk  policy  and 
associated reporting. This includes the Management Board, the Group companies' managing directors, and process and project 
managers.  

The Risk Management Team headed by the Chief Executive Officer is responsible for the centrally organised risk management 
system. It coordinates the individual management bodies and ensures they receive their information continuously and promptly. 
The  Risk  Management  Team  is  also  responsible  for  the  continuous  monitoring  of  risk  profiles,  for  initiating  risk  prevention 
measures, and for corresponding monitoring instruments. The Biofrontera Group management holds regular meetings at which 
the Group's central and operational departments exchange information relevant to risk management at all levels.  

The Risk Management Officer, who is also a member of the Risk Management Team, is the Group-wide contact individual. If 
unexpected risks arise, he/she immediately initiates the necessary steps to counteract them.  

He/she is responsible for developing the risk management system, and for ensuring it is properly documented in the risk manual. 
Furthermore,  the  Risk  Manager  sets  uniform  standards  and  ensures  that  similar  types  of  risk  management  processes  are 
implemented throughout the Biofrontera Group. Regular analysis of key business performance figures helps to ensure that any 
possible discrepancies from expected performance levels can be identified and assessed at an early stage, allowing necessary 
countermeasures to be adopted in good time. Overall monitoring is conducted in relation to the sales activities for Ameluz®, 
including the PDT lamp, and Belixos®. Risk planning and identification in this area are performed in collaboration with the relevant 
unit managers. The structure and function of the early risk detection system are assessed by the auditor. 

Risks and opportunities relating to future business development and growth 

The Biofrontera Group is endeavouring to achieve its strategic objectives, especially the establishment of its own sales operation 
in some countries, the identification of sales partners, and approval of development projects. It has already obtained not only 
European but also especially US approval for Ameluz®, giving it the opportunity to grow rapidly and become very profitable. 
In addition to general risks, such as market developments and the competitive situation, the company is also exposed to specific 
risks associated with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

41 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
It is possible that the product Ameluz® will not prove to be successful in competition with other treatment options for actinic 
keratosis or BCC. Despite the greater effectiveness of Ameluz®, doctors may resort to other products more often than expected 
because of the higher treatment costs associated with PDT, for which they frequently do not obtain any, or only insufficient, 
remuneration from the healthcare systems. 

Biofrontera is required to make recourse to suppliers to manufacture its products, and changing such suppliers would entail 
protracted regulatory processes. Problems at, or with, such suppliers can place a burden, or incapacitate, the company's ability 
to  deliver  its  products  and  services,  which  would  lead  to  a  shortfall  in  revenues.  Biofrontera  endeavours to  minimise  such 
dependencies by establishing alternative suppliers. 

No guarantee exists that a product will be launched on the market at the end of a project's development period – which is 6 to 
10 years on average. A lack of success in the individual development steps could incur additional costs, cause project delays or 
even bring project development to a complete halt. It is possible that none, or only some, of the funds invested will be recouped 
in sales revenue. 

The company tries to counterbalance these risks, to some extent, by selecting projects with relatively attractive risk profiles, 
by  setting  up  a  project  control  and  reporting  system,  and  by  drawing  on  the  outstanding  professional  expertise  of  the 
Supervisory  Board  members.  The  project  control  system  represents  the  entire  development  process  in  detail  right  up  to 
approval, making it possible to analyse the effects that even small changes or delays – with clinical trials, for example – can have 
on the development process and on its costs. This makes it possible to precisely observe the development risk associated with 
individual projects and take the steps necessary to minimise the development risk. 

Due to the existing loss situation and uncertainties relating to future business expansion, the company's survival will depend 
substantially on further cash injections from shareholders or other capital investors. Investors' acceptance of this industry and 
its associated risks as well as the special accounting characteristics and overall fiscal conditions is of great importance in this 
context. The company cannot influence such circumstances, although they are of crucial importance for the company during its 
development phase and when it is reliant on the financial markets for injections of the equity its requires. 

Patent protection 

Patents guarantee the protection of our intellectual property. If our products are marketed successfully, the resultant profits 
can be deployed for sustainable ongoing investment in research and development activities. Due to the long intervening period 
between the patent application and the launch of a product, Biofrontera generally has only a few years to earn a suitable income 
from its intellectual work. This makes it all the more important for the Group to obtain effective and secure patent protection. 
The  majority  of  our  products  are  subject  to  patent  protection.  If  a  patent  expires,  or  we  cannot  defend  it  successfully,  we 
generally  face  the  prospect  of  increased  competition  and  price  pressure  resulting  from  the  market  entry  of  generic  drug 
suppliers. Moreover, third-party claims regarding Biofrontera's potential infringement of patents or other protective rights may 
hinder or completely prevent the development or manufacturing of certain products, and may obligate us to pay damages or 
royalties to third parties. Our patent department regularly reviews the current patent situation, in cooperation with the relevant 
operational  departments,  and  monitors  possible  patent  infringement  attempts,  so  that  it  can  take  suitable  legal  steps  if 
necessary. We consider it unlikely that patent risks will arise. Biofrontera is not aware of any patent infringement claims lodged 
by third parties. 

Products and product stewardship 

Biofrontera  assesses  potential  environmental  and  health  risks  associated  with  a  product  along  the  entire  value  chain.  This 
includes every stage from research and development to disposal, including production, marketing and customer use. Although 
comprehensive  trials  are  conducted  prior  to  approval/registration,  it  is  possible  that  some  or  all  of  our  products  will 
subsequently be withdrawn from the market for various reasons, including the emergence of unexpected side effects. Sales may 
be stopped voluntarily or as a consequence of legal or official measures. Possible payments of damages associated with the 
aforementioned risks could exert a considerable negative effect on the company's financial results. As no previously unknown 
drug side effects have appeared, we consider it highly improbable that risks of this kind will arise. 

Purchasing 

Purchase prices for raw materials may vary considerably, and they cannot always be passed on to our customers through price 
adjustments due to regulated drug prices. The safety and tolerance of our products, and protection of our employees and of the 
environment, form key priorities. Risks associated with the manufacturing, bottling, storage and transportation of products may 
result  in  personal  injury  or  material  or  environmental  damage,  and  may  give  rise  to  an  obligation  to  pay  damages.  Here 
Biofrontera is dependent to some extent on individual suppliers. Using our own audit and monitoring system, we regularly ensure 
that the manufacturing conditions at our most important suppliers meet the required standard. This enables us to avoid such 

42 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
risks and damages. We have already established two suppliers of the agent aminolevulinic acid, whose manufacturing processes 
have been approved by the EMA. Biofrontera is the owner of the Drug Master File for one of the two manufacturers. This will 
ensure the long-term supply security of aminolevulinic acid. We have also established our own production facilities for the final 
assembly and final quality control of the BF-RhodoLED® lamp to reduce our dependence on suppliers in this area too. 

Employees 

Qualified and dedicated staff are a key prerequisite for the company's success. Competitive compensation and extensive training 
and development opportunities are essential to this end. We also pursue a diversity-orientated personnel policy to exploit the 
labour  market's  full  potential.  To  date,  Biofrontera  has  always  succeeded  in  acquiring  the  qualified  staff  necessary  for  the 
company, so the company also regards this area as bearing a low risk.  

Information technology 

The  Group's  business  processes  and  internal  and  external  communication  are  increasingly  based  on  global  IT  systems.  A 
significant technical malfunction or total failure of IT systems could result in severe impairment of our business processes. It is 
of fundamental importance to us that both internal and external data remain confidential. If the confidentiality, integrity or 
authenticity of data or information were to be lost, the manipulation and/or uncontrolled outflow of data and know-how could 
arise.  We  have  adopted  appropriate  measures  to  counteract  this  risk,  such  as  a  comprehensive  authorisation  concept.  The 
measures adopted by the company have always proven adequate to date, so such risk is to be regarded as low. 

Law and compliance 

The Group may be subjected to litigation or legal proceedings in the future. In particular, this includes risks arising from product 
liability, antitrust law, competition law, patent law, tax law and environmental protection. Inquiries and investigations on grounds 
of possible infringements of statutory or regulatory provisions may result in criminal and civil sanctions, including considerable 
fines or other financial disbenefits, and these may harm the company's reputation and ultimately have a negative effect on the 
company's success and performance.  

Liquidity risk 

Liquidity risks arise from the possibility that the Group will be unable to fulfil existing or future payment obligations due to not 
having sufficient funds. We calculate and manage the liquidity risk in our weekly and medium-term liquidity planning sessions. 
Payment obligations arising from financial instruments are defined separately in the consolidated financial statements based 
on their due dates. 

To ensure payment security, cash and cash equivalents are kept available so that all the Group's scheduled payment obligations 
can be fulfilled on their respective due dates. The level of this liquidity reserve is reviewed regularly and adjusted to current 
circumstances where necessary. 

The company was able to meet its payment obligations at all times, but will continue to depend on additional financing measures 
in the future. To date, Biofrontera has always succeeded in providing the financing needed for its business operations through 
injections of equity. As a result of the capital increases implemented in February, April and November 2016, and the issue of 
subordinated convertible bonds in January 2017, the company currently has sufficient liquidity at its disposal. Until breakeven 
is reached, however – particularly through obtaining approval in the USA – until the planned investments are made in marketing 
in the US and until obligations from the issued option bond are met, further capital measures will be required during the 2017 
financial year. Such capital measures can comprise equity or debt financing. 

On the basis of its previous, invariably successful experience with capital measures, the Management Board assumes that it can 
continue to secure the liquidity it requires for its business activities. Should – contrary to expectations – these valid estimates 
not be realised, a going concern risk would ensue. 

Litigation 

In August 2016, the Cologne District Court served on the company a lawsuit from a shareholder dated 30 June 2016. The lawsuit 
brought charges for nullity, alternatively rescission, of some of the resolutions passed at the company's Ordinary AGM on 31 May 
2016. In particular, the election of Mr. John Borer, Mr. Jürgen Baumann and Mr. Kevin Weber to the company's Supervisory Board 
was contested. A verbal negotiation meeting was held at the Cologne District Court on 4 November 2016. A further meeting to 
interview witnesses was held on 3 February 2017, also at the Cologne District Court. The plaintiff withdrew the lawsuit on 9 March 
2017. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

43 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Forecast report (outlook) 

Over the coming two years, Biofrontera will continue to invest considerable funds in new indication approvals for Ameluz® and 
to further expand sales of Ameluz® in the USA. Biofrontera has established its subsidiaries in the USA at great speed and will 
further strengthen the number and force of its staff there. To expand the management team, Mr. Randall Wilhoite was appointed 
Chief  Operating  Officer  of  Biofrontera  Inc.  in  February  2017.  Biofrontera  will  be  present  at  the  most  important  American 
dermatology  conferences  and  will  continue  to  aim  for  broad-based  reporting  about  white  skin  cancer  and  Ameluz®  among 
physicians and the general public. Preparations are currently underway for a so-called "pre-IND meeting" with the US regulator, 
the FDA. This meeting, in turn, is to form a preparation to expand the US approval to include the BCC indication. The extent to 
which the FDA sees the preconditions for the expanded approval as having been met by the data gathered in Europe is to be 
clarified at this meeting. Biofrontera has submitted an application for this meeting to the FDA, which will occur prospectively 
during the course of the second quarter of 2017. Only subsequently will it be possible to give a timing forecast relating to the 
expanded approval for BCC in the USA. To expand the approval to include daylight PDT in the EU, Biofrontera has concluded a 
corresponding Phase III trial with very good results. An application for the new indication is currently being prepared and should 
be submitted during the course of the second quarter of 2017. We anticipate the expanded approval for the new indication to be 
issued during the first half of 2018.  

Forecast of key financial figures 

For the 2017 financial year, Biofrontera expects to achieve sales revenue of approximately EUR 14 million to EUR 18 million. In 
Germany and other European countries outside Germany, the competitive situation for Biofrontera has changed considerably 
due to the market launch of a medication for daylight PDT identical to Metvix®. We nevertheless anticipate a resumption of slight 
growth in 2017 in both Germany and Europe. In the USA, we expect a marked increase in sales revenues in 2017, especially as 
initial  system-related  problems  with  reimbursing  the  medication  have  meanwhile  largely  been  resolved.  The  receipt  of  an 
individual reimbursement code for the medication Ameluz® – to be activated prospectively in January 2018 – will significantly 
simplify  and  accelerate  the  acquisition  of  market  shares  and  related  sales  revenue  growth.  Overall,  however,  sales  growth 
remains very difficult to forecast, generating a considerable fluctuation range of achievable revenues.  

To extend the range of indications, Biofrontera will continue to make significant investments in research and development as 
well as in regulatory affairs in 2017. The development and approval costs will amount to approximately EUR 6 to 7 million. In 
2017, Biofrontera will also invest in further expanding its sales and marketing organisation, predominantely in the USA, as a 
consequence of which sales and marketing costs will increase further compared with 2016 and amount to a total of between 
approximately EUR 18 million and EUR 21 million. Administrative costs will rise only slightly compared with 2016 and stand at 
around between EUR 3 million and EUR 4 million. 

No significant investments in property, plant and equipment are planned for 2017. 

The financial result reflects the interest payments and compounding of interest applying the effective interest method for the 
still outstanding warrant bond. For this reason, 2017 will represent an improvement compared with 2016.  

With the aforementioned conditions and forecasts, the company will achieve a consolidated result of EUR -14 million to EUR -
17 million in 2017. The achievement of this result depends significantly on sales revenue trends. 

Remuneration report 

The total remuneration paid to members of the Management Board in the 2016 financial year and the total accumulated number 
of stock options issued to the Management Board were as follows as of 31 December 2016: 

Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert  – Non-performance based salary component:  

- Performance based salary component:  

- stock options 

EUR 363 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 370  
thousand) 
EUR 72 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 35  
thousand) 
231,850 
(fair  value  when  granted:  EUR 
366,435.50)  (previous  year:  151,850,  fair  value 
when granted: EUR 167,236); of which granted in 
2016: 80,000 (2015: 0). 

44 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Thomas Schaffer  

– Non-performance based salary component:  

- Performance based salary component:  

- stock options 

Christoph Dünwald   

– Non-performance based salary component:  

- Performance based salary component:  

- stock options  

EUR 213 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR  
203 thousand) 
EUR 63 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 28  
thousand) 
85,000  (fair  value  when  granted:  EUR  157,150) 
(previous year: 35,000, fair value when granted: 
EUR  32,650);  of  which  granted  in  2016:  50,000 
(2015: 0). 
EUR 236 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR  
29 thousand) 
EUR 6 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 0  
thousand) 
50,000  (fair  value  when  granted:  EUR  124,500) 
(previous year: 0, fair value when granted: EUR 
0); of which granted in 2016: 50,000 (2015: 0). 

All salaries/bonuses are classified as short-term employee benefits as defined in IAS 24.17 (a).  

Company cars are also available to the directors for business and private use. The existing employment contracts stipulate that 
– depending on the achievement of targets to be mutually agreed – an annual bonus is payable. If the targets are exceeded, the 
maximum annual bonus payable is capped. If the targets are missed by a margin no greater than 30% (in other words, a level of 
at least 70% is achieved), the bonus payment is reduced straight-line. No bonus is payable if the targets are missed by a greater 
margin than this. The measurement factors are set at the end of each financial year for the following financial year in a mutually 
agreed target agreement.  

Severance  pay  in  the  case  of  early  termination  of  Management  Board  duties  without  good  grounds  is  capped  at  twice  the 
specified annual salary, and amounts to no more than the total remuneration due for the remaining period of the contract 
(severance cap). In case of a takeover bid in accordance with the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (WpÜG) both 
the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer are eligible for severance payments in the amount of three annual 
salaries. 

To  further  enhance  the  long-term  incentive  effect  of  variable  compensation  and  consequently  align  it  with  the  company's 
sustainable development and growth, the Management Board members have obligated themselves to hold as private assets 
ordinary  shares  in  the  company  for  share  options  granted  from  the  2010  share  option  programme  for  a  three-year  period 
beginning one month after the options' issue date ("restricted shares"), and thereby be invested in the company. The level of 
personal  commitment  is  specified  differently  in  detail  for  each  member  of  the  Management  Board.  An  early  sale  of  such 
restricted ordinary share must be reported immediately to the Supervisory Board Chair, and the company can request a return 
transfer of an equivalent number of stock options free of charge within a month of receiving such notification, with the most 
recently  granted  options  being  those  that  must  be  returned  first  (last  in,  first  out).  A  return  transfer  is  not  required  if  the 
Management Board member can demonstrate that the sale of the restricted shares was necessary to meet pressing financial 
obligations. In 2010, the Chief Executive Officer was granted 35,000 options, and the other Management Board member was 
granted 20,000 options, and in 2011, the Chief Executive Officer was granted 30,000 options and the other Management Board 
member was granted 20,000 options on this basis. In 2012, a further 40,000 options were granted to the Chief Executive Officer, 
and an additional 25,000 options were granted to the other Management Board member. In the 2013 financial year, the Chief 
Executive Officer was granted 30,000 options, and the other Management Board member was granted 15,000 options, and in the 
2014 financial year, 16,850 options were granted to the Chief Executive Officer, and 20,000 options were granted to the other 
Management Board member. No options were granted to the Management Board members in 2015. In the 2016 financial year, 
80,000 options from the 2015 share option programme were granted to the Management Board Chairman (CEO), and the other 
Management Board members were each granted 50,000 options. 

Other  disclosures  pursuant  to  Sections  289  (4)  and  315  (4)  of  the  German 
Commercial Code (HGB) 

Management Board members are appointed and removed pursuant to Sections 84 and 85 of the German Stock Corporation Act 
(AktG). The composition of the Management Board is specified in more detail in Section 9 (3) of the bylaws. Pursuant to this, the 
Management Board must consist of one or more members. The Management Board comprises three individuals. The Supervisory 
Board appoints Management Board members and determines their number. The Supervisory Board may appoint a Chief Executive 
Officer.  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

45 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The employment contract of the Chief Executive Officer and that of the Chief Financial Officer include a compensation agreement 
in the form of a special right of termination, for example in the case of a takeover bid as defined in the German Securities 
Acquisition and Takeover Act (WpÜG).  

Pursuant to Sections 119 (1) No. 5, 179 and 133 of the German Stock Corporation Act (AktG), amendments to the bylaws must be 
approved by a resolution of the Shareholders' General Meeting. Where legally permissible, a simple majority of the share capital 
represented at the vote is sufficient for such a resolution, in accordance with Section 179 (2) Clause 2 AktG in combination with 
Section 22 (2) of the bylaws, instead of the majority of three quarters of the represented share capital stipulated in Section 179 
(2) Clause 1 AktG. Pursuant to Section 179 (1) Clause 2 AktG in combination with Section 22 (2) of the bylaws, the Supervisory 
Board is authorised to make changes that affect only the wording of the bylaws. 

With regard to the repurchasing of shares, the Management Board is not subject to any restrictions beyond those specified in 
the German Stock Corporation Act (AktG). 

Accounting risk management system and internal control system 

In the section below, in addition to the risk management system already explained under the relevant subsection, the significant 
aspects of the internal control and risk management system relating to accounting processes for separate and consolidated 
financial statements, pursuant to Section 289 (5) of the German Commercial Code (HGB), as amended by the German Accounting 
Law Modernisation Act (BilMoG), are described. 

The  financial  accounting  process  at  Biofrontera  AG  aims  to  ensure  that  the  figures  and  information  provided  in  external 
accounting instruments (bookkeeping, components of the separate and consolidated financial statements, and the combined 
company and Group management report) are accurate and complete, and comply with the relevant legal requirements and bylaw 
provisions.  The  related  existing  structures  and  processes  also  include  the  risk  management  system  and  internal  control 
measures relating to the financial accounting processes. In connection with the growing sales and marketing activities, the 
internal accounting control system is subject to an ongoing monitoring and improvement process. 
The risk management system aims to identify, assess and manage all the risks that could prevent the proper preparation of the 
separate and consolidated financial statements. Any risks identified must be assessed with regard to their influence on the 
separate and consolidated financial statements. The purpose of the internal accounting control system is to ensure that the 
process of compiling financial statements complies with all the relevant laws and regulations, by implementing appropriate 
guidelines, processes and controls to this end. 

The risk management system and internal control system cover all the areas that are essential for the separate and consolidated 
financial statements and all the processes relevant to the preparation of the financial statements.  

Significant aspects of accounting risk management and control include the clear assignment of responsibilities and controls for 
the  compilation  of  financial  statements,  as  well  as  transparent  accounting  standards.  The  two  sets  of  eyes  principle  and 
separation of roles are also important control principles in financial accounting processes. 

The  Management  Board  assumes  overall  responsibility  for  the  organisation  of  the  internal  control  system.  The  quality 
management/controlling/risk  management  areas  and  the  financial  accounting  department  are  responsible  for  the  internal 
control system's coordinated subsystems. 

46 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Takeover information 
Trading platforms 

Biofrontera shares are traded under ticker symbol B8F and ISIN DE0006046113 in the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt 
Stock Exchange and on all other German stock exchanges. In addition, the shares were admitted for trading with the same stock 
ID number in the form of depositary interests (DI) on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange 
until 18 February 2016. 

Shareholders 

The numbers of shares held by the shareholders on 31 December 2016 based on shareholders' most recent mandatory disclosures 
are as follows: 

Maruho Deutschland Co., Ltd., Osaka Japan 
The total share of voting rights is assigned to Maruho Co., Ltd, Osaka, through the 
company Maruho Deutschland GmbH, Düsseldorf, which is controlled by the former. 

Wilhelm Konrad Thomas Zours 
The voting rights through the chain of subsidiaries listed below are attributed to Mr. 
Zours: 

•!
•!
•!
•!
•!

DELPHI Unternehmensberatung AG 
VV Beteiligungen AG 
Deutsche Balaton AG 
ABC Beteiligungen AG 
Heidelberger Beteiligungsholding AG 

Universal-Investment-Gesellschaft mbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany 
The share of voting rights is attributed to Universal-Investment GmbH through the 
company FEHO Vemögensverwaltungsgesellschaft. 

Free float 

Total 

Share capital 

31.12.2016 
EUR 

7,631,586 

31.12.2015 
EUR 

4,467,143 

3,400,907 

1,053,154 

799,463 

799,463 

25,890,477 

37,722,433 

19,170,670 

25,490,430 

On 31 December 2016, the fully paid in share capital of the parent company, Biofrontera AG, amounted to EUR 37,722,433.00. It 
was divided into 37,722,433 registered shares, each with a nominal value of EUR 1.00. 

As part of the capital increase implemented in February 2016, the company's share capital was increased against cash capital 
contributions  by  EUR  2,357,384.00  through  issuing  2,357,384  new  ordinary  registered  shares  from  approved  capital. 
Shareholders' subscription rights were excluded for this capital increase. The new shares were offered to selected institutional 
investors at an issue price of EUR 1.90 per new share, consequently for a total issue amount of EUR 4,479,029.60. These shares 
were fully placed and the implementation of the capital increase was entered in the commercial register on 26 February 2016. 
The net issue proceeds amounted to EUR 4.4 million. 

As  part  of  the  capital  increase  implemented  in  April  2016,  the  company's  share  capital  was  increased  against  cash  capital 
contributions by EUR 2,499,999.00 through issuing 2,499,999 new ordinary registered shares from approved capital. Statutory 
subscription rights were granted to the shareholders. An "additional subscription" was also offered. In other words, shareholders 
exercising subscription rights could apply to subscribe for unsubscribed shares at the subscription price. The subscription price 
per share amounted to EUR 2.00. The capital increase was fully placed. The implementation of the capital increase was entered 
in the commercial register on 26 April 2016. The net issue proceeds amounted to EUR 4.9 million. 

As part of the capital increase implemented in November 2016, the company's share capital was increased against cash capital 
contributions  by  EUR  5,012,950.00  through  issuing  5,012,950  new  ordinary  registered  shares  from  approved  capital.  The 
implementation of the capital increase was entered in the commercial register on 21 November 2016. Statutory subscription 
rights were granted to the shareholders in a 6:1 ratio.  The subscription price per share amounted to EUR 3.00. The net issue 
proceeds amounted to EUR 14.7 million. 

Also in November 2016, 49,990 subordinated convertible 2016/2021 bonds were issued in a total nominal amount of EUR 4,999,000 
("convertible bond"). The bonds were offered at a subscription price of 100% of the nominal value per bond in a denomination 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

47 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
of  EUR  100.00  per  bond,  and  were  fully  placed.  Shareholders  were  granted  indirect  subscription  rights  to  the  bonds.  The 
conversion price amounted initially to EUR 3.00 per share, EUR 4.00 per share from 1 January 2017 and EUR 5.00 per share from 
1 January 2018. Shareholders were granted statutory subscription rights in a 607:1 ratio at an issue price of EUR 100.00 per bond. 
The total issue volume amounted to EUR 5.0 million.  

The Biofrontera AG shares were listed on the Regulated Market of the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange in 2006. In August 2012, the 
company's shares were also admitted to trading on the Regulated Market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in response to an 
application by the company. The company's shares are also traded on the Xetra computer trading system and all other German 
stock exchanges. On 3 June 2014, the share was admitted to the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the AIM 
market of the London Stock Exchange. The listing on the AIM Market was discontinued as of 18 February 2016.  

Existing capital 

The company's share capital is conditionally increased by up to EUR 6,434,646.00 by the issuing of up to 6,434,646 new registered 
no par value ordinary shares (Conditional Capital I). The purpose of the conditional capital increase is (i) to ensure the granting 
of  warrant  rights  and  the  agreement  of  warrant  obligations  in  accordance  with  the  bond  conditions  and  (ii)  to  ensure  the 
fulfilment of conversion rights and the fulfilment of conversion obligations in accordance with the bond conditions, which are 
issued, agreed and guaranteed by the company or its direct or indirect majority-owned subsidiaries (affiliated companies) in the 
period up to 27 August 2020, based on the authorisation of the Annual General Meeting of 28 August 2015. The conditional capital 
increase is to be implemented only in the event that financial instruments are issued based on the authorisation of the Annual 
General Meeting of 28 August 2015, and only insofar as the holders or creditors of financial instruments issued by the company 
exercise their warrant or conversion rights or fulfil their warrant or conversion obligations. The new shares carry dividend rights 
from the start of the financial year in which they are issued. The Management Board is authorised to determine the other details 
of the implementation of the conditional capital increase, subject to the approval of the Supervisory Board. The Supervisory 
Board is authorised to amend Section 7 of the bylaws in accordance with the use of conditional capital, and after the expiry of 
all warrant and conversion periods. 

The share capital is conditionally increased by up to EUR 500,000.00 by the issuing of up to 500,000 new registered ordinary 
shares, each of which constitutes a share of EUR 1.00 of the share capital (no par value shares) (Conditional Capital II). The 
purpose of the conditional capital increase is to redeem warrant rights, pursuant to the warrant conditions, to the benefit of the 
holders of warrants from warrant bonds issued on the basis of the authorisation resolution of the Annual General Meeting of 17 
March 2009. The new shares are issued at the warrant price set pursuant to the aforementioned authorisation resolutions (issue 
amount pursuant to Section 193 (2) No. 3 AktG).  The conditional capital increase is to be implemented only in the event that 
warrant bonds are issued, and only insofar as that the holders of the warrants exercise their warrant rights, and the company 
does not use other sources for the required shares or replace them with a cash payment. The new shares issued by the exercise 
of the warrant right are dividend-entitled from the start of the financial year in which they are issued. The Management Board 
is authorised to determine the further details of the implementation of the conditional capital increase, subject to the approval 
of the Supervisory Board.  

The company's share capital is conditionally increased by EUR 542,400 by the issuing of up to 542,400 no par value registered 
shares (Conditional Capital III). The purpose of the conditional capital increase is solely to fulfil the warrants granted up to 1 July 
2015  on  the  basis  of  the  authorisation  of  the  Annual  General  Meeting  of  2  July  2010.  The  conditional  capital  increase  is 
implemented only insofar as holders of the issued warrants exercise their right to purchase shares in the company, and the 
company does not grant any of its own shares or pay cash settlement in order to fulfil the warrants. The new shares are dividend-
entitled from the start of the financial year in which they are issued by the exercise of warrants. 

The company's share capital is conditionally increased by up to EUR 2,494,890.00 by the issuing of up to 2,494,890 new ordinary 
registered no par value shares (Conditional Capital IV). The purpose of the conditional capital increase is to ensure the granting 
of  warrant  rights  and  the  agreement  of  warrant  obligations  in  accordance  with  the  warrant  bond  conditions  to  holders  or 
creditors of warrants from warrant bonds, or to ensure the fulfilment of conversion rights and the fulfilment of conversion 
obligations  in  accordance  with  the  convertible  bond  conditions  to  holders  or  creditors  of  convertible  bonds  issued  by  the 
company in the period up to 9 May 2016 on the basis of the authorisation of the Annual General Meeting of 10 May 2011. The 
conditional capital increase is to be implemented only in the event that warrant or convertible bonds are issued, and only insofar 
as the holders or creditors of warrants or convertible bonds issued by the company on the basis of the authorisation of the 
Annual General Meeting of 10 May 2011 exercise their warrant or conversion rights or fulfil their warrant or conversion obligations 
(also in the event that a corresponding company voting right is exercised). The new shares are dividend-entitled from the start 
of the financial year in which they are issued. The Management Board is authorised to determine the further details of the 
implementation of the conditional capital increase, subject to the approval of the Supervisory Board. 

48 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The  company's  share  capital  is  conditionally  increased  by  EUR  1,814,984.00  by  the  issuing  of  up  to  1,814,984  no  par  value 
registered shares (Conditional Capital V). The purpose of the conditional capital increase is solely to fulfil the warrant rights 
granted up to 27 August 2020 on the basis of the authorisation of the Annual General Meeting of 28 August 2015. The conditional 
capital increase is implemented only insofar as holders of the issued warrants exercise their right to purchase shares in the 
company, and the company does not grant any of its own shares or pay cash settlement in order to fulfil the warrants. The new 
shares  are  dividend-entitled  from  the  start  of  the  financial  year  in  which  they  are  issued  by  the  exercise  of  warrants.  The 
Supervisory Board is authorised to amend Section 7 of the bylaws in accordance with the use of conditional capital and after 
the expiry of all warrant and conversion periods. 

The  capital  measure  implemented  in  January  2017  generated  changes  relating  to  Conditional  Capital  I  as  well  as  the 
corresponding authorisations of the Management Board. Further information on this can be found in the supplementary report. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

49 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Corporate governance declaration pursuant to Section 289a HGB including 
the statement on the German Corporate Governance Code pursuant to 
Section 161 AktG  

Pursuant to Section 289a of the German Commercial Code (HGB), listed stock corporations are required to issue a declaration 
relating to their corporate governance. This must either be included in the management report or it must be published on the 
company's website. The current corporate governance declaration by Biofrontera AG and the corporate governance report are 
available on the company's website at www.biofrontera.com in the section "Investors", subsection "Corporate Governance". 

Leverkusen, 05 April 2017 
Biofrontera AG 

Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert 
Chief Executive Officer   

Christoph Dünwald   
Chief Sales and Marketing Officer 

Thomas Schaffer 
Chief Financial Officer 

Responsibility Statement 

Affirmation of the legal representatives pursuant to § 37y of the German 
Securities Trading Act (WpHG) in conjunction with § 37w para. 2 no.3 WpHG 

We affirm that, to the best of our knowledge and in accordance with the applicable accounting principles, the consolidated 
financial statement gives a true and fair view of the financial position, cash flows and results from operations of the Group, and 
that the combined company and Group management report presents the business performance, including the business results 
and the position of the Biofrontera Group and of Biofrontera AG, in such a way that a true and fair view is conveyed, and that 
the  main  opportunities  and  risks  relating  to  the  anticipated  performance  of  the  Biofrontera  Group  and  Biofrontera  AG  are 
described. 

Leverkusen, 05 April 2017 
Biofrontera AG  !

Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert 

Thomas Schaffer  

Christoph Dünwald 

50 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Consolidated balance sheet as of 31 December 2016!!

Annex 1 

Assets 

iinn  EEUURR  

Non-current assets 

Tangible assets 

Intangible assets 

Current assets 

Current financial assets 

Trade receivables 

Other financial assets 

Cash and cash equivalents 

Other current assets 

Inventories 

Raw materials and supplies 

Unfinished products 

Finished products and goods 

Income tax reimbursement claims 

Other assets 

Total assets 

3311  DDeecceemmbbeerr  22001166  

3311  DDeecceemmbbeerr  22001155  

(1) 

(1) 

(3) 

(4) 

(7) 

(2) 

(5) 

(4) 

644,710.75 

1,251,882.75 

1,896,593.50 

1,624,066.62 

1,376,870.39 

15,126,096.05 

18,127,033.06 

1,350,334.68 

477,098.97 

1,818,889.76 

32,980.20 

175,749.68 

3,855,053.29 

21,982,086.35 

23,878,679.85 

372,834.23 

1,901,927.93 

2,274,762.16 

894,558.96 

730,440.34 

3,959,207.16 

5,584,206.46 

590,420.47 

42,723.50 

900,505.05 

32,220.80 

72,879.33 

1,638,749.15 

7,222,955.61 

9,497,717.77 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

51 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
Liabilites 

iinn  EEUURR  

Equity 

Subscribed capital 

Capital reserve 

Capital reserve from foreign currency conversion adjustments 

Loss carry forward 

Net loss of the year 

Long-term liabilities 

Long-term financial liabilities 

Current liabilities 

Current financial liabilities 

Trade payables 

Short-term financial debt 

Other financial liabilities 

Other current liabilities 

Income tax provision 

Other provisions 

Other current liabilities 

Total liabilities 

3311  DDeecceemmbbeerr  22001166  

3311  DDeecceemmbbeerr  22001155  

(9) 

 37,722,433.00   

 98,676,784.29   

(154,204.12)  

(109,823,695.69)  

(10,579,204.16)  

 15,842,113.32   

 25,490,430.00   

 79,525,292.28   

(1,188.65)  

(98,620,285.49)  

(11,203,410.20)  

(4,809,162.06)  

(10) 

3,596,896.89 

11,229,946.00 

(11) 

(9) 

(13) 

(8) 

(12) 

(13) 

2,093,154.20 

274,424.06 

58,458.32 

2,426,036.58 

0.00 

1,823,673.82 

189,959.24 

2,013,633.06 

4,439,669.64 

23,878,679.85 

1,043,425.65 

830,174.00 

37,622.28 

1,911,221.93 

0.00 

1,041,860.80 

123,851.10 

1,165,711.90 

3,076,933.83 

9,497,717.77 

52 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
Consolidated statement of comprehensive income for the 2016 financial year 

Annex 2 

iinn  EEUURR  

Sales revenue 

Cost of sales 

Gross profit from sales 

Operating expenses 

Research and development costs 

General administrative costs 

thereof financing costs 

Sales costs 

Loss from operations 

Interest expenses 

Interest income 

Other expenses 

Other income 

Profit/loss before income tax 

Income tax 

Profit or loss for the period 

Expenses and income not included in profit/loss 

Items which may in future be regrouped into the profit 
and loss statement under certain conditions  
Translation  differences  resulting  from  the  conversion 
of foreign business operations 

Other income total 

NNoottee  

(15) 

(16) 

(17) 

(19) 

(18) 

(20) 

(20) 

(21) 

(21) 

(23) 

(23) 

0011..0011..--3311..1122..22001166  

0011..0011..--3311..1122..22001155  

 6,130,270.09   

(1,652,247.11)  

 4,478,022.98   

(4,640,324.84)  

(2,853,053.95)  

(826,080.68)  

(8,763,405.57)  

(16,256,784.36)  

(11,778,761.38)  

(1,207,022.19)  

 2,935.14   

(47,548.30)  

 2,451,192.57   

 1,199,557.22   

 4,137,917.39   

(1,235,504.25)  

 2,902,413.14   

(6,203,986.93)  

(2,759,334.78)  

(264,924.08)  

(4,170,044.72)  

(13,133,366.43)  

(10,230,953.29)  

(1,168,551.42)  

 9,225.68   

(32,046.20)  

 218,915.03   

(972,456.91)  

(10,579,204.16)  

(11,203,410.20)  

 0.00 

 0.00 

(10,579,204.16)  

(11,203,410.20)  

(153,015.47) 

(153,015.47)  

(1,188.65) 

(1,188.65)  

Total profit/loss for the period 

(10,732,219.63)  

(11,204,598.85)  

Non-diluted (=diluted) earnings per share 

(22) 

(0.36)  

(0.48)  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

53 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Statement of changes in equity for 2016 

Annex 3 

Balance as at 01 January 2015 

Capital increase 

Costs of equity procurement 

Foreign currency conversion adjustment 

Increase in capital reserve from the stock option programme 

Net loss of the year 

Balance as at 31 December 2015 

Capital increase  

Conversion from convertible bond 2016/2021 

Conversion from option bond 2011/2016 

Foreign currency conversion adjustment  

Costs of equity procurement  

Changes in capital reserves pursuant to the issuance of the convertible bond 

2016/2021  

Increase in capital reserve from the stock option programme  

Net loss of the year  

Balance as at 31 December 2016  

CCaappiittaall  rreesseerrvvee  
ffrroomm  ffoorreeiiggnn  
ccuurrrreennccyy  
ccoonnvveerrssiioonn  
aaddjjuussttmmeennttss  
EUR 

 0.00 

 0.00 

 0.00 

OOrrddiinnaarryy  sshhaarreess  
number 

SSuubbssccrriibbeedd  ccaappiittaall  
EUR 

CCaappiittaall  rreesseerrvvee  
EUR 

22,196,570 

 22,196,570.00 

 76,402,715.36 

3,293,860 

 3,293,860.00 

0 

0 

0 

0 

 0.00 

0.00 

 0.00 

 0.00 

 3,515,382.80 

(495,769.88) 

0.00 

(1,188.65) 

 102,964.00 

 0.00 

 0.00 

 0.00 

AAccccuummuullaatteedd  lloossss  
EUR 

TToottaall  
EUR 

(98,620,285.49) 

(21,000.13) 

 0.00 

 0.00 

0.00 

 0.00 

 6,809,242.80 

(495,769.88) 

(1,188.65) 

 102,964.00 

(11,203,410.20) 

(11,203,410.20) 

25,490,430 

 25,490,430.00 

 79,525,292.28 

(1,188.65) 

(109,823,695.69) 

(4,809,162.06) 

9,870,333 

1,603,050 

758,620 

9,870,333.00 

1,603,050.00 

758,620.00 

14,647,544.60 

3,231,341.65 

1,486,895.20 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

 0.00 

0.00 

 0.00 

 0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

(153,015.47) 

(321,316.20) 

(4,247.24) 

111,274.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

24,517,877.60 

4,834,391.65 

2,245,515.20 

(153,015.47) 

(321,316.20) 

(4,247.24) 

111,274.00 

(10,579,204.16) 

(10,579,204.16) 

37,722,433 

37,722,433.00 

98,676,784.29 

(154,204.12) 

(120,402,899.85) 

15,842,113.32 

 
 
 
 
  
  
 
Consolidated cash flow statement for the 2016 financial year 

Annex 4 

iinn  EEUURR  

Cash flows from operations 

Profit/loss for the period 

Adjustments to reconcile profit/loss for the period to cash flow into operations 

Financial result 

Depreciation 

(Gains)/losses from disposal of assets 

Non-cash expenses and income 

Changes in operating assets and liabilities 

Trade receivables 

Other assets and income tax assets 

Inventories 

Trade payables 

Provisions 

Other liabilities 

0011..0011..--3311..1122..1166  

0011..0011..--3311..1122..1155  

(10,579,204.16) 

(11,203,410.20) 

 1,204,087.05 

 830,779.04 

 5,630.83 

(412,109.68) 

(729,507.66) 

(870,059.80) 

(2,112,674.39) 

 1,049,728.55 

 786,762.28 

 86,944.18 

 1,159,325.74 

 811,681.84 

 115.00 

(22,203.75) 

(585,574.61) 

(11,314.11) 

(140,126.97) 

 75,987.99 

 149,945.42 

 48,255.77 

Net cash flow from operational activities 

(10,739,623.76) 

(9,717,317.88) 

Cash flows from investment activities 

Purchase of intangible and tangible assets 

Interest received 

Revenue from sale of intangible and tangible assets 

Net cash flow from (into) investment activities 

Cash flows from financing activities 

Proceeds from the issue of shares 

Proceeds from conversions of convertible bonds 2016/2021 

Proceeds from conversions of option bond 2011/2016 

Interest paid 

Increase/(decrease) in long-term financial debt 

Increase/(decrease) in short-term financial debt 

Net cash flows from financing activities 

Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 

Composition of financial resources at the end of the period 

Cash and cash balances and cheques 

(484,537.07) 

 2,935.14 

 26,295.86 

(455,306.07) 

 24,196,561.40 

 4,830,144.41 

 2,245,515.20 

(841,603.24) 

(7,633,049.11) 

(435,749.94) 

(180,303.54) 

 183,978.17 

 13,353.71 

 17,028.34 

 6,313,472.92 

 0.00 

 0.00 

(1,224,598.00) 

 455,647.62 

(394,424.00) 

 22,361,818.72 

 5,150,098.54 

 11,166,888.89 

 3,959,207.16 

 15,126,096.05 

(4,550,191.00) 

 8,509,398.16 

 3,959,207.16 

 15,126,096.05 

 3,959,207.16 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

55 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Notes  to  the  consolidated  financial  statements  as  of  31  December 
2016 

Information about the company  

Biofrontera AG (www.biofrontera.com), registered in the commercial register of Cologne District Court, Department B under No. 
49717,  and  its  wholly-owned  subsidiaries  Biofrontera  Bioscience  GmbH,  Biofrontera  Pharma  GmbH,  Biofrontera  Development 
GmbH,  Biofrontera  Neuroscience  GmbH,  all  with  head  office  at  Hemmelrather  Weg  201,  51377  Leverkusen,  Germany,  and 
Biofrontera Inc., which is based in Wilmington, Delaware, USA, research, develop and market dermatological products. The main 
focus is on the discovery, development and distribution of dermatological drugs and dermatologically tested cosmetics for the 
treatment and care of diseased skin. Biofrontera AG (hereinafter also the "company" or "Biofrontera") pursues this goal along 
with its subsidiaries. All the companies together form the "Biofrontera Group". 

The  Biofrontera  Group  was  the  first  small  German  pharmaceutical  company  to  receive  centralised  European  and  US  drug 
approval for an independently developed drug, Ameluz®. In December 2011, Ameluz® was approved in Europe to treat light and 
moderate actinic keratosis. In September 2016, European approval was expanded to treat field cancerisation, and in January 
2017  to  treat  basal  cell  carcinoma.  In  May  2016,  the  FDA  issued  approval  in  the  USA  for  lesion-directed  and  field-directed 
treatment of actinic keratosis in combination with the red light lamp BF-RhodoLED®. In addition, a range of cosmetic products is 
to be expanded. The first product in this range, Belixos® Creme, was launched in the autumn of 2009. A hair tonic, Belixos® LIQUID, 
was introduced in the spring of 2014 and a Belixos® Gel skin care for rosacea and acne was launched at the beginning of December 
2014. Belixos® Protect, a day cream with protective anti-aging properties designed especially for photodamaged skin, followed 
in July 2015, as well as in July 2016 Belixos® to go, a practical 5 ml roll-on applicator with a stainless steel roller, with simple and 
hygienic application leading to an immediate cooling effect for the affected skin. Two further clinical development projects, one 
a dermatological project and one for the prevention of migraines, have been spun off into dedicated subsidiaries and are not 
being actively pursued at the present time. 

The product Ameluz® (development name BF-200 ALA), which was approved in Europe at the end of 2011, has been tested for 
European approval in one Phase II and two Phase III clinical trials to treat actinic keratosis. In preparation for approval in the 
USA, two Phase I trials and a further Phase III trial were conducted. Ameluz® consists of a combination of the drug aminolevulinic 
acid (ALA) and a patent-protected nanoemulsion (BF-200), with the latter chemically stabilising the ALA and enhancing its skin 
penetration. The clinical results regarding the treatment of actinic keratosis have shown its clear superiority to the competitor 
product against which it was compared in the Phase III trials. An application for centralised European approval was submitted 
on 1 September 2010, and this approval was granted by the European Commission on 16 December 2011. Ameluz® has been sold 
in Germany since February 2012 and in several other European countries since autumn 2012. In September 2016, approval was 
expanded  to  treat  field  cancerisation,  in  other  words,  larger  related  areas  permeated  by  tumour  cells.  Approval  in  the  USA 
occurred on 10 May 2016, which now opens up the world's largest healthcare market to Biofrontera. Market launch occurred in 
October 2016. In addition, Biofrontera has carried out another Phase III trial for the treatment of basal cell carcinoma. This trial 
formed the basis for the expansion of the existing EU approval for this indication, which was issued in January 2017. 

In November 2012, Biofrontera's BF-RhodoLED® PDT lamp received pan-European approval for use as a medical device and has 
since been sold in parallel with Ameluz®. In Europe, doctors can opt to use any of the lamps approved for PDT, whereas in the 
USA  the  approval  of  Ameluz®  is  combined  with  utilisation  of  the  BF-RhodoLED®  lamp.  It  is  consequently  approved  as  a 
combination product along with the drug. 

In July 2016, the company agreed a research partnership with Maruho Co., Ltd, ("Maruho"), a Japanese company specialising in 
dermatology, in which possibilities to jointly develop pharmaceutical products based on Biofrontera's proprietary nanoemulsion 
technology  are  to  be  researched.  This  corresponds  to  the  same  strategy  with  which  Ameluz®  was  also  developed.  The 
nanoemulsion technology stabilised the active substance and improved skin penetration, leading to greater clinical efficacy. 
This principle is also to be applied to other substances as part of the partnership with Maruho. According to the agreement, 
Maruho will bear all costs connected with the exploratory research of for new product candidates. It is planned that Maruho will 
be the owner of the new products and that Biofrontera will receive the licence to market in Europe. 

The BF-derm1 project, which is currently not being actively pursued, was tested in a three-part Phase II trial for the treatment of 
chronic,  antihistamine-resistant  urticaria.  The  trial  demonstrated  the  drug's  good  efficacy,  which  reduced  the  intensity  of 
urticaria rashes and itching as well as reducing the amount of drowsiness-inducing antihistamines required by patients. 

The BF-1 project is an innovative substance that is intended to be used for migraine prophylaxis. The substance was administered 
to healthy subjects for the first time towards the end of 2006, by intravenous injection and in tablet form. The company received 

56 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
the results of this trial in early 2007. They show that the substance is almost completely absorbed in the intestine, and that it 
takes around two days for 50% of the substance to be broken down or excreted. These results are an excellent starting point 
for developing the substance for administration in tablet form. 

The intention is to finance the development of both BF-derm1 and BF-1 independently of Biofrontera's normal budget by seeking 
funding providers who will benefit directly from the development of these products. For this reason, the two projects were 
acquired by Biofrontera AG and transferred as shareholder contributions to the two subsidiaries Biofrontera Development GmbH 
and Biofrontera Neuroscience GmbH, which were formed in December 2012. The product BF-derm1, which is intended for the 
treatment of severe chronic urticaria, is now the responsibility of Biofrontera Development GmbH, while the product BF-1, which 
is intended for the prophylactic treatment of migraines, is the responsibility of Biofrontera Neuroscience GmbH. This outsourcing 
of  development  candidates  has  created  a  structure  through  which  the  financing  of  the  further  development  of  these  two 
products was uncoupled from the normal Group financing. As a result, the company's short-term financial plans can focus on 
the market launch of Ameluz® in North America and the extension of its range of indications, as well as the establishment of the 
Group as a specialist pharmaceutical company. 
!
!

!

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

57 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Summary of significant accounting policies 
Basis for preparation of the consolidated financial statements 

The consolidated financial statements for Biofrontera AG for the financial year from 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2016 have 
been  prepared  in  accordance  with  the  International  Financial  Reporting  Standards  (IFRS)  of  the  International  Accounting 
Standards Board (IASB) and the interpretations of the International Financial Reporting Standards Interpretations Committee 
(IFRS  IC),  which  are  endorsed  by  the  European  Union  (EU)  and  applicable  on  the  balance  sheet  date.  In  addition,  statutory 
provisions pursuant to Section 315a (1) of the German Commercial Code (HGB) have been complied with. 

The assets and liabilities are recognised and measured in accordance with the IFRS that were mandatory on 31 December 2016. 

Standards, amendments to standards and interpretations applied for the first time in the consolidated financial statements for 
31 December 2016:  

Standards and interpretations requiring first-time mandatory application 

Standard / Interpretation 

Amendments to IAS 19 "Employee 

Annual Improvements Project 

Amendments to IAS 1 "Presentation of  

Amendments to IAS 16 "Property, Plant and Equipment" and IAS 38 

Amendments to IAS 16 "Property, Plant and Equipment" and IAS 41 

Amendments to IAS 27 "Separate Financial Statements": Equity 

Amendments to IFRS 10 "Consolidated Financial Statements", IFRS 12 "Disclosure of 
Interests in Other  
Entities" and IAS 28 "Interests in Associates and Joint Ventures": Investment Entities: 
Applying the Consolidation Exception 

Amendments to IFRS 11 "Joint Arrangements": Acquisitions of Interests in Joint 

Operations 
Annual Improvements Project 
Cycle 2012-2014 

First-time 
mandatory  
application 
as per IASB 

1 July 2014 

1 July 2014 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

First-time 
mandatory  
application 
in the EU 

1 February 2015 

1 February 2015 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2016 

With the exception of minor changes due to IAS 1, no changes have arisen for the consolidated financial statements of Biofrontera 
AG. 

Standards and interpretations applied early voluntarily 
(No mandatory application, although EU endorsement has already occurred) 

Standard / Interpretation 

IFRS 15 "Revenue from Contracts with Customers" 

(including supplements) 

IFRS 9 "Financial Instruments" 

First-time 
mandatory  
application 
as per IASB 

First-time 
mandatory  
application 
in the EU 

1 January 2018 

1 January 2018 

1 January 2018 

1 January 2018 

!

!
!

58 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
Standards and interpretations not (yet) applicable in the EU 
(EU endorsement has not yet occurred) 

Standard / Interpretation 

First-time 
mandatory  
application 
as per IASB 

First-time 
mandatory  
application 
in the EU 

Amendments to IAS 7 "Statements of Cash Flows": Disclosure Initiative  

1 January 2017 

Not yet known 

Amendments to IAS 12 "Income Taxes": Recognition of Deferred Tax Assets for  

Unrealised Losses 

Amendments to IAS 28 "Interest in Associates  

and Joint Ventures" 

1 January 2017 

Not yet known 

Postponed for an  

Not yet known 

and IFRS 10 "Consolidated Financial Statements": Sale or Contribution of Assets  

indefinite period 

between an Investor and its Associate or Joint Venture 

Amendments to IAS 40 "Investment Property": Transfers of Investment Property 

1 January 2018 

Not yet known 

Amendments IFRS 2 "Share-based Payment": Classification and Measurement of  

Share-based Payment Transactions 

Amendments to IFRS 4 "Insurance Contracts": Applying IFRS 9 Financial Instruments  

together with IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts 

IFRS 14 "Regulatory Deferral Accounts" 

IFRS 16 "Leases" 

IFRIC 22 "Foreign Currency Transactions and Advance Consideration" 

Annual Improvements Project 

Cycle 2014-2016 

1 January 2018  

Not yet known 

1 January 2018  

Not yet known 

1 January 2016 

1 January 2019 

1 January 2018 

Not recognised 

Not yet known 

Not yet known 

01.01.2017/01.01.2018 

Not yet known 

Clarification of IFRS 15 "Revenue from Contracts with Customers" 

01 January 2018 

Not yet known 

!
It is expected that unless details of their effects are given below, the listed standards and interpretations that are not yet applied 
will have no effect on the Biofrontera Group, in the absence of relevant facts and circumstances.  

As part of its disclosure initiative, the IASB has published amendments to IAS 7 – Statements of Cash Flows. The core changes 
are requirements for additional disclosures in the notes, which should enable the readers of financial statements to assess the 
changes in liabilities arising from the company's financing activities. The amendments are to be applied the first time in the first 
reporting period of a financial year beginning on or after 1 January 2017. Earlier application is also permitted. When first applied, 
there is no comparative information from the same period in the previous year to report. Adoption of the amendments by the 
EU is still pending. Apart from the requirement for additional notes, the Group expects no effects on its consolidated financial 
statements. 

In  May  2014,  the  IASB  issued  the  new  standard  IFRS  15.  The  aim  of  this  new  standard  concerning  revenue  recognition  is  to 
amalgamate  the  various  rules  previously  contained  in  different  standards  and  interpretations.  At  the  same  time,  uniform 
principles are defined that are applicable for all sectors and for all types of revenue transactions. The questions regarding what 
amount, at what time and for which time period revenue is to be realised are to be answered with the help of the 5-stage model. 
In addition, the standard includes a number of other regulations covering detailed issues and an expansion of the disclosures 
required. The new standard is to be applied to annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2018. The first application must in 
principle be carried out retrospectively, but various simplification options are available; earlier application is permitted.  

The Group pursues instalment sales over several years which include a financing element. Furthermore, the adoption of the new 
standard  IFRS  15  may  lead  in  individual  cases  to  a  different  approach  in  revenue  recognition  of  licences.  The  evaluation  of 
individual license agreements is not yet completed. Requirements to make expanded disclosures will also arise. 

In  January  2016,  the  IASB  issued  the  new  standard  IFRS  16  –  Leases.    IFRS  16  establishes  principles  for  the  recognition, 
measurement, presentation and disclosure of leases, and notes regarding leases, with the aim of ensuring that lessees and 
lessors provide relevant information regarding the impact of leases. At the same time, the previous accounting model applied 
in accordance with IAS 17, involving the classification into operating and finance leases, is abandoned in favour of a uniform 
accounting model  for leasing agreements with a mandatory control concept. For the lessee, the standard provides a single 
accounting model. This model leads in the case of the lessee to all the assets and liabilities from leases being recognised on the 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

59 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
balance sheet, provided that their term does not exceed 12 months or if they are minor assets (option). The lessor continues to 
differentiate, for accounting purposes, between finance and operating leases. The mandatory first-time application date of IFRS 
16 – Leases is for financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2019. Early application is permitted, in principle, if IFRS 15 – 
Revenue  from  Contracts  with  Customers  is  already  applied  (early)  in  full.    The  lessee  either  has  to  fully  apply  IFRS  16 
retrospectively, with the inclusion of prior reporting periods, or has to recognise the cumulative adjustment effect at the point 
in time of initial application as an entry in equity at the beginning of the financial year of initial application. Adoption of the 
standard by the EU is still pending. The Group is currently evaluating the possible impact of the initial application of IFRS 16 on 
its consolidated financial statements, and will define an adoption date and transitional method, provided that the standard is 
adopted by the EU in this form. 

In July 2014, the IASB approved the final version of IFRS 9 "Financial Instruments". The new standard includes revised regulations 
for the classification and measurement of financial assets, including impairment regulations, and supplements the new hedge 
accounting  regulations  published  in  2013.  Furthermore,  more  extensive  disclosure  obligations  pursuant  to  IFRS  9  are  to  be 
complied with. The Group anticipates effects on the classification of financial instruments as well as expanded disclosures in the 
notes to the financial statements. The more precise effects, including as a result of the modified impairment model, are currently 
being examined. 

The accounting policies applied are consistent with those applied on 31 December 2015, with the exception of the new and revised 
standards and interpretations described above that were applied from the 2016 financial year for the first time.  

The consolidated financial statements as at 31 December 2016 are presented in euros (EUR) or thousands of euros. 

The Biofrontera Group presents current and non-current assets and current and non-current liabilities as separate categories 
in the balance sheet, in accordance with IAS 1.60, with these categories also being subdivided to some extent according to their 
respective terms in the notes to the consolidated financial statement for 31 December 2016. The income statement is prepared 
applying  the  cost  of  sales  method.  In  this  reporting  format,  the  net  sales  revenue  is  set  against  the  expenses  incurred  in 
achieving it, subdivided into cost of sales, research and development costs, sales costs and general administration costs. 

The consolidated financial statements for 31 December 2016 contain no separate segment-based reporting, as the activities of 
the Biofrontera Group are limited to a single business segment in terms of the definition in IFRS 8. All business operations focus 
on  the  product  Ameluz®,  including  the  supplementary  products  BF-RhodoLED®  (PDT  lamp)  and  Belixos®,  and  are  internally 
monitored and managed accordingly. 

On  05  April  2017,  the  Management  Board  approved  the  consolidated  financial  statements  for  the  financial  year  ending  31 
December 2016 for publication and forwarding to the Supervisory Board. 

60 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Basis of consolidation 

The consolidated financial statements for the financial year ending 31 December 2016 include the financial statements of the 
parent company, Biofrontera AG, and the subsidiary companies in which the parent has a direct majority of the voting rights or 
another means of exercising control. The following companies have been included in the consolidated financial statements:  
!

Biofrontera Pharma GmbH, Leverkusen, Germany, with a direct interest of 100% 

Biofrontera Bioscience GmbH, Leverkusen, Germany, with a direct interest of 100% 

1.!
2.!
3.!
Biofrontera Development GmbH, Leverkusen, Germany, with a direct interest of 100% 
4.! Biofrontera Neuroscience GmbH, Leverkusen, Germany, with a direct interest of 100%. 
5.!

Biofrontera Inc., Wilmington, Delaware, USA with a direct interest of 100% since March 2015. 

The basis for the consolidation of the companies included in the consolidated financial statements are the financial statements 
(or HBII pursuant to IFRS) of these companies prepared for 31 December 2016 pursuant to uniform principles. The consolidated 
financial statements for 31 December 2016 have been prepared on the basis of uniform accounting policies (IFRS).  

The subsidiaries have been fully consolidated from the date of acquisition. The date of acquisition is the date when the parent 
company obtained control of these subsidiaries. The subsidiaries are included in the consolidated financial statements until 
control over these companies no longer exists. 
All inter-company balances and income and expenses have been eliminated on consolidation. Results of intra-group transactions 
have been eliminated.  

Translation of amounts in foreign currencies 

The consolidated financial statements for 31 December 2016 have been prepared in EUR (or thousands of EUR), which is the 
functional currency of all the German companies included in the consolidated financial statements, and of the Group, and is the 
Group's reporting currency.  

For subsidiaries with a functional currency that is the local currency of the country in which they have their registered office, 
the  assets  and  liabilities  that  are  recognised  in  the  foreign  currency  on  the  balance  sheets  of  the  foreign,  economically 
independent subsidiaries, are converted to euros applying the relevant period-end exchange rate (2016: 1,052 USD/EUR, previous 
year:  1,091  USD/EUR).  Income  and  expense  items  are  translated  applying  the  average  exchange  rates  (2016:  1,107  USD/EUR, 
previous  year:  1,102  USD/EUR)  applicable  to  the  relevant  period.  The  differences  resulting  from  the  valuation  of  equity  at 
historical rates and applying the period-end exchange rates are reported as a change not affecting profit or loss and carried 
directly to equity within the other equity components.  

Transactions realised in currencies other than EUR are reported using the exchange rate on the date of the transaction. Assets 
and liabilities are translated applying the closing exchange rate for each balance sheet date. Gains and losses arising from such 
currency translations are recognised in income. 

Application of estimates 

The preparation of the consolidated financial statements for 31 December 2016 in accordance with IFRS required the use of 
estimates and assumptions by the management that affect the value of assets and liabilities – as well as contingent assets and 
liabilities – as reported on the balance sheet date, and revenues and expenses arising during the financial year. The main areas 
in which assumptions, estimates and the exercising of a degree of discretion are appropriate relate to the determination of the 
useful lives of non-current assets and the formation of provisions, as well as income taxes. Estimates are based on historical 
experience and other assumptions that are considered appropriate in the circumstances. They are continuously reviewed but 
may vary from the actual values. 

The carrying amounts of items affected by estimates are presented in the respective explanatory remarks concerning the items 
in the notes to the consolidated financial statements.  

Transactions with related parties 

With regard to transactions with shareholders, particularly in connection with capital increases and the issue of Biofrontera AG 
bonds, please see our comments in the appendix note "Equity". 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

61 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
With respect to the issue of share options to employees of the Biofrontera Group, please see our comments on the "Share Option 
Plan" in the appendix note "Equity". 

With regard to the remuneration of Management Board members, please see our comments in the appendix note "Members of 
the Management Board". 

With regard to the remuneration of Supervisory Board members, please see our comments in the appendix note "Members of 
the Supervisory Board". 

Fixtures and equipment 

Pursuant  to  IAS  16,  the  value  of  fixtures  and  equipment  is  recognised  on  the  balance  sheet  at  historical  acquisition  and 
production cost less scheduled depreciation. 

Depreciation of fixtures and equipment is generally applied straight-line over the estimated useful life of assets (generally three 
to thirteen years). The main useful lives are unchanged: 

!!

IT equipment  

!! Fixtures and equipment 

3 years, straight-line 

4 years, straight-line 

!! Office and laboratory facilities 

10 years, straight-line 

!! Laboratory devices 

13 years, straight-line 

!
Since 1 January 2008, low value assets with purchase costs of between EUR 150 and EUR 1,000 have been booked to the year of 
acquisition as a single item for the relevant year, and are fully depreciated over five years.  

Intangible assets 

Purchased software is recognised at cost less amortisation applied straight-line over a three-year useful life. 

Purchased intangible assets consist of licenses and other rights. They are recognised at cost less accumulated amortisation. 
Only  intangible  assets  purchased  from  third  parties  are  capitalised  as  assets,  as  the  requirements  for  the  recognition  of 
internally generated intangible assets are not met. These intangible assets are capitalised as assets and generally amortised 
straight-line over an estimated useful life of between 4 and 20 years. 

No intangible assets exist with indefinite useful lives. 

Borrowing costs are not recognised as part of the purchase cost of the acquired assets but are instead expensed in the period 
in which they arrived, because the Group has no qualifying assets in the meaning of IAS 23.5. 

Impairment of assets 

The company tests assets for impairment when indications exist that the carrying amount of an asset exceeds its recoverable 
amount. A possible impairment requirement of assets held for use is evaluated by comparing the carrying amount of an asset 
with the cash flows that the asset is expected to generate in the future. When such an asset is considered to be impaired, the 
impairment loss is measured at the amount by which the carrying amount of the asset exceeds its recoverable amount. Assets 
that are to be sold are reported at the lower of the carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell. 

Financial instruments 

The financial instruments held by the Biofrontera Group on the balance sheet date primarily consist of cash and cash equivalents, 
current (short-term) investments, trade payables and receivables as well as financial debt. Biofrontera does not currently deploy 
derivative  financial  instruments.  Due  to  the  short  terms  of  the  current  financial  investments,  trade  payables  and  trade 
receivables, the carrying amounts of these items correspond to their fair values. The current financial investments are assigned 
to the "financial investments held to maturity" category, and other receivables and liabilities are assigned to the "loans and 
receivables" category. The financial liabilities are measured applying the effective interest method, less treasury stock. 

The Biofrontera Group was not exposed to significant foreign currency risk on the balance sheet date. Financial investments 
have been transacted in euros. Trade payables denominated in foreign currency are of minor importance. Trade receivables are 
regularly reviewed with respect to potential default risk. 

62 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Various safeguarding criteria are applied when selecting of current capital investments (for example, ratings, capital guarantee, 
safeguarding by the deposit protection fund). Based on the selection criteria and the ongoing monitoring of capital investments, 
Biofrontera does not consider any default risks to exist in this area that have not been taken into account. The amounts reported 
in the balance sheet generally represent the maximum default risk. 

The  monitoring  and  management  of  liquidity  is  based  on  short-term  and  long-term  corporate  planning.  Liquidity  risks  are 
identified at an early stage, using simulations of various scenarios. Current liquidity is reported and monitored on a daily basis. 

To date, Biofrontera has always succeeded in providing the necessary financing for its business operations through injections 
of equity. 

As a result of the capital increases implemented in February, April and November 2016, and another capital increase implemented 
in January 2017, the company currently has sufficient liquidity at its disposal. Especially as a result of independent marketing in 
the USA, however, further capital measures will be required until breakeven is reached. 

As of 31 December 2016, Biofrontera held no financial positions that were exposed to interest rate risks. 

Financial investments held to maturity 

The  company  classifies  the  securities  held  as  current  financial  investments  as  "financial  investments  held  to  maturity",  in 
accordance with IAS 39.9. As of the 31 December 2016 reporting date, Biofrontera had in its portfolio holdings of its own Warrant 
Bond I 2009/2017 with a nominal value of EUR 1,500 thousand. The warrant bonds held by Biofrontera were written up by a further 
EUR 267 thousand (depreciation previous year: EUR 100 thousand), to EUR 1,500 thousand, as of 31 December 2016, due to an 
increase in the market price. In accordance with IAS 32, the bonds are reported on a net basis with the corresponding bond debt.  

Inventories 

Raw materials and supplies, as well as finished and unfinished goods, are recognised at the lower of cost or net realisable value. 
Borrowing costs are not capitalised. Cost is calculated applying the first-in-first-out method (FIFO). A value adjustment is made 
to the inventories on the balance sheet date if the net realisable value is lower than the carrying amount. 

Trade receivables 

Trade receivables are reported at their nominal value. Any value adjustments are booked directly against the relevant receivable. 
Receivables denominated in foreign currencies have been translated into euros applying the exchange rates on the balance 
sheet date, with any translation differences being recognised in profit or loss. 

Cash and cash equivalents 

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, cheques and bank deposits with a term of up to three months at the time of 
acquisition, as well as current financial assets. These are measured at amortised cost. 

Trade payables, overdrafts 

Trade payables, as well as liabilities from current accounts and other liabilities are recognised at their redemption amount. Due 
to  their  short-term  nature,  the  reported  carrying  amount  reflects  the  fair  value.  Foreign  currency  liabilities  are  translated 
applying the period-end exchange rate. Exchange rate losses and gains are reported in the income statement. 

Provisions 

Provisions are formed if an obligation to third parties resulting from a past event exists, and is likely to result in an outflow of 
assets in the future, and if the effect on assets can be reliably estimated. 

Share options 

Share options (equity-settled share-based payments) are valued at the fair value on the date of granting. The fair value of the 
obligation  is  capitalised  as  a  personnel  expense  over  the  retention  period.  Obligations  relating  to  cash-settled  share-based 
payment transactions are recognised as liabilities and are measured at the fair value on the balance sheet date. In the event 
that Biofrontera AG has the right to choose between payment in cash or payment using shares when a right is exercised, an 
increase in the capital reserve is initially performed pursuant to IFRS 2.41 and IFRS 2.43. The costs are recognised over the 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

63 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
vesting period. The fair value of both cash-settled and equity-settled share-based payment transactions is generally determined 
applying internationally recognised methods. 

Warrant bonds 

In accordance with IAS 32, warrant bonds are classified as hybrid financial instruments that represent a debt security with an 
embedded conversion or subscription option. The issuer of such a financial instrument, which contains both a liability and an 
equity  component,  is  required  to  present  the  liability  component  and  the  equity  component  separately  from  the  financial 
instrument originally reported on the balance sheet. At the start, the market value of the liability component corresponds to the 
present value of the contractually fixed future cash flows discounted at the prevailing market interest rate valid for financial 
instruments as of this date, which have a comparable credit status and lead essentially to the same cash flows given the same 
conditions, but where no exchange or subscription option exists. Subsequent measurement is performed applying the effective 
interest method. The liability is derecognised to the extent that the obligation underlying the liability is fulfilled, terminated or 
expires. The equity instrument consists of the embedded option to convert the liability into issuer's equity. The market value of 
the option comprises its present value and, where relevant, its intrinsic value. The intrinsic value of an option or of another 
derivative financial instrument is, if any, the difference between the market value of the underlying instrument and the contract 
price at which the underlying instrument is to be purchased, issued, sold or exchanged. The fair value of a derivative financial 
instrument consists of its market value less its intrinsic value. The present value is determined by the length of the remaining 
period up until maturity or until the expiration of the derivative financial instrument. 

If the warrant bonds are redeemed before maturity through early redemption or early repurchase, with the original conversion 
rights remaining unchanged, the fee paid and all transactions relating to the repurchase or redemption are allocated to the 
liability and equity components of the instrument at the time of the transaction. The method for the allocation of the fees and 
transaction costs to the two components is identical to that utilised in the original allocation applied to the revenue received 
when issuing the bond. 

Income tax 

In accordance with IAS 12, Biofrontera recognises deferred taxes for valuation differences between IFRS valuation and tax law 
valuation. Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognised for all taxable temporary differences – claims from deferred taxes 
are only recognised to the extent that it is probable that taxable profits will be available to utilise the claims. The carrying 
amount of deferred income tax assets is reviewed on each balance sheet date and reduced to the extent that it is no longer 
probable that sufficient taxable profit will be available against which the deferred tax claim can be at least partially utilised. 
Previously unrecognised deferred income tax assets are reassessed on each balance sheet date and are recognised to the extent 
that it is probable from a current perspective that sufficient future taxable profit will be available to realise the deferred tax 
asset. 

Deferred tax liabilities and deferred tax assets are offset if a right to offset exists, and if they are levied by the same tax authority. 

Current taxes are calculated on the basis of the company's taxable earnings for the period. The tax rates applicable to the 
respective companies on the balance sheet date are used for this purpose. 

Earnings per share 

Earnings per share are calculated by dividing net consolidated income by the weighted average number of outstanding shares 
during the year in accordance with IAS 33 ("Earnings per Share"). 

Leasing 

The  leases  that  have  been  agreed  are  classified  as  either  finance  leases  or  operating  leases.  If  the  lessor  has  passed  all 
significant  opportunities  and  risks  onto  the  Group  as  a  lessee,  the  Group  is  assigned  beneficial  ownership.  The  companies 
included in the consolidated financial statements have usually concluded contracts that are classified as operating leases. In 
this case, ongoing lease payments are expensed as they are incurred. Agreed leases that are classified as finance leases are 
recognised as assets at the lower of the present value of the minimum lease payments or the fair value of the leased asset at 
the beginning of the lease, and depreciated over the shorter of the lease duration or useful life, if the transfer of ownership to 
the lessee at the end of the contract term is insufficiently certain. 

Revenue recognition 

The  company  recognises  revenue  in  accordance  with  IAS  18  if  the  risks  and  opportunities  connected  with  ownership  have 
transferred to the customer. The company realises its revenue primarily through the sale of its products. Income from milestone 

64 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
and licensing agreements with third parties are recognised once the underlying contractual conditions come into force. The 
receipt of revenue can always be fully and immediately recognised as revenue if the conditions of IAS 18 IE 20 are met in the 
form of a one-off contract start payment. 

Revenue and other income are recognised if the amount can be measured reliably and payment is sufficiently probable as well 
as  other  conditions  mentioned  below  are  met.  All  income  in  connection  with  the  sale  of  products  and  licence  income  is 
recognised  as  revenue.  Revenue  is  deemed  to  be  realised  when  the  deliveries  and  services  owed  have  been  provided  and 
substantial risk and chances have been passed to the acquirer. 

Most of the revenues are generated by product sales. The sale of Ameluz® almost exclusively occurs through pharmaceutical 
wholesalers or in Europe also directly to pharmacies or hospitals. Above and beyond this, in 2016 a considerable portion of sales 
revenue was achieved through passing costs on to Maruho Co. Ltd as part of the development partnership that has been agreed. 

In the case of direct sales of the BF-RhodoLED® lamps, the delivered products and services on which amounts are owed are 
settled only after complete installation, since the installation services requires specialised knowledge, is not just an ancillary 
service and, for legal reasons, the lamp may only be used by the customer after successful installation. In the case of lamps on 
loan, in other words, in the case of lamps already installed for testing by buyers before a purchase, the preconditions are met 
through the origination of a valid purchase agreement and the generation of an outgoing invoice. 

Belixos® is predominantly sold through Amazon. Revenue is recognised after delivery and payment by the customer. Based on 
experience, return rights granted with the sale through Amazon are exercised by customers only in very few cases. 

Revenues are recognised less revenue based trade taxes and sales deductions. Expected sales deductions, for instance rebates, 
discounts or returns, are recognised based on estimated values at revenue recognition. Payment terms for Ameluz® include 
short-term payment terms with a possibility for sales rebates. Instalment payments over 48 months, which include a financing 
component, are sometimes agreed upon with the sale of BF-RhodoLED®. 
!
Licence income as well as milestone-based payments are recognised when the contractual obligation has been fulfilled. 
!
Research and development expenses 

Pursuant  to  IAS  38,  development  costs  are  recognised  as  "intangible  assets"  under  certain  conditions.  Research  costs  are 
recognised as costs as they are incurred. Development costs are capitalised if certain conditions are fulfilled depending on the 
possible outcome of development activities. 

Estimates of such possible outcomes involve management making significant assumptions. In the management's opinion, due 
to uncertainties related to the development of new products, the criteria prescribed under IAS 38.57 "Intangible Assets" for 
capitalising development costs as assets are only fulfilled by the Biofrontera Group if the prerequisites for the expansion of the 
European approval and the approval in the USA are met, and if it is likely a future economic benefit will accrue to the company. 

The  research  and  development  costs  relating  to  the  medication  Ameluz®,  which  has  been  approved  in  Europe,  and  to  the 
company's other research and development projects, are consequently expensed in the period in which they are incurred. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

65 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Notes to the consolidated balance sheet 
1.! Intangible assets and property, plant and equipment 
Changes in non-current assets in the 2016 financial year, as well as accumulated depreciation, amortisation and impairment 
losses, are presented in the statement of changes in non-current assets. Property, plant and equipment consist mainly of office 
and business equipment and laboratory and production facilities. 

The additions to intangible assets and to property, plant and equipment in the reporting period arise mainly from the purchase 
of software to compare important documents (EUR 20 thousand; previous year: EUR 0), right-of-use assets connected with the 
prototype of the PDT lamp (EUR 36 thousand; previous year: EUR 26 thousand), as well as further laboratory devices (EUR 290 
thousand; previous year: EUR 35 thousand) and other fixtures and equipment (EUR 117 thousand; previous year: EUR 42 thousand). 
The asset disposals with costs totalling EUR 66 thousand (previous year: EUR 20 thousand) resulted primarily from sales of the 
rental lamps in an amount of EUR 52 thousand (previous year: EUR 20 thousand). 

The right-of-use assets reported with a net carrying amount totalling EUR 1,112 thousand relate mainly to rights totalling EUR 
1,079 thousand to use technology developed by the company ASAT Applied Science and Technology AG, Zug, Switzerland, in 
terms of the active ingredient ALA (aminolevulinic acid), including all related patents and know how. The right-of-use assets that 
are acquired are amortised over their estimated remaining useful life, from their date of acquisition, due to their direct usability. 
This useful life is derived from the term of the patents issued and acquired by Biofrontera AG and is reviewed annually pursuant 
to IAS 38.104. The remaining amortisation period amounts to 2 years (previous year: 3 years). No indications of impairment exist. 

66 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Consolidated statement of changes in non-current assets in 2016 

!!

!!

!!

!!

!!

!!

Cost 

Accumulated depreciation, amortisation and impairment losses  Carrying amounts 

1 Jan. 16 

Currency 

Additions 

Disposals 

31 Dec. 16 

1 Jan. 16 

Currency 

Additions 

Disposals 

31 Dec. 16 

31 Dec. 16 

31 Dec. 15 

EUR 

translation 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

translation 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

I.   Property, plant and equipment 

   Operating and business equipment 

!!

!!
3,476,916.05 

!!

1,986.27  420,685.67 

!!
65,683.04 

!!
3,833,904.96 

!!
3,104,081.82 

!!

!!
119,827.70 

!!
35,010.00 

294.68 

3,189,194.20 

644,710.75 

372,834.23 

EUR 

!!

EUR 

!!

II. 

Intangible assets 

1.  Software and licences 

2.  Right-of-use assets 

!!
418,895.51 

6,053,339.09 

6,472,234.60 

 !
274.59 

 !
25,136.08 

0.00 

35,526.00 

274.59 

60,662.08 

 !
444,306.18 

 !
295,052.08 

 !
30.51 

9,250.46 

6,088,865.09 

4,275,254.59 

0.00  701,700.88 

6,533,171.27 

4,570,306.67 

30.51  

710,951.34 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

 !
0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

 !
304,333.05 

139,973.13 

123,843.43 

4,976,955.47 

1,111,909.62 

1,778,084.50 

5,281,288.52 

1,251,882.75 

1,901,927.93 

9,949,150.65 

2,260.86  481,347.75  65,683.04 

10,367,076.23  7,674,388.49 

325.19  830,779.04  35,010.00  8,470,482.72 

1,896,593.50  2,274,762.16 

Consolidated statement of changes in non-current assets in 2015 

!!

!!
!!

!!

!!
!!

!!

!!
!!

I.   Property, plant and equipment 

Cost 

Accumulated depreciation, amortisation and impairment losses 

Carrying amounts 

1 Jan. 15 

Currency 

Additions 

Disposals 

31 Dec. 15 

1 Jan. 15 

Currency 

Additions 

Disposals 

31 Dec. 15 

31 Dec. 15 

31 Dec. 14 

EUR 

translation 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

translation 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

EUR 

   Operating and business 

3,342,769.00 

0.00 

154,418.76 

20,271.71 

3,476,916.05 

3,003,237.00 

0.00 

107,647.82 

6,803.00 

3,104,081.82 

372,834.23 

339,532.00 

equipment  

II. 

Intangible assets 

Software and licences 

Right-of-use assets 

418,895.51 

6,027,454.31 

6,446,349.82 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

25,884.78 

25,884.78 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

418,895.51 

281,912.08 

0.00 

13,140.00 

6,053,339.09 

3,584,360.57 

0.00 

690,894.02 

6,472,234.60 

3,866,272.65 

0.00 

704,034.02 

0.00 

0.00 

0.00 

295,052.08 

123,843.43 

136,983.43 

4,275,254.59 

1,778,084.50 

2,443,093.74 

4,570,306.67 

1,901,927.93 

2,580,077.17 

!!

9,789,118.82 

0.00 

180,303.54  20,271.71  9,949,150.65 

6,869,509.65 

0.00 

811,681.84  6,803.00  7,674,388.49 

2,274,762.16 

2,919,609.17 

1

2

!!
!!

!!
!!

!

 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
2.! Inventories 
Inventories comprise finished products, work in progress, and raw materials and supplies at the sales companies. 

Inventories amount to EUR 3,646 thousand (previous year: EUR 1,534 thousand). In assessing the consumption of inventories, the 
sequence of consumption is assumed to be based on the first-in-first-out (FIFO) method. 

3.! Trade receivables  
The trade receivables are mainly attributable to the sale of Ameluz®, the BF-RhodoLED® PDT lamp and the medical cosmetic 
product Belixos®, as well as receivables due from Maruho arising from revenues from development projects. It is expected that 
all trade receivables will be settled within twelve months of the balance sheet date. Value adjustments for doubtful receivables 
have not been applied. As of the reporting date, no receivables existed that were overdue but not value-adjusted (previous year: 
EUR 20 thousand). 

4.! Other financial and miscellaneous assets 
The  other  assets  comprise  mainly  prepayments  and  accrued  income  (EUR  707  thousand;  previous  year:  EUR  116  thousand), 
prepayments rendered for studies (EUR 570 thousand; previous year: EUR 585 thousand) and VAT reimbursement claims (EUR 
174 thousand; previous year: EUR 57 thousand). No individual value adjustments were applied during the reporting year (previous 
year: EUR 0 thousand). 

5.! Income tax reimbursement claims  
These consist of claims for tax refunds relating to withheld capital gains tax, plus the Solidarity Surcharge (EUR 33 thousand; 
previous year: EUR 32 thousand).  

6.! Securities 
The valuation of securities classified as financial investments held to maturity is based on amortized costs. On 31 December 
2016, the company's holdings in its own Warrant Bond I 2009/2017 had a nominal value of EUR 1,500 thousand (previous year: 
EUR 1,500 thousand). The warrant bonds held by Biofrontera were written up in fiscal year 2016 by EUR 267 thousand (previous 
year: write-down of EUR 100 thousand), to EUR 1,500 thousand (previous year: EUR 1,233 thousand) due to an increase in the 
market price. In accordance with IAS 32, the bonds are offset against the bond debt. 

7.! Cash and cash equivalents 
Cash and cash equivalents relate to cash in hand, cheques, bank deposits and money deposits with a term of up to three months 
at the time of acquisition amounting to EUR 15,126 thousand (previous year: EUR 3,959 thousand). The carrying amounts of the 
cash and cash equivalents correspond to their fair value, due to the short-term nature of these investments.  

8.! Deferred income tax claims  
The Biofrontera Group reported a net loss before tax on 31 December 2016 and on 31 December 2015. Deferred tax assets are 
generally determined on the basis of the existing income tax rates in Germany. The corporate tax rate is 15% as a result of the 
2008 German Corporation Tax Reform Act (UStRG 2008). Including the 5.5% Solidarity Surcharge, this results in a combined tax 
rate of 15.8% (previous year: 15.8%). Due to the basic federal rate of 3.5% on businesses and the fact that it is no longer possible 
to deduct business tax as an operating expense, the resulting tax rate, taking into account the local business tax rate, is 16.6% 
(previous year: 16.6%).  

68 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The following table shows changes in the Group's existing deferred tax claims deriving, as a matter of principle, from tax loss 
carryforwards (the previous year's figures have been adjusted to the amounts determined for tax purposes): 

31 December 2016 

31 December 2015 

Loss carried forward 

kEUR 

111,742 

100,716 

Deferred 
tax assets 

kEUR 

17,683 

16,744 

34,427 

Loss carryforward 

kEUR 

104,757 

94,915 

Deferred 
tax assets 

kEUR 

16,583 

15,784 

32,367 

Corporation tax including Solidarity 

Surcharge 

Business tax 

Total 

These loss carryforwards have an unlimited carryforward period under current German law. 

Due  to  the  lack  of  predictability  regarding  future  taxable  profits,  the  existing  deferred  tax  claims  deriving,  as  a  matter  of 
principle, from loss carryforwards (EUR 34,427 thousand; previous year: EUR 32,367 thousand) and tax deductible differences of 
EUR 3 thousand (previous year: EUR 33 thousand) were not recognised on the balance sheet, in accordance with IAS 12.34. 

The following provides a reconciliation between expected and actual reported income tax expense, with the output value being 
based on the rounded income tax rate of 32.5% currently applicable to the Biofrontera Group: 

Consolidated earnings before tax 

Expected income tax reimbursement at the tax rate of the parent company 

Differences arising from different tax rates 

Tax reductions due to changes in permanent differences 

Tax increases due to non-deductible expenses 

Changes in unrecognised deferred tax assets 

- from active temporary differences 
- from loss carryforwards 

Other effects 

Income taxes as per statement of comprehensive income 

31.12.2016 

31.12.2015 

kEUR 

(10,579) 

3,433 

(14) 

10 

(222) 

3 
(2,060) 
(1,140) 

0 

kEUR 

(11,203) 

3,635 

0 

161 

(187) 

33 
(3,602) 
(40) 

0 

9.! Equity 
The fully paid in share capital of the parent company, Biofrontera AG, amounted to EUR 37,722,433.00 on 31 December 2016. It 
was divided into 37,722,433 registered shares with a nominal value of EUR 1.00 each. On 31 December 2015, the share capital 
amounted to EUR 25,490,430.00 and was increased by a total of EUR 9,870,333.00, divided into 9,870,333 registered shares, 
during the course of the 2016 financial year as a result of three capital increases. 

As part of the capital increase implemented in February 2016, the company's share capital was increased against cash capital 
contributions  by  EUR  2,357,384.00  through  issuing  2,357,384  new  ordinary  registered  shares  from  approved  capital. 
Shareholders' subscription rights were excluded for this capital increase. The new shares were offered to selected institutional 
investors at an issue price of EUR 1.90 per new share, consequently for a total issue amount of EUR 4,479,029.60. These shares 
were fully placed and the implementation of the capital increase was entered in the commercial register on 26 February 2016. 
The net proceeds amounted to EUR 4.4 million. 

As  part  of  the  capital  increase  implemented  in  April  2016,  the  company's  share  capital  was  increased  against  cash  capital 
contributions by EUR 2,499,999.00 through issuing 2,499,999 new ordinary registered shares from approved capital. Statutory 
subscription rights were granted to the shareholders. An "additional subscription" was also offered. In other words, shareholders 
exercising subscription rights could apply to subscribe for unsubscribed shares at the subscription price. The subscription price 
per share amounted to EUR 2.00. The capital increase was fully placed. The implementation of the capital increase was entered 
in the commercial register on 26 April 2016. The net issue proceeds amounted to EUR 4.9 million. 
As part of the capital increase implemented in November 2016, the company's share capital was increased against cash capital 
contributions  by  EUR  5,012,950.00  through  issuing  5,012,950  new  ordinary  registered  shares  from  approved  capital.  The 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

69 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
implementation of the capital increase was entered in the commercial register on 21 November 2016. Statutory subscription 
rights were granted to the shareholders in a 6:1 ratio.  The subscription price per share amounted to EUR 3.00. The net issue 
proceeds amounted to EUR 14.7 million. 

Also in November 2016, 49,990 subordinated convertible 2016/2021 bonds were issued in a total nominal amount of EUR 4,999,000 
("convertible bond"). The bonds were offered at a subscription price of 100% of the nominal value per bond in a denomination 
of  EUR  100.00  per  bond,  and  were  fully  placed.  Shareholders  were  granted  indirect  subscription  rights  to  the  bonds.  The 
conversion price amounted initially to EUR 3.00 per share, EUR 4.00 per share from 1 January 2017 and EUR 5.00 per share from 
1 January 2018. Shareholders were granted statutory subscription rights in a 607:1 ratio at an issue price of EUR 100.00 per bond. 
The total issue volume amounted to EUR 5.0 million.  

The exercising of warrant rights from the 2011/2016 warrant bond generated issue proceeds of EUR 2.2 million in the 2016 financial 
year. 

The Biofrontera AG shares were listed on the Regulated Market of the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange in 2006. In August 2012, the 
company's shares were also admitted to trading on the Regulated Market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in response to an 
application by the company. The company's shares are also traded on the Xetra computer trading system and all other German 
stock exchanges. On 3 June 2014, the share was admitted to the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the AIM 
Market of the London Stock Exchange. The listing on the AIM Market was discontinued as of 18 February 2016.  

The numbers of shares held by the shareholders on 31 December 2016, based on the most recent compulsory disclosures of the 
shareholders, are as follows: 

Maruho Deutschland Co., Ltd., Osaka Japan 
The total share of voting rights is assigned to Maruho Co., Ltd, Osaka, through the 
company Maruho Deutschland GmbH, Düsseldorf, which is controlled by the former. 

Wilhelm Konrad Thomas Zours 
The voting rights through the chain of subsidiaries listed below are attributed to Mr. 
Zours: 

•!
•!
•!
•!
•!

DELPHI Unternehmensberatung AG 
VV Beteiligungen AG 
Deutsche Balaton AG 
ABC Beteiligungen AG 
Heidelberger Beteiligungsholding AG 

Universal-Investment-Gesellschaft mbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany 
The share of voting rights is attributed to Universal-Investment GmbH through the 
company FEHO Vemögensverwaltungsgesellschaft. 

Free float 

Total 

31.12.2016 
EUR 

7,631,586 

31.12.2015 
EUR 

4,467,143 

3,400,907 

1,053,154 

799,463 

799,463 

25,890,477 

37,722,433 

19,170,670 

25,490,430 

Consolidated  equity  determined  in  accordance  with  IFRS  is  managed  as  capital.  The  company's  capital  management  body 
regularly reviews the equity facilities available to the Group. The management's objective is to ensure an appropriate equity 
base,  within  the  framework  of  the  expectations  of  the  capital  market,  and  creditworthiness  with  respect  to  national  and 
international business partners. The company's Management Board ensures that all Group companies have sufficient capital at 
their disposal in the form of equity and debt funding. Financing measures occurred in February 2016, April 2016 and November 
2016. 

The statement of changes in equity provides further information about the development of equity. 

70 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The following items are reported as of 31 December 2016 in connection with the 2009/2017 bond with warrants that was issued, 
the 2011/2016 bond with warrants that was issued in July 2011 (Tranche 1) and December 2011 (Tranche 2), and the 2016/2021 
convertible bond: 

Non-current financial liabilities 

(measured at amortised cost) 

Current financial debt 

(accrued interest from nominal interest rate) 

Capital reserve  

(equity component: 2009/2017 warrant bond) 

Capital reserve  

(equity component: 2011/2016 warrant bond) 

Capital reserve  

(equity component: 2016/2021 convertible bond) 

31.12.2016 
EUR 

31.12.2015 
EUR 

3,596,896.89 

11,229,946.00 

273,424.06 

830,174.00 

1,485,294.99 

1,485,294.99 

1,226,747.16 

1,226,747.16 

323,155.01 

0.00 

The interest effects of the warrant bonds on the non-current borrowings were initially calculated applying an effective annual 
interest rate of 14.35% p.a. for the 2009/2017 warrant bond, 9.8% p.a. for the first tranche of the 2011/2016 warrant bond and 
5.8% p.a. for the second tranche of the 2011/2016 warrant bond as well as 7.9% p.a. for the convertible bond 2016/2021. 

In accordance with IAS 32.37, equity procurement costs less any related income tax benefits are to be deducted from equity. In 
the 2016 financial year, costs of raising equity totalling EUR 321 thousand (previous year: EUR 496 thousand) were recognised in 
connection with the capital increases that were implemented. 

In the event of the company achieving an annual surplus, the Management and Supervisory boards are authorised to transfer 
all or part of the annual surplus that remains, after deduction of the sums to be placed in the legal reserves and of a loss carried 
forward, to retained earnings. It is not permissible to transfer more than half of the annual surplus to retained earnings if, after 
such a transfer, the other retained earnings would exceed half of the share capital. The shareholders' dividends are calculated 
based on the size of their holding of the share capital.  

2010 share option programme 

At the Annual General Meeting on 2 July 2010, the Management and Supervisory boards proposed a share option programme for 
employees to the Annual General Meeting, which approved the initiative. Accordingly, the Management Board, or the Supervisory 
Board if the beneficiaries are Management Board members, are entitled to issue up to 839,500 share options, the exercising of 
which is linked to specific targets.  

The programme has a total nominal volume of EUR 839,500 and a term of six years from the issue date, in other words, until 24 
November 2016. For this, conditional capital amounting to EUR 839,500 was approved by means of the issuing of up to 839,500 
registered no par value unit shares with a proportional amount of the share capital of EUR 1.00 per share, in accordance with 
Section 192 (1) No. 3 of the German Stock Corporation Act (AktG). The conditional capital was registered on 30 July 2010 in the 
commercial register of the Cologne District Court, under commercial register sheet number 49717. Eligibility for the 2010 share 
option programme was granted to members of the Management Board and employees of the company as well as to members of 
management bodies and employees of affiliates of Biofrontera AG. 

The issue date was 24 November 2010. The granting of options is made without any consideration being rendered in return. On 
24 November 2010, 106,400 options (first tranche) were issued with an exercise price per share of EUR 1.91. On 30 September and 
7 October 2011 (second tranche) a further 96,400 options were issued with an exercise price of EUR 2.48 each. On 23 March 2012 
and 11 May 2012 (third tranche), 65,000 options were issued with an exercise price of EUR 3.30 each, and 51,500 options were 
issued with an exercise price of EUR 4.09 each. On 2 September 2013, 179,500 options were issued (fourth tranche) with an 
exercise price of EUR 3.373 each. On 2 April 2014, 159,350 options were issued with an exercise price of EUR 3.43 each (fifth 
tranche). 

In accordance with the associated conditions, each subscription right that is granted entitles the beneficiary to acquire one new 
registered no par value unit share in the company. The exercise price is equal to the arithmetical average (unweighted) of the 
closing prices on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in floor trading and in Xetra trading for the company's shares on the ten trading 
days  prior  to  the  issuing  of  the  share.  However,  the  minimum  exercise  price  amounts  to  the  proportionate  share  of  the 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

71 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
company's share capital allocated to each individual no par value unit share, pursuant to Section 9 (1) of the German Stock 
Corporation Act (AktG).  

The options granted can only be exercised after expiry of a blocking period. The blocking period is four years from the respective 
date  of  issue.  A  prerequisite  for  the  whole  or  partial  exercising  of  the  options  is  that  the  following  performance  target  is 
achieved: 

Exercising the options from a tranche is possible if at the beginning of the respective exercise period, the price (hereinafter 
referred to as the "reference price") of a share in Biofrontera Aktiengesellschaft exceeds the exercise price by at least 20%, 
and a minimum reference price of at least EUR 5.00 is reached (hereinafter referred to as the "minimum reference price"). The 
reference price is equal to the arithmetical average (unweighted) of the closing prices on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in floor 
trading and Xetra trading for the company's shares between the 15th and the 5th stock market day (in each case inclusive) 
before the start of the respective exercise window. The minimum reference price is adjusted in the following cases to align the 
specified performance target with changed circumstances:  

- In the event of a capital increase from company funds being implemented by issuing shares, the minimum reference 
price  is  reduced  by  the  same  ratio  as  new  shares  issued  compared  to  existing  shares.  If  the  capital  increase  is 
implemented  from  company  funds  without  issuing  new  shares  (Section  207  (2)  Clause  2  of  the  German  Stock 
Corporation Act [AktG]), the minimum reference price is not changed.  

- In the case of a capital reduction, no adjustment of the minimum reference price is implemented, provided that the 
total number of shares is not changed by the capital reduction, or if the capital reduction is connected to a capital 
repayment or purchase of treasury shares. In the case of a capital reduction performed by consolidating shares 
without capital repayment and in the case of increasing the number of shares with no associated change in capital 
(share split), the minimum reference rate increases proportionally with the capital reduction or share split.  

Other adjustments to the minimum reference price are not implemented.  

The  exercising  of  options  is  limited  to  the  following  time  periods  (hereinafter  "exercise  windows"),  in  other  words,  only 
declarations of exercising of rights submitted to the company within an exercise window will be considered:  

a) on the 6th and subsequent 14 banking days after the date of the Annual General Meeting (exclusive),  
b) on the 6th and subsequent 14 banking days after the date of submission of the semi-annual or quarterly report or 

an interim statement by Biofrontera AG (exclusive)  

c) in the period between the 15th and the 5th banking day before expiration of the options for each respective expiry 

date (exclusive). 

After expiry of the relevant blocking period, the options can be exercised up until the expiry of six years from the date of issue 
(exclusive). 

The right to exercise the options ends at the latest six years after the first day of issue. The right to exercise the first options 
that  were  issued  thus  ends  on  24  November  2016.  If  the  options  have  not  been  exercised  by  this  time,  they  expire  without 
provision of compensation. In the valuation of the employee share options, we have assumed an average holding period of 5 
years. 

Any claim by the beneficiaries to receive a cash settlement in the event of non-exercise of the options is invalid even in the 
event of the existence of the above exercise prerequisites. An option may only be exercised if the holder has a current service 
or employment contract with the company or another company affiliated with the company or if the holder is a member of the 
Management Board or the management team of another company affiliated with the company. 

In the event of the exercising of a subscription right, the company is generally and in specific cases permitted to choose between 
granting the registered share in exchange for payment of the exercise price, or fulfilling its debt by paying a cash settlement to 
the holder of the subscription right. The cash settlement per subscription right is equal to the difference between the exercise 
price per share and the share price on the exercise date, minus due taxes and fees. 

As  this  share  option  scheme  entails  share-based  payment  transactions  in  which  the  terms  of  the  arrangement  provide  the 
company with a choice of settlement, the company has decided, in accordance with IFRS 2.41 and IFRS 2.43, to recognise the 
transactions pursuant to the provisions for equity-settled share-based payments (IFRS 2.10-29). For this reason, the fair value 
of a share from this share option programme with a grant date of 24 November 2010 was determined, on the basis of a binomial 
model, to have a fair value of EUR 0.57 / share option. For the share options issued on 31 December 2010, this resulted in a total 

72 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
value of options of EUR 60,648.00. For the additional share options granted in 2011, a fair value of EUR 119,536.00 was calculated. 
For the two tranches of options granted in 2012, fair values of EUR 104,000.00 and EUR 106,090.00 were calculated, respectively. 
For the share options granted in 2013, a fair value of EUR 192,065 was calculated. For the share options granted in 2014, a fair 
value of EUR 132,260.50 was determined. The pro rata amounts are recognised in instalments over the vesting period until the 
end of the blocking period as personnel expenses and as an increase in the capital reserve. Share price volatilities of 45.78% 
and 51.3% were applied in calculating the fair value of the options granted in 2010 and 2011, volatilities of 53.5% and 65% were 
applied for the options granted in 2012, volatility of 39.2% was applied for the options granted in 2013, and volatility of 32.3% 
for the options granted in 2014 (based on the reporting date volatility). A dividend yield of 0% was applied in all cases, as well 
as risk-free rates of respectively 1.75% and 1.21%, and 0.9% and 0.82% in 2012 as well as 0.71% in 2013 and 0.68% in 2014, and a 
standard 20% annual beneficiary turnover rate. No share options were issued in financial year 2015. The authorisation to issue 
options under the 2010 share option programme ended on 1 July 2015. 

The blocking period for the first tranche ran until 30 November 2014, and the blocking period for the second tranche ran until 
30 September 2015. The option rights from the first tranche expired on 24 November 2016, as the exercise conditions were not 
met. No options from the second tranche had been exercised as of the reporting date. 

The blocking period for the third tranche ran until 30 March 2016, and the blocking period for the fourth tranche ended on 11 May 
2016. No options had been exorcised from these tranches up to the reporting date. 

No options from the fifth tranche could be exercised due to the blocking period. 

A total of 137,250 options were forfeited by employees leaving the company. 

By resolution of the Annual General Meeting on 28 August 2015, the Conditional Capital III planned for the servicing of options 
under this programme was reduced to EUR 542,400.00. 

The cost expensed in the reporting period amounted to EUR 62 thousand (previous year: EUR 103 thousand). 

2015 share option programme  

At the Annual General Meeting on 28 August 2015, the Management Board and Supervisory Board proposed a new share option 
programme for employees to the Annual General Meeting, which approved the initiative. Accordingly, the Management Board or, 
to the extent that the beneficiaries are Management Board members, the Supervisory Board, are entitled until 27 August 2020 
to issue up to 1,814,984 subscription rights to up to EUR 1,814,984 of the company's ordinary registered shares, whose exercise 
is tied to certain targets. 

The programme has a total nominal volume of EUR 1,814,984 and a term of five years from the issue date, in other words, until 
27 August 2020. For this, conditional capital amounting to EUR 1,814,984 was approved by means of the issuing of up to 1,814,984 
registered no par value unit shares with a proportional amount of the share capital of EUR 1.00 per share, in accordance with 
Section 192 (1) No. 3 of the German Stock Corporation Act (AktG). The conditional capital was registered on 18 September 2015 in 
the commercial register of the Cologne District Court, under commercial register sheet number 49717. Eligibility for the 2015 
share  option  programme  was  granted  to  members  of  the  Management  Board  and  employees  of  the  company  as  well  as  to 
members of management bodies and employees of affiliates of Biofrontera AG. The granting of options is made without any 
payment being provided in return.  

The conditions of the 2015 share option programme are to a large extent identical to those of the 2010 share option programme, 
therefore, with respect to the 2015 share option programme, we refer to the explanations of the conditions of the share option 
programme 2010 provided above, however 20 banking days are being used instead of 14 banking days. 

The inclusion of a “comparison with a reference index” as performance target instead of “achievement of a minimum reference 
price  of  EUR  5.00”  as  performance  target  is  deemed  to  be  a  major  difference  in  the  conditions  of  the  2015  share  option 
programme compared to the 2010 share option programme. The fair value of each option of this share option programme was 
calculated on the grant date of the first tranche on 18 April 2016 based on a Monte Carlo risk simulation at a fair value of EUR 
1.00/option. The fair value of each option of this share option programme was calculated on the grant date 01 December 2016 
based on a Monte Carlo risk simulation at a fair value of EUR 1.30/option. A volatility of the share price of approximately 50.6% 
was used to calculate the fair value of the options granted in the first tranche and a volatility of approximately 49.0% for the 
second tranche (based on daily rates, annualised assuming 250 trading days per annum), an earning yield of 2.31% for the first 
tranche (based on daily rates, annualised assuming 250 trading days per annum) and 7.00% for the second tranche respectively 
(based on a Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM)) and a total risk adjusted interest rate of 5.92% for the first tranche and 13.26% 
for the second tranche respectively as well as a standard annual beneficiary turnover rate of 12% for both tranches. 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

73 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
On 18 April 2016, 425,000 options (first tranche) were issued with an exercise price per share of EUR 2.49. On 1 December 2016 
(second tranche) a further 130,500 options were issued with an exercise price of EUR 3.28 each. 

A total of 7,500 options were forfeited by employees leaving the company. 

The  total  option  value  for  options  issued  as  at  31  December  2016  was  therefore  EUR  1,462,875.  The  pro  rata  amounts  are 
recognised in instalments over the vesting period until the end of the blocking period as personnel expenses and as an increase 
in the capital reserve. The expenditure recognised in the reporting period was EUR 49 thousand (previous year: EUR 0). 

10.!Financial liabilities 
On 26 June 2009, Biofrontera announced the placement of a warrant bond with a term ending on 1 January 2018. As part of this 
financing measure on the part of the company, a warrant bond was placed in 2009 ("Warrant Bond I"). The warrant bond has a 
total nominal value of EUR 10,000,000.00, divided into up to 100,000 bonds with a nominal value of EUR 100.00. The redemption 
at the end of the term is at 106% of par. The warrant bonds bear interest on the following scale: 

- from 01.09.2009 to 30.12.2010 at an annual rate of 4%; 
- from 31.12.2010 to 30.12.2011 at an annual rate of 6%; 
- from 31.12.2011 to 31.12.2017 at an annual rate of 8%. 

The accrual of interest on each warrant bond ends on the day before it is due for redemption. The interest payment is made on 
the last business day of the calendar year, but not until 31 December 2010, in other words, the interest for 2009 does not become 
due until then. An ordinary call on the bond by the bondholders is not permitted. Biofrontera has the right, upon issuing of 
written notice to the bondholders of Warrant Bond I, to repay 106% of the nominal amount (plus any accrued interest) at any 
time. Each holder of a partial bond is, in accordance with the bond and option terms, entitled to five detachable option rights 
per bond, with each of these providing the irrevocable right to acquire a registered voting-entitled no par value ordinary share 
in Biofrontera AG with a notional proportion of the share capital of EUR 1.00, at a warrant price of EUR 5.00 each. The warrant 
right expires on 30 December 2017. The share resulting from the exercising of a warrant right is dividend-entitled from the 
beginning  of  the  financial  year  in  which  it  originated  from  the  exercising  of  the  option  right  and  payment  of  the  capital 
contribution. To provide financing for the warrant rights, conditional capital of the company amounting to up to EUR 500,000.00 
was approved at the Extraordinary General Meeting held on 17 March 2009.  

Of these warrant bonds, partial bonds were issued with a total nominal value of EUR 4,930,300.00. 

The liability from this warrant bond was measured at its present value of EUR 3,238,744.00 on the issue date, and the carrying 
amount of the non-current financial liability amounts to a total of EUR 3,419 thousand applying the effective interest method as 
of 31 December 2016 (31 December 2015: EUR 2,836 thousand). The current (due within one year) portion of this financial liability 
amounts to EUR 274 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 394 thousand). The nominal interest for 2015 was paid in the subsequent 
financial year at the start of January 2016, and for the year 2016 on 31 December 2016. See section 6 for details of the warrant 
bonds held by Biofrontera.  

On 7 June 2011, the Management Board resolved, with Supervisory Board approval and based on the authorisation granted by 
the Annual General Meeting, to issue a warrant bond 2011/2016 (hereinafter "Warrant Bond II").  

Warrant Bond II has a total nominal value of up to EUR 25,000,000.00 and is divided into up to 250,000 individual warrant bonds 
with a nominal value of EUR 100.00 each. Each individual warrant bond is connected with ten detachable warrants issued by the 
company; each warrant entitles the holder to buy one registered voting-entitled no par value ordinary share in the company 
with an interest in the share capital of EUR 1.00 each at an option price of EUR 3.00. If all the warrant rights were to be issued 
and exercised, this would result in a calculated total exercise price of EUR 7,500,000.00. The issue price of each warrant bond is 
EUR 100.00. 

The term of the warrant bonds begins on 20 July 2011 and ends on 31 December 2016. To provide financing for the option rights, 
conditional capital of up to EUR 2,500,000.00 was approved at the company's General Meeting on 10 May 2011 and entered in the 
commercial register on 18 May 2011. Warrant Bond II carries a coupon of 5% p.a. The accrual of interest on each warrant bond 
ended on 31 December 2016. Interest was paid annually on 1 January for the previous year, commencing on 1 January 2012 with 
a payment of EUR 195 thousand for the period 20 July 2011 until 31 December 2011. A nominal total of EUR 8,715 thousand of 
individual warrant bonds of Warrant Bond II was issued as a result of two transactions that exchanged the convertible bonds for 
Warrant Bond II in July and December 2011 and the direct subscription from the initial issue. With the early call of this warrant 

74 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
bond, the principal repayment of EUR 8,715 thousand and resultant interest owing for the 1 January 2016 to 5 December 2016 
period of EUR 405 thousand was disbursed on 6 December 2016 (previous year: EUR 436 thousand). 

The term of the 2016/2021 convertible bond begins on the date of its initial issue ("issue date") and ends on 31 December 2020. 

The individual bonds carry 6% annual interest on their par value from 1 January 2017 (inclusive). The interest payments are 
payable annually subsequently on 1 January of each year, commencing on 1 January 2018. 

The bonds can be converted into the company's ordinary no par value registered shares, each of which has a nominal share of 
EUR 1.00 in the share capital. The shares are dividend-entitled from the year when the conversion right is exercised. 

During the term, the holders of the bonds are entitled to convert all bonds into the company's shares. The initial conversion 
price is staggered. From the start of the term until 31 December 2016, the initial conversion price amounts to EUR 3.00 per share. 
From 1 January 2017 until 31 December 2017, the conversion price amounts to EUR 4.00 per share. From 1 January 2018, the 
conversion price amounts to EUR 5.00 per share. 

At the end of the term of the convertible bond, the company is entitled to deliver shares instead of repaying the bonds. Moreover, 
the company is entitled to convert the bonds into shares at any time if the average price of the company shares exceeds EUR 
5.00 on one occasion. In both cases, the initial conversion price amounts to EUR 5.00. 

The contractual interest and repayment obligations relating to warrant bonds are broken down on the balance sheet date as 
follows: 

kEUR 

31.12.2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

2021 

Total 

Warrant bond 2009/2017: 

Principal repayment 

Interest payment 

Warrant bond 2011/2016: 

Principal repayment 

Interest payment 

Convertible bond 2011/2021: 

Principal repayment 

Interest payment 

394 

0 

11 

5,226 

11 

11 

11 

190 

11 

5,226 

394 

0 

0 

190 

55 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

75 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
 
 
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
The position was as follows in the previous year: 

kEUR 

31.12.2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

Total 

Warrant bond 2009/2017: 

Principal repayment 

Interest payment 

Warrant bond 2011/2016: 

Principal repayment 

Interest payment 

 5,226 

394 

394 

436 

8,715 

436 

5,226 

788 

8,715 

872 

11.! Trade payables 
The trade payables (EUR 2,093 thousand; previous year: EUR 1,043 thousand) increased by EUR 1,050 thousand from the previous 
year. 

12.!Other provisions 
Other provisions report the following changes: 

Biofrontera Group 

Bonuses for employees 

Outstanding vacation 

Outstanding invoices 

Costs for financial statements 

and auditing 

EUR 

01.01.2016 

142,741.00 

82,015.08 

659,674.96 

109,200.00 

Miscellaneous other provisions 

Total provisions 

48,229.76 

1,041,860.80 

Utilised 

Released 

142,741.00 

82,015.08 

398,510.46 

108,940.00 

22,178.64 

754,385.18 

0.00 

0.00 

6,402.00 

260.00 

1,728.16 

8,390.16 

Added 

505,517.10 

197,597.55 

681,331.38 

154,000.00 

EUR 

31.12.2016 

505,517.10 

197,597.55 

936,093.88 

154,000.00 

6,142.33 

30,465.29 

1,544,588.36 

1,823,673.82 

Other provisions concern various individually identifiable risks and contingent liabilities. Provisions classified as current are 
expected to be utilised prospectively within the subsequent financial year. 

13.!Other financial and other current liabilities 

Payroll tax 

Financial leasing 

Credit card payments 

Wages and salaries 

Other 

31 December 2016 
kEUR 

31 December 2015 
kEUR 

114 

4 

28 

57 

45 

248 

97 

12 

16 

10 

26 

161 

14.!Reporting on financial instruments 
During the course of its operating activities, the Group is exposed to market price and credit risk, as well as liquidity risk, which 
could have an effect on its financial position and performance. 

Market price risk: Interest-rate risk is deemed minor as existing interest-rate modalities for the Biofrontera Group's relevant 
financing facilities can generally be adapted to market conditions short-term to medium-term. No cash flow risk exists in relation 
to fixed interest warrant bonds. Due to the fixing of interest, no disadvantageous changes can occur to the interest payments. 
As the liabilities are not recognised at fair value but instead at amortised cost, there is also no fair value risk. 

76 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Credit risk: A credit risk arises for the Group if transaction partners cannot meet their obligations within the normal payment 
deadlines. On the balance sheet, the maximum non-payment risk is represented by the carrying amount of the relevant financial 
asset. The situation regarding receivables is monitored so that any possible non-payment risks can be identified at an early 
stage and appropriate steps taken. In the reporting year, no individual value adjustments were made for other financial assets 
(previous year: EUR 0 thousand); in addition, no individual value adjustments were applied to trade receivables in the reporting 
year (previous year: EUR 0). 

Based on the input factors used at the valuation methods fair values are divided into different steps of the fair value hierarchy: 

Level 1: Fair value valuations using prices listed on active markets (not adjusted) for identical assets or liabilities. 

Level 2: Fair value valuations using inputs for the asset or liability that are either directly observable (as prices) or indirectly 
observable (derived from prices), but which do not constitute listed prices pursuant to Level 1. 

Level 3: Fair value valuations using inputs for the asset or liability that are not based on observable market data (unobservable 
input data). 

Biofrontera only has financial instruments at levels 1 and 2. No reclassifications between level 1 and level 2 were performed 
during the 2016 financial year. With regard to financial liabilities, the full amount of non-current and current financial liabilities 
(EUR 3,871 thousand; previous year: EUR 12,060 thousand) is allocated to Level 1.  This involves financial debt arising from the 
two warrant bonds. 

Biofrontera  reports  under  other  operating  expenses  value  adjustments  to  trade  receivables  and  miscellaneous  financial 
obligations allocable to the "loans and receivables" category. The currency translation losses arise mainly from trade payables. 
The net gains and losses generally include specific value adjustments and currency conversion effects. 
The financial assets and liabilities can be subdivided into measurement categories with the following carrying amounts, and net 
gains and losses: 

!

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

77 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Financial assets on 
31.12.2016 (EUR) 

Fair value  

Carrying amounts 

Loans and  
receivables 

Financial 
instruments 
recognised at 
fair value in 
profit or loss 
(excluding 
"held-for-
trading") 

Financial  
assets  
available-for-
sale 

TOTAL 
CARRYING 
AMOUNTS 

Net gains 
(+) or  
losses (-) 

Financial assets 

Liquid assets 

Trade   

receivables 

Other current  

financial 

receivables and 

assets 

TOTAL 

15,126,096 

1,624,067 

15,126,096 

1,624,067 

0 

15,126,096 

1,624,067 

0 

79 

0 

1,376,870 

1,376,870 

1,376,870 

0 

18,127,033 

18,127,033 

0 

0 

18,127,033 

79 

Carrying amounts 

Financial  
instruments 
recognised at 
fair value in 
profit or loss 
(excluding 
"held-for-
trading") 

Financial liabilities  
on 31.12.2016 (EUR) 

Fair value 

Other  
liabilities 

Financial liabilities  

274,424 

274,424 

current 

Trade  

payables 

Other financial  

liabilities  

current 

Other  

financial liabilities  

non-current 

TOTAL 

2,093,154 

2,093,154 

58,458 

58,458 

3,596,897 

3,596,897 

TOTAL 
CARRYING 
AMOUNTS 

Net gains 
(+) or  
losses (-) 

274,424 

0 

2,093,154 

(72,546) 

58,458 

3,596,897 

0 

0 

6,022,933 

6,022,933 

0 

0 

0 

6,022,933 

(72,546) 

78 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
Financial  
assets on 31.12.2015 
(EUR) 

Fair value 

Loans and 
receivables 

Carrying amounts 

Financial 
instruments 
recognised at 
fair value in 
profit or loss 
(excluding 
"held-for-
trading") 

Financial 
assets 
available-
for-sale 

TOTAL 
CARRYING 
AMOUNTS 

Net gains 
(+) or  
losses (-) 

Financial assets 

Liquid assets 

Trade  

accounts 

receivable 

3,959,207 

894,559 

3,959,207 

894,559 

0 

3,959,207 

894,559 

0 

104 

0 

Miscellaneous current  

730,440 

730,440 

730,440 

0 

financial 

receivables and 

assets 

TOTAL 

5,584,206 

5,584,206 

0 

0 

5,584,206 

104 

Carrying amounts 

Financial  
instruments 
recognised at 
fair value in 
profit or loss 
(excluding 
"held-for-
trading") 

Financial liabilities  
on 31.12.2015 (EUR) 

Fair value 

Other 
liabilities 

Financial liabilities  

830,174 

830,174 

current 

Trade  

accounts 

payable 

1,043,426 

1,043,426 

Other financial  

37,622 

37,622 

liabilities  

current 

Other  

financial liabilities  

non-current 

TOTAL 

11,229,946 

11,229,946 

TOTAL 
CARRYING 
AMOUNTS 

Net gains 
(+) or  
losses (-) 

830,174 

0 

1,043,426 

(21,594) 

37,622 

11,229,946 

0 

0 

13,141,168 

13,141,168 

0 

0 

0 

13,141,168 

(21,594) 

Liquidity risk: The refinancing of the Biofrontera Group companies is generally performed centrally by Biofrontera AG. A risk 
exists in this regard that the liquidity reserves may be insufficient to fulfil the financial obligations on the due date. In order to 
cover the liquidity requirements at 31 December 2016, cash and cash equivalents totalling EUR 15,126 thousand (31 December 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

79 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
2015: EUR 3,959 thousand) are available. See the relevant balance sheet notes on (undiscounted) payments from financial debt 
due in the next years. 

Notes  to  the  consolidated  statement  of  comprehensive  income  as  of  31 
December 2016 
15.!Sales revenue 
The Biofrontera Group recognised sales of EUR 6,130 thousand in the 2016 financial year (previous year: EUR 4,138 thousand), 
representing an increase of 48% compared with the previous year.  This includes downpayments of EUR 40 thousand (previous 
year: EUR 70 thousand). Revenues from selling products in Germany reduced by 17% to EUR 2,515 thousand (previous year: EUR 
3,028 thousand), while revenues generated in European countries outside Germany grew by 20% to EUR 1,247 thousand (previous 
year: EUR 1,040 thousand). For the first time, revenues were also generated from the sale of products in the USA in an amount 
of  EUR  1,153  thousand.  Revenues  in  the  USA  were  achieved  using  a  title  model  with  one  wholesaler.  Revenues  of  EUR  1,177 
thousand were generated in the financial year from the development partnership with Maruho. 

16.!Cost of sales, gross profit 
The  gross  profit  on  sales  improved  from  EUR  2,902  thousand  to  EUR  4,478  thousand.  The  gross  margin  increased  to  73%, 
compared to 70% in the same period in the previous year. 

The cost of sales amounted to EUR 1,652 thousand, equivalent to 27% of sales revenue (previous year: EUR 1,236 thousand, or 
30%).  

17.!Development costs 
Research and development costs amounted to EUR 4,640 thousand in the 2016 financial year, a reduction of EUR 1,564 thousand, 
or 25%, year-on-year. The decrease mainly reflects the EUR 2,072 thousand submission fee (PDUFA fee) paid at submission of 
the application for approval to the FDA during the first half of 2015. The FDA reimbursed this fee in March 2016, with the credit 
being reported under the other income item. 

18.!Sales and marketing costs 
Sales and marketing costs of EUR 8,763 thousand reflect an approximately 110% increase compared with the previous year's 
period (EUR 4,170 thousand). The sales and marketing costs include the costs of our own field sales team in Germany, Spain and 
in the US, as well as marketing expenses. The increase is mainly attributable to expenses for the start-up of sales activities and 
to establish sales structures in the USA. 

19.!Administrative costs 
Administrative costs increased by EUR 94 thousand year-on-year to EUR 2,853 thousand in the 2016 financial year (previous year: 
EUR 2,759 thousand). Financing costs shown under administrative costs include primarily consultancy and placement fees in 
connection with support for the search of investors. 

20.!Financial result 
The financial result consists primarily of the interest payable for the 2009/2017 warrant bond (EUR 463 thousand, previous year: 
EUR 439 thousand) and for the 2011/2016 warrant bond placed in 2011 (EUR 727 thousand, previous year: EUR 727 thousand), 
calculated using the effective interest method. The aforementioned interest expenses on the warrant bond 2009/2017 of EUR 
463  thousand  (previous  year:  EUR  439  thousand)  include  the  opposite  effect  of  EUR  204  thousand  (previous  year:  EUR  193 
thousand) from the repurchase of part of the warrant bond on 28 February 2014. The interest on Warrant Bond I for the 2015 
financial year was paid at the end of December 2015, and the interest on Warrant Bond II was paid at the beginning of January 
2016. The interest for the 2016 financial year for Warrant Bond I was paid at the start of January 2017. In December 2016, Warrant 
Bond II was repaid early at par plus accrued interest. 

21.!Other income (expenses), net 
The submission fee paid to the FDA in 2015 (PDUFA fee) was reimbursed in an amount of EUR 2,140 thousand in March 2016 after 
a "small business waiver" was granted. This fee was reported under research and development costs in the income statement 
for 2015. The reimbursement is reported under other income. The difference to the amount originally paid results from currency 
translation differences.  

80 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
22.!Earnings per share (EPS) 
Earnings per share are calculated on the basis of the net loss for the year of the Biofrontera Group and the average ordinary 
shares in circulation in the financial year, in accordance with IAS 33.  

Number of weighted ordinary shares in circulation (on average) 

Net loss for the year in EUR 

Undiluted earnings per share in EUR  

31.12.2016 

29,742,634 

(10,579) 

(0.36) 

31.12.2015 

23,156,343.32!
(11,203) 

(0.48) 

When calculating diluted earnings per share for the 2015 and 2016 financial years, the warrant bond issued in 2009 (2009/2017), 
with a total nominal value of EUR 4,930 thousand and giving bondholders the right to acquire 246,515 shares at a price of EUR 
5.00 each, as well as the warrant bond issued in 2011 (2011/2016), with a total nominal value of EUR 8,715 thousand and giving 
bondholders the right to acquire 871,500 shares at a price of EUR 3.00 each, have been taken into account as a matter of principle. 
As the Group achieved negative results for the year in the 2015 and 2016 financial years, no diluted earnings per share were 
reported, as the conversion or subscription rights for the periods shown counteracted any dilution. 

23.!Additional information about the consolidated statement of comprehensive income 
The other income only includes conversion adjustments from the conversion of the foreign business entity into the Group’s 
currency.  

Cost of materials 

The cost of materials included in the cost of sales amounted to EUR 1,245 thousand for the 2016 financial year (previous year: 
EUR 947 thousand).   

Depreciation, amortisation and impairment losses 

Depreciation and amortisation on tangible and intangible assets of EUR 831 thousand in the 2016 financial year and of EUR 812 
thousand in the previous year is included in the following items in the statement of comprehensive income: 

Research and development costs 

General administrative costs 

Cost of sales 

Sales 

Depreciation, amortisation and impairment losses 

Personnel costs 

Wages and salaries 

Social security charges 

Costs for pension schemes 

Total 

31.12.2016 
kEUR 

31.12.2015 
kEUR 

689 

127 

9 

6 

831 

31.12.2016 
kEUR 

5,753 

908 

33 

6,694 

691 

113 

8  

0 

812 

31.12.2015 
kEUR 

3,557 

482  

34 

4,073 

24.!Staff 
On average, the Biofrontera Group employed 64 people in the 2016 financial year (previous year: 46 employees).  

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

81 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
  
 
  
 
 
25.!Other information 
Operating and finance leases 

The Group companies lease administrative and research facilities, as well as vehicles and equipment, under operating lease 
contracts. The future minimum commitments from leases are as follows: 
!

2016 
EUR 

2015 
EUR 

2016 
EUR 

2015 
EUR 

2016 
EUR 

2015 
EUR 

Operating leases 

Leases for business premises 

Leases for cars 

Operating and business equipment 

! 1 year 

1 year to 5 years 

> 5 years 

519,725 

274,219 

23,375 

424,277 

144,693 

17,789 

1,870,316 

2,156,013 

1,619,895 

1,619,895 

375,067 

36,833 

177,517 

35,267 

0 

0 

0 

0 

!
Lease-related expenses for the reporting period amounted to EUR 237 thousand (previous year: EUR 176 thousand).  

On  the  balance  sheet  date,  a  finance  lease  existed  for  a  server  leased  by  Biofrontera  AG  with  a  carrying  amount  of  EUR  4 
thousand (previous year: EUR 12 thousand). The contract has a minimum term of 60 months to 31 July 2017. Biofrontera AG is 
obliged to purchase the leased asset from the lessor for a fixed residual value of EUR 2 thousand if the lessor exercises its option 
to sell. In the reporting year, minimum lease payments of EUR 11 thousand were expensed (previous year: EUR 11 thousand). 

On the balance sheet date of 31 December 2016, the present value of the sum of future minimum lease payments is reconciled 
to their present values as follows: 

All amounts in kEUR   

Minimum lease payments 

     Discounting   

   Present value 

7 
0 
0 

Up to 1 year:  
Between 2 and 5 years:   
More than 5 years:   
!
26.!Notes to the cash flow statement 
The  cash  flow  statement  is  presented  in  accordance  IAS  7.  The  net  loss  for  the  year  is  adjusted  for  effects  of  non-cash 
transactions,  deferrals  or  accruals  of  past  or  future  operational  deposits  or  disbursements,  and  income  and  expense  items 
attributable to investment or financing activities. 

4 
0 
0 

2 
0 
0 

In the consolidated cash flow statement, cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, cheques, bank deposits and money 
deposits with a maturity of up to three months. Current account liabilities are incorporated into the cash fund where applicable. 

Interest paid out amounted to EUR 842 thousand (previous year: EUR 1,225 thousand). The change resulted from the two interest 
payments for Warrant Bond I made in the 2015 financial year: firstly, on 1 January 2015 for the 2014 financial year, and, secondly, 
on 31 December 2015 interest for the 2015 financial year. Interest received amounted to EUR 3 thousand (previous year: EUR 184 
thousand), consisting of interest received for deposits. In the previous year, the interest received from Warrant Bond I held by 
the company itself already accrued to the company as of 30 December 2015. 

27.!Members of the Management Board 
Prof. Hermann Lübbert was the Management Board Chairman (Chief Executive Officer/CEO) in the reporting period. The CEO also 
holds a professorial chair at Bochum University in Germany. Prof. Lübbert was appointed to the Management Board from 27 
March 2015 until 31 October 2020 by way of Supervisory Board resolution. 

Mr. Thomas Schaffer is the Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Schaffer was appointed to the Management Board from 9 April 2015 until 
30 November 2020 by way of Supervisory Board resolution. 

Mr. Christoph Dünwald is the Management Board member responsible for the Sales and Marketing areas. With a Supervisory 
Board resolution of 9 July 2015, Mr. Dünwald was appointed to the Management Board until 15 November 2017. 

82 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The remuneration of the Management Board members consists of a fixed salary that is paid in twelve equal monthly instalments. 
In  addition,  an  annual,  performance-based  bonus  exists  for  the  Management  board  members,  as  well  as  a  long-term 
remuneration component consisting of participation in the company's share option programme. Company cars are also available 
to the directors for business and private use.  

The remuneration for members of the Management Board in the 1 January until 31 December 2016 period consisted of a salary 
and a bonus as well as share options. The total remuneration for Management Board members in the reporting period, including 
the value of share options at the time they were granted, amounted to EUR 1,402 thousand (previous year: EUR 866 thousand). 
This was allocated as follows  

Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert  

– Non-performance based salary component:  

- Performance based salary component:  

- stock options 

Thomas Schaffer  

– Non-performance based salary component:  

- Performance based salary component:  

- stock options 

Christoph Dünwald   

– Non-performance based salary component:  

- Performance based salary component:  

- stock options  

EUR 363 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR  
370 thousand) 
EUR 72 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 35  
thousand) 
 231,850  (fair  value  when  granted:  EUR 
366,435.50)  (previous  year:  151,850,  fair 
value when granted: EUR 167,236); of which 
granted in 2016: 80,000 (2015: 0). 
EUR 213 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR  
203 thousand) 
EUR 63 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 28  
thousand) 
 85,000  (fair  value  when  granted:  EUR 
157,150)  (previous  year:  35,000,  fair  value 
when  granted:  EUR  32,650);  of  which 
granted in 2016: 50,000 (2015: 0). 
EUR 236 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR  
29 thousand) 
EUR 6 thousand (31 December 2015: EUR 0  
thousand) 
 50,000  (fair  value  when  granted:  EUR 
124,500) (previous year: 0, fair value when 
granted:  EUR  0);  of  which  granted  in  2016: 
50,000 (2015: 0). 

All salaries/bonuses are classified as short-term employee benefits as defined in IAS 24.17 (a).  

28.!Members of the Supervisory Board 
As a result of the resolution passed by the Annual General Meeting held on 31 May 2016, the Supervisory Board has consisted of 
the following members since 31 May 2016: 

Dr. Ulrich Granzer 

Jürgen Baumann 

John Borer 

Hansjörg Plaggemars 

Mark Reeth  
Kevin Weber 

Chairman  of  the  Supervisory  Board,  Owner  and  Managing  Director  of  Ulrich  Granzer 
Regulatory Consulting & Services, resident in Munich, Germany 
 Deputy  Chairman  of  the  Supervisory  Board,  management  consultant,  resident  in 
Monheim 
Head of Investment Banking at The Benchmark Company LLC, New York, USA, resident in 
Jersey City, NJ, USA 
Management  Board  member  of  Deutsche  Balaton  Aktiengesellschaft,  Heidelberg, 
resident in Stuttgart 
attorney, resident in Frederick, MD, USA 
Principal of Skysis, LLC., Scottsdale, AZ, USA, resident in Scottsdale, AZ, USA 

The Supervisory Board members held the following other supervisory board positions and positions on comparable domestic 
and foreign boards during the reporting period: 

Hansjörg Plaggemars 

OOC CTV Verwaltungs GmbH, Managing Director 
Stellar Diamonds plc, Non-Executive Board Member 
Carus Grundstücksgesellschaft am Taubenfeld AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

83 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Eurohaus Frankfurt AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Youbisheng Greenpaper AG i.I., Supervisory Board Chairman 
Ming Le Sports AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Nordic SSW 1000 Verwaltungs AG, Supervisory Board Chairman 
Balaton Agro Invest AG, Deputy Supervisory Board Chairman 
Carus AG, Deputy Supervisory Board Chairman 
Deutsche Balaton Immobilien I AG, Supervisory Board member 
Ultrasonic AG i.I., Supervisory Board member 

In the 2016 financial year, compensation paid to Supervisory Board members amounted to EUR 113 thousand (previous year: EUR 
113 thousand). The compensation transactions are classified as short-term employee benefits as per IAS 24.17(a). 

During the reporting period, the company availed itself of additional advisory services from Supervisory Board member Dr. Ulrich 
Granzer. These services went beyond the scope of normal Supervisory Board activities. Dr. Granzer assisted the company with 
key issues relating to the preparation of the applications for approval submitted to the supervisory authorities in Europe and 
the USA. During the course of the 2016 financial year, advisory services amounting to EUR 10 thousand (previous year: EUR 62 
thousand) were provided by Granzer Regulatory Consulting & Services. Accounts payable to Granzer Regulatory Consulting & 
Services amounted to EUR 7 thousand on 31 December 2016 (31 December 2015: EUR 0 thousand). The amounts stated here do 
not include statutory VAT at the current rate of 19%. The underlying consultancy contract was approved in consideration of the 
statutory provisions. 

29.!Related party disclosures 
In July 2016, Biofrontera AG signed a research cooperation partnership (a collaboration and partnership agreement) with Maruho 
Co.,  Ltd,  as  part  of  which  possibilities  to  jointly  develop  pharmaceutical  products  based  on  Biofrontera's  proprietary 
nanoemulsion  technology  are  to  be  researched.  According  to  this  agreement's  provisions,  Biofrontera,  as  part  of  research 
services, will conduct the requisite work for the exploratory research of these product candidates. Maruho is bearing the related 
costs. It is planned that Maruho will be the owner of the new products and that Biofrontera will receive the licence to market in 
Europe. 

This development partnership generated revenue of EUR 1,177 thousand in the financial year under review (previous year: EUR 0 
thousand). Receivables due from Maruho amounted to EUR 472 thousand as of 31 December 2016 (31 December 2015: 0). 

In  the  2016  financial  year,  no  further  reportable  transactions  or  relationships  with  related  parties  existed  beyond  the 
aforementioned facts and circumstances stated in subsections 27 and 28. The Group of related persons and entities is limited 
to those referred to therein. 
In the context of the underlying holding structure, Biofrontera AG is responsible for the administrative and management tasks. 
Biofrontera AG is also responsible for the financing of the currently still loss-making business areas, as it is a listed company 
and consequently enjoys optimal access to the capital market. 

The funds made available to the subsidiaries as loans bear interest at market rates and are, where necessary, furnished with a 
subordination agreement. 

In  light  of  the  close  cooperation  between  the  subsidiaries,  internal  offsetting  is  applied,  which  is  reviewed  and  adjusted  to 
requirements on an annual basis.  

30.!Corporate  governance  statement  pursuant  to  Section  289a  HGB  including  the 
statement on the German Corporate Governance Code required by Section 161 AktG 

The  Management  and  Supervisory  boards  of  Biofrontera  AG  have  issued  the  corporate  governance  statement  as  required 
pursuant to Section 289a of the German Commercial Code (HGB), including the statement required pursuant to Section 161 of the 
German  Stock  Corporation  Act  (AktG),  and  have  made  these  available  to  shareholders  on  the  Biofrontera  AG  website 
(www.biofrontera.com). 

!

84 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
31.!Auditor's fees and services 
The total fee invoiced by the auditor Warth & Klein Grant Thornton AG for the 2016 financial year consists of the following: 

Auditing services  

[of which for the previous year] 

Other certification services 

2016 

kEUR 

184 

[50] 

55 

239 

2015 

kEUR 

122 

[16] 

43 

165 

32.!Events after the reporting date 
On  24  January  2017,  the  company  announced  that  the  issue  of  up  to  49,990  subordinated  convertible  bonds  that  had  been 
approved in December 2016 had been placed in full in a total nominal amount of up to EUR 4,999,000 ("convertible bond"). 

On 30 January 2017, the European Commission followed the positive vote by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human 
Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and issued the expansion of the approval of Ameluz® to treat basal cell 
carcinoma. The extended approval comprises the treatment of superficial and/or nodular basal cell carcinoma in adults where 
surgical removal is ruled out due to potential morbidity or due to an undesirable cosmetic result. 

On 6 February 2017, the company announced positive preliminary results for the primary endpoint of the clinical Phase III trial 
to  investigate  the  efficacy  and  safety  of  the  prescription  medication  Ameluz®  in  combination  with  daylight  photodynamic 
therapy (PDT). The trial reached its primary regulatory endpoint and proved the non-inferiority (p<0.001) of Ameluz® in daylight-
PDT in relation to the comparator product Metvix® in treating mild or moderate actinic keratosis, a superficial skin cancer. After 
just one PDT, the trial reached its primary endpoint at 78.7% complete lesion clearance in a half side comparison per patient in 
treatment with Ameluz® and daylight-PDT, in comparison with 75.0% lesion clearance in treatment with Metvix® and daylight-
PDT. The company published detailed results of this trial on 13 March 2017. Ameluz® has also reported higher results in all relevant 
secondary endpoints than the competitor product, with the greatest differences between Ameluz® and the competitor product 
arising for patients under 65 years of age and for patients treated under cloudy weather.  

On 9 March 2017, the lawsuit of a shareholder of 30 June 2016 was withdrawn by the plaintiff. The lawsuit brought charges for 
nullity, alternatively rescission, of some of the resolutions passed at the company's Ordinary Annual Shareholder Meeting on 31 
May 2016. In particular, the election of Mr. John Borer, Mr. Jürgen Baumann and Mr. Kevin Weber to the company's Supervisory 
Board was contested.  

No further events subject to mandatory reporting occurred after the balance sheet date.  

Leverkusen, Germany, 05 April 2016 

Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert 
Chief Executive Officer   

Thomas Schaffer 
Chief Financial Officer 

Christoph Dünwald 
Chief Sales and Marketing Officer 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

85 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Auditor’s Report: 

We  have  audited  the  consolidated  financial  statements  prepared  by  Biofrontera  AG,  Leverkusen/Germany  –  comprising  a 
consolidated statement of financial position, consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income for the 
period,  consolidated  statement  of  changes  in  equity,  consolidated  statement  of  cash  flows  and  notes  to  the  consolidated 
financial  statements  –  and  the  combined  management  report  of  Biofrontera  AG  and  the  group  for  the  financial  year  from 
1 January 2016 to 31 December 2016. The preparation of the consolidated financial statements and the combined management 
report in accordance with IFRS, as adopted by the EU, and with the additional requirements of the German commercial law 
pursuant to section 315a paragraph 1 HGB are the responsibility of the parent company’s management. Our responsibility is to 
express an opinion on the consolidated financial statements and the combined management report based on our audit. 

We conducted our audit of the consolidated financial statements in accordance with paragraph 317 HGB and German generally 
accepted standards for the audit of financial statements promulgated by the Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer [Institute of Public 
Auditors in Germany] (IDW). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit such that misstatements materially 
affecting the presentation of the net assets, financial position and results of operations in the consolidated financial statements 
in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework and in the combined management report  are detected with 
reasonable  assurance.  Knowledge  of  the  business  activities  and  the  economic  and  legal  environment  of  the  Group  and 
expectations as to possible misstatements are taken into account in the determination of audit procedures. The effectiveness 
of the accounting-related internal control system and the evidence supporting the disclosures in the consolidated financial 
statements and the combined management report are examined primarily on a test basis within the framework of the audit. The 
audit includes assessing the annual financial statements of those entities included in consolidation, the determination of entities 
to  be  included  in  consolidation,  the  accounting  and  consolidation  principles  used  and  significant  estimates  made  by 
management,  as  well  as  evaluating  the  overall  presentation  of  the  consolidated  financial  statements  and  the  combined 
management report. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion. 

Our audit has not led to any reservations. 

In our opinion, based on the findings of our audit, the consolidated financial statements of Biofrontera AG for the financial year 
from 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2016 comply with IFRS, as adopted by the EU, and the additional requirements of the German 
commercial law pursuant to § 315a Abs. 1 HGB and give a true and fair view of the net assets, financial position and results of 
operations of the Group in accordance with these requirements. The combined management report of Biofrontera AG and the 
group is consistent with the consolidated financial statements, complies with the legal requirements, as a whole provides a 
suitable view of the Group’s position and suitable presents the opportunities and risks of future development. 

Without  modifying  our  opinion,  we  would  like  to  point  out  the  statements  made  in  the  combined  management  report.  As 
mentioned in the section " Risk, opportunity  and forecast report " under "Liquidity risk", during the financial year 2017 additional 
capital measures will be needed until the break-even is reached, for the planned investments into marketing in the USA and to 
meet  obligations  from  the  issued  option  bond.  On  the  basis  of  its  previous,  invariably  successful  experience  with  capital 
measures, the Management Board assumes that the liquidity required for business activities can be further ensured. If these 
valid estimates are, contrary to expectations, not realized, this could constitute a threat to the company’s continued existence. 

Düsseldorf, 5 April 2017 

Warth & Klein Grant Thornton AG 
Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft 

Kai-Niclas Rauscher  
Wirtschaftsprüfer 
[German Public Auditor] 

Ralf  Clemens 
Wirtschaftsprüfer 
[German Public Auditor] 

86 

Biofrontera AG Annual Report 2016 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Published by  

Biofrontera AG 
Hemmelrather Weg 201 
D-51377 Leverkusen 
Telephone:  + 49 (0) 214 87 63 2 0 
Fax:  
+ 49 (0) 214 87 63 2 90 
Email:   info@biofrontera.com 
www.biofrontera.com 

Investor Relations  

Thomas Schaffer 
Anke zur Mühlen 
Telephone:  + 49 (0) 214 87 63 2 0 
Email:    

press@biofrontera.com 

Concept and Design  

Instinctif Partners 
www.instinctif.com 

Graphics  

Nadine Dreismann 
www.dreismann.eu 

Fotos  

Fotolia (title page, pages 4, 6, 9) 
Biofrontera (pages 11-14) 
U. Granzer (page. 23) 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Biofrontera AG 
Hemmelrather Weg 201 
D-51377 Leverkusen 
Telephone:   + 49 (0) 214 87 63 2 0 
+ 49 (0) 214 87 63 2 90 
Fax:    
Email:  
info@biofrontera.com 
www.biofrontera.com